Production, Check

I finished shooting my senior film a little over a week ago now. All in all, it was a lot of fun. Friday - the Epic Cafe night shoot - was the best. We were only doing two scenes that night, and had plenty of time to do it. I got to spend a lot of time working with my actors, and Adam, my gaffer, set up this ridiculous little rig. By 6am, I was a little delusional, but happy none the less.

Sunday was a little bit more stressful. We had about 13 shots to do in a day in a pretty tight space. The owner of the apartment was an hour and a half late... needless to say, I was a little worried. But, despite the stress, we finished and made it back to my house at 9pm for a wrap dinner.

Tuesday night, I headed to the lab to capture and organize all of my footage. I got an assembly edit done that night, and I'm pretty happy with the overall result. It's funny to think that it's almost November and my film is all ready for post production.

So, in the mean time? Three more shoots - one easy, one medium, and one complicated. And I'm still on the infamous search for a job (that I can stand going to). I'll be filling out a single grad school application and I'll start looking for some potential post-grad industry jobs.

For a while, I was saying that I was ready to leave Tucson - I was ready to finish school and move on with my life. But right now, I'm happy here. Things are slow. Things are strange. But, for the time being, I like it that way. I'm in the moment, which is a pretty good place to be.

As Always,

Mo

Currently Watching: The Notebook, then...

Recently Watched: 3:10 to Yuma, Mildred Pierce, Some Like It Hot, The Proposal, Ever After, Benjamin Button, and Sunshine Cleaning

And it comes in waves

I shoot in a week. Yet, every time someone asks me, "how are you feeling about your film," I usually respond with, "surprisingly calm. I feel good." 

But it comes in waves. I'm getting nervous. I go through these little waves as we get closer where I start to get stressed. It's natural. It's expected. But I still hate these brief periods where my shoulders get tense, my responses are short and I feel a little queasy. 

So how do you handle stress? How do you get through these little moments where you aren't quite sure. I'll let you know when I find out.

As Always,

Monique

Questions and Doubts

Well it seems we've reached the Question and Doubt portion of the pre-production show. After a weekend out of town I've come home to face reality and make many long To-do lists. Logistically,  I shoot in a month and a half, so I have time for costumes and props, which is convenient because my art director (Mo) is plenty busy in these upcoming weeks (see her posts for proof). I'm working on scheduling rehearsal time and communicating with SAG, but what's really stressing me out is locations. 

Locations and my story as a whole. For the time being, positive classmate and professor feedback had been enough to overshadow any doubt I had been having but now it's back. Mainly because whenever I try to explain the plot of my movie to anyone they give me the same blank stare back. I find myself covering, defending, dismissing; cowardly adding on some "don't worry, it's way cooler than I'm describing it." But frankly, that just shouldn't be. The fact that I've yet to come up with a logline satisfying enough to please the random people I tell my project about is really starting to worry me about the story as a whole. Is it just completely stupid? I've been telling myself that a lot of the humor comes from the story format, but is that a lie? I'm hoping that this is the normal self-deprecating jitters that everyone goes through, and that it'll pass. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MONIQUE!

It is the early morning of Monique's 21st birthday! She has chosen to celebrate this event by sleeping (good choice) and I have chosen to celebrate it by not sleeping, as I can't for the life of me get motivated to write this damn paper. 

I'm just done with "real" classes. I feel done with writing papers, I just don't want to do them anymore. This isn't a difficult essay, I've already outlined and researched it, but for the past 48 hours, including the 4 I spent at work today doing nothing, I just stare at the blank word document and simple don't feel like writing. 

It's due in about 11 hours, and it's a short enough paper that I can probably pump it out in two or three hours, but I can't start it. It'll happen, but it might take another hour of procrastinating. 

Anywho, I hope that Monique has a lovely birthday because she is a lovely lady. 

Say "Cheese"

Yes, it's been a while. Seems like there are so many other things on my to do list other than update the bloggy-wog. The problem is, I haven't been doing those "other things." I mean, I go through the motions, but nothing really ever gets done well. It's been frustrating being back in Tucson after my ridiculously productive summer. And, after thinking about it, I think part of my productivity had to do with this blog. After a day of work, I was inspired to go out and do things and take photo's because I knew I'd get to share them with Sarah (and all of you) later on. When I was feeling lazy, I'd force myself to go out and try something new, so that when I got back to my (cousin's) New York bedroom, I could act as NY representative and show all of the beautiful things that the east coast had to offer. That way, when post college time comes, both of us have an idea of what to expect in whichever home we choose.

So, I've decided to come back to the blog. I figure that my lack of motivation may differ if I have a blog (aka electronic Sarah) to answer to at the end of the day. And, I always find that writing about something makes me more excited or motivated... It keeps the wild mind flowing.

Lets begin. 

MY FILM.

 This is John. He is my classmate. He is a film student. He is also going to be one of my actors. Woot. I have all three of my actor's secured. I'm really happy with their performance and the way they handle the material. I have my shot list completed and my DP (Mr. Oliver) is working on the storyboards. The lighting scheme has been discussed. The locations are locked. I just need an exterior. The script is locked. I have some props to buy and some equipment to rent (which is proving difficult - does any one know where I can get a remote follow focus?) but other than that, I'm good.

I'm shooting in three weeks. Everything is there. I'm pretty low stress. I have a few things to tie up. But I'm in a good place. I just need a little excitement and passion about the project - it's that "going through the motions" bull. Meh. Here's an example. I had my first rehearsal last week. My actors give a fine performance but they aren't passionate about the material. It's my job to make them passionate. The way I can get them excited is to be excited myself. I'm just not sure how to get there. Sure, my project will be good regardless, but I really want it to be great. I really want to have so much fun with this project because, well, it's my last one for a while. And who doesn't want to be enthused by the things they create? 

OTHER FILMS.

I'm working on a couple of other projects. The main ones I'm thinking about now are:

Dinner - by Jillian - a gay couple meet to discuss and put closure to their relationship. 

The Big Job - by Adam - four cowboys journey through the desert in search of diamonds.

Lunch - by Katie - lunch ladies seek revenge when they find out their boss is cutting funds to give himself a raise.

I'm doing art for all three and AD-ing Jillian's as well. The process so far has been a lot of fun. Adam's is the most in that it requires a lot of specific dressing and problem solving bits. Plus there are a lot of spaces I'm working with. I'm most excited about his for the same reason I've already discussed - he made me excited. The amount of passion and work he is putting in his project makes me want to make his film great. Where does he get that passion? I need it!! Okay...

Katie's is cool too. We are making a room full of can's. It's gonna be sweet when it's done. She's shooting next weekend, and there is a lot to do between now and then. We are going to get props tomorrow and I'm meeting with the label designer tomorrow as well. 

Jillian's is going to be beautiful. Her location is absolutely stunning. We are shooting in the kitchen of this cooking school in Northern Tucson. The film is going to take place at sunset so the lighting in the room will be stunning. I'm really excited to see how it turns out.

TO DO:

1. Find exterior location - permit

2. Polaroid Boyfriend art breakdown - props, polaroids, poladroids, dressing and costume

3. Equipment - Misty's rentals and that damn remote follow focus

4. Rehearsal's, Production Meeting, finalize plans

5. crafties and budget

6. Lunch art breakdown and prop shopping

7. The Big Job art breakdown and prop shopping

8. All AD duties for Dinner (and then Torment... the next project)

And did I mention tomorrow's my birthday? I turn 21. That means bars... maybe. 

As Always,

Monique

Currently Watching: Sandra's Money Saving Meals

Dear Monique,

Have we switched bodies? Have you become me? I ask you this for two reasons: firstly, because I cleaned a lot yesterday and that is clearly a You trait and secondly because you are starting to stress like me. I'm not saying you are not allowed to stress and freak out, you obviously obtain that right. However, I am saying that I know it'll all work out. Really, this is just me stating that I will be your cuddle producer. End of story. 

Love,

Sarah 

Lazy Day

As I sit enjoying one of the last lazy weekends I'll be able to have for some time I am struck by how calm I feel. My day has been an interesting mix of productive and useless. I ran some errands, did the dishes, worked on my script, wrote my character descriptions and some logline attempts, and have also watched an absurd amount of television. 

When the programming on Food Network was too underwhelming I found myself watching some show about wedding planning on one of those channels that would have shows about wedding planning. I couldn't help but think about how if/when I ever get married I'll be so much more together than these crazy people. My logic? It's pre-production. It's the exact same process, same stress over details leading up to one short weekend, and even the type of details are similar. There are costumes, locations, set decorations, catering; it's the same type of obsessing we've all been doing for our projects now. 

That's why it's comforting to know that my current strange wave of serenity is able to occur as I kick my pre-production into gear. I have a new zen-like mentality that I wonder if I'll be able benefit from, or even sustain longer than this weekend. Now that I have a script that I'm happy with I have an alarmingly passive que sera mindset that everything will fall into place. Should I trust this calm and embrace it? Should I get back to my anxious ways and feed off the stress as usual? 

Do it to it,

Sarah 

Yay New Things!

As Monique so proudly declared earlier: our blog is transforming anew! Since we are now happily reunited and are no longer living in Summer Fantasy land, the new direction of our lives is our our senior projects! 

Despite the fact that other classmates of ours have been deep in pre-production for weeks (*cough* Monique *cough*) and I have been lagging slightly behind, I think that today feel like the official starting point of this project for me. Today in class we planned out the shooting schedule for the semester and I now have official shooting dates to work towards. This makes it real. Too real. Good real. My story currently exists as a treatment which is being made into a script by Katie, whom I trust greatly as a writer. Once this script gets nailed down it's location scouting, casting, rounding out the crew, and getting down to business. I finally feel ready and excited. 

It's on. It's so on. 

New blog direction calls for a new sign off:

Do it to it,

Sarah 

Sober me up

In need of some blood.

I just got back from the last minute internship in Santa Fe. The plane got in yesterday around noon and I said a weeping goodbye to Sin.D and Jenny, two NALIP staff members who flew with me on their way back to LaLa. It's strange being back.

NALIP was an amazing experience, no doubt. We worked everyday from 7 to 10, drank and chilled afterward, then did it all again. I've never worked so long in my life. The experience was varied as well. I did production office work, ran random errands, was an extra on set and got to sit in on some of the classes the program was holding. I made a bunch of new friends and a couple of strong contacts as well. There was definitely some shit times - I found myself in a few terrible situations. But all in all, everything worked out in the end.

Though I'm happy to be back in Tucson, I'm starting to miss my New York life. I miss not having to worry about school or money or friends or life (there are a few F stresses in there). All those things that got put on hold the moment the senior screening ended are back and waiting. And the biggest thing I've realized is that I need a little me time. I need a break from all the people and responsibilities. I need a moment to relax.

Bottom line is, I had the best summer of my life, take with it the good and the bad. I just hope life stays on that path. I'm working on seven short films this year, one being my own. That's a lot. I am back on the job hunt. Parental funding is being cut down immensely, and I was told that in May, I'm officially on my own. No more money, no more insurance. It's done. It's gonna be a heavy year. I'll decide tomorrow if I'm ready for it.

Less-Than-Three You, Monique

Listening to: some show on Food Network - What would [insert some guys name] make?

Hey Tucson Hey!

I am home, in our little duplex on 1st street, with lots of little bugs that worked their way in somehow. It's weird. Super duper weird. It all seems familiar enough; my bed still feels like my bed (and is still as amazingly cozy as ever), I still can fall asleep in one of our chairs in less than five minutes, and it looks like the same house I habitated in all of last year. But it's just all wrong. It probably feels that way for the following reasons: 1) I have no computer to occupy my time and I am incredibly lost and bored as hell without it. 2) I am alone in the house, without my Mo and without Mr. Tom even though I see evidence of his existance everywhere and am constantly tempted by the sixpack of Dos Equis that he left in our fridge. 3) Since reasons 1 and 2 have left me completely stir crazy in the house, all I want to do is go outside but it's so miserably hot out that I regret that decision within minutes of walking out the front door.

At least the library is air conditioned. I drove here because I didn't want to walk in the 110 degree heat but the drive is so short that I felt pathetic.

At least George, Nick and Allen are around so I've seen them a little. Still, the two days I've been here have been painfully long and lonely. I miss the beach and the breeze and the endless amount of activities that exist in LA. I'm also very very ready to fly back east tomorrow. I need to recouperate from the summer, I need to see the people from my Old Life, I need to write a script that I am happy with.

I am still as lost as ever when it comes to my script. I want to write about robbery, since I have it on my mind, but when I told the Momelet my idea she dismissed it as contrived. Of course it is; I feel contrived.

I'll be without a laptop to call my own for a while longer, but I'll have my sister's laptop to dick around with once I get home before my own lappy arrives.

I'm not ready to be back here for real. I'm not ready for the semester to start. I'm just not ready to be a real person again after this summer.

Bye kids, be well,
Sarah

Listening to: Some guy getting tutored in History a few computers down.

P.S. MONIQUE I SAW SKYLER! I was walking out of the blood drawing room after getting some taken and there she was sitting in the waiting room with her adorably large-headed baby. She said the shoot was great and she's very please with it, so obviously in my head I gave you all of the credit for that.

Good Food, Good Music, Good People

Alex came back to Tucson last night. In his honor, Nick threw a small dinner party with the promise of good food, good music and good people. I arrived promptly at 7:30 carrying homemade cupcakes that I baked with love (in your honor, Sarah). The boys made a beautiful meal including two types of pasta, garlic bread and lots of cheap wine. We spent the night eating and dancing and talking - it was absolutely beautiful. Alex gave me the LA updates which made me realize exactly how much I miss everyone out there. The night ended with him promising to take me to Vermont for the weekend when we're in New York together. We're gonna watch the fireflies on his porch so I can get some film inspiration. All in all, Nick's promise came through. It was a lovely little night.

Less-Than-Three You <3 Monique
Listening To: Closer - Kings of Leon

48hrs and AD-ing

This'll be a bit long... its been a long weekend.

48hr shoot:
I spent my weekend helping Tom and George with their 48 hr shoot. If you aren't familiar with the concept, here it is: several teams have exactly 48hrs to write, shoot and edit a film. There are usually some stipulations (in this case, we had to spoof a film), and, if you get your film in on time, you are up to win approximately $750 dollars. The movie we drew to spoof was "Jaws."

Friday night, we sat down and watched the film. We wrote the script and did most of the pre-production work. Our version of "Jaws" was about a boy (Jaws) who couldn't take the hint that no one wanted him around at parties. The hosts of the party (Quinn, Brody and Hooper) took it upon themsevles to scare the boy away so that their party could survive. It ends with Quinn (played by VLo) killing Josh/Jaws (played by Box) with a bat. Magic.

Anyway, the next morning (after 2 hours of sleep) we woke up and bought props, built some equipment and began shooting. The shoot was fairly easy and mostly fun... minus the fact that I cannot drive a truck due to my size and the fact that I'm a shitty, unexperienced driver in general. I even got to smack one of our actors, Mike, in the face *giggle*. Mentally, the event was a trip. We were all exhausted and hopped up on several substences (beer, coffee, 5hr energy drinks, cigarettes, etc) in order to stay awake. (PS, out of all of those things, the only one that woke me up was beer... go figure). By 10pm, the boys set up shop in my room and started editing. I seized this opportunity to go play with our neigbors, Nick, Winn and Mike. When I got back, they were still working so the three of us spent the next 10 hours sleeping and editing and talking. They managed to get a working cut done around 4:30 (the film was due at 6:24) and were going to export a safe copy before they sent it into Color, but for some reason (probably dillusion) they didnt. By 6, they were ready to export. The problem? The computer was running so extremely slow by that point that the export didn't finish in time. Yes. We had a hilarious, completed and professional fim, yet were unable to turn it in because of the effing export.

They are still going to submit a copy just to screen and will submit the film into First Friday, so perhaps they'll make a little dough. All in all, the experience was worth it. The process was emtertaining and the film experience was useful.

AD-ing:
This morning I went in to interview with my professor for the AD job. The way it is going to work is two fold: 1. if she is able to get the funding, she will fly out my 'mentor' to be the 1st AD and either me or another girl to be 2nd AD. Because he is DGA, he cannot technically get the 1st AD credit, so the 2nd will get the credit. 2. If she isn't able to get funding, either me or this other girl will take on the role of 1st AD and we will work with the 'mentor' in order to be prepared. If I don't end up AD-ing, I'll be working with the Producer or the Art Director. In the mean time, I'm still working on the logistics of the film. Currently, I am looking up flight and catering information.

Overall, I feel that the meeting went well. However, I could definately feel the scrutiny and pressure of the whole thing. I've worked with this 'mentor' before and he is usually very helpful and sweet - very much a teacher. But, because we were discussing an actual job, he was much more harsh and scrutinizing. There is absolutely no problem with that, it merely reminds me that, in the real world of filmmaking, there is serious responsibility. It's hard work, actual work. There is no room for laziness or error for that matter. Student films are difficult sometimes, yes, but they are nothing in comparison to what's really out there.

After realizing this and hearing exactly what work I would be doing as an AD (which is mainly paperwork and set organization), I felt the need to prove myself. This, my dears, is a good step. Usually I would be terrified, thinking that if I actually got the job, I would fuck up in two seconds. But this time, I feel ready. I'm ready for the challenge and I'm ready to handle whatever shit may come up. That feeling is not only a necessity in order to work in film, but it is beautiful on its own.

That's all I got for you this time, loves.

Less-Than-Three You <3 Monique
Listening to: my stomache growl and my eyes droop from exhaustion (yes, drooping eyes do make a noise)

tehehe!!

I received this email today in regards to Internship One:

"Hi Monique -- would you be interested in being the first AD on the shoot?
you would be mentored by *** *** -- pls let me know if you are avail fri am or
next week for a ten minute interview with him and me to discuss further!
thanks -- and for all of your great work on this so far"

I'm on top of the effing world.

The Closet

I officially booked my tickets for New York. I'm leaving for New York on June 28th and am returning on August 1st. I'm living with my cousin Joel whom happens to be gay (I promise this detail is necessary for the story... watch).

It will be my first time traveling to New York by plane, so my mom told me to ask Joel to pick me up at the airport. I sent him an email asking, but he hasn't gotten back to me. So my mom took it upon herself to ask her sister Bia why her son wasn't getting back to me. Bia explained that Joel is beginning to feel a little uncomfortable by the whole situation because of his sexuality. My mother quickly explained that I have absolutely no problem with that and she forwarded me the email so I knew what was up. When I saw the message, my immediate instinct was to email this to her: "Tell Joel I'm bisexual." Why did I send it? Partially to make Joel feel better, and partially because I knew my mom would be freaked out. The result? Within 1 minute of sending the email, my phone rang. It's my mom. I answer, "Hello?" She responded, completely void of a need for a greeting, "Are you serious?" 1 minute after...hah! When I quickly calmed her nerves by telling her, "yes, I'm joking," she replied by telling me that she has already deleted the email and has deleted her trash bin as well... just to make sure that no one would find the incriminating information.

Now, let me reassure you, my dear readers, that my mom has no problem with homosexuals - she has many gay friends and family members and she loves them all. The problem? She doesn't want her only daughter to be because then she's have to picture me scissoring my girlfriend whilst not bearing her grand kids. *Did I use the word 'whilst' correctly? Meh, I love it anyway*

So that's my diddy. I find it amusing... I hope you did too.

Less-Than-Three You, Monique
Listening To: Muse

Dr. Hayes tells me to dip my toe in the river of knowledge

It's Monday morning. Sarah is gone. J-Ty (our old roomate) is gone forever. Tom (our new roomate) is all moved in.

Here is the recap of my life so far without Sarah:
1. I'm still job hunting - I'm sure the people at Coffee Exchange think I'm crazy due to a car alarm incident... I don't want to talk about it.
2. I played some pool.
3. I saw "Hunger" (see it! They have this redicoulous long take that must last about 7 mintutes. Not only is it a long take, but it is a stable two-shot where the characters are in shadow with highlights outlining their bodies. It works... yes!).
4. I went to a party and learned how to salsa dance. For being half black, you would think I would know how to dance better.
5. I saw "Terminator Salvation" (meh, not bad).

I spent the morning working on Internship 1. Right now, I'm trying to find housing, casting information, catering and secure a location for this short my professor is shooting in late July. We are shooting in this small town in upstate NY. I've made so many calls, I'm pretty sure every local business knows my name - now that's a strange feeling.

As far as my senior film goes, I got an idea and some crew. I want to shoot this really bitter sweet love story that deals with fantasy and reality. My junior film partner and I talked about shooting a story like this last semester, but it didn't end up happening - I'll let you readers wonder what bizzare flick we made instead. The overall point of the piece? No matter how hard you try and what you expect, some things are just not meant to work out the way you intend. That was the overall theme of my last semester, what with all of the pitfalls of my junior film.

I'm running into this problem whilst trying to write. I don't relate to my characters. For one thing, I've never had a longtermer and for another, I'm not a man. How do writers accurately write the opposite sex, another social class, etc? If we only write what we know, then is my perception of others enough to make my script work... Bueller? Bueller?

Meh, this is long enough for today. I'll try to make these more concise, entertaining and fluid in the future. Yes? Okay!

Less-Than-Three You <3 Monique
Listening to: "Kings of Leon" Radio on Pandora

And this is the beginning...

The Two:

Sarah and Monique just finished up their Junior year with a busy semester in which they each made two short films, worked on a plethora of other projects, and drank a lot of wine to compensate. Now, at the start of the summer they had a brief cool-down period and it's time to get back in the game. Tomorrow Sarah drives to LA to begin her summer at a music video and commercial production company and Monique soon begins Internship Number One in Tucson before flying out to New York for Internship Number Two in a month. This blog will not only be the roomies' way of compensating for the lack of each other all summer, but will also document their adventures interning in the film industry on opposite coasts. 

Sarah: 

So here we are, sitting in my room the night before I drive out to LA. I just finished packing (or, I just finished obsessing over the idea of packing) and we're getting ready to go out for our last night together in town. Tonight, the eve of my summer adventure, doesn't really feel like a transitional night even though it is. My expectations for the next few months are kept neutral, mostly with the hope that the reality will exceed my low expectations. I promise my future posts in this blog will have actual points, but right now all I can say is, it's the last night with my Mo and I'm not quite sure how I'll handle living without her in the next room. 

Monique:

When Sarah leaves tomorrow, this summer officially begins in my book. While I'm waiting to go to New York, I'm stuck here - in Tucson - starting my own internship, [hopefully] working and beginning pre-production on my senior project. As ready as I am for summer, a part of me is nervous. This is my last summer as a student and a year from now, I'll be forced into growing up. So what do I want from this summer? Other than experience and a little assurance that I belong in this industry, I want to prove to myself that I can handle the real world. My existential side wants me to find and embrace who I am as a filmmaker. If you only get one life changing experience, I am ready to spend that ticket this summer... even if my Sarah isn't there to listen to my silly stories in the morning.