Putting myself out there...

I've felt a bit nervous about putting myself out there and letting people know that I want to make a feature film. My last short was so stressful on so many levels, I've been a little scared to go for it, in all honesty. But sometimes, you just have to take the plunge and dive in. Over the past few weeks, I've really put it out there that I want to make my feature Raspberry Magic happen, and it's been so touching because so many of my friends, family members and other contacts in the film biz have been encouraging and supportive. So there it is. My goal is to shoot Raspberry Magic next summer for around $500,000. It's time to make it happen! In other news, I am in NC this weekend, screening my short film, This Moment as part of the Diaspora Festival of Black and Independent Film. The Sonja Haynes Stone Center flew me out here, and I was on WUNC to discuss my film. Being a Carolina alum and coming back to screen my work is an honor.

Big Pimpin' in Veggie Oil

Ameet and I were in the market for a second set of wheels after we moved to LA, and decided to buy a car that runs, yes, on vegetable oil. I'll admit that I was skeptical at first, mostly because I could just picture Ameet turning our garage into some kind of crazy conversion factory, full of disgusting drums of oozing veggie oil. (I won't even go there with our last attic.) But, I was charmed by the idea, and also it was our teeny tiny way of protesting against the oil goliaths. Anyway, it's a '78 Mercedes, and you fill it up with new or used veggie oil. It runs like a normal car, except that it seriously smells like French fries, which can sometimes get a little overwhelming. You can get (by asking them) used oil from restaurants (that's kind of a process), or the cubes from Costco, which is what we've been doing, and it comes out to around $2.50/gallon. We signed up for this car around eight months ago, and it took a long six to get it. The people who did it, Lovecraft Biofuels, basically rebuilt the insides of the car, and touched up the outside. They are an eclectic mix of folks who are very passionate about what they're doing, which is great to see. The thing with the car is that it feels like a boat when you drive--the steering wheel is huge, and you have to push the gas pretty hard for it to go. But that's just what's it's like to drive an old car. It's an interesting experiment in alternative energy, and we're loving it so far. Lovecraft has seriously blown up in the past few months; there is a waitlist to get one of these cars now, though you can bring your diesel car in for a conversion. Ameet thought it would be funny to take these pictures and show how LA's been rubbing off on us.