Writers Block [The Struggle]

What to do when hunting down your next idea for a film. It is a journey, an exciting and disappointing journey to explore who you are and what limits you have when conducting a new plot line, climax and resolution for your story. One thing that is true is your heart has to be in the idea in order for you to write about it. Coming up with the passionate idea isn’t the writers block, no, that comes once you have the idea brewing and then you go to spit it out on paper and BLahhhh… comes out.

Yes I hate to admit but it is the art of the processes, I currently have writers block. The funny thing is that I have no problem writing about my writers block. If you have ever been in this situation you know that writer’s block is nothing but a piece of the puzzle missing. The reason I haven’t updated you about where I am with my project (supposed to start filming this summer!) is because of my missing puzzle piece. I know the characters I want I know the plot line, but my foundation of the characters roots are not planted, and the ending is not satisfying to me. If I can just connect the roots to the end I will have the story I am looking for.

The worst part is knowing. I know what I want out of the story and what I want my audience to get from watching it. Pre production is the hardest and longest part of the film process and I have to get out of this two month block! I have even went to locations to hunt down where I want to film the majority of my film. The best thing to do to get rid of your writers block is to have that light bulb moment. We see it on TV all the time. S person stuck on a project, and then they hear something that is irrelevant to their project but it just hit the switch! Well how does a writer get that moment? Research. The more research you do on the subject the more you will learn about others perspectives, you are taking yourself out of the center of it all and letting others look at your gaping hole with their reality. Since my film is about two 15-year-old girls, I am talking a lot with my cousins friends and asking them questions that could give me that light bulb moment.

When you have writers block, you can write about it (like me) or you can do a little side work. Take yourself away from the guilt of a blank page and find the story. The journey or experience is what matters, not the results. Yes the struggle is real, you can be as passionate as you can about your film but writers block doesn’t care. Don’t be afraid to walk away for a moment or let others in. More inspiration can only lead to words on a page.

Soap in Your Soup: Part 2

One of the beauties of film is its allowance for a range of passions to be expressed. Directors can have a passion for taking something on paper and creating the most enlightening way to expose that story. Actors, on the other hand, have a passion for engulfing themselves into becoming another person and accurately delivering the purpose of that character onscreen. Writers have the privilege of taking a thought and molding it to establish a films foundation and purpose. Then there is that special occasion when an actor, writer, or directed drift into another role in the film world. They fall in love with a story to the point that they can’t trust anyone else to deliver the job justice, they must do it themselves. In Part 1 of Soap in Your Soup we revealed multitasking musicians who have become actors. Part 2 will be discovering the all-time greats, and the upcoming actors that take on the role of director, wearing many hats on one project.

Some of the classic comedies we find are flavored with a particular style. Woody Allen, Mel Brooks, Charlie Chaplin, when you hear these names originality comes to mind. Each one of those gentleman have mastered the craft of directing and acting in their own films. Together they have made this task look easy, they have challenged the following generations to go to a higher standard of film making. Of course Allen, Brooks, and Chaplin had particular themes and central ideas in all of their films, but what has newer actor/director combos done?

Kevin Costner – Starring and directing Dances with Wolves won him an Oscar for Best Director, Best Picture and a nomination for Best Actor. Kevin Costner turned down the offer for the squeal because he believed it would ruin the original movie, knowing it could never measure up to all that he put into the original

George Clooney – More then just one occasion has Clooney honored us with his many talents. In 2005 not only writing but also making his directoral start with Good Night and Good Luck, nominated for 6 Acadeny Awards. Clooney played Fred Friendly, a man hiding his marraige from the news studio where he so fought to obtain its objectivism. Clooney knew it was just the begining of his love for being behind the camera. He also starred and directed Leatherheads, and Ides of March.

Jamers Franco – Franco is known to dive into many projects at once, currently in the Broadway musical Of Mice and Men, an artist, author, soap star (yes, ABC’s General Hospital) and film professor at NYU. Known mostly for his acting, James Franco has also dove into the role of wearing three hats in his film As I Lay Dying, he adapted the screen play, directed, and starring in. Franco might be spread thin, but his films do not lack character.

Ben Affleck – Sadly dispointing for not wining Best Director for his 2012 film Argo, Affleck has a major fan base on both the acting, but more directing stand point. Argo was just one of many films where Affleck has been both behind the scene as well as the star. With best friend Matt Damon they together wrote and starred in Good Will Hunting with recently passed Robin WIlliams. Not to mention the ‘to close to home’ film The Town.  Affleck has a nack for directing intense escape films, as well as writing a heart warming stories of a poor geniuses, and acting as a regreting bank robber.

Joseph Gorden-Levitt – Recently unvieled his first writing , directing, and starring in film opposite Scarrlett Johansson and Julianne Moore in Don Jon. Definately a film to be proud of, Don Jon breaks bounderies with creating stapel character with unchangable characteristics and watching them develop into something less culterally acceptable but more gratiying and fufilling. Just look past all the masterbation.

Multi-taskers can often lose sight of important tasks at hand becasue they are spread so thin. But for these entrepreneurs who go all in with directing and starring in their own films, well that is just a over achiever, a dreamer and doer. Look at Sylvester Stallone, one of the best all-time action film writers. His start to fame with Rocky is an inspriation to many writers. After writing the scrpit Stallone refused offers from major film producers because he wouldn’t settle without being the star of the film. That is dedication to your project. A new up and coming director is the heart throb Ryan Gosling, who will soon release River Lost, a film about a boy who finds a secret town under water. Even though Gosling is not starring in the film, it is his first take on writing a directing. Down the road we might find our next Clooney or Affleck. These fellas on and off screen have proven they can provide film with flair, and that it is possible to multi-task without getting soap in your soup.

RIP O Captain My Captain

As most stunning news, Monday August 11, 2014 Robin Williams was found dead at his place of residence in CA. Genreations have been truley touched by his work, and more generatiosn to come. Below is a poll. What is your favorite Robin Williams character:

 

Two Worlds One Passion

Entertaining the idea of a day in the life as a A-Lister is a lot like playing the ‘if I won the lottery game’, but with a horrible plot twist that turns a cloud nine vision spiraling into an endless nightmare of doom. Yes I said it. Think about an actor’s journey to the ‘top’. The criticism, no’s, and sacrifices they personally take on to one day gain the ‘break’ everyone is searching for. What motivates someone to expense so much of themselves to get to their dreams? Well for some it’s that negative motivation of one day having the sweet perception of satisfaction in proving those around you wrong. But for most it’s the passion for the innovative craft and flair film offers to the world.

No matter what the media says to boost our interest in a professional’s personal life to gain a dollar, the foundation of film is based on the idea of unique storytelling. Film is an art that takes the humanistic values of life and emotion and places it on screen. Yet someone saw that as an opportunity to create virtually a second dimension of this world to have an impact on Wall Street. Thank you who-ever wrote up the first tabloid, in ruining the humble beauty of what film truly is.

To prove my point actors have gone in silence to express their doubt in Hollywood’s true value toward celebrity.

Gene Hackman, now a successful author, once had a passion to elevate characters on screen to be loved and hated. His name on a movie poster would immediately add value to the screenplay, because he always delivered such a profound interaction with the plot. Now he adds value to telling a story on paper rather than on our TV screens.

Greta Garbo, might not immediately ring a bell, but she once was known to be the actress to change the evolving movie industry and raise the stakes for actresses. Where did she go so suddenly? She became an art collector and spent time with her family until her passing at age 84. She was so disgusted with Hollywood she never picked up her Honorary Oscar that she earned in 1955.

Johnny Depp is currently starring in the upcoming Disney’s Into the Woods, and with more to come from him such as his sequels for Alice in Wonderland and Pirates of the Caribbean. Depp moved out of the United States to get away from the paparazzi and live a normal life. Of course many Hollywood resources despised him for wanting to be human, he continued to entertain us with his ever so corky and inventive characters.

Dave Chappelle was quoted saying “…it quiets the ego [about leaving Hollywood] … I want to be balanced.” Even young heart throbs that fall off the face of the Hollywood Sign, such as Freddie Prinze Jr. called acting “a weird life” in 2003.

It is disappointing to the true fans of film but also to those who pursue it as a career and get condemned by the defeating world of the superstar crazed and the idolizing minions of the world. What the face of Hollywood has become has taken away the art and beauty of what film has the potential to blossom into. If you want to see real film, true story telling at its supreme you have to dig deep. Go where the actors are silenced and what the reels have to say are supplementary to your imagination. I challenge you to watch independent films, short films, and find the people that are on their journey to the big time. Find the names not in the lights, because that is where the true passion of film is infused into their work.

Jennifer Lawrence feared to take on the role of Katniss Everdeen, because she knew that the power Hollywood could have over such a profound story could potential launch her into a spotlight that would blind her of her original reasoning to begin acting. Thankfully her humbling personality and light hearted charm has only resulted into fantastic portrayals of unique characters and Oscars.

Josh Hartnett left Hollywood for independent film making to give light to the great stories that might not get the attention of the Hollywood hounds. He has recently returned to acting in Showtime’s Penny Dreadful. For Hartnett fans you are more likely to find him behind and front of cameras occupying his flair on unique plots and adapting characters at film festivals where his work has more personal meaning then who he might be dating on scene.

Sometimes our dreams are unmatched to the strength of our character. As people we want fulfilling lives. A life in which our journey has meaning, daily purpose, and channels our passions into our careers. Sometimes we have to get to where we want to be to just find out that isn’t where we belonged to begin with. Sadly, Hollywood draping its destiny to create fame and money off of film has filtered our vision of true film making. So my tip for you film lover out there, embrace the movies that are casted in the shadows of blockbusters. That is where the best stories are left. Remember, to find enjoyment in what your passion is you might have to sacrifice the journey to get your name in lights just to be the one to turn them off.

RIP Michael Clarke Duncan

 

Micheal Duncan

Graced with his humor, and blessed with his talents, we remember and respect the career of Michael Clarke Duncan, 1957-2012.

FIlms that come to mind are The Green Mile, The Scorpion King, Friday, Armageddon, and The Whole Nine Yards. His versatility helped him establish a vast range of fans. His comedic appeal, dancing in his animal print speedo in Armageddon, or his talent to touch our hearts in The Green Mile. Michael Clarke Duncan will not be easily forgotten.

He left a concrete foot print in the film world for us and more generations to enjoy and appreciate.  Michael Clarke Duncan passed away September 3, 2012 at the age of 54. He will be missed and forever we are grateful for his acting career.