The Bi-Monthly B

How you can tell you're old #472...you say shit like "how is it already (insert unit of time)?

How is it already April 9?  March was like a m**f** whirlwind.  I think.  I already don't even remember it. Basically, I remember yesterday, and to some extent can use that to extrapolate what's been happening for the past month.

Yesterday was April 8. My mom got on a plane and flew back to Indiana.  It's been really nice to have her in town. You also know you're old when your parents are even older so you want to spend as much time with them as you can (without going overboard because that's morbid).  I've been going over to her house about once a week, which might not sound like much, but is roughly twice as often as I see my sister (who lives in town) and six times as often as I see almost any single friend who isn't involved in a writing endeavor.  Mostly I was going on Fridays after work, and we would put together some dinner, talk and watch a movie, or if the kids were staying over maybe play some Monopoly.

Also April 8 is the day Paul and I got married.  In celebration of our anniversary he took yesterday off from work, and I switched up my hours and skipped writing, then, with our free time together, we went to Target, cleaned the house, had some expensive (and good) sushi, then watched TV while wearing teeth-whitening agents (bought at Target).  Yep, that's how we roll. In March I also spent some time with Paul, mostly late at night, or preparing for taxes.  We've both been spending extra time with respective writing partners on projects, which has decreased our available hours, so yesterday, while it might seem mundane, was a treat.

At work, April 8 was the last day of "prospective student open house."  Yay for that. Nothing makes time fly by like event planning without quite enough time, and open house is one of the bigger events--a three-day logistical extravaganza of hosting a dozen or so potential students.  My new co-worker handled almost all of the individual schedules and travel reimbursements and I ordered most of the food and we both tried to work our everyday duties in around the edges.

This year, April 8 fell on a Wednesday, which is generally the night that I go to my directing class, but serendipitously (for the anniversary) this week is community college spring break so class didn't meet. But for much of February and March, I have been leaving work at the stroke of five and taking two trains to class, which is officially scheduled to last from 6pm to 10pm but thankfully always runs shorter. With the 2-train+car commute home it still manages to eat an evening.

And yesterday, April 8 was the last day before today, April 9, which is when my writing partner (Janice) should receive the last of our notes on our script, so that we can spend the weekend revising and hopefully improving our application for the Film Independent Lab which is due on Monday.  I'm trying to mentally gear up for  a marathon writing weekend.  Switching back-and-forth between two scripts for various spring deadlines, there have been a few such weekends lately, and also a couple "vacation" days spent trying reach the finish line with drafts we can feel good about in hand.

And that, I deduce, is where March has gone.

Weekend at Home / BIG ANNOUNCEMENT

(This is a pretty boring post with a BIG ANNOUNCEMENT buried about halfway through.  I'll TYPE IN CAPS when we get to it, so you can skim without fear of missing it.)

Did I mention Paul got in a accident and totaled one of our cars?  That happened. A few weeks ago.  Everyone is fine, and insurance paid generously enough that with a little effort we should be able to replace our mediocre car with one of equal mediocrity.  But driving around L.A. looking for cars you've seen advertised Craigslist is tedious, so we haven't done very much of that yet, and are existing with just one car.

Paul was supposed to be doing night shifts color correcting every night this weekend and taking the car to get there, so I'll say that is my excuse for not having made any evening plans this weekend.  Other excuses might include needing to write, or energy-sapping ennui.

I do, however, wish that I could invite people to come see me--but our house is super messy right now.  To that end, Paul and I spent about four hours each today trying to reclaim the space.  This was hugely exciting for me, in a muted, I'm-folding-clothes-and-vacuuming kind of way, because Paul is generally opposed to cleaning and doesn't see the need for it, but in this case, because he is avoiding doing film related work, he actually volunteered, and was quite focused.  I think with another 8-10 man hours, things could be quite presentable again.

And on the topic of the film that Paul is avoiding ...(THIS IS IT, this is the BIG ANNOUNCEMENT)

 Rock Jocks. 

Is it done????!!!!

No, not quite.

But it will have to be really soon, because THE PREMIER SCREENING IS SCHEDULED.

It will be at DRAGON*CON in ATLANTA, GA over LABOR DAY WEEKEND.  Rock Jocks will screen at 8pm on Sunday--but that's not a school night, cuz the next day is Labor Day.

I WILL BE THERE.

So, if you live near Atlanta, you should come on up, down, over and see me.  I don't know if we'll get any comp movie tickets.  It seems like the screenings are "inside" the festival.  A day pass for  Sunday is $40.   That will maybe be fun and worth it for you if you are into anything geeky, sci-fi, fantasy or comic-book related.  Otherwise it will be a waste of your money.  In that case, don't feel obligated to see the film, just come see us.

I am also interested, if my entourage duties allow, in going to the Decatur Book Festival, probably on Saturday.  I believe I have at least one friend who is doing a reading on Saturday afternoon, but I'm not sure where, and I'm not sure what the geographic relationship is between the con and the fair.

More details to come.  Facebook posts and Tweets no doubt.  But for the loyal readers of this blog--you four know about it first!

My Husband's Diet is Making Me Hungry

My husband is doing the Master Cleanse and it's making me hungry.

For those of you who don't know Paul, his philosophy might be summed up as something like "Life is the stuff you do to pass the time between meals." He likes to eat meals, preferably at a restaurant. He likes to plan where he will eat his next meal, the one after that, and maybe a special one sometime next week. He likes to look forward to his plans to eat meals.

For those of you who don't know the Master Cleanse, it is a dietary program consisting of NO MEALS. Unless you consider water mixed with lemon juice (cleansing part), sweetened with a tablespoon of maple syrup (to keep your blood sugar up so you don't faint), and a dash of cayenne pepper (to stimulate your metabolism) to be a meal.

Paul's intention is to do this for ten days.

Fasts are an age old tradition, so I'm sure he will be fine.

The question is: Will I?

Normally, I like to consider Paul to be the one with "food issues." Because of, well--all the eating, and planning, and the way any time you get in a car with him, you run an 85% risk of being "Paul-jacked" and taken to some kind of food or dessert purveyor.

I consider myself to be the person with a healthy relationship to food, because I sometimes eat vegetables, or take my lunch to work, or make frozen ravioli and broccoli at home instead of driving to to the Inland Empire in search of the only local branch of a chain restaurant that makes the kind of mac n' cheese that I'm in the mood for.

Long story short, when it comes to food, I'm reasonable--he's crazy. I'm moderate--he's extreme.

Except now that he's not eating, something is happening to me.

I think it might be like a sympathy pregnancy--except it's sympathy starvation. All the sudden I'm hungry all the time. I'm constantly ruminating about what kind of food I'll eat next. And when I start eating, I keep eating, because the idea of being hungry again is panic-inducing. Since I've begun writing this post, I've eaten two halves of a particular sandwich--a large bacon, lettuce, tomato and avocado sandwich with garlic aioli on oversize toasted sourdough bread. The last time I ordered this sandwich, the shop that sells it was still on summer hours. The last time I ordered this sandwich I ate half for lunch, and the other half for dinner. But today I thought about the sandwich non-stop for five hours at work, while staving off hunger by eating a candy bar from a vending machine! And then I ate both halves in under twenty minutes.

And now, despite the whole earlier candy-from-a-vending-machine debaucle, I'm wondering if I need dessert. Do I need ice cream? Do I need a snack to get me through class?

And what about when class is over?

It is typical for me to be hungry when I get out of my night class at 9:30, but I don't worry because I have an unofficial arrangement where Paul picks me up something wherever he happens to dine. Now, however, Paul won't be dining. Alarm Bells! I am already mentally searching the shelves of the refrigerator for something quick and easy to prepare--in my imagination (and likely reality) they are frighteningly bare.

Oh no! I'm so hungry!

No, wait, you're not hungry. You just had a huge sandwich.

Oh. Right. ... But I'm going to be hungry!

I'm going to be happier when Paul is done with the Master Cleanse.

Rock Jocks Update

Paul continues to work with his editor Adam to get a locked cut of the Rock Jocks--the film he wrote and directed. There are still many things to be done, like sound mixing, music, special effects etc, before the latest deadline for Sundance at the end of September. But this week he took a few days off to visit Chicago Comic Con and promote the film.

Paul's Feature Debut

Paul will be directing his first feature length film in less than a month!

This is a big announcement that doesn't feel quite as big around here because it's been in the works for awhile. Sometime last year, a friend, Sheri, who produces independent films, approached Paul. Her company (comprised of herself and her husband) had a potential deal to make a film and they were looking for the right project to pitch. They asked Paul to come up with a list of log-lines. Paul gave them a list of ideas--his own and also those of some friends he invited to submit. In the end, none of them were what the other party was looking for, but one of them, ROCK JOCKS, intrigued Sheri. She asked Paul to write it to be made for a really low budget, and she would keep an eye out for an opportunity. Paul spent the next several months working on the script, and eventually the opportunity did arise. One thing led to another, and now casting is in progress, a set is being built, and shooting is scheduled to begin on March 17th!

I am super proud and happy for him, and he is excited too--at the same time that he's nervous. No one wants to mess up a big opportunity! He's also been busy and stressed juggling his pre-production duties with his day job, which he finally and reluctantly had to leave this past week in order to devote himself to the film full time. No movie gets made without an alternating series of lucky breaks and heartbreaking setbacks, and this one is no exception--but there are some exciting possibilities being discussed in terms of cast and crew--and as soon as contracts get signed, hopefully I can talk about them here.

Update: Yesterday I got to go see the stage (warehouse) where the production office and sets are both in early stages of assembly, and took this blurry picture on my phone. The pink sign says ROCK JOCKS.

Pirates 3 review by The Blockbuster Buster

I never posted the final review featuring Paul as Dr. Nemesis....

Help a Filmmaker’s Dream Come True!

THE FILM
As some of you know Paul was recently named one of ten finalists for the Coca-Cola Refreshing Filmmaker Awards. Yesterday the ten finalist’s films were posted on-line at ccrfa.com. Check out his 50 second piece, entitled, “The Working Girl.”

THE DREAM
Paul’s dream (which he keeps telling me about) is to fly to California and take his mother, who knows nothing about the contest, to the movies, so that he can watch the expression on her face when she sees her son on the big-screen, introducing his work with the line, “My name is Paul Seetachitt, and I’m this year’s refreshing filmmaker.”

HOW YOU CAN HELP MAKE THE DREAM COME TRUE: VOTE!
This year’s contest has an online voting component that will help determine the winner. Please consider taking a few moments to add your vote. It’s easy to vote from the website using the supplied point system—I would never try to sway anyone’s artistic opinion, but I will just reiterate, that Paul’s entry is entitled, “The Working Girl.”

GRATITUDE
Lots and lots. We really appreciate your time and support. (Especially me, because it's so depressing to see Paul cry.)

Damnit

Damnit Damnit fucking damnit.
I think today was the last day to pay tuition and fees. Not that the university ever warns you in anyway. you'd think with all the propaganda they send, they might, until you think of how much money they make by charging the $100 late fee.

So I hate the university, which charges me late fees, and even for my 7pm classes has no parking available around that building.

I hate Paul because everytime we have a fight in the morning, I forget something on that day's to do list, and usually by the time we're done, whatever it is we were fighting about, usually cleaning or doing tasks that will prevent us from losing money, doesn't get done anyway, so it seems pointless to bother.

I don't hate me of course, because it has nothing to do with my own utter disorganization and distractibility.

Almost Famous

http://www.filminflorida.com/

An action shot of Paul at the Florida Film Commission website...(by action, I mean sitting at the desk...you can't tell so much, but he's directing the actress.)

Out of Africa

For my new project of figuring out how and where to find money for Paul’s upcoming film I’ve been investigating classes at FSU. Last night I went to one called "Fundraising and Development" taught through the Public Administration Department. It was pretty interesting. One thing the instructor said that really caught my attention was this:

Each morning in Africa a gazelle awakes.
It knows that it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be eaten.
Each morning in Africa a lion awakes.
It knows that it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve.
It matters not whether you are a lion or a gazelle,
When the sun comes up, you’d better be running.

That seemed like a pretty interesting concept, although I couldn’t apply it in any kind of direct way to what she was saying about fundraising.

When Paul came home, I started to tell him, but he stopped me in mid-sentence.

“I know that one,” he said, “It was on one of the inspirational corporate posters for sale in the in-flight catalogues on the airplane.”

Damn. You think you’ve been given an original profound thought, and it turns out just to be ‘Footprints” for marketing staff.

Two Oddly Inspiring Things from L.A.

Returning to L.A. for visits can be intimidating, especially as we grow closer to moving back for an extended period of time. The traffic is only getting worse, yoga classes that I used to think were a luxury at $12 each are now $17, and one day I popped in for a 15 minute appointment in Westwood, and parked in the adjacent garage as they had suggested. When I saw that the charges were $2 for every fifteen minutes or portion thereof. I wanted to retreat, but another car wanting to enter was already nosing my back bumper to I entered. Of course when I got to the office they were running behind, so just over an hour later, when I drove out of the lot, I paid $10.

BUT, at the same time, there is a kind of energy that is different in a bigger city, and something about that energy, combined with seeing people and things I don’t normally see can give me ideas and inspire me to attempt things that (a) are exciting, and (b) that I may live to regret later, but (c) are still exciting. An example would be how traveling to Perth made me want to make a restaurant guide. Examples from this trip to L.A. are:

1) My friend Amy gave me the first three Shopaholics books as a Christmas present. This was my first taste of “Chick Lit” for awhile, and though I found this particular heroine at times irksome, I was compelled by how the story moved and kept me reading, and basically thought, I want to try this! I calculated that if I wrote 500 words a day for six months, that would be a first draft of a full length novel. I fell off the wagon on day four, however, coincidentally the first day of classes…oh, right, school…I might have to rethink my timeline a little.

2) Two of our friends, (both named Eric) talked about film projects that they are working to independently finance with some success. As one of them said, when it comes to money, you have to learn who and how to ask. As I was driving Paul to the airport at six am on New Year’s Ever, it came to me…What is a thesis film anyway, but $30, 000 and some free advice? I’m sure if we had the money, they would still have the advice (after all, its not really free so much as pre-paid for with tuition). I bet there are grants or investors out there for this kind of project. So I told Paul I wanted to raise the money for his film. I don’t have any idea what I’m doing of course, but I’m sure I’m going to figure it out!

Flying high

He made it onto the morning flight...yeah!!!!

Can you feel your luck turning?

Maybe not. Maybe that's why so many gamblers in Vegas lose instead of winning: they don't know when to stop.
Another view is that that people lose--and by people I mean professional gamblers who really understand how to play with the odds structure that exists--when they don't have enough resources to last them through the losing games to get to the winning ones.

Because he was trying to do the right thing, Paul took another composer off his Coke project and put my brother on it. Because they aren't communicating very well, he bought a $700 ticket to LA this weekend. Because the plane took off late, he missed his first connection in Houston. Because of weather conditions, he missed all the other connections as well and they told him they couldn't book him on a flight until Sunday. He's scheduled to leave LA first thing on Monday morning, leaving little time to work on music for the film--the thing he cares most about at the moment, since the demise of the thesis film.

Is this how it is? One thing happens, and then another, and then you're sitting in a homeless shelter explaining how everything was almost different.

I hope not

...he just got on standby for a flight tomorrow. Cross your fingers please!

Broken

I think Paul’s heart is broken over this thesis thing, and every time I think about it or look at him I want to cry, although I try not to, because it doesn’t help, and its always weird to have someone be more dramatic in their grief than you are over your misfortune. But he’s not here right now, and I’m crying as I write this.

The outcome is hard to bear on so many different levels. The fact that deliberations lasted for six hours, and that at least one member of the faculty “fought really hard for him,” indicates how close he came, and also that there are faculty members who must have fought just a little bit harder against. That after they decided, they took the crew that he had assembled, put him on it, and assigned it, almost verbatim, to his friend, who is a bit of a golden child in the department. That the two people who won spots in his category are people whose films were improved specifically from his efforts and creative input. That he worked with such focus toward this goal that it has, at times, put our marriage at risk.

I do believe that things happen for a reason, and that good things, or at least the right things, come from things that might initially seem bad. I know that he’s a fighter, and he’ll pursue other avenues soon, that other things will seem as important. I know there are things to learn that if we can learn them will make our lives better. But right now everything just feels unfair, and karmic-ly wrong.

Setback

The list went up, 1:30 AM. Paul’s name was not on it. So we are saaaad..
But resilient.
How boring would it be on talk show interviews in the future if he just cruised through the paces with no obstacles to overcome?

Big Day.

At high noon Paul and his producer, Safia, will appear before a panel of faculty to “pitch” his concept for a thesis film. Out of the twenty-five students in his program, only five will be awarded a final film with a budget of $30,000. The decisions are based on a number of criteria…quality of past films, peer reviews (regarding your reliability, leadership skills, artistic vision and ability to collaborate etc), how your film subject or genre fits into the “line-up” of other films that are chosen, and…your performance at the pitch itself.

So. It’s one hour until pitch time. If you happen to read this, send a little karma our way.

Pitches last all day today and tomorrow and the list will be posted on the bulletin board at the film school at midnight on Tuesday, like some kind of deranged episode of “Fame.”

I’ll let you know the outcome.

A Post About Film Stuff

A few of my readers have mentioned that mostly they just skim my blog looking for posts about Paul’s burgeoning film career, so I thought I would put “film” in the title of this update just to make it easier.
It’s been a busy and crazy week or so. The film from the clown shoot came back (from the developing lab) looking good, but the sound needed a little work. Apparently some of the acting performances were at the same level as the “sound floor” (which I think is the just what we used to call “room tone” or the “ambient sound”) of the location. Because of this he had to do quite a bit of “ADR” or Additional Dialogue Recording. Two of my lines got ADR’d over the weekend, so I can tell you about it.

The ADR room is a recording studio like ones you see in movies, where the band or singer is in a room, and the guy on the mixing board is in an adjacent room behind a glass window. Paul sat behind the window, and I went into the recording room and sat on a stool facing a TV monitor, and put on a big pair of headphones. Then he played the part of a scene he needed to re-dub. There is a line where I say “Thank you, Louie,” so he played that part over and over again. Each time it started again there would be a little “beep beep beep” to cue me, and then I would watch my own lips on the monitor, and say “Thank you, Louie.” Afterwards, he could listen to all the takes and pick the one that he felt worked the best. The hardest things about recording ADR is that you can hear your original performance at low volume, and you hear yourself talking in the present at a much higher volume, but it is just slightly delayed, like when you have a messed up phone connection, and hear yourself echoing.

Tuesday and Wednesday nights were was the shoot for the Coke contest. They shot at an office, so the shoots started at 5pm when the office closed, and went into the wee hours of the night. Thanks to our dedicated friends who stayed up til 3am to be extras!

And tonight was screening for the student films. His movie, “A Clown’s Life,” got a very good audience response, so he was very happy about this. So was I. My little brother Greg did a great job on the musical score. And even though on a personal level I’m not incredibly happy with him, I will still link to his recently formed company’s website here, because it looks very good and we’re proud of him.

Next up, the “Thesis pitch,” Only five people in Paul’s class of twenty-five will be awarded directorships for their final “thesis” films. On Monday and Tuesday, each student has to go in and “pitch’ their film idea, and based on that pitch, track record and some other criteria, the faculty will choose the lucky five. This is what Paul has been working hard for for the last year and a half…so please keep your fingers crossed!

(A couple notes not about film…my colonoscopy this morning…All clear, which is good news, because, you know, cancer would be such a damper on all of this.

And, I promised not to talk about this anymore, but I happened to see my Old English professor at the screenings. (His daughter is a talented actress who acts in many of the student films.) He said I was getting an A on my project…whoo hoo! If he noticed that I “abridged” it by about fifty lines of translation, he didn’t mention it, and so neither did I!

Send in the Clowns

Pics from Paul's recent shoot...I mentioned it was about a clown, right?

Foodie

My parents are coming tomorrow for Thanksgiving. Since we have a little kitchen I want to pre-cook some dinner items for the next few days. Right now I am simultaneously cooking, each at different stages-- Thai-pumpkin soup with coconut milk, Pasta Fazool, and Cranberry Sauce made with Rosemary, Ruby Port and Figs.

Paul, who is not a fan of wine or rosemary, says it smells like ass. I say, thanks for the love and support, hon. Although I must admit, that Italian, Thai, and Thanksgiving smells together are an interesting blend.

Film Related Newsflash

Paul got the email yesterday:

Congratulations!! Your script The Working Girl has been chosen as one of 10 finalists for the 2006-2007 Coca-Cola Refreshing Filmmaker's Award Program!
Please contact us with your availability next week for a pre-production conference call with our production group.
Thank you for participating in our program and we look forward to speaking with you.

He’s very, very excited. It was a good morale booster in a week where for a few days he lost all of his actors to other obligations, and had to cut a major stunts because the breakable glass guys are all booked up. Half the locations are still undecided, and they start shooting tomorrow (Sunday).

One result of all of this, is that I will have my first acting gig in quite some time, as the ex-wife of the clown. I’m a little nervous about the whole thing, as I’d hate to be shoddy and mess up his opportunities for future endeavors. We’ll see how it goes.

Today everyone’s running around trying to get ready. Since we don't rehearse til tonight, I’ve given myself the exciting task of plowing through five loads of laundry, so that we can express ourselves creatively in clean underwear for a change. Also, we could stand to have food in the house at the end of the fourteen hour days. So, I’ll try to make it to the grocery store before seeing if I can fit in my “costume” (yes, my own wedding dress, aged five years), and then maybe work on my essay that’s due on Wednesday, and of course, the latest twenty pages of Old English translation.