Ode to Kamie

So one of my favorite people in the world came over last night and shared with me a song she wrote. It was along the lines of what's popular right now... folky, acoustic, tells an actual story instead of a gush of angry/romantic/"insert your particular strong emotion here" lyrics. And it was really good!

It made me think that I should probably pick up my guitar more often. Not that I'm an aspiring singer/songwriter like Kamie, but I do enjoy it; and singing, playing, and composing give me immense personal satisfaction.

So I'm revamping my goal of playing the guitar... and actually getting back into it. Although it may only stick until my next film gig comes along :)

Technology!

Hey! So I'm becoming really high tech, and I can now post to my blog from my phone. Rock on! Here are a couple photos I took on the set of "Snowmen."

The Things We Call "Children's Movies"

Well folks, I guess this is the moment that I make the world-wide, and rather loud declaration regarding the farce that is the Disney movie. Now, don't get me wrong, I've known for a long time that there are a lot of truly...well I was going to use the word heinous, but I think that's a little strong... There are a lot of undesirable things in Disney movies, as is the case with most media in general, but Disney somehow managed to convince the general population that they were the last word in children's and family entertainment.

Last night I watched The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

NOTE TO PEEPS: NOT A CHILDREN'S MOVIE!!!

Yeah, the little gargoyles are funny, and there are definitely moments where it's aimed at kids... like when the old guy gets released from his current incarcerated state and he wobbles around saying, "I'm free! I'm free!" until moments later when he somehow finds himself entrapped again and yells, "Dang it!" It's slapstick, and it's funny... but the rest of the movie! Not so much!

I could go on and rant for a good portion of this page, but I will refrain :)

On another note, I really like Hunchback, despite the less-than-stellar character animation. (Though the backgrounds are spectacular!)

So don't let the fools at Disney kid you... haha... There's still monitoring and censoring to be had despite... or maybe in spite of... a brand name!

How to...Feel Like You've Been in a Car Accident Without Really Being in One

Snowboard. Seriously. For the first time. And fall down. A lot. And go down runs that are harder than anything you've done that day at the end of the day, because the guy who got you into the whole craziness in the first place and helped you purchase your snowboard pushed you to do it, despite my cries that I was going to die pretty much the whole way down. (Thanks, Brendan! You're a sport, and yes, it was the best run of the day!)

On Monday I went snowboarding for the first time, and it was insane! I loved it! I face planted a good number of times, fell down twenty times more than that. Though the best one was when I tumbled over my snowboard twice, heard some kind of bone creak, and I thought crack, and laughed as I realized that there's nothing to do except get up again and get down the mountain!

It was a rush. You know, I'm not a huge dare-devil when it comes to thrill-seeking sports, but this one, I think I can definitely get into. And it will be awesome.

Now, on the downside...I woke up on Tuesday morning and couldn't lift my head off my pillow. It was funny. Really funny. And then once I finally got my head up, I realized that my shoulders, abs, and back were quite opposed to getting up. So I laid there for a while until I finally got over it and made myself get out of bed. Man it hurt so good.

And I didn't even take any pictures. How lame am I?

Maybe I'll get some next time I go during the day...

Instant Gratification

So last week I had a plan. Then I had a new plan on Saturday. And a new one on Sunday. And a new one on Monday. And today I came to the grand conclusion that plans are ridiculous! Well, sometimes, in some cases. But I have definitely determined that I have essentially no control over most things in my life, and that I should accept that and move on to the next surprise. Because it's all pretty much a surprise. Really.

Now that the show is over, and I have something that resembles a life again, I will attempt to renew my commitment to writing weekly.

I got a new snowboard. It is pretty much awesome. And with said snowboard came a free lesson/lift ticket package. Unfortunately, I scratched a little to hard and the redemption code is now illegible. Hopefully the nice folks at Burton will cut me a break...

And now for more exciting news... 

Well, that's about it.

As For Resolutions...

As for my resolution regarding posting weekly, may I add an addendum? I want to post at least weekly when not absolutely going out of my mind spending every waking moment on a film set...minus my day or two off, which I spend sleeping, doing laundry, and catching up on my week of life.

Thus, I am resolved to tell you of the excitement, or perhaps lack thereof, on set. Mostly it's pretty slow on this show. But, on a happier note, I have met some really cool people: like Matty Props (for those of you who don't know, you don't have last names in the film industry, it's a first name and then your department...yeah, it's weird). Anyway, Matty smashed his middle finger in a garage door the other day and now, since it's broken and in a splint, he finds it quite amusing to walk around flipping people off. Not going to lie, it is pretty funny!

And there's my fellow PA buddies, they're awesome. We have fun, probably too much. The rest of the AD department are pretty much rockin'. We have parties in the production hole every night. It rocks.

The whole camera department are rock stars. Seriously. The art department are kind of enigmatic, especially when Chris (the production designer) cuts off his luscious locks, and no one even recognized him at first! And, strangely enough, the same thing happened when Andy from the grip department cut his hair...hmm...

The grip and electric department definitely provide the comic relief during the down times. They're pretty amazing.

Darcy is crafty (the person who provides all the snackage), and she is super. She's giving me soup recipes, which I rather enjoy! And, speaking of food, our catering boys are way too much fun, and always provide a smile and a plate of food, which is definitely appreciated.

Then there's Telly Wardrobe, who provides us with enjoyment by writing down all of the random quotes from set. It's funny. Seriously funny. All of the hair/makeup/wardrobe ladies are lovely.

And the above the line peeps: like MB, the UPM, she's always fun. Especially when her walkie starts keying and everyone can hear her conversations... Stephen, the line producer, has been giving me much needed advice regarding my newest hobby that I have yet to actually do: snowboarding. And you know, the director Rob, and DP Geno... I've learned great things from them... like how I shouldn't eat sea urchins and how to smell steak from a mile away.

At any rate, many cool people. Oh, and did I mention Christopher Lloyd? Yeah, the one and only Doc came and was in our film. He was super nice, but quite shy and quiet! Ray Liotta is also here, but my favorite is definitely Doug E. Doug. You know, from Cool Runnings! He's the nicest, most chill guy ever! It's awesome!

So, I finish up this show on Friday... and I'll have a life again. Imagine...

Sheesh! Why?!

So, just so you know. I'm working on a feature Wednesday through Sunday. Yeah, not even kidding. It's brutal, but oh so much fun!

Like, for example, yesterday we worked halvsies... you know a half day, half night. WELL... it was the most NOT awesome day ever! We had probably 30 kids on ice skates on this little pond outdoors in single digits. YEAH! Plus the cast kids were just goofing off (what did they expect with 9 year olds on ice skates?!). It was a messy day, but you live and learn. At least the food is good :)

On a happier note. I now have really warm winter wear. Like the serious snowboarder type. I have this great down hooded jacket and super warm amazing snowpants...but my favorite are my Salomon "girlie" boots, as my coworker Julie calls them. I guess they're girlie because they have an abundance of fur on the top. I think it's awesome. And warm.

Anyway, so if you don't hear from me on a regular basis, that is the reason. But I'm sure I'll be able to throw you a set anecdote every once in a while!

And She's Back (with premiered movies!)

So I'm setting a resolution to write on this thing at least weekly. Hopefully more. I have a lot to blog about! All of my crazy trips, my working adventures, and all that jazz! It's exciting stuff!

So some news:
A bunch of my films premiered at the LDS Film Festival mid-January. We won the audience choice award for my last student film that I produced entitled The Teller's Tale. (pictured below and to the left)

The feature I worked on summer 2007 also premiered! Dragon Hunter was actually pretty sweet, if I do say so myself! I had a couple other student films that I worked on show up at the festival as well, so it was pretty successful!

So that was sweet. (see the awesome dragon poster? Yeah...)

Let's see what else...


Well here's a list of things you have to look forward to coming soon:

A bunch of photos from a bunch of things including, but not limited to, all of my east coast trips, holidays, birthdays, random moments. And, of course, stories to go with them. And my next blog will actually be philosophical. Brace yourself. Hah.

I Really Will Get Better at This

Maybe.

I really will try.

A lot went on this fall, and I haven't really written about any of it. But I will! Soon! I'm starting to be ambitious again after spending pretty much all of my free waking hours working on Christmas presents, which aren't finished, by the way, but will be amazing when they are!

Best, and updates soon...

Look! Es mi hermano!

Look here folks! It's my brother singing "Abide with me, 'tis Eventide" in Mexico on his mission! HOORAY! He gets home on March 2! AND basically he's amazing! AND that's all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXt4a2Wpbjk

WATCH IT!

PS I will write about my East Coast trips soon!