Art Show!

A good friend of mine invited my husband and I to check out the LA opening for British artist Antony Micallef last night. I wasn't familiar with his work, but I had heard he was in the same category as Banksy, creating urban art with underlying messages that deal with corporate greed, media frenzy and more. I have to say, I was quite blown away by his art, especially a piece in which a little boy is coloring with crayons, and drawing a whole bunch of corporate logos. I love this idea of using corporate logos to represent the world in which we live. I integrated some visuals like this into my script called Kate's Rules because I wanted to play with this whole idea of "culture jamming." I think if the film ever got made, it would be a great leit motif. Anyway, Antony Micallef's pieces were on sale for anywhere between $150,000 to $250,000 per painting, and all of the works on the upper gallery were sold, and many in the lower gallery were also sold. Amazing that in one night he made over a million dollars off his art, his creativity! It's even more incredible because he's only 32 years old. Apparently, many celebrities have bought his art, and helped to increase its value. Going to the show made me ponder questions about art and creativity, and what makes something truly stand out. It's definitely not an easy question, but on some level it basically made me want to cloister myself at home and work way harder than I am now!

Our first check, Directing, Toronto Film Fest

Megha and I have been hustling all summer, meeting with various people about the movie. We've gotten commitments from a number of people, but there is nothing as exciting as actually receiving that first check. It's pretty cool to get a check made out to Raspberry Magic, LLC. It makes the movie seem that much more real, that much more tangible! Megha and I have been at this for less than a year, and we've def. made strides. There are moments when I want time to speed up, and make everything happen so much faster. But then when I actually look back on things, they already seem to have sped by!

On another note, Megha and I went to the Toronto FF this weekend and watched a shit load of films. We met some interesting people, as well, but we watched a ton of movies. I think it's helpful as we work on our movie to see what's out there. One thing we def. noticed was that so many of the films could have been thirty minutes shorter. It's painful sometimes at festivals to watch films that could really use another pass. We went to the North American premiere of Paul Schrader's new film, The Walker. Kind of sucked b/c the film reels were spliced together in the wrong order, and they had to stop the movie for 30 minutes to re-splice, what a pain. Good film, interesting premise, but again, it seemed like they weren't quite at the final cut stage, as some of the editing felt rough. We def. want to spend the time/money with Raspberry Magic to get an excellent editor to can really make the movie pop! We watched a ton of international films, which was nice. An amazing movie called M, though again, it really could have been shorter!

Cynicsm

It is tough sometimes, being in LA, because this is the place where people move to live and breath their dreams. It can be a very tough climb, especially for people who have been pounding the pavement really hard for anywhere from five to ten years. Whether you are acting, writing, or directing, it is easy to become cynical and feel like you are not where you want to be. I meet so many people who have a broken spirit because they have been trying for so long, and yet, nothing is happening. It is certainly not easy to deal with rejection and loss of hope. But I really and truly believe that if you are here for the right reasons, and want to practice your craft because you care deeply about it, all of those other issues slowly melt away. I'm not saying that everyone can be rich and famous, but what I am saying is that if being rich and famous is your goal, then you will be disappointed. However, if your goal is to write three really great scripts and see what happens with them, then this is doable. For me, I was unhappy with where I was at for a long time, but then, I decided to focus on just being creative and making stuff rather than on the end results. In other words, I decided that I had to find a way to make my film, while also continuing to write. This is not easy, but what I've found is that I am so busy making stuff and creating, that I really don't have time to be cynical and unhappy. It is really and truly a good feeling.

Grants

We are raising the funds for Raspberry Magic mostly through private equity. This approach seems to be the most practical, in my opinion. In the past, I have applied to many different grants, etc, but the problem with grants often is that they have a very specific agenda in terms of the projects they want, especially places like ITVS. However, this summer I went ahead and applied for the Roy Dean Grant, which provides equipment and other useful resources for low-budget films. I'm a bit hesitant about these types of things, because in the past, I really put long hours in applying for all kinds of stuff, none of which seemed to pan out. I applied to the Dean grant last year, as well, and wasn't a finalist. I was pleasantly surprised, however, to be a finalist for the grant this year. We didn't win, but Carol Dean, who is in charge, gave us many kudos on the project and was very helpful in terms of suggesting resources.

Business Plans, Distribution

It has been a fun, crazy hectic and exciting summer as I live, breath and dream Raspberry Magic. My producer and I have been working our butts off, meeting with many potential investors and getting our business plans into the hands of as many people as possible. It has been an incredible experience, because with every meeting, I feel like I learn something new, especially on the business end. Our business plan, like our script, evolves as we meet with investors and add more and more details. People ask us questions, we ponder them, then edit/change our plan accordingly and expand our process. I think many potential investors are impressed that we've thought through so many aspects of our production, but there is always room to add more. We've especially had a lot of new insight into different distribution models. Most filmmakers want the big pickup by a major studio, but that doesn't always happen. We've been learning more about service deals, where the filmmakers raise some PR money up front and then forge partnerships based having done their own PR. There are some really interesting opps. in this area as the distribution arena of indie film continues to grow/change. We are tackling all angles in terms of thinking about the distribution and how we're going to get this film out.

Shooting Something

My producer Megha and I drove an hour and a half east of here to gather some footage for a little teaser reel we're putting together. It's not a trailer, but more of a short piece that gives a feel for the tone of the movie. It was so hot that day, I really thought we were going to pass out. It also didn't help that we had a number of car woes, including my car heating up and hers breaking down on the way to my house. But all in all, we got some great photos of raspberries. I felt a bit harried the whole time b/c there was so much to think about, but it was good to get out and actually shoot something after being so focused on re-writes. I used the Panasonic DVX 100A, which is really an amazing camera. The 24p quality is awesome, and I love all the little things, like being able to use a 1/8 and 1/64 ND filter. If I shot more often, I would def. run out and purchase that little camera, it's sweet!

Acting Classes

When I was young, I was very interested in theater and took several drama classes. In college, I took a class called "Performance of Black Literature." The class was super intense, because it required a lot of time with rehearsals, and it was just tough because I am a bit shy about performing in front of people. Then, I stopped taking acting classes, and was much more focused on the technical aspects of filmmaking, especially with my writing. But lately, as I start talking to actors and moving ahead with Raspberry Magic, I decided that an acting class would be very helpful. I took an introductory course at the Larry Moss Studio. Basically, we didn't have to act, but the teacher did a lot of exercises to help us reach deeper into our emotions, and use those emotions for inciting memory. I was very impressed with the teacher, Michelle Danner, as her philosophies of filmmaking, acting and just life were inspiring. She dissected the performances of several great actors, as well, which was so helpful for me. I learned so much in one weekend. I honestly feel that acting classes can sometimes be more helpful for writers than writing classes. Though I was shy and sometimes awkward about doing the exercises (everyone around me got really into it, to the point where people were crying!), I can def. use these techniques when I'm developing new characters, and fleshing out dialog. She also showed us several ways that actors can create emotional intention with a scene. Michelle was very specific about using verbs that are really descriptive to define intention and create the different beats in a scene. I loved how she also discussed creative choices, and how actors can really pump up their performances with small things. I am thrilled at having taken the classes, and really feel like I've stepped up my game!

Making it Real

Even though we're about a year away from shooting the movie, it's pretty exciting to actually make things that have abstract for so long tangible. For example, last week, I met with a talented husband-wife duo who is very interested in acting in the movie. They've read the script and really like it. What was so cool for me was to hear their interpretations of the characters and bring their own unique take on people who've been existent only on paper for the past few years. This is one aspect of screenwriting I love; it's a living breathing and changing sort of art form where each collaborator gets to bring his/her artistic bent to the table. While I certainly have a vision of how I want the movie look and feel, I also love giving other artists a chance to create. Likewise, we are shooting a short promo for the film, and I've been talking to a DP friend of mine. He's been great in suggesting locations, cameras and the likes. It's pretty cool, again, to make something that's on the page a reality! Now we actually have to go out and shoot it!

Learning from the revisions

Writing and rewriting the same screenplay for years is a bit crazy. You start to believe that you are crazy, or that you are going crazy, as you work and re-work sections of the of it. I seriously have felt this way, especially this summer, because Raspberry Magic has gone through so many revisions. I've been spending ten hour days seriously reworking things. However, I must say, that for the first time in awhile, I feel really good about this draft. I think what was really bogging me down was actually elements from the older drafts. Sometimes, when you revise something and you have worked with so many versions of it, you leave bits and pieces in that aren't working. For me, I had one scene that made the story feel a bit like a teen film. I always wanted to cut the scene, but for some reason, I couldn't get rid of it. Then, I suddenly went back and changed one of my key characters completely. This character was an airhead, and I realized that by having her as an airhead, I wasn't serving the story in any way. And honestly, I didn't like that character very much. So, I changed her totally, and suddenly, I was able to cut the scene that was bogging things down. It was a domino effect in a very positive way. Unbelievable! It is a good thing that I'm a bit of an obsessive person, I mean, I like tedious things, and I have no problem reworking and rewriting something, even if it takes years. Writing is definitely a marathon and not a sprint, but that's something I kind of enjoy about it... Looking forward to getting notes from mentors and from my producer. I'm sure there will be more changes!

Summer

I can't believe how quickly this summer is going by. Between having visitors roll through, making serious revisions to the Raspberry Magic script and meeting with potential investors for the movie, everything seems to be going by so quickly. I wish time would slow down, sometimes! We seem to be progressing with the movie fairly well, though. Our business plan is out to many potential investors, and we've gotten interest from a bunch of people. I am actually meeting with a couple of actors this week, too. The actors have done a lot of television, and really like the script, so it might be helpful to go ahead and attach them, as this could help us with the financing. But it's so early in the game, I also want to leave my options open, too! On the writing front, I made a series of very critical revisions last week. I realize that in my own writing, cutting things out is really what helps me take the writing to the next level. With this draft, I realized that I had a lot of crap just kind of bogging down the story--especially characters that really didn't go anywhere, but were taking away from the main story. This part of the re-writing is very tough, but it's that critical round where you bring the script up from being good to great. On another note, I saw that film, The Secret Garden again last night on HBO. It's a really beautiful movie, I love how the visuals carrying the story on both a plot level an on a much deeper metaphorical level. I've been watching lots of films that are similar to mine. I really enjoyed Angels and Insects, again they did a great job of using the insects to represent deeper symbolic themes. I also saw Ulee's Gold, which I can't believe I had never seen. Again, this movie is very visually rich, with not too much dialog bogging the story down. I realized that I had too much talking in my movie. I think in my writing, I have a tendency to over write and over explain things because I'm not trusting myself and my own process. So, that was another important part of this revision process--to cut out things where I was over explaining! I've learned so much from this whole process already, it's amazing!

Research

Sometimes as a writer, it's easy to get stuck in your bedroom writing and re-writing. I am in the process of going through more revisions with Raspberry Magic, getting it to a state that I'm completely happy with, and it's tough. This is the round of revisions which really have to make the script pop. Anyway, to get some details for the story, I spent a few hours at a wonderful little nursery here in Santa Monica. In a short amount of time, I learned so much, it was amazing. I got a feel for a small neighborhood nursery like the one in my story, but most importantly, I got to be around people who love plants. I love plants, but it's a fairly new interest for me. But being around people who are extremely passionate around them was infectious. I learned so much about about the different philosophies in caring for plants. I have to keep reminding myself that as a writer, it is my job to get out and see the world, observe. This is what always drew me to writing, and I did so much research as a journalist and documentary filmmaker. But fiction writing also requires in depth research. In fact, any time you can put yourself in front of the genuine article, your writing will feel that much more authentic. Plus, it's great to get out and be around people!! Oh, and the funny thing was, Lauren Hutton was at this nursery! Apparently, she is a hardcore gardener and comes in there three times a week!

Vacation!

My husband and I spent the last two weeks traveling through Greece and Turkey to celebrate our five year wedding anniversary, and just to travel! I am a huge fan of traveling for the sake of travel, I definitely have a bad case of wanderlust, but it's tough to get out these days with work, the film, etc. After college, a friend of mine and I spent three months wandering through Asia, checking out the sites and going nuts at the Full Moon Party in Koh Phangan, Thailand, which was truly amazing. Over the past few years, I've gone to India for a few weddings, and Costa Rica, but nothing as long as that trip. This trip to Turkey and Greece was lovely, the Greece isles, especially Santorini were as picturesque as I had imagined. The clear blue waters against the sloping hills of the islands were serene. I especially enjoyed the architecture of Santorini, it almost looks like snow on top of the rocky cliffs, because of all the white churches and buildings. There are small winding streets that lead to little shops and restaurants, too! I loved the food in Greece, lots of vegetarian options like stuffed peppers and crepes with feta and spinach. We also went through Turkey and checked out Epheses, an ancient city, along with Hierapolis, with ruins that date back to the second century BC. These civilizations were very advanced with sewage through the cities and their own forms of writing. Having been through native villages in India, I pondered, how civilizations develop and what makes nomadic peoples decide to set up shop and build a city. It's fascinating--sometimes I wonder, in a thousand years, will New York be an ancient city with ruins that people come and check out? Will DC some day just be a skeleton of a place with the white gleaming pillars of Congress as a memory from a society long past? It is strange to visit a place like Hierapolis which was a beacon of ancient civilization and is now a decaying buildings that barely stand. I've always been an ardent student of history and these questions really fascinate me. After much needed rest and relaxation, I feel very focused. Time to hustle for the money to make Raspberry Magic, and get through this next spec. script I'm working on! I think summer in LA will be productive and fun!

Summer Reading!

School's out and I'm done with teaching for the semester. It' been a seriously overwhelming semester of teaching, I def. had one group this time where the collective energy of the class was off. Every time I taught the class, I felt extremely burnt out. I really didn't realize how much it was draining me until this week, now that I have a break. It's nice because I can finally concentrate really hardcore on making Raspberry Magic and working on a new spec. I was 80 pages into the spec and didn't have a chance to pick it back up with Raspberry Magic re-writes. The craziness of my feature is going to start soon because we're starting to talk to a number of investors. It's exciting and daunting and exhilarating all at once. I find myself actually enjoying the business side, it feels very much like what I should be doing! On another front, it's so great to be able to read! I haven't picked up a book for leisure in a while, and I have to say it's nice. I read a tiny little book by David Mamet called, On Directing Film, and I have to say it's one of the best books about directing that I've read. He really breaks down the process of visualization very creatively and succinctly. I'm also reading the book Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. It's going to be a movie starring Johnny Depp with Mira Nair directing. Some friends of mine were reading it while we were in India, and they were really impressed with it. It's really an excellent read, he personifies Mumbia in such a beautiful way. I tend not to be a fan of writing that's emotionally sappy or descriptively flowery, but Robert's style finds a solid balance between these elements. I can identify with a lot of his feelings about Mumbai, too, having gone there every two years or so when I was growing up and always being an outsider in some ways. It is, though, one of my favorite cities in the world. I love the dichotomy of it's splendor and poverty, of its antiquity and modernity.

Go girl!

Great, love how this energy drink which is without a doubt terrible for you, is marketing to the inner feminist in all of us! Go!

Accent or no accent?

I have no idea if other writers go through this, but being of Indian background, when I initially wrote the mother and father characters in Raspberry Magic, their voices were Indian accented. I think when people read the script, they could sense that, and it made the piece a bit funny and unique. But then in this revision, I took out that Indian accented voice, because I felt that it was bogging the script down, that I couldn't figure out the deeper sense of the characters because of the whole accent thing. But when my husband read the draft, he said he felt that the characters were too white washed, that they had lost their unique style and voice. This really stressed me out, because every person who has read the script has liked the voice of those adult characters. So now, I'm taking the characters I have and adding back that flavor. I think this is sometimes tough for writers from an ethnic background. I had an African American student in one of my writing classes whose characters were distinctly black and very unique. But then in some of the critiques, people said one of her characters was too angry, so she scaled back so much that her characters lost their voice. I told her she shouldn't lose the voice because it's what would make her writing stand out. I think it's really about finding balance--making the characters ring true, but still giving them that way of speaking with makes them stand out.

Director's Statements

My producer and I have been very hard at work putting together our business plan and budget, which is a process I was unfamiliar with before going through it. My producer is excellent at this, as she has done it for other films, and really knows what she is doing. One of the toughest parts of it for me has been the director's statement because it's got to be compelling and inspiring without being pretentious. And, it really needs to speak to why I was driven to write this story. I wrote a first pass of the director's statement a couple of months ago, then went back and revised it a couple of days ago. I think my revised version is much, much better than the earlier pass, but it's always tough. Some people might wonder, well, why is it hard to actually write down what inspired you to make this film? Well, for Raspberry Magic, I literally wrote a first draft almost five years ago. With all of the different versions and all of the anxiety of getting the script to a place where you really want it, you almost forget about that deeper inspiration that's driving you to make the film. Finally, I'm in a place where I am truly happy with the script. I am sure there will be more tweaks, but I made some more revisions, and this pass allowed me to delve into some thematic elements. In dealing with theme, I think I finally reconnected with the deeper reasons of why I have to make this film. On some level, it's a coming-of-age story about a young girl, but it's also about parents who feel alienated by their own disappointments. Once we put the website up and get all of the visual collateral together, I'll post the director's statement... I'm just glad it's finally done!!

Making a Movie

It's been a long time since I've been in the blogosphere, mostly because things in my life have been a little nutty... All in a good way. I've been working really hardcore on the basics of getting Raspberry Magic going. Finally, we found a good entertainment laywer to set up the LLC and put together the operating agreeements, and my producers and I have been hard at work on the business plan. I'm also buried deep in another set of revisions. This round is particularly tough because it's all about making those characters really pop. It's going slowly, but I've definitely made progress. Being in this process has been really exciting, it's given me a much needed sense of focus and clarity. For the first year of living in LA, and I felt unclear about what the next step was, but going through this, it's clear... The next step is to make a movie! I saw Guillermo del Toro speak at Film Independent Director's series a few weeks ago, and he was very inspiring. He mentioned how for his first feature he mortaged his home or did something crazy like that. But ultimately it's how he got his career going. I used to sit here and ponder well, should I try to make commercials, sell a commercial screenplay or try to work in TV? I would get overwhelmed with these questions, because I felt somewhat directionless. But, this path feels right. It's not going to be easy because we have a lot of money to raise, but we're taking baby steps and I know it'll come together...

The Buzz of Technology

Web 2.0 has hit us hard and it seems like there is suddenly a rush to participate in anything video or virtual community oriented. But there's a weird dichotomy with technology as I've seen this week. I teach a Digital Storytelling course at Otis College of Art and Design, I decided this semester to do it differently and integrate the virtual community Second Life into the class. In the past, it's strictly been a writing class, but this time, I thought it would be good to try something new. The ideas was that students would propose some type of community to develop in SL, and we would go from there. Well interestingly enough, after my students, all around 20 years old, spent some time in SL, they decided that it sucks. They basically told me, as a group, that they felt that the graphics in SL were far inferior to the games they play, and that SL was for old people who are afraid of the computer. Being a young prof, I actually found their complaints to be very interesting and perhaps valid. On the one hand, SL is not a game--it's a virtual community, you define the experience you have there. On the other hand, if you are not there for a specific reason, then it might be dull. And, for younger people who are extremely tech savvy, SL would probably feel a bit dated. Some folks at Otis were really surprised by the response of the students, but some were not. I've decided to go back to keeping the course writing centered because then students can focus on being creative instead of on technology. Who knew that my students (who usually hate writing) would prefer writing to SL!

On another tip, I had lunch with a friend who is trying to break into TV writing. She is mostly into comedy, but she is also working on drama specs. She is really bright woman, a hustler who has made a good number of contacts, and I have no doubt that it's going to happen for her. She's being hip pocketed by an agent at UTA, and she was saying, she's been on lots of meetings with producers and agents, and right now, the buzz is for TV writers to have a scene from their script (pilot, spec) up on YouTube. She says everyone she's met with has asked her, "So do you have a scene up on YouTube?" She said people no longer want to read specs, they just want to see something. She was feeling very overwhelmed by this because she doesn't have a camera and has never really shot anything before. But, breaking a new writer is tough enough, and now with so many people going out and making films, the competition has gotten more stiff. A good friend of mine who is staffed on a comedy had been running a pretty successful online comic strip for a long time, which I bet helped him break in. Anyway, my other friend has decided to shoot a short sketch from one of her pilots. Technology has certainly made Hollywood an even more cut throat place...

Never Ending Revisions

Screenwriting is definitely a constant process of rewriting. It takes an unusual force of stamina and patience to go through the rewriting process with a script. This is summer and even into the fall, that was all I did--rewrite two scripts that I really wanted to get out there. Now, with Raspberry Magic in the early phases of becoming a movie, there's more rewriting. I'm working with the producers to polish the script, and my mentors are also helping with more notes. Then, with my other script, Kate's Rules, more notes from friends and fellow profs. at Loyola, and luckily one manager who's been responsive to my work has also given me notes. It honestly feels like it'll never end. But it's a good place to be in, getting notes from producers, managers and people who generally seem to know what they are doing. I find, though, that most of my work in terms of rewriting is deepening characters. The plots are all fine and the general story flows, but there can always, always be more work done on character. Here are some ways I've been deepening characters:

1. Add bits of dialogue to clarify a character's perspectives on things or to even reiterate plot point. I try to keep the exposition to a minimal, but a couple of people pointed out some good places for me to add just a tad more to clarify plot.

2. Adding scenes to reveal character. Not too much of this, but a little scene here and there is helpful to reveal a character's happiness, unhappiness or general state of mind. It is particularly helpful when a character goes through a major emotional shift in terms of plot.

3. Using other characters to deepen your protagonist. Audiences learn about your character through how he/she interacts with other people. Sometimes, adding dialogue or even more interesting actions between your protagonist and other characters can really reveal a lot about your protagonist.

4. Deleting uneeded or repetitive scenes. It's always nice to cut, cut, and cut. The tighter a script can be, the better. It's always nice when people read your script and say you can delete things because they get it.

A Long Process

The problem with creative work is that it is a long and never ending process. Even writing a script, you may revise and rewrite it for five years before you actually feel happy with it. I am currently in the process of making Raspberry Magic as my first feature. I've partnered up with a couple of wonderful producers, and now am working on setting up the LLC. Once that's done, we'll start begging for money, so if there is anyone out there who wants to donate, hit me up! But seriously, my producers keep assuring me that we will make this movie, even if it takes us two years to raise the funds. But I do get impatient, sometimes lying awake at night wondering when it will happen. I get excited about all of the creative aspects--shooting, directing, working with composers, developing the title design... I want it to happen right here, right now. But see, with making a feature, you are forced to slow down. Every little piece takes time, and you have to learn to enjoy the process, step by step, moment by moment. It's better to take it slow and make sure every detail is in place, first, so when you get to the shoot, there are as few issues as possible. Presently, I've been working on finding a good entertainment lawyer. I've met with a few people, and in fact, the person I'm meeting with this afternoon looks most promising. He's done a ton of work with indie film, and his rates seem doable. The great thing about this process, though, is that my producers are very knowledgeable and have been excellent in terms of guiding me in the right direction. I guess as long as there is forward motion, the movie will get made... Eventually.