Love Is In The Air

Not long ago I was a part of a birthday adventure for Mary Costa (pictured at right!). Much like the Joshua Tree trip, this day involved planning and packed lunches, but in addition, this trip also involved a rented van and lots of wine.

We spent the day at Malibu Wines, a vineyard that offers colorful scenery (vintage cars painted bold colors, lots of picnic tables and benches, and old-timey trailers), wine tastings for 10 and 12 dollars (includes four samples), and many reasonably priced bottles to enjoy while you stay there. You have to buy at least one bottle per group, but with our group of about ten people, that was not a problem at all. You also get a free wine glass with each purchase.

We left for Malibu Wines at around 10:30 and got there in time to set up our picnicked food for lunch. After several bottles of wine we played "Mary trivia" with my team coming in third place out of four, but I'm proud of us. We did a stand up job--it was a very competitive game, let me tell you. After that we all dispersed and explored the area. My friend Cricket and I found some nice photo opportunities by a pale blue vintage car, and then we made our way to a hillside area that had more chairs to relax in. At that time, four planes flew over head and spelled out "Love is in the Air." It was a sweet touch to a very enjoyable adventure. You can go to Malibuwine.com for more information and for a map to the winery.

At around four we were ready to head back. It was a great day and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a weekend day trip. There's an amazing video about our day at itsaroything.blogspot.com. Check it out!

And enjoy these pictures:

Tonight I’m Takin’ No Calls, ‘Cause I’ll be Dancin’

What event would open with Candis Cayne and Wilson Cruz dancing to Lady Gaga’s Telephone? It was the 2010 GLAAD Media Awards and Cayne and Cruz hosted the colorful event. I was in attendance that evening, as SAGIndie is a sponsor of the GLAAD Awards. The event featured a pre-event cocktail party with a silent auction, where everything from a spa weekend, to wine baskets, to a new car was available for bids. My roommate and date for the evening, Megan Roy, and myself had a chance to get our picture taken at the photo booth (pictured at right). This was followed by a live auction. At the live auction trips to London went quickly as did personal redecorating sessions with a top designer. The raised funds went to GLAAD to help the organization continue spreading its message of equality and peace.

During the awards show, GLEE took best comedic series and the cast, including Dianna Agron, Chris Colfer, Jane Lynch, and Kevin McHale were there to accept it. Outstanding film went to A Single Man and Outstanding Reality Program went to RuPaul’s Drag Race. The event had some serious moments, including a speech by Constance McMillen, the young teen whose high school cancelled prom after she asked to bring her girlfriend. She presented one of two special awards that evening.

The two special awards were handed out to honorees, Drew Barrymore and Wanda Sykes, who took home their awards for their success in entertainment, as well as their support and positive inclusion of the GLBT community in films, television and the media in general. The event ended with a spirited performance by American Idol winner Adam Lambert. Decked out in a leather studded jacket and blue-streaked faux-hawk he performed a couple rock-heavy songs that got the audience on its feet. All in all, a successful evening.

I Went to Joshua Tree National Park and All I Got Was This Rattlesnake Bite

Just Kidding! Neither myself nor one of my five friends saw or was bitten by a rattlesnake. We did see a rabbit though and a really large crow (?) as well as a bunch of lizards (size varied).

Google maps listed Joshua Tree as two hours and thirty-eight minutes from my apartment. I was concerned about this since my trip to San Diego had a similar forecast and my friends and I ended up in the car for about five hours. The Saturday morning drive, however, was painless and basically traffic-free. It really only took two hours to get there.

It costs fifteen dollars per car to gain entry into the park, but with three people per car, the five dollars wasn't bad.

After perusing a useful book on trails that my friend Jennie picked up we planned our day over lunch at one of the picnic sites. Our plan included a visit to the dam and Keys' View. We also had another potential hike in mind, but once we got started on the first trail that led us to the dam, we couldn't help ourselves. We ended up climbing rocks and creating detours that ate up most of our time, which was really quite OK.

Going in a group had its advantages. There were many items needed to enjoy the day at Joshua Tree: sunscreen, water, water, water, packed lunches/snacks, cameras, paper towels, first aid kit, etc. But, of course, the best reason to go with a group is to enjoy the vast, open, uninhabited land together.
(View from Keys' View above) After Keys' View we didn't have enough time for a hike but we still had another hour and a half before sundown. We decided to visit Pioneer Town, an old collection of saloons and town stores that used to function as a Western film set...

Rebecca, among the willows.
Cor and I, off to get some Apple Jack.



(That's a lil Western slang for ya.)


(Photography by Rebecca Lear and Cricket Demasi)


I'll leave you with some Western wisdom: When in doubt, let your horse figure it out.

Books ----> Movies

After recently finishing Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card I read that its potential film is currently living in limbo with a director no longer attached. It could make a compelling film, now that special and visual effects are more sophisticated. It would be a challenge though, to balance the emotion with the action.

This got me thinking...what other books would I like to see turned into movies?

Prey by Michael Crichton. We've already seen Congo, Sphere, Jurassic Park, the Lost World, Disclosure, etc. etc. What's one more? I think it's the best choice for a film compared to State of Fear and Next.

Also, it looks like the Help has been optioned to be turned into a film. It's a colorful, well written story about the lives of maids in the rural South in the 1960s. With the right cast, I can see it as a great drama on screen.

What about Computer Animated films?

A book from the Redwall series! Yes. Come on. Computer Animation has now entertained adult themes (Up), as well as sword fighting and bloodshed (Beowolf), why not the anthropomorphizing world of dueling rodents? The adaptation of the Redwall series was attempted in a short-lived cartoon-animated TV series, and there may be an Austrialian cartoon-animated movie of Redwall(?) But still, it's time to give a big-screen, CGI vision to the children series that focuses on battles and feasts, slavery and freedom, life and death, rats and ferrets versus squirrels and mice. I vote Mossflower first before Redwall.

Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton. It is already a live-action movie with Antonio Banderas that I guess I need to see (the Thirteenth Warrior), but after the release of Beowolf, mentioned above, I can't help but think that this would make a similarly good film, maybe too similar, Eaters of the Dead is loosely based on Beowolf, maybe I'm changing my mind as I write this...

I thought I would come up with more...I'll have to start a running list and update as necessary. Stay tuned!

How about one book that I don't need to see on screen as it is now? Rant by Chuck Palahniuk. Fight Club is a great film so it makes sense that it set the stage for future Palahniuk movie adaptions. The adaptation of Choke had a far less impressive run, but it was a smaller scale film. I can't really comment on it because I haven't seen it. So, Rant. I read this book while interning in the entertainment business. It was passed around for possible acquisition. The story of Rant is strange and other-worldly. No huge surprise there. It exists in an alternate present with day-time people and night-time people. The main character, Rant, is a legend for what he did in defiance of the norms in this world. You find out very slowly what that defiance is.

Usually, when I see a film adaptation of a book I think that the more the filmmakers strayed from the original text, the more they messed up. In the case of Rant, however, it would only survive as a film in spite of its original plot. It would need to be re-molded for the screen for a few reasons. As it is now we only get snippets of story, small impressions of this world given out in small doses. There wasn't a compelling action that made me want to keep reading. What made me want to keep reading was the voice and interesting world. Plot was secondary. The ending isn't enough of a pay off either. It didn't strike me the same way the end of Fight Club did. It's not the same kind of ending where all is revealed and explained in a world we can all relate to.

The most cinematic aspect of Rant is the idea of Party Crashing. Party Crashing is the recreational activity of racing and bashing up your car with other cars who are playing the "game." It's a secret club that comes out at night. The people who play want to feel a genuine, raw emotion, very similar to why people fight in Fight Club. Party Crashers signal that they're "in" by tying some identifying feature to their car, for example, a Christmas tree, or something else that wouldn't necessarily seem out of place. The stylistic world, the energy involved in Party Crashing and the character Rant would be unique and visually impressive on screen, but I don't see how the story would translate. The dynamic between party crashers would have to be expanded and become the focus of the film, while a lot of Rant's childhood would have to go, including the emphasis on time travel and Rant's sordid family history. It's complex and it is interesting, but on screen, I don't think it would have the right effect if it was the focus of the film.

Not all books are written to be easily translatable to film and that's fine. Don't get me wrong, I'd probably go see an adaptation of Rant, but I'd hope it would be adapted with care and thought and with a little bit of absurdity, imagination and madness.

“I’m Not Insane! My Mother Had Me Tested!”

A few months ago I posted a review of Parks and Recreation and I have come to the conclusion that I don’t feel the same way about the show as I did before. I still think it’s had some good episodes but I’ve been slightly disappointed week after week. After watching back to back episodes of P&R and then Community (on hulu), I have to say that I preferred Community to P&R four out of five times. Community’s holiday episodes were better/funnier every time with more imaginative plotlines, sharper dialogue, etc. I’m still a P&R fan but I hope they start surprising me.

Also, my new favorite sitcom is The Big Bang Theory. I saw it a couple of times on airplane rides to and from LA/NJ. A few months after that I finally decided to watch the show all the way through. The show centers on three extremely gifted physicists and one talented engineer whose social awkwardness stifles their lives outside of their lab rooms and halo nights. In the pilot an attractive blonde waitress moves in across from two of the friends, Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) and Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki). Leonard befriends her, which shakes up the daily routine that the guys have grown so accustom to. My favorite aspects of this show include its sharp and smart dialogue and its character development. A mix of neurotic behavior, OCD, genius intelligence, and a lack of social understanding, makes Sheldon Cooper one of the best sitcom characters I’ve ever seen. He says a lot of things that the average modern gal, guy or cynic may want to say out loud everyday but doesn’t. This show has also provided a platform for Nobel Prize winners, comic book heroes, and classic sci-fi TV characters to make very amusing cameos. Best of all, the show is a refreshing take on love and friendship and the fact that it’s been renewed for TWO more seasons, at least, makes me very happy. My goal for next season is to secure tickets to a live taping of the show! It shoots in Burbank and tickets are free from tvtickets.com

Fun facts: The Big Bang Theory shares executive producers from Roseanne and many of the characters from that sitcom make appearances on this one, including Johnny Galecki, Sara Gilbert and Laurie Metcalf.

The theme song is performed by Bare Naked Ladies.

The show’s had several Emmy nominations and last year it won a People’s Choice award for Favorite TV Comedy.

Ratings are high here in the states, but I also read that The Big Bang Theory is the number 1 sitcom in Latin America, go figure.

Let me leave you with some amusing quotes from the show:

I'm polymerized tree sap and you're an inorganic adhesive, so whatever verbal projectile you launch in my direction is reflected off of me, returns to its original trajectory and adheres to you.

Oh, well, this would be one of those circumstances that people unfamiliar with the law of large numbers would call a coincidence.

Oh Gravity, thou art a heartless bitch.

And of course…

I'm not insane! My mother had me tested!

“My Favorite Genre of Movie Are Ones That Get Made”—

--says John August as he moderates part 3 of the FIND Directors Series, a series of discussions between filmmakers, sound editors, actors, producers and more, hosted by Film Independent. I attended two of these events over the last few weeks. Each session had a focus; the first one’s topic was “working with actors” and the second focused on “sound in filmmaking.”

Panel One had crew members from The Blind Side, including Director John Lee Hancock and actress Kim Dickens, along with 2004’s the Alamo actor Jason Patric. What I remember most about that panel is Hancock’s admission that any good director isn’t afraid to say he doesn’t know the answer to a problem. He, Dickens and Hancock discussed problem days when certain scenes just wouldn’t work and how they problem-solved their issues. He suggested time, if you have it, to stop and go back to a particular scene. He also suggested opening a dialogue with the actor instead of trying to diagnose an issue and pick out problems when you don’t really know why something isn’t working. Basically, he believes that honesty can be the best policy when trying to get the right performances from actors.

The second panel I went to had Jeffrey Friedman, one of the two directors of HOWL, a Sundance 2010 film festival opener, and Lora Hirschberg from Skywalker Sound who was the sound editor for the film. Focusing on sound was refreshing since it seems to be one of the lesser discussed topics in filmmaking. One point that I wholeheartedly agreed with was stated by Hirschberg. She said that you should always try to get the cleanest takes while you’re on set. If sound tells you they need one more, you should get one more. The extra five minutes will pay off in the end when you aren’t stuck in a black box with your actors trying to record ADR and recapture that amazing moment that you saw materialize on set, five months later.

But my favorite quote was spoken by moderator John August, whose screenwriting credits include Go and Big Fish. It is also the title of this blog. He reminded me that making a film is a huge feat, but also, that having multiple project ideas in different genres is a good thing. Keep your options open and don’t be afraid to try a genre that you normally wouldn’t. The point is simple: get your work out there and get something made.

You can watch the videos by clicking here or by visiting Film Independent’s website.

First Time to Utah, First Time to Sundance, 10 Things I Wasn’t Expecting

(Sorry I've taken a little while to update but hopefully that will be changing!)





1.) To be 100 percent surrounded by mountains. Yes, I’ve been to Colorado and rode up to the top of Pike’s Peak, but I’ve never stood in a town and been able to turn 180 degrees and see nothing but a jagged barrier landscape, makes you feel like you’ve been dropped in a teacup where the sides of the cup are gigantic mountains.

2.) Such rustic lodging. There were deer antlers on my wall, ‘nuff said.

3.) To regret forgetting a hat. I know how that sounds but I had gloves, multiple scarves, two winter coats and snow boots; yet, because it snowed nearly every day a hat became paramount. Also, the lines were quite long as we waited to get into a screening. Good thing we had hundreds of awesome SAGIndie hats and I eventually got my hands on one.

4.) To see Robert Duvall in person! Probably the actor I was most moved to see. He came up on stage along with his co-stars Bill Murray, Sissy Spacek and Lucas Black after the screening of their film Get Low. He didn’t have too much to say but he did speak fondly of the mule they used in the film.

5.) To meet Amber Benson and Adam Busch. They attended SAGIndie’s Filmmaker’s Lunch and they were representing their Slamdance competition films Cummings Farm and Drones. Yes, I know each of them as an ex-Buffy season 6 cast member and that season’s wannabe supervillian, respectively.

6.) To learn so much about Right to Work states. Utah is one of them, which made for an interesting discussion during our SAGIndie Panel, which included our National Director Darrien Gipson, SAG’s Diversity National Director Rebecca Yee, as well as the New Media National Director Mark Friedlander and National Director of Digital Marketing Steve Graham.

7.) To see John Carroll Lynch at our SAGIndie Actor’s Brunch and have him not talk in a Minnesotan accent.

8.) To have a film that I knew little about end up being my Sundance favorite: Hesher. Obscene and unapologetic, it had some authentic, heartfelt moments. (Joseph-Gordon Levitt to the right in Hesher)

9.) To be one of the audience members who asked a question during a post-screening Q & A. After I saw Splice, I had to ask director Vincenzo Natali a question: did he mean for his sci-fi horror flick to be so darn funny? Splice had the most audience participation of any film I saw, it scared us, made us grimace, gawf, squirm and most importantly, laugh. His answer: horror and comedy make good bedfellows so yes, absolutely, I was expecting laughs. I was happy to hear this because if you can laugh at the characters and the story a little then this movie has got to be my second favorite.


10.) To have a week in Utah go by so fast.