HAPPY JULY 4th!!

The extraordinary Heather Murphy created this video for a YouTube Type in Media Project, using text from this blog entry I posted last November after participating in the Breast Cancer 3-Day.  I am honored my words were chosen for this very special project.  Thank you Heather!

P.S.  If you are interested in supporting a walker for this year's San Diego walk in November, support my friend Ann! 

Being the film geek that I am, I love David Strick's Hollywood Backlot images, photographs from the sets and stages of Hollywood.  Head over here to see some. 

I started watching In the Shadow of the Moon last night and am loving it.  Such extraordinary stories! 

When all the hoopla surrounding the release of Sex and the City began, I initially rolled my eyes and thought I'd be putting it on the top of my Summer Films To Avoid list.  I received the entire series on DVD for my birthday and have been watching the series from the start for the past many months.  In the beginning it was a bit of a tortuous experience because I got easily annoyed by the main characters' magnified neuroses.  Too much drama, too much whining, not enough depth.  

I am now into the last part of the final season, and I have to say the show has grown on me.  With each season all the over the top squeals and absurdities seem to be melting away and ironed out, and the characters are actually maturing and becoming more interesting with age (what a concept in mainstream media!)  I have not finished the entire series, so I had a few of these final season surprises spoiled by seeing the movie yesterday, but I am still looking forward to watching how things unfold even more.

Because the movie was great.  As in, I can't say enough good things about it. 

I will refer you to an LA Times review of the film that sums up all of its wonderful qualities much better than I ever could, but I will also add my own personal bit about why this movie touched me:

This film is about girlfriends, and about how we, as women, cannot survive without one another.  I got incredibly weepy during the film Friends With Money and I got even more weepy yesterday during Sex and the City.  This film captured those moments when our girlfriends save our lives, our sanity and our broken hearts, when they are the only human beings on the planet capable of making us laugh and helping us recover from our darkest moments.  I will admit it was all I could to not to completely lose it when the film ended, thinking of all the amazing women in my life who lift me up in so many ways, who inspire me and touch me and make me feel like I can realize my wildest dreams and also make it through the messiest tangles of life.  

I saw this film with three of my best mates, and we got dolled up and had girlie cocktails afterwards.  We did what girlfriends across the country are doing, and I am proud to be part of this celebration.  More than that, I am proud of my friends and the amazing gifts they give to me every single day.

And here I am again, weepy with joy. 

Get ready to gorge on popcorn and let the film geek in you run wild - the LA Film Fest is almost here:

"The Los Angeles Film Festival, held annually for ten days in June, showcases the best of American and international independent cinema. With an expected attendance of over 100,000, the festival screens over 175 narrative features, documentaries, shorts, and music videos. Now in its fourteenth year, the festival has grown into a world-class event, uniting new filmmakers with critics, scholars, film masters, and the movie-loving public."  -LAFF website 

Have you seen Rize?  No?  Rent it today!

"Rize is an intimate completely fresh portrayal of inner city youth who have created art and often family - where before there was none. Surrounded by drug addiction gangs and impoverishment they have developed a completely unique style of dance that evolves on a daily basis. Through tremendous spirit and creativity they manage to rise above."  -Amazon.com 

Designers have been clamoring to be involved in the upcoming film version of Sex and the City.  Popular culture is so fascinating, like when a TV show becomes synonomous with Manolo Blahnik and cosompolitan martinis.  The games begin May 30th!

 The Denver Art Museum is now in the midst of its Take Two: Film & Its Inspirations series.  Art + film = Inspiration Squared.

Morgan Spurlock - the brainchild behind Super Size Me - has a new documentary film opening this weekend in Los Angeles:  Where In the World is Osama Bin Laden?  It is terribly easy to look at the Middle East as a place that requires nothing more than our worst fears and our harshest judgements, but the truth is that these countries are filled with human beings who are raising families, shopping for groceries, reading books and having coffee with their friends just like us.  An article in yesterday's Los Angeles Times explains that "[Spurlock] explores America's culture of fear as he travels the globe for a sense of understanding."  I hope crowds flock to the theaters for this, and I applaud Spurlock for recognizing that we are connected to other people all over the world through our humanity, even people in the Middle East.

I have been on a bit of an inspiration binge lately, attending the Elizabeth Gilbert/Anne Lamott lecture a couple of weeks ago and then the Azar Nafasi/Marjane Satrapi lecture last night.  I read Reading Lolita in Tehran a while back and saw Satrapi's Persepolis last year, and both of them impacted and inspired me for very different reasons.  The questions posed to both of these extraordinary writers last night were not so much about their books as they were about writing, popular culture and the media and I left feeling like I had just taken a bath in glitter and light.  These are two passionate, feisty women who had a lot to say about the state of the world today and I feel honored to have heard them speak.

I tried to find information on other speaking engagements for Nafasi and Satrapi but google did not help me, so the best I can do for now is to encourage you to keep an eye out for them in your area.  If you have the opportunity to see them, you won't be disappointed.  In the meantime, here are some goodies to inspire you right now...

Azar Nafasi :: Reading Lolita in Tehran

Interviews with Nafasi are here, here and here.

"You need imagination in order to imagine a future that doesn't exist.” - Azar Nafasi

Marjane Satrapi :: Persepolis 

Interviews with Satrapi are here, here and here. 

"And when you draw a situation - someone is scared or angry or happy - it means the same thing in all cultures." -Marjane Satrapi 

OK, towards the end of this video about Girls Rock, when one of the girls says, "I've been waiting for so long to finally admit to myself that I"m amazing and I really am..." I lose it...

I saw Shut Up and Sing last year and was so inspired I felt like I was glowing for a few days after - their talent, integrity and commitment to one another blew me away.  I am so happy a documentary film was made about this, otherwise it would have just been another faded headline and most of the world would never have known how incredible these three women were throughout the entire experience.  I can only hope I would be so strong and confident under the same circumstances.

Oscar night is the one night a year I must watch TV, and last night's ceremony did not disappoint.  I am thrilled the Coen Brothers won Best Picture, and I also loved Marketa Irglova's acceptance speech, which she was able to give thanks to Jon Stewart bringing her back out after she was cut off by the orchestra earlier in the evening.  {Sigh...} 

I saw one episode of Flight of the Conchords months ago at a friend's house and was instantly hooked.  I just got the first season's DVD from Netflix so I can watch it from the beginning and I absolutely love it.  The fact that Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement have done so well with this show is so inspiring to me.  When offbeat and quirky makes it big I cheer loudly!! 

YouTube doesn't currently support the ability to link to this blog server, but click on the image above to see this wonderful video!  Thank you Denise for sending it my way.

I read about Pangea Day in the LA Times last week.  It is a "one-day event designed to use short films to bring people from various cultures closer together."  It will be held May 10 in cities around the world.  As its website says, "If the whole world were watching, what story would you tell?" 

The Oscar nominations were announced this morning, and I have to say the nomination I am most happy about is Viggo Mortensen for his role in Eastern Promises.  This film is a bit bloody and violent in parts, but I think it was one of the best films of the year, and Viggo Mortensen is the reason why.  I know Daniel Day Lewis's performance in There Will Be Blood will be a tough one to beat, but I am glad Mortensen was recognized for his amazing work.

And did you know he has his own publishing house, called Perceval Press? 

It's a book! It's a film! It's a blog! It's a global project six years in the making! I saw the documentary film about The 1000 Journals Project last month and it filled my head with all kinds of inspiring ideas. If you haven't already heard about this, be sure to take a peek.

I am pleased to present my second interview for Sparkletopia with independent filmmaker Taegen Carter.  As a passionate film-goer, it has been a real treat to learn so much about the filmmaking process from Taegen over the past couple of years.  When I started Sparkletopia, he was at the top of my list of people I wanted to talk to!

All images are from his most recent project, The Shiftling.  To learn more about his work, visit his website Mythmaker Entertainment.

[January 15, 2008] 

Hi Taegen...I'm so excited to interview you for Sparkletopia.  Now when you win your Oscar for Best Director I'll have proof I knew you when...
Thanks, it's really a pleasure for me to discuss filmmaking with someone who is also passionate about it.

I met you through my husband's son Justin - an actor - because he starred in your first full length film, The Shiftling, which you wrote, produced and directed, correct?
Yes.  I first met Justin when I held an open casting session for The Shiftling.  There were over 1,500 submissions for the role and I thought he had a great look so I invited him to read for the part.  He almost didn't show up because it was a Saturday and he wasn't feeling great that day.  Plus, my producer had picked a super cheap community center to hold the auditions at.  It was a total disaster because there were bums walking around and it was incredibly noisy and out in the open.  Justin almost left immediately when he saw the location, but lucky for both of us he gave it a shot.  I've never met someone with a better attitude I offered him the role.  He was a real asset to the film, and for him, it's been an incredible experience.  We've since become great friends and are planning to shoot another feature film together.  Amazing to think he almost didn't audition.

When did you know you wanted to be a filmmaker?
I knew I wanted to be a director since the age of 10.  For me, the experience of going to the movies was visceral.  It was something I really connected to and felt passionately about.  The decision to pursue directing was an easy one to make.  I especially enjoyed films with a fantasy element to it.  James Cameron and Steven Spielberg have been tremendously inspirational and I've wanted to make films like theirs.  It's funny though, because watching films is one experience and making films is a completely different experience.  My goal now is to make films that I'd like to see.  It's a lot harder than it would seem, but I'm working hard and have made a lot of progress in a relatively short amount of time, so I'm sure I'll get there eventually.

What is your favorite thing about the filmmaking process?
My favorite part of filmmaking is when I'm in the editing room.  The moments that I've captured in individual shots come together and you can really start to feel the story, character, and film coming together.  It's incredibly exciting because it takes so much work to get to the point of editing and you never really know how it's going to turn out until you put the film together.

Least favorite?
Directing.  This is by far the most stressful time of my life.  There's a lot of satisfaction to directing and I'm good at it, but there's nothing else in the world that comes close to bombarding you with problems like directing.  At every second there's a decision to make, a decision that can have a very large impact on the film.  It's not something anyone can really find fun.

We have had quite a few discussions about all the different ways you can market your film.  I think most people - like myself - are under the impression that the goal of all indie filmmakers is Sundance or other well-know film festivals.  Tell me about the other avenues and options for indie films.
Today there are more ways than ever before to get your film out there.  It's a double-edged sword because it gives you a lot more opportunity, but at the same time can be overwhelming.  I have no talent at marketing, and yet as an indie filmmaker I've got market myself and my film on top of creating the film.  It can be incredibly exhausting.  Film festivals are still the best way to get discovered, and there are film festivals now everywhere.  The internet offers a lot of places to post short films.  Feature films still haven't made a foothold on the internet, but short films can do well on sites like youtube and revver.  Revver actually splits ad content revenue 50/50 with filmmakers, so a film with a lot of hits can generate a lot of income.  For my feature, I will be using a company called createspace.com.  It's great because it allows you to sell your film on amazon.com and will burn a copy of your movie any time someone places an order, and you share revenue with the company so there isn't any cost to the filmmaker.  Additionally, you can self publish your movies to companies like netfilx, but there won't be many viewers unless you can find a way to get your film known.  Makers of the Blair Witch did a fantastic job of self-promotion by creating a website made to look real about the Blair Witch.

What director - living or deceased - would you love to sit down and have a beer with?
Steven Spielberg, although he doesn't drink beer so it'd have to be a coffee or tea.  I know this is a boring answer because every other person says it, but he really is incredible.  I'd like to meet him and find out what kind of person he is, what feeds his passion, what makes him do what he does and find out more about his past.  But I think it's pretty safe to say he's one of the greatest, if not the greatest, filmmakers ever.

Are there any particular artists or writers who have inspired you as a filmmaker?
There are plenty of artists and writers who have inspired me.  I think that you can find inspiration in all sorts of places, including books, paintings, sculptures and in everyday life.  When something comes across my path and really strikes me, I make a mental note of it and hope to try and use it in the future.  As a filmmaker, I think one of the goals is portray a world that people can latch onto.  The way you do this is by showing truth, and as a filmmaker it's important to keep your eyes and ears open to everything because you want to be able to infuse your films with as much truth as possible.

If you weren't busy becoming the next Steven Spielberg, what do you think you would be doing?
I've spent so much time and energy on filmmaking that I really don't know.  Maybe a writer, maybe an investor or real estate guru.  Who knows?

On your greatest days - the days where everything is clicking and you feel like you're totally in your groove - what do you envision in your future?
The best days I have, in terms of directing, are the days when I'm especially creative.  Some days you find yourself more creative than others, and for those rare days where your brain seems like a lightning rod for ideas, it's really fun because you can shape each moment of your film in a special way and you get footage with a lot of special stuff.

What gets you through your toughest days?
I try to keep my head down.  It's important to stay positive at all times, but sometimes even that is impossible.  At that point it's important just to get through a bad day and to always try your best even when spirits are down.  On The Shiftling, I remember the first day we shot in the desert.  The last 3rd of the movie takes place in the desert.  We were way behind on shooting by 5 months.  I had to get up at 4am to pickup actors at 6am, then we had to drive 2 hours to the desert, and then setup shots to be ready to shoot by 9am.  It was 115 degrees on our first day and my car got stuck in the desert sand while a flash flood was headed our way.  By the end of the day I was destroyed, but I knew I had to finish the film and it only got easier and better after that.  The desert footage was the best footage in the movie and really looked great.  It all worked out.

Share one snippet of your life as a filmmaker...an experience when you found a new source of strength and/or creativity within yourself.
I remember when I made my first film in college.  I really poured everything I had into this film.  After spending nearly two weeks working day and night, I finally finished it for a film festival that my college was hosting.  It was a tremendously nerve-wracking experience because everyone in the film program attended - something like 200 people - and of course these were all people who were really into film.  The experience of a film festival can be enlightening and traumatizing.  It's a weird experience because you can actually feel the audience and feel their thoughts.  When I sat at my computer editing, I thought the film was gold.  And yet when I saw my film playing in front of everyone, I instantly saw all of its flaws and realized how awful it was.  I remember vividly thinking that I was done as a filmmaker.  I thought, I'm a hack and I need to look for a new career.  At the end of the festival an actor who I new of and who I respected came up to me and told me how much he enjoyed the film.  He was genuine in his comments and I realized how cool it was to get something across to people, even if it was just a little moment that worked.  It also dawned on me that you have to start somewhere as a filmmaker, just like any creative-oriented career.  It never happens over night and with a lot of hard work you can be good.  I believe that, and it was all from the experience of the film festival that really put that into perspective for me.

Thank you again Taegen.  As a film geek and wanna be director myself, I consider it a great privilege to watch your process. 
Thank you Christine.  The pleasure was all mine.  I'm a fledgling filmmaker, so it's great to feel important with these interviews.

The Aero Theater in Santa Monica is a great spot for film lovers..check it out!