The Journey Begins

It's been a very long and arduous road in terms of raising the financing for Raspberry Magic, particularly during these very tough and uncertain times. But somehow, we've pulled together and made it happen. It's been very exciting with casting the movie and pulling together all of the locations. Now is the time, I can't believe we're almost ten days out from shooting. I'm extremely excited, but I'm also nervous, anxious, etc. Either way, it should be a very interesting journey... Stay tuned for more when there is time!

Hope!

It's a really hopeful time for our country with Obama as our next president. I was out last night at a club and people were there waving American flags. It felt like an amazing moment, like waving an American flag had an all together different meaning than it has in the past. My father called me so excited about the change, his comment was that if Obama can be president, then anyone can truly do anything in life. It sounds ridiculous, but Obama's winning the presidency parallels my journey of making a first feature. I few years ago, I had no idea of how in the world I would make this happen. I was just another filmmaker with a few scripts and short films under my belt. But now, it's hard to believe that we're only twenty five days out from shooting the movie. It's here, it's happening and it's super exciting. Like Obama's journey as president, the production of the movie isn't going to be easy. It's going to be filled with bumps along the way, but as long as everyone maintains faith, positivity and overall good vibes, it'll all come together.

Thirty Days Away

I cannot believe we're about 30 days away from shooting. It's a really exciting time as everything comes together with the cast, crew, locations and much more. I am working on setting up many of the shots and thinking through the performances, and my producer is swamped with pulling together all of the logistics. I go through a wide range of emotions on a minute by minute basis with fear, anxiety, excitement, nervousness and so many other things wrapped up in one. I guess other directors might feel the same way, too, it's a bit crazy, especially since this is my first feature. All I want to do is make a great film, beyond that, there are so many things that are out of my control. We have a great team of cast and crew coming together to make this happen, which is super exciting. Filmmaking is such a collaborative medium, it's very important to work with people are good, reliable, trustworthy and have an overall positive vibe. I have been having some long conversations with the DP about shots, as well as with the PD on setting up some of the scenes, and making sure we make the world feel real and believable. All of the pieces are definitely coming together, it's super exciting!