So, 2010 was a year of complete and total change for me. I started working on my MFA in 2008, and I quit my full time job to focus on filmmaking in 2009. So it only stands to reason that 2010 would be the year where that effort started really coming to fruition.
I learned a LOT about filmmaking and screenwriting last year. But looking back, the main thing that I learned was the way to deal with it when everything comes crashing down around your ears.
Filmmaking is problem solving. Like most things in life, filmmaking is always rife with setbacks and issues. I have never been on a set that runs smoothly. There's rain, actors stuck in traffic, equipment breaking, people getting sick, etc. etc. I knew this, and I've been repeating this mantra for two years now. But I don't that I really came to understand it until this year. As my good friend Colin said, "It's not about having problems, every set has problems. It's about how you handle the problems." And it really was.
On our webseries, "Stage Fright," we had a number of set backs. First, Snowmageddon threw a wrench into our writing process. There were other problems, one on top of another, until we started to think our little series about a haunted production was also cursed.
But frequently, the results of our problem solving created an even better series. A particular snafu with the wardrobe was solved with more appropriate costumes, which improved the final episodes of the show. When a crew member's car was towed with all of our camera equipment inside, we lost three hours but still managed to make our day without cutting a single scene because we spent those three hours carefully planning what we would do and we all came together to make it happen.
Speaking of Snowmageddon, my short film Extraction was a casualty of the same storm. I had already cancelled the film the year before because of a lack of available crew. But once I had everything lined up, a metric ton of snow dropped on D.C. I ended up having to shelve the entire film until the summer.
Looking back at both of those projects, there were moments that we thought about throwing in the towel. On Stage Fright, I remember one evening when we realized we wouldn't be able to start shooting on time because of another setback, someone mentioned that perhaps we wanted to only shoot half the series and then see if we could get the other half together at another time. There was talk of just shooting the pilot instead. Jason, the 1st A.D., and I were on the same page on that decision: we wanted to have a finished product. We had all worked so hard, and put in so many hours, that the idea of only having half of it done and possibly never getting to the other half was completely heartbreaking. We agreed that we'd rather work harder, and put in extra hours so that we could finish.
With Extraction, I had a small breakdown after I had to cancel the shoot a second time. I was convinced this project was doomed for failure and that maybe I needed to give it up. I thought that maybe this was one of those films that would go down in my memory as a good idea that just never made it. My lead actress was moving, and my crew were dispersing to the winds, I just didn't think it was going to work.
But while I was working on Stage Fright I ended up casting Maya Jackson and Katie Foster in a live reading for Catching Up. Somewhere in there I realized they would be great as the two girls in the story. I took a chance and emailed one of my favorite DPs and asked if he was busy in June, and he wasn't. We were a small crew, and a non-existent budget. But we made the movie, and it turned so well that I've submitted it to several festivals (I'm still waiting to hear back).
In the end, the most vital thing was to persevere and FINISH. Just get it on paper, get it on film, get it done. Just keep going.
That's the biggest lesson I learned last year. And now that I'm in my last semester of my MFA, I think it's going to come in handy.
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
Monday, March 08, 2010
Girls make movies too
Two things I'd rather not hear EVER AGAIN:
-Anybody talking about how Kathryn Bigelow was married to James Cameron and thus she's going to be all "Haha James Cameron!" and "Yeah, I'm better than you, nananana."
First, as I said on Facebook, more women have been married to James Cameron than have been nominated for Best Director. So her being nominated and winning? A hell of a lot more important an achievement.
Second, they were married for like, thirty seconds, and from all accounts they remain good friends, they work together well, and have been nothing but supportive of each other. So she's likely not at all saying "In your face" but instead saying, "I'm so happy, isn't it exciting?"
Third, please stop taking away from her achievement by making it still in some way about James Effin' Cameron, okay? It's devaluing her achievement and I'm a bit tired of it. That these comments are largely coming from women isn't helping my brain.
-How smoking hot Kathryn Bigelow is. "OMG, she's a HOT CHICK who can direct! And action movies no less! WOW! She's so hot, and then she's also talented!"
Again with the devaluing.
From everything I've heard she did an amazing job directing an amazing film. Let's concentrate on that, could we please?
And no, I haven't read any blogs or posts at all tonight so if you posted one of these comments this is NOT directed at you, it's directed at a general sentiment I've seen over the last few months in nearly every media article and comment about Bigelow. It's not like I'm sitting here thinking "OMG, anybody who says this is an evil person and I hate them." I'm just tired of every other comment I see, including a twitter from Roger Ebert, being about one of these two topics instead of honoring how fabulous, talented, and wonderful she might be, and how historic and fabulous this moment is.
I mean, I know not a lot of people care about The Oscars, and I know not a lot of people think they mean anything. But the thing is, this moment? This moment is huge for ME. Me personally. Me, as a woman who wants to direct films, who wants to make action pictures or dramas, not just frippery and bland rom coms like people think women are supposed to make. This is a moment where everything I want to be was validated in a huge, huge way.
I'm not saying I'll ever win an Oscar or even be as good as Kathryn Bigelow, or that I'll ever even manage to direct a feature. But this is like a big neon light in the sky saying that I _can_. That I should just keep trying, just keep moving forward, because people are finally opening up and listening, they're believing in the same dream I'm dreaming. They are starting to think that women can do this job too.
That's a really, really big deal.
So I don't want it colored and shaded by a bunch of crap about looks and who slept with who because that doesn't matter.
In twenty years, when there are more women directors, when more women are able to tell their stories and make their movies, when they really get out there and say what they want to say and people are not just letting them say it but encouraging them and celebrating them, this moment will be the start of it.
It won't matter who was married to who, it won't matter if she was pretty or not. It will matter that both genders are getting to tell stories.
-Anybody talking about how Kathryn Bigelow was married to James Cameron and thus she's going to be all "Haha James Cameron!" and "Yeah, I'm better than you, nananana."
First, as I said on Facebook, more women have been married to James Cameron than have been nominated for Best Director. So her being nominated and winning? A hell of a lot more important an achievement.
Second, they were married for like, thirty seconds, and from all accounts they remain good friends, they work together well, and have been nothing but supportive of each other. So she's likely not at all saying "In your face" but instead saying, "I'm so happy, isn't it exciting?"
Third, please stop taking away from her achievement by making it still in some way about James Effin' Cameron, okay? It's devaluing her achievement and I'm a bit tired of it. That these comments are largely coming from women isn't helping my brain.
-How smoking hot Kathryn Bigelow is. "OMG, she's a HOT CHICK who can direct! And action movies no less! WOW! She's so hot, and then she's also talented!"
Again with the devaluing.
From everything I've heard she did an amazing job directing an amazing film. Let's concentrate on that, could we please?
And no, I haven't read any blogs or posts at all tonight so if you posted one of these comments this is NOT directed at you, it's directed at a general sentiment I've seen over the last few months in nearly every media article and comment about Bigelow. It's not like I'm sitting here thinking "OMG, anybody who says this is an evil person and I hate them." I'm just tired of every other comment I see, including a twitter from Roger Ebert, being about one of these two topics instead of honoring how fabulous, talented, and wonderful she might be, and how historic and fabulous this moment is.
I mean, I know not a lot of people care about The Oscars, and I know not a lot of people think they mean anything. But the thing is, this moment? This moment is huge for ME. Me personally. Me, as a woman who wants to direct films, who wants to make action pictures or dramas, not just frippery and bland rom coms like people think women are supposed to make. This is a moment where everything I want to be was validated in a huge, huge way.
I'm not saying I'll ever win an Oscar or even be as good as Kathryn Bigelow, or that I'll ever even manage to direct a feature. But this is like a big neon light in the sky saying that I _can_. That I should just keep trying, just keep moving forward, because people are finally opening up and listening, they're believing in the same dream I'm dreaming. They are starting to think that women can do this job too.
That's a really, really big deal.
So I don't want it colored and shaded by a bunch of crap about looks and who slept with who because that doesn't matter.
In twenty years, when there are more women directors, when more women are able to tell their stories and make their movies, when they really get out there and say what they want to say and people are not just letting them say it but encouraging them and celebrating them, this moment will be the start of it.
It won't matter who was married to who, it won't matter if she was pretty or not. It will matter that both genders are getting to tell stories.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Wardrobe Controversy on Project Runway
Okay, so for once I can weigh in with at least a very finite amount of first-hand experience on the DRAMA that is going on with the Models of the Runway.
To sum up, one model accused another of using double-sided tape with her garment, and that's against the show's rules.
Earlier this summer, I was the set costumer on a feature film. One of my jobs was to do "last looks" which means checking everybody over seconds before the camera rolls to make sure they look good (or at the least, look the way they're supposed to). Which means that I was the girl on set with the handful of double-sided tape.
And let me tell you, we used a lot of it sometimes. These actresses would look absolutely gorgeous in these costumes, but you had to be certain that it wasn't going to slip or shift and that it was going to look gorgeous every second you were recording. But it doesn't really change the look or feel of the garment, it just ensures that it stays put if you're going to be moving around a lot.
Which is why I'm completely surprised that the PR staff doesn't allow it on the runways. I'm sure if you went to Fashion Week you'd find quite a lot of it floating around. Heck, I'm sure a lot of women use it just for going out. It was pretty darn handy for a million reasons.
But, in the end, the rules are the rules. So they told Kalyn that she can't use the double-sided tape. Okay, to be honest, I believe that she knew when she put it on the first time that she wasn't allowed to use it and she was going to try to get away with it. There's no way they've made it that far into the show without this becoming a topic of discussion. So I do think there was a little bit of scheming there.
HOWEVER, Katie's insistence that she saw the tape was still on just before the runway show bothered me. She said that it was because she saw a red strip on what should have been flesh toned (at least, that's what I heard) and that proves it.
It doesn't, and Katie should know that. I don't know what's going on in her mind, I don't know why she's upset. I forgive her for bringing it up in front of everyone the way she did because she was being egged on to discuss what was bothering her even after saying she didn't want to. She caved and said how she felt, I don't fault her for that.
I fault her for the completely wrong logic it took to get to that conclusion. If there is one thing you learn about double-stick tape after using it repeatedly, it's that the stuff is REALLY sticky. Sometimes we used stuff that was actually wig tape, so it was designed to keep people's hair on. That's some powerful adhesive.
Irina's dress in this challenge was made out of a particular type of brocade. A type of brocade that quite frankly, sheds easily. It is completely conceivable that the residue from the tape that was left on Kalyn's skin and the fabric worked together to leave a line of fuzz where it had previously been.
Not to mention the fact that if Kalyn was actually using the tape, then how would Katie have witnessed it? Unless she was doing it wrong, it would be hidden by the fabric, or if it stopped working and the dress slipped anyway, in which case it didn't actually do any good or change any results, so why be so upset about it?
I know there are going to be people out there defending Katie's point of view and saying "She saw it there! What did she see if it wasn't the tape?" Well, I can tell you it's entirely possible, indeed plausible, that she saw the remains of the residue and adhesive that the stuff leaves behind.
I think Kalyn handled the whole situation with a lot of class, also. Good for her. Though to be completely honest, my favorite model got eliminated this week so I'm not entirely happy anyway. I'll continue rooting for Matar I guess, since I like her as well.
I know that I've stopped recapping the episodes like I used to. That's a mix of two things. First, that this semester has killed me and I haven't had time to think or sleep in months. Second, that I'm still upset about Ra'mon being auf'ed and Nicolas winning in that challenge and I still can't write about it.
To sum up, one model accused another of using double-sided tape with her garment, and that's against the show's rules.
Earlier this summer, I was the set costumer on a feature film. One of my jobs was to do "last looks" which means checking everybody over seconds before the camera rolls to make sure they look good (or at the least, look the way they're supposed to). Which means that I was the girl on set with the handful of double-sided tape.
And let me tell you, we used a lot of it sometimes. These actresses would look absolutely gorgeous in these costumes, but you had to be certain that it wasn't going to slip or shift and that it was going to look gorgeous every second you were recording. But it doesn't really change the look or feel of the garment, it just ensures that it stays put if you're going to be moving around a lot.
Which is why I'm completely surprised that the PR staff doesn't allow it on the runways. I'm sure if you went to Fashion Week you'd find quite a lot of it floating around. Heck, I'm sure a lot of women use it just for going out. It was pretty darn handy for a million reasons.
But, in the end, the rules are the rules. So they told Kalyn that she can't use the double-sided tape. Okay, to be honest, I believe that she knew when she put it on the first time that she wasn't allowed to use it and she was going to try to get away with it. There's no way they've made it that far into the show without this becoming a topic of discussion. So I do think there was a little bit of scheming there.
HOWEVER, Katie's insistence that she saw the tape was still on just before the runway show bothered me. She said that it was because she saw a red strip on what should have been flesh toned (at least, that's what I heard) and that proves it.
It doesn't, and Katie should know that. I don't know what's going on in her mind, I don't know why she's upset. I forgive her for bringing it up in front of everyone the way she did because she was being egged on to discuss what was bothering her even after saying she didn't want to. She caved and said how she felt, I don't fault her for that.
I fault her for the completely wrong logic it took to get to that conclusion. If there is one thing you learn about double-stick tape after using it repeatedly, it's that the stuff is REALLY sticky. Sometimes we used stuff that was actually wig tape, so it was designed to keep people's hair on. That's some powerful adhesive.
Irina's dress in this challenge was made out of a particular type of brocade. A type of brocade that quite frankly, sheds easily. It is completely conceivable that the residue from the tape that was left on Kalyn's skin and the fabric worked together to leave a line of fuzz where it had previously been.
Not to mention the fact that if Kalyn was actually using the tape, then how would Katie have witnessed it? Unless she was doing it wrong, it would be hidden by the fabric, or if it stopped working and the dress slipped anyway, in which case it didn't actually do any good or change any results, so why be so upset about it?
I know there are going to be people out there defending Katie's point of view and saying "She saw it there! What did she see if it wasn't the tape?" Well, I can tell you it's entirely possible, indeed plausible, that she saw the remains of the residue and adhesive that the stuff leaves behind.
I think Kalyn handled the whole situation with a lot of class, also. Good for her. Though to be completely honest, my favorite model got eliminated this week so I'm not entirely happy anyway. I'll continue rooting for Matar I guess, since I like her as well.
I know that I've stopped recapping the episodes like I used to. That's a mix of two things. First, that this semester has killed me and I haven't had time to think or sleep in months. Second, that I'm still upset about Ra'mon being auf'ed and Nicolas winning in that challenge and I still can't write about it.
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