The Agency

I've been too busy (read: too lazy) to update this blog as often as I would like.

We completed the "Chase" film for my cinema class and it was screened on November 6. It was a pretty great experience seeing one of my films on the big screen. The professor was impressed and commented on my cinematography and editing. I received a perfect score, 120/120, for the assignment. I've been somewhat overwhelmed by my upcoming tasks. I have another film to complete for the class which is due in two weeks. School work, new projects and school applications are piling up.

Here's some interesting talk; I e-mailed Shervin yesterday to talk to him about an idea I had for YouTube videos. He said he wanted to meet with me so I went over to his office and met him and Danny. Turns out, they want me to rewrite "The Agency" and want us to film certain scenes from the first episode. Basically, they want to put together a small package and pitch the show to several networks; VH1, HBO, etc.

I love the idea and don't mind rewriting the script(s). I'm going to have to redo the original outlines and structure the story in a more professional way. I can do this on my spare time and it won't overload with my other work. If it ends up selling, they want to make me head writer. I wouldn't mind writing for television at all.

Chasing Nothing

In an unfortunate event yesterday, I found out USC's application for Screenwriting is due December 1st. I must have read wrong because I thought they were all due February 1st, but that's for all other majors. Just my luck.

After being pretty disappointed, I decided it was best not to attempt to rush the process. As of now, I think I'll be applying as a Critical Studies major with a minor in Screenwriting. Of course, I'm still hoping for Chapman (which I'll apply as Film Production with my second-choice being either Screenwriting or Film Studies) but I have to look at each school separately.

Igori is coming over tomorrow afternoon so we can take a look at the rough cut of Amorosa. It will be his first time seeing an edited cut of the film so I'm anxious to hear his suggestions and criticism. We'll also be filming a short film for my Cinema class later that day. It's very small, but hopefully I can make it look good enough for the class to enjoy.

I feel so unmotivated, I feel like life is passing me by and I'm just wasting my time.

Updates

After speaking with Justin, who will be composing the film, I decided it was best if I send him the film through mail. I completed a rough edit of the film last night and also mailed out an update to the cast.

They all seemed to be happy to hear from me, probably because they're more anxious for the film than I am. Impossible. I hate keeping them waiting and everybody else, but I need to take my time.

I'm going to cut a second trailer which Justin will also compose, so in the next few weeks, I'll release the first and second trailers as we officially count the days for the actual film.

Score?

I've been trying to continue with the process of editing. As I come closer to getting a rough copy of the film, I seem to get nervous. As soon as I make any process, I give up for the night.

The climax of the film is being edited right now, and all I have to do after that is add the narration. It looks like the film will have a running time of about fifteen minutes. I've been playing back the first ten minutes or so, just to see how I feel. I need to work on the transitions because the tone of the film gets lost during each scene.

I came across a composer from a student film forum. I asked him if he'd like to take a look at my film, mainly the scenes that have no sound yet, and see what he could do with them. They may look better with a score and help the overall tone of the film. I hope so.

Other than that, I've been watching the trailer for Revolutionary Road, as much as I can. It inspires me to finish my film, not only so I could have a finished product, but also so I can move onto another idea. Hopefully I'll come back in a week or so and say the official rough copy of the film is ready.

21 Shots

After being sick multiple times this month (stomach pains, fever, cold, stomach pains), I finally found time to film my first project for film class. Unfortunately, everything went wrong and I'm to blame.

Sure, I procrastinated at first but hadn't imagined I'd become ill three weeks in a row. The shots didn't feel amazing, that's because they weren't amazing. I wish I had the time to frame the shots better, and work on my composition, but I didn't. The street was busy with cars and people, the tripod was horrible (I swear, I'm going to break this thing) and I was losing patience.

An unedited five minute project took up three tapes because I didn't like any of the takes. Until I I finally realized I was going to go over the time limit which meant 5 points off. I was nowhere near finished and kept breaking down. What kind of filmmaker am I? I can't even compile 21 shots? Long shot? Close Up? We mastered these in Amorosa, why not turn that in?

In the end, I'm not happy with the footage and the tape reads 00:05:30. I e-mailed my professor; not to ask for an extension or tell him about my illness, but to admit I didn't give this project everything I possibly could. Even if he doesn't reply, or says he doesn't even have a clue who I am, I felt like I had to do this for me.

Would I have came across the same situation had I planned the project for a week? It's not about the 60 points, it's about what you learned and what you take from it.

Post-Production

Igori and I finished filming our second unit photography yesterday and began uploading the footage around 4pm. We ended up with four tapes in total, reaching nearly four hours. Everything was going well until I played back one of our uploads and we realized it was grainy! We were about three hours into our footage so there was no way we were going to start all over. I immediately began to panick but tried to conceal it as best as I could. To make a long story short, there must have been a computer error because it turned out fine.

Today, I debated whether I should edit the material at home or work. I ended up transfering the footage to our external hard drive and connecting to Mary's laptop. Then, I connected my HDTV screen to the laptop along with my keyboard. I set this all up in my living room, where I'm in right now. As soon as it was all set up, I plugged in the headphones and realized I only heard the audio from the left side. Of course, I panicked. I rushed back to work to double check the audio there and same problem! I was devestated. Somehow, we captured the audio in monoraul! I immediately burned some unedited footage to a DVD and brought it home. Honestly, it sounds pretty good and I'm very happy with the idea. Woody shoots his films in mono and I believe it gives my film a much more realistic feel. It took a lot of panick and worry to get to this conclusion, though. I thank Mary for her patience.

As far as my living room goes, I feel as if this is the perfect enviornment to work in. It feels right, and when you're doing something as time consuming as editing, you have to work with what feels good. However, I don't like the idea of working through a laptop, so I'm thinking of doing it all at work. I guess I'll end up making my decision tomorrow. I spent a few minutes looking at our footage and I'm pretty impressed. The film may never be as good as I first envisioned it, but at least my audience won't be able to tell. I think editing will be a lot of fun as I tell another story and shape the original one. I have a feeling it's going to take months with my busy schedule.

We're officially in post-production!

My Best Friend's Girl: World Premiere

I woke up yesterday feeling like I was going to get a fever. I couldn't miss out on class because we were going to have our first math exam. After class ended, I decided I didn't have the energy for Anthropology class and ran home. My head started to ache and I started to feel cold all over. By the time I got home and in bed, I was freezing!

Usually, I wouldn't mind having a fever if I have the chance to rest. Although having a fever is horrible, you have to sleep it off to feel better and that is one of the best sleeps in the world. However, we had a plan; pick up Mary from work at 3:00 and go to Arclight Cinema for the World Premiere of My Best Friend's Girl. I got into bed around 11am and only had a few hours to feel better if we were going to make it. I took medicine, sweated as much as I could, and took a shower. It was almost 3 at this point and I told Mary we should forget about going. Before I knew it, I had already changed my clothes and left the house.

Standing in line was, of course, tiring but well worth it. This theatre wasn't nearly as large as Westwood's for Vicky Cristina Barcelona. We didn't see any stars until after the show ended until we finally saw Dane Cook himself. While walking to the car, I bumped into Jon Lovitz who was casually walking with a small crowd. Such a small, unusual looking man.