So there we stood, like the unloved puppies at the pet store no one will adopt, like the toys left on the shelf, like the yucky carrots left in the container in the cafeteria mixed in with some cottage cheese that no one wants to take a chance at....alone, with no one to listen to our amazing ideas! According to our descriptions, we were almost the best writers in Hollywood, but no one seemed to notice this trait of ours. So basically, we said to heck with everybody else, let's go indy!
And indy we became! We had no money, only a thirst for greatness, and a desire to make Hollywood history! We were set to show those big studios what they were missing out on! So, we hired a big Hollywood star (we kind of had to to get some money in the budget!), Brad Bucks was ours! And by signing him, we got a budget of $10 million, too bad $8 million of that went to Brad. So going in the hole was inevitable, but we were okay with it, because we knew it was going to be a hit! Yes, our production levels were taken down, now the entire filming process would be in San Francisco and our hero wouldn't be as muscular as we had hoped, but he would be good looking, bringing in the ladies to our action indy film.
All in all, the day was rather frustrating and felt like the Millenium Force at Cedar Point. But, we came out satisfied with what we had accomplished. It was a good learning experience, and reaffirmed the fact that we will not end up in Hollywood after our time at Malone. And true, the studios didn't really like our idea, but one day, they'll be sorry when they see Brad Bucks beating up some Chinese people in Chinatown in our Blockbuster hit, "ATTACK!"
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Wanted: Studio looking for a couple of great action writers!
Walking into class, we had no idea what to expect, just basically the day of a lifetime in mass media and society. When asked for volunteers for the position of writer we were hesitant at first, (later we found for good reason, considering it wasn't the greatest of all spots) but raised our hands and were transformed into action writers.
At first our concept was simple....there are the Chinese people out to get the United States, specifically San Francisco. They inhabit Chinatown where they plot to take over the city, and are stopped only by the one and only, Crawl the Warrior King, we hoped to have played by Arnold Bodybuilder (aka Robbie Vrooman).
So when given the green light, our initial plan was to divide and conquer. Cheryl took the job of getting Arnold on our side by talking to his agent Kelsey and was successful, for the time being. At the same time, Kylee was pitching our idea to Big Time Studios. Unfortunately, they were looking for a "romantic comedy" film...PSH! Who cares about love?! We know that action's where it's at! It fills the seats for sure! While Kylee was continued to try with Big Time Studios, Cheryl took a chance with approaching Midville Studios. We thought we were in...
Deals were made, contracts were signed...with the actor....we thought we were in the clear and done with the hassle of setting things up. If only it were all that simple. Midville, apparently, wanted a romantic comedy as well. We were beginning to become more and more bitter with this whole love business, all we wanted were some Chinese terrorists and someone to kick some butt! We may look like sweet girls, but we crave the thrill of suspense and watching a movie on the edge of the seat because of terrorists, not who's going to fall in love with whom! Before we knew it, Midville Studios dropped us like a bad habit, took our actor and found different writers. They convinced Arnold they had a better film for him to pursue and we got the shaft.
At first our concept was simple....there are the Chinese people out to get the United States, specifically San Francisco. They inhabit Chinatown where they plot to take over the city, and are stopped only by the one and only, Crawl the Warrior King, we hoped to have played by Arnold Bodybuilder (aka Robbie Vrooman).
So when given the green light, our initial plan was to divide and conquer. Cheryl took the job of getting Arnold on our side by talking to his agent Kelsey and was successful, for the time being. At the same time, Kylee was pitching our idea to Big Time Studios. Unfortunately, they were looking for a "romantic comedy" film...PSH! Who cares about love?! We know that action's where it's at! It fills the seats for sure! While Kylee was continued to try with Big Time Studios, Cheryl took a chance with approaching Midville Studios. We thought we were in...
Deals were made, contracts were signed...with the actor....we thought we were in the clear and done with the hassle of setting things up. If only it were all that simple. Midville, apparently, wanted a romantic comedy as well. We were beginning to become more and more bitter with this whole love business, all we wanted were some Chinese terrorists and someone to kick some butt! We may look like sweet girls, but we crave the thrill of suspense and watching a movie on the edge of the seat because of terrorists, not who's going to fall in love with whom! Before we knew it, Midville Studios dropped us like a bad habit, took our actor and found different writers. They convinced Arnold they had a better film for him to pursue and we got the shaft.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
The Guardian
Gathering in the Barn for a typical night of movie watching with my friends, I did not expect to notice so many connections to things we've discussed with camera angles and symbolic gestures, especially of the omnipotent variety, but these things were noticed in The Guardian.
The movie follows an older Coast Guard rescue swimmer as he hits a wall in his career after his entire crew is killed on a mission, so he is sent to the academy to teach new recruits how to properly, according to him, be a rescue swimmer. He uses some different techniques in comparison to what the school typically does things, but the students become more and more prepared with each lesson. If you haven't seen the movie, I'm basically going to ruin it for you right now, so you might want to stop reading or just continue on and not cry as much as I did when I watched the movie. In the end, Kevin Costner, the instructor, takes a student(Ashton Kutcher) that is much like him, and molds him into what he used to be to continue his work after he's gone.
Throughout the film, there are several variations of the two shot including the open screen and the interview style over the shoulder shot, but even more, there is the "God Shot." The God shot is quite frequent, especially at the end of the film when Costner releases himself from a rescue rope in order to save his protigee's life and have him carry on his deeds of saving lives.
Also, symbolically, Costner's character is believed to still be alive and helping victims in their time of need, as they wait for help via the Coast Guard Rescue Team...can we say God-like?? Yes! From open armed gestures to his words ringing in Kutcher's mind, the audience has a Godly connection to this 40-some year old man.
At the conclusion of the film, a friend of mine said, "I always knew Kevin Costner was God! It all makes sense now!"
The movie follows an older Coast Guard rescue swimmer as he hits a wall in his career after his entire crew is killed on a mission, so he is sent to the academy to teach new recruits how to properly, according to him, be a rescue swimmer. He uses some different techniques in comparison to what the school typically does things, but the students become more and more prepared with each lesson. If you haven't seen the movie, I'm basically going to ruin it for you right now, so you might want to stop reading or just continue on and not cry as much as I did when I watched the movie. In the end, Kevin Costner, the instructor, takes a student(Ashton Kutcher) that is much like him, and molds him into what he used to be to continue his work after he's gone.
Throughout the film, there are several variations of the two shot including the open screen and the interview style over the shoulder shot, but even more, there is the "God Shot." The God shot is quite frequent, especially at the end of the film when Costner releases himself from a rescue rope in order to save his protigee's life and have him carry on his deeds of saving lives.
Also, symbolically, Costner's character is believed to still be alive and helping victims in their time of need, as they wait for help via the Coast Guard Rescue Team...can we say God-like?? Yes! From open armed gestures to his words ringing in Kutcher's mind, the audience has a Godly connection to this 40-some year old man.
At the conclusion of the film, a friend of mine said, "I always knew Kevin Costner was God! It all makes sense now!"
Society's Semiotic Standards
Lately, I've been trying to think over some things and why people act the ways they do and it all leads to this one simply stated, yet not simply answered, question: What makes a person? Is it the type of music they listen to? Or is it the way they dress? Or could it be their religious beliefs/outlook on life? Whatever it is that makes a person in one's eyes, the person has officially been stereotyped. The immediate reaction to someone in black is to assume they're gothic, or if someone is bumping with a loud bass track, they're ghetto. But what about those that don't want to be stereotyped? They simply end up lost in the cracks of society.
What if there's a boy dressed in black with black eyeliner and stringy long hair, that has a passion for Jessica Simpson music and the church? Yes, somewhat unlikely combination, but I bet he's out there somewhere! But society has a hard time understanding him because of the unlikely semiotic domain combinations.
Or another odd semiotic domain combination, a super girly girl (I mean wears something pink every day and constantly smiles kind of girly girl) listens to nothing but the Grateful Dead and watches only Indy films. It's quite striking to me that the slightest of things can change one's perception of another. The signs get misconstrued and assumptions are made and they are not always reliable. So perhaps the real question that I've been trying to figure out is why does society put people into such non-conforming stereotypes? Yes, this is definitely the problem.
What if there's a boy dressed in black with black eyeliner and stringy long hair, that has a passion for Jessica Simpson music and the church? Yes, somewhat unlikely combination, but I bet he's out there somewhere! But society has a hard time understanding him because of the unlikely semiotic domain combinations.
Or another odd semiotic domain combination, a super girly girl (I mean wears something pink every day and constantly smiles kind of girly girl) listens to nothing but the Grateful Dead and watches only Indy films. It's quite striking to me that the slightest of things can change one's perception of another. The signs get misconstrued and assumptions are made and they are not always reliable. So perhaps the real question that I've been trying to figure out is why does society put people into such non-conforming stereotypes? Yes, this is definitely the problem.
Friday, February 2, 2007
Disney Destroys Dreams (Part 2)
Prince Charming is bored at the ball, when all of a sudden, he sees a ravishing beauty at the top of the stairs. He is enraptured by her presence and can hardly wait to have one dance with her. And it is after just the one dance, that our prince friend is madly in love with a practcal stranger. Sounds great right? Definitely not. She rushes off quickly and leaves only a slipper behind for him to find her by--so unrealistic! Then to top it all off, the prince sends out his steward to scour the kingdom for the girl that wears the glass slipper. Ok. Really, come on now, who wears glass slippers? And, how stupid can you be to not find out more about "the girl of your dreams?" If only he had a normal conversation with her first like any other human being would have, he would definitely not be in this pickle. A dance is all he needed? Once again, too bad for our rhymically challenged friends. So, lie number 3) all that it takes for a man to fall in love is a sweet dance with a beautiful maiden. FALSE!
Don't get us wrong, Disney doesn't always screw up. With Beauty and the Beast, we have some real life. The girl initially hates the guy. This really does happen from time to time. Her first impression of the beast is that "he was mean, coarse and unrefined." But soon we find that "now he's dear and so [she's] sure, that now there's something there that wasn't there before." Once Belle moved past the harsh exterior that was the beast's appearance, she found the core him and fell in love, not with his looks, but with him. This is how all Disney productions should be, true to life in all aspects, minus the whole being turned into a beast thing, that doesn't really happen. Truth number 1) all that it takes for a man to fall in love is not appearance, singing or dancing, but seeing someone for who they really are and loving them for it. TRUE!
Don't get us wrong, Disney doesn't always screw up. With Beauty and the Beast, we have some real life. The girl initially hates the guy. This really does happen from time to time. Her first impression of the beast is that "he was mean, coarse and unrefined." But soon we find that "now he's dear and so [she's] sure, that now there's something there that wasn't there before." Once Belle moved past the harsh exterior that was the beast's appearance, she found the core him and fell in love, not with his looks, but with him. This is how all Disney productions should be, true to life in all aspects, minus the whole being turned into a beast thing, that doesn't really happen. Truth number 1) all that it takes for a man to fall in love is not appearance, singing or dancing, but seeing someone for who they really are and loving them for it. TRUE!
Disney Destroys Dreams
True, this title may be harsh, but it is partially true. Don't get us wrong as we are avid Disney lovers. We own Disney Scene It, have Disney paraphernalia, and attended Disney on Ice: Princess Wishes just three short weeks ago. But, Disney gives us a false sense of true love. It gives the perception that everyone will meet their prince charming with the simple bat of an eye (let's think back to a little song called "A Whole New World" shall we?). To all members of the Disney Princesses generation, be prepared for a let down in your love life, as Disney has screwed us all up and given us false hope.
Let's start off with the "romantically lovely" story of Aladdin and Jasmine. Aladdin was simply roaming the streets of Agraba when across the crowded marketplace, he spies Jasmine and his breath is taken away as he is instantly in love. Now, if this were real life, Aladdin would be labeled a creepy pervert and would soon be delivered a restraining order. But no, Disney doesn't do reality. Disney has the girl turn out to be a princess and fall in love with him too on a magic carpet ride. Don't lie, you wouldn't get on a carpet with someone you just met, it's like the rule your parents tell you when you're little, "Don't get in the car with a stranger!" They never said anything about a magical flying carpet though now did they? Tricky tricky Disney. So lie number 1) all that it takes for a man to fall in love is a simple bat of the eyelashes. FALSE!
Scenario number two goes a little something like this, Prince Eric is tossed onshore after a shipwreck and is entranced by a lovely lady's voice. Really? A song? That's all it takes? If only we had known this when we were younger, we would have taken singing lessons when we were little instead of bothering with a real education. As we all know now, singing isn't really what gets the guys, or is it and we've been falsely mistaken? Either way, this scenario screws over all of the tone-deaf and rhythmically challenged of the world. Basically Disney says a big "Sucks to be you" to all of these folks. Therefore, lie number 2) all that it takes for a man to fall in love is a beautiful voice. FALSE! (we hope)
More to come in the next blog....
Let's start off with the "romantically lovely" story of Aladdin and Jasmine. Aladdin was simply roaming the streets of Agraba when across the crowded marketplace, he spies Jasmine and his breath is taken away as he is instantly in love. Now, if this were real life, Aladdin would be labeled a creepy pervert and would soon be delivered a restraining order. But no, Disney doesn't do reality. Disney has the girl turn out to be a princess and fall in love with him too on a magic carpet ride. Don't lie, you wouldn't get on a carpet with someone you just met, it's like the rule your parents tell you when you're little, "Don't get in the car with a stranger!" They never said anything about a magical flying carpet though now did they? Tricky tricky Disney. So lie number 1) all that it takes for a man to fall in love is a simple bat of the eyelashes. FALSE!
Scenario number two goes a little something like this, Prince Eric is tossed onshore after a shipwreck and is entranced by a lovely lady's voice. Really? A song? That's all it takes? If only we had known this when we were younger, we would have taken singing lessons when we were little instead of bothering with a real education. As we all know now, singing isn't really what gets the guys, or is it and we've been falsely mistaken? Either way, this scenario screws over all of the tone-deaf and rhythmically challenged of the world. Basically Disney says a big "Sucks to be you" to all of these folks. Therefore, lie number 2) all that it takes for a man to fall in love is a beautiful voice. FALSE! (we hope)
More to come in the next blog....
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