Making It Real

How Does He Get All That Money?

2009-08-04T17:42:00.001-07:00

I just watched the trailer for Roland Emmerich's "2012"

[scrippet]

INT. LUSH OFFICE - MONTAGE

Dark woods and stuffed leather... Roland Emmerich meets with a Really Rich Guy.

ROLAND
Hey how about a movie where aliens blow up cities?

REALLY RICH GUY
Okay Roland, here's the money.

ROLAND
Hey how about a movie where the weather blows up cities?

REALLY RICH GUY
Okay Roland, here's the money.

ROLAND
Hey how about a movie where an Ancient Mayan Prophecy blows up cities?

REALLY RICH GUY
How would you like that?

ROLAND
Fives and Twenties, thanks. Oh and some change for the meter.
[/scrippet]

Is it that easy?

after the scrippets fix

2009-07-29T14:17:00.001-07:00

[scrippet]
INT. ORCA - DAY

Whistling a sea shanty...

QUINT
(gravelly)
Oh send me a pirate what I can shoot with a gun It's what I luv doin'barrels of fun....
[/scrippet]

testing scrippets via email post

2009-07-25T05:58:00.001-07:00

Let's see how this works....

To save some typing...

[scrippet]

INT. CAFE - MORNING

Dave crosses his fingers, closes his eyes, prayerful...

DAVE
(muttering hope)
This is going to work. For the love of all that is holy, this is going to work.

He opens his eyes and...

[/scrippet]

Testing Scrippets...

2009-07-24T08:50:00.000-07:00

Okay, Let's see....

[scrippet]

INT. CAFE - MORNING

Dave crosses his fingers, closes his eyes, prayerful...

DAVE
(muttering hope)
This is going to work. For the love of all that is holy, this is going to work.

He opens his eyes and...

[/scrippet]

There's Someone on The Horizon...

2009-07-22T07:54:00.000-07:00

And that someone is me. (Squints) At least I think it's me.

Yeah, it's been a while. Best way to descri-- no, *evoke* all these seasons, is some kinda cross-the-desert metaphor.

Dry sand, and baking sun.

New story in the works. We'll see how that comes along, but it shows.. solidity... and lots of room for growth...

A lot of work ahead, shaping it. Lots to do. But the idea has support. It's shootable on a low budget, while being grand and imaginative, too. And I can't tell you much more. (Well, except that I couldn't have come with it on my own. Not at all. There is a real and beautiful, Muse. )

New post soon.

--------------

I'd love for you to check out my T-shirt (or mug) for screenwriters.

The Writers Strike is over

2008-02-12T23:41:00.000-08:00

More on this later, but the membership voted 92.5% to "lift the restraining order" and end the Strike.

The Holiday Season is here....

2007-11-21T14:50:00.000-08:00

Everyone, have a great Thanksgiving.

Negotiations Update

2007-11-17T07:50:00.000-08:00

Sure, they say"No other details or press statements will be issued." But moments after I posted the good news, there's a pair of opinion pieces in this morning's LA Times. One from David Young, the other from Nick Counter. [I seem to be getting a "Page Not Found" at the LAT. The Opinion piece is also posted on the home page at AMPTP.org, so I've linked you there.]

Sigh, Counter's still spinning -- granted not quite a much as he was -- but it's still there. Can he refrain from spin and bull until the 26th without gasping for air?

I don't know.

But I'm sure breathing easier.

WGA Strike Development

2007-11-17T06:07:00.000-08:00

On Monday, November 26th, the WGA and the AMPTP will resume negotiations.

The AMPTP hasn't asked for the strike to be suspended during the talks, so the work stoppage will continue, presumably, until the contract is worked out.

At the WGA site, "Leaders from the AMPTP and the WGA have mutually agreed to resume formal negotiations on November 26. No other details or press statements will be issued."

I was gonna riff on the AMPTP's "Open Letter," but their main page is now a decently neutral copy of the same message.

What A Tangled Web They Weave...

2007-11-15T07:40:00.000-08:00

This from over at United Hollywood.

Could this push them back to negotiating table?

Ad people, you're off the hook!

2007-11-09T03:52:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure if advertising execs have been following the whole WGA
strike, but looks like placing ads might be a heck of a lot cheaper
for you now.

Just don't pay.

And if they argue, tell 'em,

"Hey, it's promotional."

Caution - Slippery slope

2007-11-08T04:59:00.000-08:00

Tuesday -- second day of the strike -- I received an email.

I found your Blog,
brilliant
when is your next film?

That was it. Guy I've never heard of or met, safe gmail address. It asks nothing beyond when my next film would be. He didn't post a comment to the blog. The signature below his name read: [redacted]. Googling his name came up with no results.

"Brilliant." The red flags are up. Something seems off here.

Now, Josh Friedman? Brilliant. John August? Brilliant. John Rogers? Brilliant. There's quite a list of screenwriting related blogs, many of which can be described as "brilliant."

But mine? Not brilliant. There is plenty of room for improvement.

He hasn't read the blog. Obviously. Except maybe skimming. Looks at the main page, saw the post that starts ...

I'm not guild yet, so what I bring to you here, the following link, does not benefit me immediately.
But one day, it will...

So a writers strike is full on. If I was scouting for non-WGA writers, where would I go? Lots and heaps of blogs by wannabe screen scribes, so I'd start there. Look for the ones that are not guild members yet.

Then, I'd chat 'em up. Flatter them, as questions. Build a relationship before ask for a pitch.

So, I clicked REPLY...

Hi,

Thanks for the kind word about the blog.

There is nothing to announce at this point. I suggest checking the blog periodically for updates.

When the written projects are ready, well, the strike has to be over before anything can be brought to market.

For those walking the lines, honk your horn when you're near. Give 'em a thumbs-up! Fair share!

Cheers,

Dave

There must be scouts looking, because there are already reports of scab writing going on. Scabs deliver their work from wherever they are, via email.

Am I being overcautious?

Nope.

And so should you be.

Someone may come trolling along, perhaps tossing out premature flattery, so watch out!

Please, don't scab.

And do not ask me to.

Why we fight ... ?

2007-11-08T02:18:00.001-08:00

Here's a good rundown...

Why united...

2007-11-02T10:28:00.000-07:00

I'm not guild yet, so what I bring to you here, the following link, does not benefit me immediately.

But one day, it will.

The WGA will be striking, likely Monday, November 5th. And although it won't benefit, the effects are close, as my writing partner works in the industry.

The following letter from a Teamster was sent to Kate Purdy at United Hollywood blog.

This deserves the widest possible audience. You can read it at United Hollywood, or here.

It is cogent, sincere, and eloquent.

(If we all stand in this together, we all benefit.

How, you ask?

I received this letter from a Teamster. It lays out why New Media and Union Solidarity are both issues we need to stand up for right now.)

"I am a teamster. A location scout on a TV show. My small corner of Warner Brothers Television is far removed from the writers' offices. I make a fraction of what they do, work more hours, and my family's schedule is ruined every time they write "EXT: NIGHT." I've been on my current show for 10 weeks and I just met my first writer.

Yet if the next time I see him he's wearing a red shirt and carrying a placard, I will not cross his line.

Why?

I could just say "Teamsters don't cross picket lines." I could just say "I need a vacation." I could just say "I believe in the rights of the working man." While that is all true, the real reason is more complex. I believe this is the opening round of a long battle that every union member in Hollywood will have to face as our contracts expire.

The digital world is not in the future, it is here now. It is now possible to watch Television and Movies entirely on the internet, and the network sites, with ads galore, are proof. This is not a hypothetical. It is profit-making reality. If the writers are denied fair payment for reuse, I do not believe the Directors, Actors and the rest of us will fare any better when our turn comes.

Yes, I said the "rest of us." While I don't receive individual residual payments for my work as a teamster, my pension and health fund does. As the distribution stream goes digital those residual payments will slow to a trickle, and the fund will suffer. When the time comes I plan on being old, sick, and in need of Health Care. And the WB doesn't want me to have it.

So no, I will not be crossing any picket line. And I ask you to join me. Not for the writers. Not for Me. Not for my kids. Not even for you. For all of us. Because that's what it's going to take. All of us.

(The Teamsters are an amazing union who I highly admire. I understand that there are bills to pay and mouths to feed. I understand that some sacrifices for some people will be too big to make. In terms of the legality of what the Companies can do, and the letter threats Teamsters are receiving – reach out to your union's legal department. They'll be able to guide you.)

For Martin

2007-02-26T14:37:00.000-08:00

I could only grin, and sigh relief.

Congratulations, Martin.

Eye on the target, Pull the string back...

2007-02-01T08:48:00.000-08:00

Each and every early morning, there's a cafe waiting for me. Owner with a friendly hello, and off at the front counter, hunched with pen and paper, another writer.

And, very often, when I take a break from my laptop, and he takes a break from his paper, we talk.

He used to work in the story department of a TV show, a one-hour drama, (one-camera) and it's refreshing to talk with someone who knows the difference between breaking a story, and deciding where the commercials go. He's understandably cynical of the industry, of what goes on, but he's surprising relaxed and candid to share his experience with me. (I withhold his name only because I haven't asked him if I can include him here.)

And it reached the point, on Monday, in our talks, that I could open up my concerns about my own writing.

"I'm really good at starting things..." and I let that linger, settle in. Then again, "really good at starting things."

The answer is a smile that already knows what I mean, I don't have to repeat.

"In TV, you don't have a lot of time, maybe two weeks. Let's say three days to break story, to get a solid structure, and the remaining time to deliver your script." He's a big one on "getting the structure down solid, it's like building the framework before you start finishing rooms. Writing a scene is finishing a room."

He's knows, from first meeting me, my aim is features, and he knows I'm working on one, but at the moment, we're sticking to TV.

"What do you watch?"

I tell him the current show that I know best, "Lost" .... "-- but it's serialized, arcs for the whole series ... you can't spec that."

"No problem, because you're not going for a staff position. You're just going to write an episode that demonstrates that you understand its tone and structure."

Okay...

"And I have two weeks?"

He considers that for the briefest of seconds, "You have exactly one month."

"That would make it...."

"... February 28th."

And he's already hunched over his writing.

"And, if i can't make that deadline, we write an agreement that I'll never work in this biz again?"

He turned cold. "You keep going. Never Quit."

I smiled agreement, and returned to my table.

What'd'ya know, I aim for features, and TV specs are the way to get there. I didn't see that coming.

Is he advising me right? Is this good before I finish my feature spec?

Accepting Pasts, Changing Futures

2007-01-25T08:15:00.001-08:00

I have the urge, after almost every posting, to revise. I resist, haven't done it yet, but boy, am I sorely tempted.

Making it Real: Special Edition ? No. (It took the strength two people to hold me in place from doing it...)

If there is any value to anyone else in anything I've written here, or will write, even one sentence (Hey, this just a what-if ... value is a subjective, individual decision) but if there is, someone, somewhere may want to go back to it, or refer to it. So it stays, for now.

There is more value to the creative to move forward. Let go the last work, release, forget about it an move on to the next.

When one is learning, it's inevitable to look back on past works, and regret what it could have been. It's natural and common. The painful contrast between what we know know, and what we didn't know then. Painful, only if we move to change it. Can't. Understand, accept, continue forward.

This is a different thing than Director's Cuts or Special Editions -- works that were compromised from the original intent.

So, if you want to go back and change something, because you know more now, don't. Can't. And, if you could, there are some theoretical physics posit that a changed past event simply continues into another future. You wouldn't have changed the future, you would have simply added another one. But this isn't a venue for that kinda deep stuff, and it's hard to follow this part of my day.

If you do look back to past works, which you are allowed to do from time to time, be proud you did the best you could do at that moment.

If You didn't do your effortful best?

Well, all's not lost.

Because you can change that.

From whence?

2007-01-12T06:52:00.001-08:00

New ideas can come from the strangest places. I don't know where the
term "out of left field" came from, but it doesn't render gee-what-
the as well as I think it should. Left field is still in the stadium,
and it's not totally odd that the ball would come from where the
players are.

How about, "Boy, that sure came from the stadium parking lot!" Much
better.

But when it comes to ideas to write movies from, every seasoned
writer will tell you different. And that's as it should be. (I'm sure
Ken Levine might have had a story idea or two from stadium parking
lots, but no surprises there.)

There were three of us chatting, and I was one week into the aim
(sigh, again) to get something ready for this years Nicholl
Fellowship. Dry, and empty, the idea tank.

Then, one of us (definitely not me) blurted out how a specific genre
was kinda done to him, and within a minute, without thought, fought
back.

Not an expert (I had enjoyed only one movie of this genre) I took it,
and spun it... took a typical character, and put them in an
unfamiliar place, and with a spit-balling loosness, tossed it out. It
went over well, and I'm simmer it, stirring occasionally with
thought, and the idea is growing.

May not be the Nicholl, but that doesn't matter. More will come. Any
idea nurtured, multiplies. (Keep a notepad close at all times).

But where did the idea come from? It was a blind reaction, a how-bout-
this that got thrown with the same forethought of blinking when
someone pokes a finger at your eye.
It was of a genre, I've only sampled, yet would enjoy seeing this
join other films of its ilk. So the idea hadn't been around for long
at all.

I'm most comfortable jumping right into format, impulsive. I like the
look of a cleanly formatted scene (have since I was 16... though,
then the format was subtly different.)

This one, though, the impulse to outline first, and rewrite the
outline, and polish, and treatment until I'm ready write the script.
Odd.

Maybe I don't need to know where the idea came from; there's likely
some psychological theory that explains it...

Only my Muse really needs to know the origin, but for now, Muse is
winding up... and i just need to have my feet planted, my eye on the
ball, and give it my best swing.

Screenwriters' Resolutions...

2007-01-01T08:01:00.001-08:00

I've been thinking over this ritual of making "resolutions."

I resist every every January. (That's the maverick in me, the part that resists doing something just because I "should.") It's disheartening, too. When the moment comes my heart falls out of it, it's as devastating as a broken promise. Too many resolve to do these things -- not from any sincere passion or motivation, but because it's the champagne-January-First thing to do.

And really, isn't a resolution pretty much a goal? A target made to meet within a certain time frame?

And if, for any of us, there is an ideal resolution, all I can think of, is this:

1. Write...

2. ... all year.

3. Repeat.

So, in the earliest hours of 2007, about 5 hours ago, I wrote. I just opened up Final Draft and wrote the first thing into mind, time of day, and a character nearby, then another, who wanted something, and ooh.... I know how to spoil it for him, make him work for it....

Maybe that's a resolution, but likely not. You see, a resolution is something you are set to do, future tense.

I choose to write. Now.

Call that what you will, and Happy New Year.

The Show's about to Start...

2006-12-31T08:02:00.000-08:00

Got your seat? Good. Hope it's center of the house, just back from
the exact middle (best for sound).

I should warn you there's only one showtime .. tonight, at 11:59:59
PM... and the running time is 8,760 hours.

(Best time to get more popcorn, or do a bathroom trip, is early
April, just before you send in your returns.)

Happy New Year 2007, and Enjoy the Show.

The Loophole

2006-12-27T06:25:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas, All.

"Pfah," you may spit. "Christmas, you doof, was two days ago! And don't try the retroactive thing."

And perhaps I'd quickly jot down 'retroactive thing' because I like the sound of it. It could come in handy.

"What are you writing," you'd add.

I'd hide the notebook, "What?"

"You know what I mean." And then your eyes would narrow into suspicion. "Are you stealing what I'm saying?"

"I can say 'merry christmas' becau-- "

"-- Don't change the subject! --

"-- not changing the subject at all. This started, if you'll recall, when I said 'Merry Christmas' remember?"

"A clever ploy to head off your guilt."

"Guilt??"

"Yes: guilt. For being late wishing me a Merry Christmas."

And that's where I'd have you. And I'd grin triumph.

"Ah, no guilt, because Christmas has Twelve Days."

I imagine you'd be shocked at that, and I'd continue.

"So, as long as I'm within the twelve day window, I'm clear," then I'd pause, look down at you..."What are you writing? ... Are you stealing what I'm saying?"

"Just making a note for next year," And without looking up from your page, you might add:

"But there are not -- never has been, never will be -- twelve days of New Years."

Not yet.

To Everything Turn, Turn, Turn....

2006-12-12T07:12:00.001-08:00

Over at John August's blog, he brought in this recent LA Times article, There follows a great discussion on the strings and arrows of a novelist's demands and furies after a novel was adapted into an underperforming film.

A lot of comments brewing, good arguments on both sides of the issue. (I haven't chimed in there, only because others have spoken for me.)

My position is this: aside from the legal issues, an author should do all in his/her power to support the filmmakers to make the best film version, and that includes dropping antagonistic attitudes to screenwriters, and instead being part of the team.

When comparing books to film versions, the "book was better" argument doesn't wash with me. They're two different ways for telling stories.

In this case the irate author doesn't seem to be able to accept the "kill your darlings" principle, which, I think, applies to the process of adapting, than just to rewrites.

Rockford Revisited II

2006-12-11T06:06:00.000-08:00

Previously, on Making It Real.

And now, the conclusion ...

**************

Caught By Rockford – Part II

The staircase is adorned with elegant wood railings, and a gorgeous patterned wool rug, fixed flush down the steps. Over a century old, that rug. A little faded, but priceless. For this location, as many of the valuables as could be removed and safely stored, were. But this rug had to stay; too hard to take out.

But that's okay, because on a typical day, this mansion plays host to tourists, running tours daily.

The Steadicam operator is off by those cases, unloading his gear. When he had gauged this as a "Three t-shirt shot," he was referring to how many shirts he'd need to absorb the sweat. Understandable with about 80 pounds or so of gear.

We party goers are arranged up along the stairs. I'm in a tux, elegant and dashing (hey, the director's wife said that, so there), and so I'm coupled with Crystal, long wavy blond hair and a long pink chiffon gown. And we might be a couple just arrived to the after party of a major awards show. We're directed to the second landing, our start point for our descent during the shot.

James Garner and John Lithgow arrive on set. In the shot, camera will follow them up the stairs, Crystal and I on our way down, passing them.

I'm one of several appointed smokers, so I pull out my pack of Camels that props supplied. First rehearsal, I light my cigarette,

"Action." Crystal and start down the stairs. She's holding my hand over her shoulder, leading me. (Happy to follow :) And, there's Garner, passing me on my left, Lithgow beside, and that miraculous steadicam. Wow, camera rehearses too. (Obvious to me now, then it was a surprise.)

Okay, Second rehearsal. Back to our marks, and the prop guy comes running around to all the smokers with a large glass ash tray for us to tap into. We did about four rehearsals, and each time, there's the prop guy, gathering our ashes.

Now we're ready for the first take. Goes smoothly.

Back to the marks, and I light the next cigarette. (Continuity: you don't want the cigarette different lengths from different angles. Yes, we'd only see me in one angle here, but it's a good habit to get into -- continuity, not the smoking!)

Second take, camera rolling, "Mark it!" and ... "Action!" In this take, Lithgow sees Crystal, ad libs a nudge to call Garner's attention to her. (All I can think at that moment is You're outa luck guys, she's with me!)

We do about four takes, then crew is on to the next setup.

Crystal and I lean on the rail, side by side, on the bottom landing, everyone else gone.

"Where's the prop guy with that ash tray?" My cigarette had a long tube of ash suspended on the end.

"I don't know," she says."Hey, can I have a puff?"

"Sure," anything you want. "Careful, though." I slowly passed the smoke...

She gingerly takes it, and--

--the ash falls, slow motion toward the priceless rug.

She taps it with the point of her shoe, blending it into a faded area of the pattern.

Over both our shoulders, by both of our ears, Garner's resonant, distinctive voice:

"I saw that."

We both turned, slow terror, kids busted.

Garner milked the moment, stayed quiet, then smiled, "Keeps away the moths, though."

***

I arrived back to Extras Holding. A guy stood, silent, reached into his pocket, handed me a ten dollar bill. Oh right, the game, two to one odds. :)

James Garner had no idea about the off set betting. That's a good thing, I think.

***

That shot would be the only one of my three where you can make me out. For the curious, it was The Glitter Dome, an HBO movie based on the book by Joseph Wambaugh. Starring James Garner, John Lithgow, and Margot Kidder. Directed by Stuart Margolin.

Rockford Revisited

2006-12-09T22:43:00.001-08:00

New stuff in a few days, until then, my two part posting on a movie I was in ...

**************

Caught By Rockford – Part I

"So, you wanna lay money on the game?"

We were outside in the extras' holding tent, forty or so people milling about. Most of them wouldn't make the same mistake as the day before, no how, no way. They were prepared now: chess games, decks of cards, and lots of paperback copies of the book this MOW was based on.

It wasn't waiting to me, though, it was learning. Not boring at all.

World Series is playing on a portable radio, and I hadn't been following, so I wasn't even sure about bets. "Who's playing?"

"Orioles and Phillies. And it's bottom of the fifth."

"Who's losing?" He told me and I pulled out a bill, "Okay, here's five. Two to one odds?"

"Sounds good," he said, and pocketed the five.

I'm called for the next setup, so off I go.

***

The end effect was to be the interior of a Bel Air mansion, or at least that was the hope. Faux Jackson Pollock-ish paintings hung on antique walls, and, in the center of the house, a grand narrow staircase.

It's a party sequence, shot over three days, and today is Day 2 of this location. I'm smart and classy in a crisp black tuxedo, standing to the side of several cases. The operator and the First AD are at the base of the stairs which are really narrow and go up about three stories.

The operator just cranes his neck, looking up, says to the First, "This looks like about a three t-shirt shot.."

The AD, looks up. Nods.

I look at the Cases. Cinema Products... La Cienega Blvd....

My eyes go wide: This is going to be a Steadicam shot!

I'd been a fan of the Steadicam even then, but had not seen one close up. Oh man this is gonna be cool...

First at the well

2006-12-09T07:19:00.001-08:00

The "first at the well", by the way, isn't me.

The "well", of course, is the collected wisdom of those screenwriters that came before, whether by minutes, or months, or years. You'll find a few over in the Links column, and there are more across the Scribosphere. A lot of good stuff.

The posting delays, here at Making It Real, are of a false need to write new information that no one has seen before. Futile, that urge, and no surprise – at all – that nothing really of value comes of it.

So, I have to happily resign myself, (heave an obvious sigh), and just write what I'm learning, what I feel I know. If I am able to cite the source, I'll do it. But often, I'll follow trains of thought toward an inevitable "aha" and realize it's true, or be reading a pro's blog, or a screenwriters' forum, or even screenplay, and the "aha" will be vindicated. Yeah, Yeah! I knew that! (Don't worry, I get lots of Hey, I didn't know that's too.)

This posting started off as potentially smart-ass. I was thinking of a word (I do that a lot) and the word was "ineffable," and boy was I gonna have fun with it. About how it doesn't exactly encourage writing when you look at the word-concept honestly.

But, when I finally touched the keyboard, "ineffable" (the word) showed me something I, and many before me, already knew.

That the best screen writing is not descriptive.

The best screenwriting evokes.

There is, after all, a heckuva a lot of ineffable woven through those action paragraphs and scene slugs.

Will you imagine that.

Up with the changes

2006-12-08T09:55:00.001-08:00

We had quite a break there, and, it seems most of the visitors to
this blog have long since sighed and given up. I almost did.

I check in on about 10 blogs or so, each day. Mine's in there, as
well, and every time I see that last short posting from May, I feel a
little shove of tension for not keeping the blog updated, for not
posting more often.

That tension is where the "almost" comes from. That tension says,
"You have something to say." And when I turn to something else, it
repeats, calm, forceful, "you have something to say." Over and over
for as many months as it takes. (More patient than I am.)

And if I delay, postpone, procrastinate that tension, will the Inner
Master Screenwriter eventually give up? Find another writer? I don't
know. I don't want to know.

So what to do?

Bait him. Generate some new ideas, candy to leave a trail. (Inner
Master Screenwriters can be baited with ideas.)

Well, maybe some fresh paint?

2006-12-05T07:27:00.001-08:00

The paint was faded. Time to freshen things up.
There'll be more to come.
Honest.

Blog Roll updated...

2006-05-18T07:42:00.000-07:00

Some new blogs to peruse ... Click to your curiosity's content. Most all are screenwriting/film related.

For starters, Mental Origami for some good news from yesterday. You'd be elated, too. But can you be as level headed and cool-as-can-be as Julie?

(That's a pro symptom if ever I encountered one :)

This posting, before I wrote it, was about my current Writer's Block

2006-05-11T06:57:00.000-07:00

In screenwriting, it's all present tense. It is happening right now. You live the scene, the feelings, events, and describe what's going on around you as it happens.

Not so writer's block; can't write about it from the inside. (No 500 word essays to be submitted to Blank White Terrors Anonymous, "Hi My name's Dave and I suffer from writer's block." They may read it, but they won't believe you.)

It's some kind of vicious, surreal, pesky irony, writing about writer's block.

Maybe I'm just losing it.

It needs to be dealt with.

My friend Ronson and I are talking about it, it's last night, and he asks (cause we haven't talked in a couple weeks), he asks how the writing is going.

I almost say, "Goin' fine. No prob." That's not dishonesty, it's more like when you get your legs trampled by a horse, and someone scrambles over and says, "Are you okay?" and you respond, "Fine, I'll be okay. Just fine. You go on."

Or, I guess that's called 'Denial.'

Anyway, instead of going into denial, and saying "fine," I tell him I'm in a writing slump.

And right away he does the most cruel, frustrating, humiliating thing.

He asks all the right questions.

Bastard.

As valuable as those questions are, shedding curiosity into what's really going on, the inevitable solution to get out of this admittedly temporary stall came as the 4 of us discussed it (we had been joined by Jesse and another friend, Scott) the way out is actually simple.

Just write. Anything.

And the votes are in...

2006-05-09T23:53:00.000-07:00

Well, the winners have been announced at Screenwriting Life.com.

Head on over, and check out the list and find out who to congratulate.

And the Winners Are...

It was fun. Now, back to writing.

They're Voting Now (no chad jokes, okay?)

2006-05-04T07:46:00.000-07:00

Screenwriting Life's Logline Contest has all the entries in, and voting is underway. (Apparently, 3 have become clear leaders, but whether I'm in there or not is unseen behind a veil of mystery).

Warren has set up the voting system; he had a few more entries than he expected. Head on over to see what to do (it's pretty simple) and cast your votes. (For the curious, you'll find my entry under it's title "Wizard of Oz: What Rainbow?")

Logline for a Fake Sequel to a Real Movie Contest.

Warren's Wacky Wonderful Logline Contest

2006-05-01T07:36:00.000-07:00

Last night wrote out -- then rewrote -- then fine-tuned -- then polished-- a logline for Warren Leonard's Fake Sequel logline contest. Laughter is good for the soul, and even if I turn out to be the only one who laughed at it, it was great fun to write.

The contest is still on until 11:59 PM tomorrow night. Give yourself a hearty laugh while you craft it, like I did (people were looking at me odd while I was banging it into shape, but that's their issue:), and good luck!

And of course you know who to vote for and bless with a guilt-free version of Final Draft. :)
Voting begins at 12:01 am Wednesday through the afternoon of Friday, May 5.

Back in Action

2006-04-20T23:53:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all the restorative good wishes, and crossed fingers ...
you can uncross them now.
As of last evening, the iBook is back in operation.
Lots of catching up to do; there'll be more in a later posting.

Dolly In, Zoom Out

2006-02-16T22:40:00.000-08:00

The camera savvy will know the trick: we're in, say, a corridor, and we push the camera forward, at the same time zooming wide... the end result, will look like the camera is standing still, and the corridor is stretching longer and longer....

That's what it feels like with this repair.

The iBook was to be returned tonight, and here we are, at the otherwise wonderful Cactus Club, after much investment, the problem reappeared, driving Robin (Tech Extraordinaire) crazy. He's replaced parts, double -- triple -- quadrouple-checked, and on delivery, the problem shows up as if it wasn't fixed.

He's kindly letting me use his laptop to post this update.

Budgets are strained to the breaking point (it's beyond warranty)....

Your prayers for the healing of this iBook are welcomed.

Back to the workbench. And again, we'll see you after the fix...

Down for repair

2006-02-06T20:41:00.000-08:00

Well, Murphy's Law -- if anything can go wrong, it will, and at the
time you really need a new blog posting, get a new treatment worked
out, make progress on a music video...
Sigh.
Power issues with the ol' iBook, and wouldn't you know it -- not a
full out failure, but a flickering sometimes-works-occasionally-
doesn't sort of malfunction.
See you all after the repair.

Thespianating

2006-01-31T23:55:00.000-08:00

That's pronounced "THESS-pee-ah-nay-ting" -- I improvised it, and it's what a Thespian does.

I sort of "semi-missed" the 12th Annual SAG Awards. I say "semi" because the official SAG awards website, has all you need to catch up on what you missed. The essentials anyway. They even have published transcriptions of the acceptance speeches. More awards shows should do this.

See you all in February.

Semes like a Theme Meme

2006-01-19T15:49:00.000-08:00

Michael over at Apartment Two tags me with another meme, this time for top ten favorite TV Themes. We had been talking about this before he tagged me, and this list will differ from what I said in chat. I remembered a few more after thinking about it.

Cheers (Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart Angelo)

For the tone and heart of the show, This one just works. I put this as the best sitcom theme ever. I never tire of it.

Lost In Space (2nd Theme, John Williams)

The Waltons (Jerry Goldsmith)

Star Trek: Voyager (Jerry Goldsmith)

F-Troop (Irving Taylor and William Lava)

Hogan's Heroes (Jerry Fielding)

Partridge Family (Wes Farrell and Danny Janssen)

Rockford Files (Mike Post)

The A-Team (Mike Post)

Hawaii 5-0 (Morton Stevens)

I'm tagging Scott, MaryAn, and ras

Meme, Myself and I

2006-01-12T07:25:00.000-08:00

Well, here we go. (I think I was the last one tagged... but when you least expect, you get hit.

ONE (1) earliest film-related memory:

The Singing Nun, with Debbie Reynolds. I think it had something to do with singing, and a guitar, and I haven't seen it since I was really little. (Or maybe this memory was implanted to cover up an Alien Abduction. That'd be fun, since I've never had one of those.)

TWO (2) favorite lines from movies:

"Is it now?" -- the precognative Agatha in Minority Report.

"Did you know that King Kong came up to Fay Wray's belly button? If God could do the things we do, he'd be a happy man." -- Peter O'Toole as the monomaniacal Director in The Stunt Man.

THREE (3) jobs I'd do if I could not work in the "biz":

Graphic Designer

Architect

Accountant

(But hey, there's really no such thing 'could not', now, is there.)

FOUR (4) jobs I've held outside the industry:

Parking Valet

Barista

Theater Usher/Projectionist

Charity Telemarketing

THREE (3) book authors I like:

Ray Bradbury

Arthur C Clarke

Richard Bach

TWO (2) movies I'd like to remake or properties I'd like to adapt:

Both of these have been shifty shadows at the edge of Development Hell, but I'd still love to take a crack at 'em.

Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End. Even though it has a very dark ending, I've wanted to see this since I first read it, including reading aloud to my girlfriend at the time. Her face was wet with tears toward the end. (That's why we make movies.) (Or, maybe I don't read that well...)

Robert A. Heinlein's Stranger In A Strange Land. It'd be a tough nut to crack, since it's a very dialogue-based book, and distilling a visual story out of it would be a challenge. It'd be a controversial picture, to say the least.

ONE (1) screenwriter you think is underrated:

Shawna got to him first, so I have to second Steve Kloves for his Harry Potter adaptations.

I think everyone's been tagged...

Music Video with a Story?

2006-01-04T23:24:00.000-08:00

That's the plan. Not just pretty pictures.

For Tino's video, my first, I'm wearing 3 hats: Director, Camera, and Screenwriter.

A lot is in flux at this stage, which is a good thing; I've been brought on fairly early in the process. Starting with Tino's overall idea for the video, there will be ideas added, some tossed and some put back in, but through it all, we'll have a story.

It could be assumed that we'll just take the story from the song, but that'd just be redundant, and a little too literal. The song is an R & B ballad, and ballad's are about love, and love is about how one relates to the other, and how they fill each other out. Same thing with a songs lyrics and visuals. Man, Woman, Lyrics, Visuals. (There's a title;)

Our visual story should compliment and echo ... contrast, and provide what the lyrics can't. Let's hope I can make this approach work.

Tonight was to be a story/production meeting, and forces beyond our control shifted things until tomorrow, but that's good and gives me a chance to incubate my story approach, and blog about it...

Adding to the mix

2006-01-02T14:54:00.000-08:00

So, it's a good start to the year.

Or a good end to the last one, depending how you want to look at it. I ran into a singer/musician friend of mine -- he'd been hoping to find me for the last couple of months.

"I got my FX 1."

The FX 1? Yep, the Sony FX-1. (For those not technically inclined: it's a High Definition Camcorder -- really pretty pictures.)

If you want my tail to wag, and me to roll over, and for me to do tricks for you, dangle an HD camera before me. And he did.

I met with he and his wife twice last week, over the music video he wants to produce and market. We shook hands, with me on board as Director and Camera Operator. And script/story services.

This is great, because what had held off progress on the short film production was equipment and resources. Now that problem has been solved. The music video is definitely a mutual back scratching deal, I'll help him with this, and he'll help me with my short stuff. Win-win.

This week it'll be story boarding and writing and test shoots, and more resolving of the idea he laid out last week.

How will this affect the screenwriting? Very well :) As the late Irwin Blacker taught, "You're writing motion pictures, not motion words!" Telling stories visually is what we do, and this video is aimed for market, not just practice, so I'm making for audience.

***

The 2006 Nicholl Fellowship 119 days away, and I am aiming at having an entry of some sort ready to make that.

I've been jotting ideas, but nothing has enough substance to really run with, yet, so once I have something, and I have faith that an idea will surface, it'll be a sprint through drafts to the finish line. I'll be panting and catching my breath for most of May, but it'll be worth it.

***

Also, I hope to make LA for my first time. Get the lay of the land, meet some of the LA Scribospherians.

Maybe spring. We'll see.

So, the year looks good. I also hope to be posting far more frequently, this year, and in no way is that a New Year's Resolution. That would make me a conformist.

Happy New Year, folks :)

Caught By Rockford Part II

2005-12-22T07:47:00.000-08:00

Make sure, if you haven't, to read Caught By Rockford Part I.

But that's okay, because on a typical day, this mansion plays host to tourists, running tours daily.

James Garner and John Lithgow arrive on set. In the shot, camera will follow them up the stairs, Crystal and I on our way down, passing them.

I'm one of several appointed smokers, so I pull out my pack of Camels that props supplied. First rehearsal, I light my cigarette,

Now we're ready for the first take. Goes smoothly.

We do about four takes, then crew is on to the next setup.

Crystal and I lean on the rail, side by side, on the bottom landing, everyone else gone.

"Where's the prop guy with that ash tray?" My cigarette had a long tube of ash suspended on the end.

"I don't know," she says."Hey, can I have a puff?"

"Sure," anything you want. "Careful, though." I slowly passed the smoke...

She gingerly takes it, and--

--the ash falls, slow motion toward the priceless rug.

She taps it with the point of her shoe, blending it into a faded area of the pattern.

Over both our shoulders, by both of our ears, Garner's resonant, distinctive voice:

"I saw that."

We both turned, slow terror, kids busted.

Garner milked the moment, stayed quiet, then smiled, "Keeps away the moths, though."

***

I arrived back to Extras Holding. A guy stood, silent, reached into his pocket, handed me a ten dollar bill. Oh right, the game, two to one odds. :)

James Garner had no idea about the off set betting. That's a good thing, I think.

***

Caught by Rockford - Part I

2005-12-17T10:27:00.000-08:00

"So, you wanna lay money on the game?"

World Series is playing on a portable radio, and I hadn't been following, so I wasn't even sure about bets. "Who's playing?"

"Orioles and Phillies. And it's bottom of the fifth."

"Who's losing?" He told me and I pulled out a bill, "Okay, here's five. Two to one odds?"

"Sounds good," he said, and pocketed the five.

I'm called for the next setup, so off I go.

***

It's a party sequence, shot over three days, and today is Day 2 of this location. I'm smart and classy in a crisp black tuxedo, standing to the side of several large pelican cases. The operator and the First AD are at the base of the stairs which are really narrow and go up about three stories.

The operator just cranes his neck, looking up, says to the First, "This looks like about a three t-shirt shot.."

The AD, looks up. Nods.

I look at the cases. Cinema Products... La Cienega Blvd....

My eyes go wide: This is going to be a Steadicam shot!

A fan of the Steadicam even back then, I had never seen one up close. They were expensive, and rarer than they are now. Oh man this is gonna be cool...

The contest improves...

2005-12-15T15:29:00.000-08:00

A follow up to my post about the Screenwriter Dig contest.

Today, over at the Artful Writer forums, this posting appears... and it seems... well, check it out.

It's a good thing, and my faith in humanity has been restored.

Encouragement

2005-12-11T02:10:00.000-08:00

For our purposes, his name is Samuel, and yesterday, he came to my regular coffee/writing haunt to see how I was doing. Good to see him, always good to see a friend you haven't seen in a while.

The tone of our visit got deeper, heavier. He's got a lot of experience, and is the type to make sure I listen to what's important.

The subject I brought it up was ... let's say... power players. He was quiet, listening, just nodding with me: I know, I know.

Now, to me, this means something, I know it's there, the unwritten never spoken shadow of the industry, and for what I am choosing for the rest of my life, I need to know how to navigate.

He became very emphatic, and said to talk to someone who early in their career was controlled by the power players, and now has an independent career, and has prevailed.

"I'll even buy your ticket to fly down and meet with him. He can answer your questions, because he's been through it."

I took that in, and when I do get to Hollywood, I'll look him up. I don't know why, but that very moment, i had no doubt the meeting will be possible.

"Samuel, how do you know this?"

"There is a lot you don't know about me." That is true. "I'm 63. I lay tiles for a living. But I wasn't always that way." and he headed off.

I know I'm on the right path. I can feel it. Have no idea, though, why this come out encouragement, but it does.

Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter?

2005-12-02T21:59:00.000-08:00

There has been a little buzz growing, with not a little concern, about a new screenwriting contest.

The contest, Screenwriter Dig, is targeting aspirants to enter in hopes their screenplays gain the attention of Mark Canton, a producer who's name most of you will know. Mr. Canton's name is all over the contest site, so I'm assuming this has his endorsement.

High profile producer. Affordable entry fees (ranging from $10 to $29). A chance to have your screenplay, television script, or pitch considered by a major producer. What is there to be concerned about?

READ THE FINE PRINT.

At least one entrant pulled out of the contest over what I am about to touch on, and others are raising what I would say are very legit questions. The concern is gravitating to a clause in the contest rules. I'm providing the link to the pdf here, for you to check out (why am I not surprised that the link to "official rules" is in teensy letters at the bottom of a frame?) It's on page 10 ...

"... 8. ACQUISITION OPTION. By entering the Contest, each entrant hereby irrevocably grants to Sponsor the sole and exclusive option to acquire all right, title and interest in and to the Submission throughout the universe and in perpetuity..."

Higher profile contests, Nicholl Fellowship, for example, seem to get on just fine by letting every entrant keep their submissions free of attachments.

I am not a lawyer. But one has gotta wonder about contests where you really need to consult one...

Be thorough, guys.

While I'm struggling over an outline...

2005-11-30T00:00:00.000-08:00

More Scribosphere links, which you'll find underneath the T-shirts over on the right.

And that means you gotta add to your bookmarks now. No complaints, hey? Best to get the bookmarking done so you have more Christmas shopping time. Right? Right.

Today added Fun Joel (who's been overdue for a link), and Robert Hogan's Adventures in Storytelling, and Warren Leonard's Screenwriting Life.

I'll leave you with a quote...

"It's not your Aptitude, but your Attitude, that determines your Altitude."

It works for aerodynamics. Screenwriting, too.

Thanksgiving Post

2005-11-24T08:18:00.000-08:00

I've been remiss in posting.

I know of at least 3 of you who check in on a regular basis, so I'll imagine that you must be eager for something a little fresher than my joy of using Index Cards.

So, a little update.

My Wonderful Screenwriters T-Shirt

November 12th, Shawna, bless her, wore the T-Shirt to the Screenwriters Expo to fantastic responses. Not only has a prominent vendor shown interest in selling it, but it looks really great. Especially on her. Thanks, Shawna. (And congrats on finishing the Writers Arc script! It was a tight deadline and you made it! Woo-Hoo :)

Yesterday, cafepress finally went "live" with black tees, something they've had a lot of demand for, and I imagine they did a lot of head scratching figuring how to satisfy that demand. The original conception of the T-Shirt was white-on-black, so it has finally gone up for sale as originally intended. The Black Good Page T-shirt. Any screenwriter can wear it with pride. (Not only a good chuckle, it's a confident declaration, too.)

On The Path

Every once and a while, it's healthy to take a little bearing.

The more I write, I understand just little more why I chose the path I have.

How does it feel, now, at this pre-dawn of my screenwriting career? A week or so ago, I focused on that question, and after a few seconds, a description...

Insecure Arrogance.

That's how it feels. Real fears, that, oddly, only seem to intensify the confidence. Now, fear and certainty don't happen to get together all that much with me. In fact, they're notorious for taking turns and avoiding each other. (A few of these fears are effectively addressed in Terry Rossio's Throw in the Towel column at Wordplay.) Having them together... well, it's an encouraging thing.

And there's balance; the worries keep the ego from getting out of hand, and the ego helps confront the fears. A contrasting collision that sparks.

And what results from this inner carbon-arc?

Pages, that's what.

To all the American visitors, Happy Thanksgiving.

Love these cards

2005-11-04T00:10:00.000-08:00

And now the fun begins. Outlining.

Cause this is where the story really starts to take shape. Notes and
pages are still being exchanged with my co-writer, of course, but
each note and page now gets its own little home, under its own little
heading.

I smile when peeling open a pack of blank 3 x 5's, still happy as I'm
rapidly filling them out in pencil. All is still wonderfully
malleable, and a lot will change. A heckuva lot more work to go.

The outline is the first moment, for me, that feels like the wheels
hitting the road. And the first draft will feel that way, too. (As
will the final draft... As will the shooting draft...)

Ah, index cards. :)

Great Job

2005-10-30T23:04:00.000-08:00

Well, the costume concept turned, by way of a sharply creative mind, into a 'hell' of a costume. The idea I tossed to her -- screenwriter bleary-eyed from caffeine, disheveled clothes -- as scary as that is, is nowhere near as good as what she she crafted.

Take any idea, and make it your own. She did.

Shawna's just posted some pics on her blog.

Take a boo.

(ow)

Dave

Is Procrastination Real?

2005-10-30T00:37:00.000-07:00

I look back on the week, and what did I create?

Came up with a costume idea for a friend, made some story notes and a new opening sequence for the co-written spec, and designed a sharp, witty screenwriter t-shirt that, I hope, will have a good showing. Opened the online account, and I'm an e-business-on-the-side dude. As of yesterday, I can log into my shop account, look at the sales report -- and there is actually a real total. And it's more than zero! Actual selling going on! Hurray.

But, nascent filmmaker that I am, the writing is most important, and I am undecided as to whether I should be guilty about this week's low output, or thankful about what's to come.

You see, what I am learning is that when I am not writing -- literal tap-the-keys-to-compose-words-in-Final-Draft kind of writing -- is that there is a level of mind that doesn't stop. It keeps solving story problems, sifting around for ideas, turning, testing.

To all outward appearance, I'll be doing nothing but surfing the web, or cooking cheap noodles and gulping them down. There is writing going on even then, though even I don't see it, my mind is on other things.

Wrong; when I open the laptop, and start to write, resume where I left off, a whole bunch of story concerns have been answered, and there are new ideas ready for trying out.

And it's hard to stop writing when that happens.

The T-Shirts are ready

2005-10-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

You're a writer, and you know you're good, the writing rocks.

But just being confident isn't enough, you need to show it.

So good news: the T-Shirts are up. I've started off with just the one slogan, but if this kicks off, maybe I'll add more. We'll see.

Wear 'em with pride.

(You'll find them to the right, under Places to check out..., where it says Get the T-Shirt.)

Dave Olden

Okay, Now There's Hope

2005-10-17T02:02:00.000-07:00

So, earlier tonight, I meet up with a friend, out on a restaurant patio.

With him, is a movie make-up artist. Cool. I ask her if she knows
some people, and we talk industry. (And exchange contact info.)

I tell her about my blog posting, about that horrible absence of
peanut butter.

She seems to agree, but thinks back anyway. Her gaze off to the side,
looking where memories are ... finds the memory, turns finally to
tell it to me.

"I think we had peanut butter on Stargate. The little square ones."

There is hope.

An Epiphany

2005-10-16T05:20:00.000-07:00

On the several film locations I've been on, I've learned some stuff.

For instance, from the second assistant camera guy on one, that a
slate is really cool to hold in the hand, and so out of his marks
bag, he handed me a few of his tools of the trade. Smart slates, and
dumb slates, little orange electronic numbers glowing. Little tiny
table slates. There's a trick to clapping it, and he guided me
through it. Only one hand, keep 'em behind the clap sticks.... I
tried, and started to get it. I handed it back, smiling.

One can learn, for instance, that when the wind is really picking up,
those sound blankets, even with four guys hanging on, is same as a
sail on a stormy sea. By a heroes' effort, they stayed on the beach.
(Those guys were really angry at Mother Nature, that blistery
December day. She eventually backed off. A bit.) I also learned, on
that beach location, that I was not alone in needing to comb salt out
of my hair for the rest of the day.

And I realize only today, thinking back on those shoots, did they
have ... ? My god, no!

... it wasn't at Circus (the collection of production vehicles and
trailers), it wasn't at Catering and not even at the Craft Services
table. The coffee, and hot soup, a basket of chocolate bars, yes but..

But, the one essential thing in a man's life... ?

Not one show had peanut butter.

That has gotta change.

"Never Tell Me The Odds!"

2005-10-11T10:25:00.000-07:00

Somehow, there are more than enough people willing to tell the odds — most often odds against.

"Do you know how many screenplays are registered each year at the Writers Guild? Tens of thousands!" ... and/or ... "Do you realize how many scripts are stamped 'PASS' each week by readers?" ... and/or ... "It's reality, and you have to face it."

Decide to write a knock-their-socks-off great story. You've told the story 100% the best that you can. Does any number of other writers — good or bad — change that?

I've never been a odds guy. When it comes to writing, odds just slow me down. I'm either gonna write my best, or hold off and rewrite it to my personal best. Say the odds are against me and it'll just confuse me, distract me from what matters.

And when the moment comes for submission, no odds there. There'll be numbers, yes; the number of people I'm submitting to. I'll need to know for postage. And all the other writers ahead of me in line? They'll need postage, too. (I hope they're doing their best. Even if they're not, doesn't change my postage.)

New as I am at this, I am recommending to all the others like me....

Never listen to the odds.

Aprés Brevity

2005-10-04T07:41:00.000-07:00

David wept.

(a beat)

(pause)

Okay, I can't do it. You've come all the way to see the latest posting, you deserve much more than an 'homage' to the shortest line in the Bible. (Boy, I hate 'homages' --and now I did one. Must do penance. I'm not even Catholic. Still, must do penance.)

(beat, mouth opens, another beat)

When I think 'homage' I think remake then shudder, and think Gus Van Sant did not need to do a shot-by-shot remake of Psycho. He actually said, and he should know better, actually uttered, "we can make it in color now!"

Hitchcock could make it in color then, Gus.

Rear Window (my favorite Hitchcock film; splendid use of a single location!) and North by Northwest and The Man Who Knew Too Much... all in color. Know what? We can make those in black and white now. Really, we can. The opening of Van Helsing was in wonderful black and white (Allen Daviau, ASC). So there, now you can do shot-by-shot remakes of those aged and outdated technicolor pictures.

Maybe, just maybe, he was able to choose, voluntarily, black and white as the most effective choice for what Psycho required.

And if you're reading this, Mr. Van Sant, you're a few years along from your experiment, and I'm sure it was a nifty learning experience, but please, can you return fully to original stuff?

Okay. Good.

(beat)

David wept.

According to Quality II

2005-09-29T13:45:00.000-07:00

I've already heard it, from other than me.

"You shouldn't be wasting your time trying to get a friend's career going, when you aren't getting paid. There's nothing in it for you. Wasted Effort."

A chance to educate that guy, since I enjoy talking to him most times. "I am not doing this for money, this is a friend I am doing this for," hoping the verbal italics, and rather simple concept of friendship would get across to this guy. It did, along with a few repetitions.

The friend he is referring to, found me the other night, after months and months out of touch, at my usual late night haunt. Hardly able to contain his enthusiasm, he brought me up to speed on the progress and forward movement on his spec screenplay.

He didn't win the high profile competition he entered, but did place high enough -- or stayed in long enough -- to be able to say, in queries "My script placed such and such in the Competition..." and (I could see now .. the kettle drum roll in his eyes) he has had a request for the script from a Major Agency.

Although his style is way different than mine, his skills are ahead of mine (... temporarily I assure) and his charged enthusiasm and good fortune inspire me.

You get back what you give out.

Dave

According to Quality

2005-09-27T07:56:00.000-07:00

The largest sign, ten feet wide, blatantly positioned, reads TRIAGE.

Emergency ward at the more convenient of the city's major hospitals. Cool, 'Triage' reminds me of M*A*S*H. I step up to what looks like a bank teller's window, talk to the triage nurse, collegiate looking guy, stethoscope around his neck, he looks at me as if I am next on the list.

I am here because the side of my face is swollen to the size of a chestnut, which, to me, is pretty big. (and big to others before I got here; "what did you do ...? what happened ...? what was done to your face?") Abscess.

"So, what seems to be the problem?"

I look at him without saying isn't the unnatural Mr Hyde disfigurement on the side of my right jaw kind of obviously telling you something? Okay, okay, perhaps he is being careful. After all, there are many talented make-up artists in this world, and tricky prosthetic-wearing practical joke patients may wander in here from time to time. (There is no such procedure as foam latex-ectomy. Anybody tells you, don't believe 'em.)

For my real response, I shift pragmatic, he comes around to take my blood-pressure, asks about allergies, heart, any operations and such; all the research necessary to ferret out potential back room gossip for other nurses -- oops, sorry. Meant to say: collect the required information they need before passing me on to a Resident Doctor.

Then, another kiosk-window for the basic paperwork, then, the data spit out of a printer on a paper and plastic band, wrapped around a wrist, and...

The wait begins.

I have my iBook, as always, and see an electrical plug-in in the waiting area. I have letters and Terry and Ted's answers from Wordplayer, so lots of fresh reading... and The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King DVD.

What does triage mean? (That's my question to me)

According to that wonderful Oxford dictionary in my iBook ...

triage

noun

1 the action of sorting according to quality.

ah... 'according to quality.' Well, they're the experts; I have no idea whether this is the greatest abscess ever. Triage nurse didn't seem all that bowled over.

... maybe it's the second meaning.

2 (in medical use) the assignment of degrees of urgency to wounds or illnesses to decide the order of treatment of a large number of patients or casualties.

After four or five hours, all of Wordplayer's letters read, an hour of Return of the King reviewed, there's a third meaning they haven't put in the dictionary yet, the real meaning:

triage

from tri + age... to triple one's age by waiting in a hospital emergency ward, in pain, all night, until a private walk-in clinic opens at eight in the morning.

Which is what happened.

I was out of the Oak Bay Medical Clinic inside an hour from arriving, examination complete. And they were twice as busy as the big fully equipped hospital.

Hospital: 6.5 hours

Clinic: 1 hour. (That includes registering me up as a new patient to that clinic.)

Glad I learned what triage means.

Forgot to ask the Doc whether the abscess was the best he's ever seen.

Robert Wise

2005-09-21T07:40:00.000-07:00

It was all over the news last week, and I missed it.

I missed it – ironically and impossibly – because my focus had been on researching Robert Wise interviews on the internet. I found out what I missed through my friend Justin yesterday, in the midst of sharing my fond childhood memories of The Sound of Music...

The Odeon theater on Yates street, this kid on the balcony, a movie with an actual intermission. The film would return to theaters often, they had theatrical re-releases then, decades before videos. Maria would again gather courage in song, win over the children, find love and family ...

Justin has fond memories, too, but, "Didn't the director of that die last week?"

"No," I correct. "Ernest Lehman. The Screenwriter. That was back in July I think."

But I check the IMDB, and sure enough ... Justin's right.

The moment slows, all of a sudden, as significant moments do. I had just the other day decided to find a way to meet him before its too late, strangely optimistic. Maybe say thanks, ask him questions.

Too late for meetings.

Robert Wise is a mentor of a kind I have never met, teaching me through his films and interviews. Guiding, showing. The Sound of Music (for that boy on his balcony), The Andromeda Strain, The Hindenburg, The Day The Earth Stood Still ...

Have those lessons stopped?

In iTunes, I select The Sound of Music playlist and click 'play'...

... nothing comes from nothing

nothing ever could

so somewhere in my youth or childhood...

Thank you, Mr. Wise, for all the stories you've shown, and gratitude in advance for those I have yet to see. Thank you for showing me a master's skillful, transparent service to story. I'll remember.

And while we're here, I have a question for you...

Dance of the adjectives...

2005-09-20T22:19:00.000-07:00

At some point you have to just take the dive. I mean, it's not like I'm the only guy with a blog, everyone waiting edge of their seats for me to say something. Let's put it here, and let 'em munch it to bits. (Each to their own taste, of course.)

By way of introduction, I'm an aspiring filmmaker in Victoria, BC, and that's the last time for a while that I will use 'aspiring' – It's a little tired, and flat.

There's a much better adjective ...

... the word is Nascent.

I like that. Nascent. The vibe has just the right color. (Always mix metaphors by hand. With a fork.) I knew it was right, but, curious, looked it up in the dictionary anyway.

nascent, adjective ... just coming into existence and beginning to display signs of future potential ...

Much, much better than 'aspiring'! (I thank the New Oxford American Dictionary, which Apple in its wisdom decided to install in its latest iteration of OS X.)

Nascent filmmaker.

Much better.

Dave O

First to arrive --

2005-09-12T23:40:00.000-07:00

-- at least this aspiring filmmaker is going to practise being first on set ... or first 'on-blog.'

Well, I'll be a little more verbose on my next entry, short film premises perhaps...

Okay everyone, places, please