Scrambling to figure out what I can do project wise, now that I am without a computer for a few weeks. Only so much I can do on my wife's laptop.

I am looking forward to finally getting a Canon T2i, hopefully the camera will arrive by the time I get my computer back.

Need to schedule some shoot dates for Monster Cops, work on props, and figure out what else I can do to be productive for now.

In line at geek squad. dropping off my newly dead comp. But its ok, cuz they're blasting blues music.

.LOG 8/24/10 - 8/28/10

The following are all micro blogs from Tuesday August 24th to Saturday August 28th. I was utilizing the .LOG hack on notepad. If you're not aware. Open up notepad type .LOG and then save it to your desktop. When you open it back up it'll update with your current time and date. This has become handy in just keeping up with little notes through out the day. I'll be doing this every so often, updating every 4 or 5 days.


8:41 AM 8/24/2010
Got up at 7:30. Just had a protein shake, now I'm trying to figure out what needs to be done today. I'm certain editing will be involved. Oh yeah, and I guess I should finish up this client's project.


9:30 AM 8/24/2010
Currently editing footage as I re-write the vampire Killing scene, while researching the best way to create this specific prop. Realized that the plot has changed slightly due to scenes I couldn't shoot at the office, so I'm renaming the Dead By Dawn episode to MONSTER COPS: Vampire Killer. Which I realize signifies some sort of closure for me as well as a sort of a rebirth. Vampire Killer was the name of my first feature film and it featured a young blond Vampire Killer named Kate Rand. This Monster Cops episode is now called Vampire Killer, and it also features Kate Rand, now being played by April Crum. This Monster Cops storyline concludes the previous storyline in that first feature, as well as resurrects that character into this world. I'm hoping to include Kate Rand in many more Monster Cops adventures.


2:52 PM 8/25/2010
Just had a meeting with a new client, hopefully I can get a bit more work in to pay the bills. Drinking a protein shake right now, then off I go to meet with a potential actor I can work with. Also got a call from another client today, apparently someone really important is impressed with my work. So, good day so far.


8:03 PM 8/25/2010
After the meeting with the actor, who is super neato by the way, I headed to the grocery store(s) as per my instructions from the wifey. After my excursion, a very cool, almost cold, breeze hit me. This was the first indication that FALL was around the corner. I got a little excited about it. Right now the cool weather means I can do exterior shots with much more comfort. We just got done with dinner, now I'm about to clean up a bit, fold some laundry, then tend to some issues concerning some clients, make some phone calls, emails, and get back to editing.


10:25 PM 8/25/2010
Finished a quick workout 30 minutes ago. Now I am going through edits, and taking care of updates on Monsters Vs. Cops IMDB page. Soon a shower, some dishes, and then sleep.


9:37 AM 8/26/2010
Up round 7:30 am. Quick breakfast and right into some editing. Working on some visual fx and cutting together segments. Gotta keep my eye on laundry at the same time. Also trying to coordinate some possible shoots at a couple of the local haunted houses.


10:40 AM 8/26/2010
Listening to Night Of The Living Podcast while editing video. I'm really getting a kick out of doing post visual fx work. I know I will have succeeded when no one notices that this scenes was composed in Photoshop and Sony Vegas Pro.


5:19 PM 8/26/2010
Round 1pm had to head out to run an errand. Met up with the Wifey and we had lunch. Then I went to check on the total price of a Canon T2i as I am hoping to acquire one soon. Went to the grocery store, got a call from a client as I was shopping. Apparently I need to work on a few videos before next week. Hopefully it'll turn out the way I need them too. Now I'm about to get started on some editing, and catching up on some emails.


6:16 PM 8/26/2010
Protein shake, trying to understand what types of SD CARDs are best for the T2i.


3:51 PM 8/27/2010
Got a late start to this Blog today. Been editing all day, and now we're coming up on that special combo of cleaning, editing, and doing laundry. Later tonight is Taco night. Wooo Hoo!


4:41 PM 8/27/2010
Folding laundry and about to attempt a new way to fold fitted sheets.


8:23 PM 8/27/2010
Taco dinner done. Back to editing. Currently editing the Chimera Talk scene in the conference room. It's really annoying the hell out of me. It's my camera movements. Obviously I had alot going on that day, because the camera work is all over the place. I'm barely getting the right shots. I need to get my shit together.


9:19 PM 8/27/2010
Was reminded today is the anniversary of Stevie Ray Vaughn's death.


9:29 PM 8/27/2010
About to come to a stopping point on editing. Next a workout, a protein shake, shower, then possibly more editing, as I listen to some Stevie Ray Vaughn.


1:28 AM 8/28/2010
Going to bed in a bit, but right now I'm doing some quick research on Forced Perspective.

Forced Perspective Research

Thinking through some possible FX scenes.

LOTR Forced Perspective



LOTR Forced Perspective Moving Camera



Forced Perspective Shots



Giant Robot FX Test



Movie Magic Episode 5 - Forced Perspective



The Keeper Of The Cardboard Key

20 Years Later

And he's still an influence on me. Stevie Ray Vaughn.

Swish Blog #1

Special thanks to Justin Johnson for the idea. Swish Blogging (Or Vlogging) is a unique way to Vlog quickly. Capturing snippets of your day and then tilting up or panning left or right at the end of each clip, this way your clips transitions neatly to the next. No explanation needed, and talking to the camera isn't necessary. Very much just a peek into your day, leaving the images to speak for themselves. Very short, and self explanatory. All transitions can be done in camera, taking it easier on the editing, getting you to the upload much faster.

I'm getting it done. Despite how my emotions may want to dictate me. The fact is I am getting it done. Maybe not as originally planned. But that's not how it's supposed to be now.

Ten Rules for Being Human

Ten Rules for Being Human

by Cherie Carter-Scott

1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it's yours to keep for the entire period.
2. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called, "life."
3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial, error, and experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that ultimately "work."
4. Lessons are repeated until they are learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can go on to the next lesson.
5. Learning lessons does not end. There's no part of life that doesn't contain its lessons. If you're alive, that means there are still lessons to be learned.
6. "There" is no better a place than "here." When your "there" has become a "here", you will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here."
7. Other people are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.
8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.
9. Your answers lie within you. The answers to life's questions lie within you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust.
10. You will forget all this.

The Mystery of Your Thirst

(excerpted from the revised and expanded edition of
Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia by Rob Brezsny)

Imagine this scene. You're really thirsty -- so dehydrated that you're feeling faint. Yet here's the weird thing: You're walking along the bank of a wide river that's so clear you could see the bottom if you looked.

But you're not looking. In fact, you seem oblivious to the surging force of nature just a few yards away.

Is it invisible to you? Are you so preoccupied with your suffering that you're blind to the very source that would end your suffering?

Up ahead you see a man. As you approach, you realize he's holding a bottle of water. You run to him and beg him to let you drink. He readily agrees. Gratefully, you guzzle the precious liquid, then thank him profusely.

As you walk away, he calls after you, "By the way, there's a lot more water over there," and he points to the river.

Do you hear him? If you hear him, do you believe him? Or do you keep walking, hoping to find another person with another bottle somewhere up ahead?

Monster Cops Vlog: The Office Part 2

It's All In The Reflexes

I'm on the old Pork Chop Express. I don't fully know what that means, or why I'm making Big Trouble in Little China references. It's probably be because I am slightly delirious. I haven't slept yet.

Been up editing a video for a client. The great thing about being an independent working editor is also the worst thing. I don't have any set hours. You get the job done when you get the job done. And I'm not going to complain when there is a last minute job to do, especially when it's paying, and especially when it's a challenge.

"It's 5pm, I need this video done by the morning." You bet your ass I'm going to do it.

And I did it. Just emailed the uploaded video. Hope there aren't any problems that need my immediate attention as I will be out of it at least til 1pm, but probably noon.

Ok, so sleepy time now, then I get up and eat something, edit, prep pages for this weekend, and plan for the next. And see how all my ducks are lined up. Coming up part 2 of the office vlog, and another vlog where I beg for your support and money for Monster Cops.

Good morrow.

P.S.

Hot Tub Time Machine is the greatest movie EVER. It's exactly the kind of movie I've been dying to see.



sleep

Monster Cops Vlog: The Office Part 1

I really enjoyed this video.

Well That's Neat

I write like
Douglas Adams

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

No Budget Moviemaking From Script To Screen

Right now Real Vampires is on hold while I catch up on Monster Cops. I'm still planning out auditions and working out casting, but my main concentration is on these Monster Cops episodes. Real Vampires auditions will have to wait for a week.

Just finished re-writes on the episode titled CHIMERA. I'm editing the episode called DREAD as well as planning insert shots for that. And next week we'll get all the office shots for CHIMERA, as well as for DREAD, and DEAD BY DAWN. So yes it's looking like 3 more complete 20 minute episodes before Oct. This hopefully means a DVD with 5 episodes to complete series 1. But things happen when you self distribute, so we shall see.

I'm not even going to talk about the Werewolf Episode, titled BLOOD MOON, which I have yet to do re-writes on. This may have to wait for Series 2 DVD, as I am only halfway through the Werewolf Costume.

Right now I'm concentrating on Chimera. Now that the script is finished, it's been emailed to some of the cast, and now I have to send specific pages to the rest of the cast and the crew. What do you do once you have a complete script? What needs to be done to get it shot.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
First is figure out which scenes have the most cast members in it. Let's knock that out first. The office scenes have 4 to 6 characters talking at once, with many extras in the background. Time to find out if your location is available. Our office set is free next Wed, Thu, and Fri after 5pm. I may not need all those days, but it's best to plan for that anyways. Now it's time to contact everyone to see who is free on that schedule.

CAST AVAILABILITY
This is no budget moviemaking. You aren't paying anyone. So you are at the mercy of work schedules and personal problems. They show up because they want to and if they can. So plan for something to go wrong. Everyone I've contacted is free except for one actor. This person just so happened to have a lot of lines, but he has several scheduling conflicts, so that's a no go. Note: I'm not at all angry about it. Because I fully planned for this to happen, also I fully respect my actors and their own schedules. I've planned it so his lines would be easily transferable to another actor, so no major change in plot. So I call one of the other actors to let them know they have more lines.

Another problem. I have a scene between two actors but they aren't available on the same schedule. One is only free on Thursday, where the other one is only free on Wednesday and Friday. What do I do? Cut the scene. If there is an important plot point or message in that scene that is pivotal to the story, then those lines get transferred to another scene. No problem.

PROPS AND COSTUME
Now figure out what scenes you are shooting at that location. Highlight those specific pages. Start making notes on the side next to the start of each scene. The two main lists are PROPS and COSTUMES. Make a list for each scene what props are required, what costumes. Again we are no budget, so everyone brings their own costume. It's office attire mixed with police and military gear. So contact those who are in office attire let them know what to wear. Anyone in police or tactical gear, all they have to do is wear black or camo, I've got the majority of the tactical vests (yay Ebay). Since this is a multi departmental agency mixed with all military branches, For further authenticity I ask any local cops or soldiers I may know if they want to show up on set with their gear on. Many of them are more than happy to.

I've got majority of all props, but I send out an email with a list to see if anyone can fill in the blanks. Thankfully nothing is needed specifically for the storyline, just for the look, so if we don't get it, no biggie.

SHOT LIST
When I write I keep the shots in mind so I often times write in specific camera directions. Although I've shot at this location several times, prepare for anything and everything to go wrong. Maybe a room you were hoping was available is closed off. Or they painted the walls in the hall you wanted to use, and it's going to take a week for it to dry. I keep this in mind when I write out the shot list. At the start of each scene next to your props and costumes list, I right out the shot list. This is just the basic shots and angles I need to convey the action in the script.

Script Action:
"Close up of hand as it turns the door knob. The door swings open revealing the evil monster behind it."

Shot List:
- CU/LA Hand to knob. (That's Close Up / Low Angle Hand to Knob)
- XCU Knob turning. (Extreme Close Up)
- WS behind actor door opens (WS= Wide Shot)
- Rev Shot Reaction (Reverse Shot meaning shot of the actor from behind the door)
- MS Monster Growling (Medium Shot)

Mind you this is just an example. Monster Cops is shot documentary style so the shot descriptions are more complex than this. Also there are some abbreviations that I use that you may not learn in any film school. It's short hand to myself, because I'm pretty much the only person that reads the shot list.

I make a list of the basic shots (meaning the bare minimum of what I need in case I can't get what I really want), with side notes to any more creative shots that I might be able to actually get. Often times I don't have enough room for my entire shot list for each scene, so I write it out on a separate sheet and attach it to the script.

I have software that pretty much does all of the above, but I hardly ever use it. I'm so use to writing it all out myself. Also I do have call sheets, schedules, and all the traditional movie forms, but again, I hardly use them. With the exception of the releases.

SCHEDULE
Over a period of 3 days, starting at 6pm til 9:30pm, I need to get the shot list done. This is how you break it down. You're no longer following the script, you're relying on the shot list. Everyone should know their lines, everyone should have the proper costume, everything else is about getting the shots. So I double check that everyone will be there at about 6pm. And of course they are not. Some of them can't be there til 7:30 or 8pm. Not a problem. Figure out which scenes you can shoot with the actors that will be there at 6pm. Can't do it? Then figure out which shots you can get with the actors you'll have. Maybe you can knock out all of their Close Ups or Medium Shots. You can probably get their dialogue out of the way. Then when the other actors show up, you get their shots, then do the master shot, or wide shot, so we can see everyone in the same scenes.

So write out the times you need to get started, what scene or shots you can get at specific times. 6pm pages 4, 5, and 8, Close Ups of Martha, Jane, and Nathan. 7pm pages 7, 10, and 13 Medium Shots of Jones, Cutter, and Weir. And so on. Honestly, it never works. Why? Because people show up late. They drop their lines (especially me) and they get to laughing, alot. So your 6pm shots end up finishing at 7:30pm. And you have to push your schedule back. But it's fine, because it's good to prepare, because if you're not prepared you may be screwed. If everyone does show up on time and gets their lines right, and you're the one who's not on the ball, chaos will ensue. Chaos with a big group of people, in a location that you do not own. So keep your shit together.

This is everything I'm working on now. Soon I'll be contacting everyone to double check their schedule, and make changes to my lists and schedules as needed.

Other things you want to keep in mind when shooting your own scenes with several cast members.
- You can't afford to feed anyone, but a few snacks, candy, and definitely bottled water should be considered.
- Make sure there is a bathroom. This should be common sense. Also people need a place to change in and out of their costumes.
- Bring your own trashcan and trash bags. We are borrowing somebodies office. It's best to leave it the way you found it, which means keep and take out your own trash. This is true especially if you have a very large group of people in your cast and crew.

Here's my on set checklist. What I need to remember for every shoot:
Alot of this is common sense, but when you're juggling so much, you'd be surprised what you forget when you're in a rush. Making lists saves my life on a daily basis.
- Camera
- Batteries
- Plug Adapter / Extension Cords
- Tripod
- Lights
- Digital Audio Recorder
- Lav Mic
- Extra Batteries for both
- Tape Stock or Memory Cards
- Script / Shot List
- Energy Bar / Water (Gotta keep your energy up / stay hyrdated, think like you're running a marathon)
- Prop Box
- Costume Box
- Releases (Photo Release/Group Release) Anyone you're shooting must sign. It must be clear that 1) They are doing this for credit only, no money. 2) They give you permission to use their likeness and voice in anyway you see fit, thereby giving you the freedom to create what you need to. Also this helps tremendously when you're typing out the end credits.

This is all about organization and communication. Whatever your method is, whether you stick to traditional forms used in studio filmmaking, or you have your own techniques, in the end it's all about organization and communication. Make whatever lists you need to help keep you in order, and be sure you're in contact with your cast and crew, let them know what they need to know. Get them times, dates, directions to the location, details on make up and costume, and of course their script pages.

Do whatever it takes to help keep your shit together.

LINKS
Monster Cops The Series http://monstercops.com
Patrick's Blog http://patrickprejusa.com

My Soccer Partner

Such a great video. Yes it's an ad. Great idea.



My Soccer Partner
Uploaded by jeannasr. - Watch more comedy videos and sitcoms.

Tron Legacy

Very excited about this. Love trailer 2. Trailer 3 is not as powerful, unless of course you've been a fan for 20 years.

Tron Legacy Trailer 2


Tron Legacy Trailer 3


For some reason this all made me think of Dark City.

Dark City

Never underestimate your ability to travel. Never take your time for granted. And don't forget to make sure your optics are clear.

You can make alot happen in 24 hours.

RV First Test

Simple and quick titles test.

Burgess Jenkins Acting Reel

3 Weeks of work. Pulling video from several projects. Burgess wanted something a little different from a normal scene by scene reel. I kind of went movie trailer style with it. Thankfully Burgess had some really great footage from several different projects to work with. Here's pretty much the final cut, kinda.