Got Permission!

This is wonderful. For next weekend's Living with Epilepsy conference, I have been speaking with a very helpful woman on the phone from the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California (who have organized the event). So far, she has granted me permission to film at least one of the panels of neurologists that plan to speak!

This is all for the still-untitled documentary which I will quickly be shooting, editing and sending off to the Different From What? festival within the next month! I hope to complete the screenplay in the next few days so that I'll have an idea of where to include this necessary footage.

Sooo excited!

Gettin' Busy

Lots o' stuff has been happ'ning lately! Aside from editing a series of videos for some friends, I'm starting not one but TWO documentaries, and that's all not counting the touching up of the capstone for festival entry, reediting a lost pic from found footage, and finally creating a new narrative piece!!

This, though, is about the docs. This really is the Year of the Docs, since it will contain at least three for public release, plus a few in private release, by the 2009's end. The first, possibly titled Getting There (working title), is a personal documentary that follows my lifelong journey with epilepsy, and how I make do in spite of it. As it's just now brewing and I'd like to enter it in the Different From What? festival in late October, I've gotta be quick about it!

The other, Everyone and Their Mother, will probably begin this year, but will be finished next year, right before Mother's Day. It will follow three different interviewees within the approximate 6 minute timeframe, and through overlapping stories, they each reveal that their mother was the hero. It's to be posted on Current TV, among other things. Time to get crackin'!

Alumni Fest '09

If you happen to be in the Monterey area tomorrow, the CSUMB Alumni Showcase will be occurring on campus at the Alumni and Visitor's Center (Bldg. 97) from 2:00 - 4:00 pm.

I was able to submit a copy of my Television Commercial for Gizdich Ranch, which should be airing this fall on KSBW, to the alumni event.  On a spontaneous run, I may even attend...

Online Speculations

Unless there is reason to be misled tomorrow (Tuesday), when contained films of this year's MVFF are to be listed to the public, there is speculation that At the Core sadly did not get accepted.  However, this now makes it possible to show online!

Through both IMDb and YouTube, it becomes entirely possible not to hide this documentary from the public anymore.  It needs to be rendered again with the new credits, which will be altered for the music rights, and compressed for uploading, but that should make things possible!

Initially, I didn't think uploading video to IMDb was all that possible, but by submitting At the Core through Withoutabox, that allows me a connection to IMDb that includes uploading videos!  That's how the film's trailer was uploaded there already...  Updates on this soon!

Spec-tac-ular!

Today marks the Ten Year Anniversary of the Los Angeles premiere of my favorite film ever: American Beauty.

It was so excellent, I viewed it in theaters twice, and I instantly knew there was something magical about it. Viewing it with friends both times (I was in high school), it truly meant something when coming out of the theater because both girls and guys were so affected that tears were on their cheeks. There were characters that could relate to everyone, in situations that were familiar to everyone. Once in a blue moon are there films of that power, and this had it. It was satirical to boot! OF COURSE Sam Mendes' film would win Best Picture and Director...

Also today, Part 2 of The Dog of Pompeii on YouTube has reached 1000 views! This is great in that the distance in view quantities among parts of a movie grows radically once Part 1 skyrockets; Parts 2 on up are often left alone. Here, if the LAST part has reached 1000, it only suggests the first part has been viewed QUITE A BIT MORE, which is spec-TAC-ular!

Win Some, Lose Some

"Filmmakers will be notified via email of entry status by approximately September 4th."

-http://www.cafilm.org/mvff/c4e.html

Though I am yet to receive any such email about Mill Valley, I am to assume At the Core (2009) did not make it into the festival based on the Submission Status shown at Withoutabox. That claims to have been notified on September 2nd, and the decision was "Not Accepted."  Sigh...

And still, this day remains pleasant because some of the footage from Brave New World (2002) has now been digitized (it's all already been transferred from Hi8 to MiniDV, thus saved), and it's begun to be edited. I'm not going to upload the movie to YouTube until it's entirely reedited, which may need to wait during a paid video editing job. However, above, I posted a few Brave New Outtakes from the opening scene. I'm sure more are to follow, so I called it "Part 1." Enjoy!