Getting to St. Barth can be an interesting experience as it’s not the easiest place to travel to, but well worth the voyage. St. Barthélemy is a tropical desert island with fantastic beaches, world class shopping and gastronomic dining. The island is small supporting a limited number of inhabitants and tourists offering exclusivity to those who are lucky enough to find themselves here.

The only way to get to St. Barth is via small aircraft, private yacht, cruise ship or ferry. Flights into St. Barthélemy (SBH) arrive from three nearby airports Guadeloupe (PTP), San Juan (SJU) and from Juliana Airport in St. Maarten (SXM) where 10-minute shuttle flights are made throughout the day. Your St. Barth adventure begins as your flight drops down between craggy mountain peaks onto the short runway landing just feet from the beach and ocean of Baie de Saint-Jean.

To make the most of your St. Barth’s visit I recommend staying awhile, renting a villa and a car. The island is steep and rugged, so 4 wheel drive is a must. It’s easy to get around St. Barth, plus the freedom when traveling by your own means offers the opportunity for discovery. Sibarth Villa Rentals and Wimco, their partners in the states is the premier agency for villa rental on St. Barth offering a vast selection to choose from and the expertise in placing individuals in the most appropriate accommodations.

If you are day tripping to the island and choose not to rent a vehicle, I’ve included approximate taxi times between Gustavia harbor to areas of interest. A rental car is still the best way to go unless you don’t plan to leave the Gustavia area.

AREA – Gustavia: Gustavia = SHOPPING! Get an amazing swimsuit at Hip Up, Black Swan or Kiwi. Find fun shoes at Kokon. Treat yourself to exclusive natural spa products from Ligne St. Barth or visit the pharmacy for interesting European body products. Check out boutiques like Made in St. Barth, Filles des Iles, Caravan, Ilena, Chic St. Barth and Lolita Jaca for unique finds. Shop Linde Gallery for vintage designer accessories and ready to wear. Based on the exchange rate, the same stores and brands could cost less stateside, therefore, save your purchases at Cartier, Hermes, Longchamp, Stuart Weitzman, etc. for home, unless there is something you absolutely know you can’t find stateside.

Dining in Gustavia – try Le Bistro for delicious Carpaccio, fresh fish and Italian pastas. They are located along the waterfront at the harbor, past the little park with large anchor and rotunda separating the sides of the harbor, near the post office on Quai de la Retrocession / Rue Samuel Fahlberg. Another fun spot is Le Select, a mainstay outdoor beer and burger joint, (think Cheeseburger in Paradise) stay for a drink and you just might stay for the burger as well, on Rue de la Guadeloupe and General de Gaulle.

Stroll through Gustavia, wandering leisurely to Anse de Grands Galets / Shell Beach – (Shell is not nice for swimming, but this little cove is full of beautiful seashells and a great place for taking unique photographs). This is a pleasant way to spend the day discovering the Gustavia neighborhood of St. Barth and once you’ve reached Shell Beach, stop for lunch or a sunset cocktail at Do Brazil Restaurant. Taxis can easily be arranged for your 5-minute return to Gustavia Harbor from this location.

Many of the excursion companies are located on the city hall side of Gustavia Harbor, waterfront on Rue Jeanne D’Arc. Here you can join Jet Ski tours, go out on a catamaran, rent a fishing boat or discover the island by sailboat.

For a more personal experience, discovering St. Barth by small sailboat might be an option for you. Lil’E St. Barth is a small sailboat skippered and managed by Mowgli. He offers various trips at 1 ½ hours, 2 hours, 4 hours and 8 hours and can also personally train you in the art of sailing; limited to 3 guests plus the captain. www.lilestbarth.com

AREA – Baie de Saint-Jean: 8 minute Taxi from Gustavia to Baie de Saint-Jean. This calm, white sand beach has a broad shallow base, allowing you to wade a good distance and is my favorite beach on St. Barth. Bring your snorkel gear to see the marvelous fish and sea turtles around the rocks of the Eden Rock Hotel; you’ll be glad you did! If you get hungry, enjoy lunch with your feet in the sand at “The Sand Bar” restaurant located at world famous Eden Rock Hotel. You could also enjoy fine dining in “On The Rocks” for an unforgettable meal, though you probably wouldn’t want to show up in your swimsuit.

From Baie de Saint-Jean, you can watch the dramatic airport landings of Winair, St. Barth Commuter and Air Caraibes flights as they drop down onto the short runway that ends just feet from the beach and ocean. Sign’s warn you not to cross the beach when aircraft are landing, better look before crossing the beach!!!!

Across the street from the Eden Rock Hotel and Nikki Beach next door is a secondary Mecca for St. Barth shopping. It’s smaller than that of Gustavia but it’s just as fun! Ligne St. Barth is located near here. Taxis can easily be arranged for your return to Gustavia Harbor from this location.

AREA – Anse de Gouverneur / Governors Beach: 15-minute taxi from Gustavia to Anse de Gouverneur / Governors Beach (tied for my second favorite beach) unspoiled; pristine white sand, bigger waves and the ability to swim with suit or au natural ☺ bring a picnic lunch and your snorkel gear, though be cautious of the surge!!! Taxis must be pre-arranged for pick up, there are no services on or around this beach.

AREA – Anse de Grande Saline / Grande Saline Beach: 20 minute taxi from Gustavia to Anse de Grande Saline / Grande Saline Beach (tied for my second favorite beach) close to the wild coast of St. Barth with golden brown sand, swimming with suit or au natural and Le Grain de Sel Restaurant nearby for lunch. Bring good shoes for the walk through the dunes to the beach (Keen’s are perfect!). This beach has the strongest surge with heavy undertow and is not recommended for weak swimmers.

If making the drive to Anse de Grande Saline, take the long way (30 to 40 minutes depending on time spent at viewpoints). You’ll see most of the St. Barth coast this way. Trek past the airport, by Baie de Saint-Jean, then ask to see the dramatic views from Pointe Milou, pass grand cul de sac and the hotel Le Toiny or stop here for lunch at Le Gaiac for unforgettable views and service. Allow time for a leisurely meal if dining at this gastronomic restaurant.

Continue your trek passing Anse de Grand Fond and the wild coast. This is a fun spot for a photo op with areas to pull over; you’ll know them when you see them. For the return to Gustavia, travel the roads through Morne Lurin, through Lurin and into Gustavia from the backside, (20 minutes). *Either pre-arrange your taxi for the return to Gustavia or call from Le Grain de Sel restaurant, if dining there.

AREA – Anse de Colombier / Colombier Beach: 20 Minute taxi from Gustavia to Anse de Colombier / Colombier Beach (drop off area). If you feel up to a hike, bring your snorkel gear and head to Colombier Beach. Park at the viewpoint located at the end of the road, trek down the craggy hillside with picnic lunch, lots of water and your favorite pair of Keens. The trek down to Colombier Beach takes roughly 25 minutes and a little longer going back up. If being dropped off, be certain to arrange for a pick up, as there are no services on or near this beach.

It is pretty cool though :-)

Since the origin of Actualities first created by the Lumiere Brothers, people have been fascinated with this art form called film.  Though Actualities were static and ordinary, they captivated audiences. These films were shot with a stationary MOS camera and depicted life in a series of black and white frames filmed in real time.  They contained no editing, no sound and were purely visual art relating to an event or action without story.

The birth of editing was the next progression where cutting the film and gluing the cut to another portion of the reel allowed the filmmaker to tell a narrative story.  The movement of the camera to capture different shots helped tell this narrative.  Animation techniques allowed for slates and subtitles to move a story forward with text accompanying the visuals on film.

With the advent of sound, each film could now have a soundtrack of speech, music and sound effects.  Cinema became an experience through a series of selected shots combined with camera movement and multiple camera angles.  In 1929 the filmmaker Jorvis Ivens uses the film Rain / Regen to capture the life of this seemingly dismal weather by animating it through the use of sound and carefully selected visuals. The rain becomes interesting and poetic as it falls on Amsterdam.  The tranquility turns to frenzy as the rain energizes through the progression of the storm and its ever-rising musical score and back again.  This world, Ivens world, is lovelier with the rain than it is without it.

The visual approach, camera angles, special effects, sound, color and series of selected shots of film have become the language of film.  A filmmaker could now create a perception of power, weakness, stasis, movement, suspicion, impending danger, etc., with the manipulation of the camera and effective use of sound. This created a powerful ability to influence people.  Leni Riefenstahl took full advantage of this when making her 1935 Nazi propaganda film, Triumph of the Will for Adolf Hitler and is largely responsible for many of the camera angles we use today in using the language of film.

The evolution of transforming film from black and white to vivid color added yet another layer of dimension to film. The desire to replicate what the eyes and brain process has gone beyond color and into 3D

In today’s world of film, technology and progress is an ever-changing beast with something new on a monthly basis.  Computers have led to the advancement of animated film, speeding up the process of individually producing each frame.  File formats let us share and view our films over the Internet.  Advancements in more affordable cinema equipment like the digital video Red cameras; Epic, Scarlet, Red One and Red Ray make it easier for independent filmmakers to produce a quality picture without having to leap the hurdle in costs for professional film equipment and stock.   

Story continues to be the driving force in an audiences desire to spend money to view a filmmaker’s work, so weather it’s a big budget film from a Hollywood studio or an indie film produced without financing or distribution, story is still the name of the game. 

Fog of War by Errol Morris – 2003

In Fog of War, a documentary about Robert S. McNamara, the filmmaker, Errol Morris uses first-person narration with voice over interview for the voice of his film.  The story of this historical Secretary of Defense begins with archival footage and tense music while credits roll on black that is interlaced with imagery of torpedo’s loading, gun boat crews, planning room sessions, troop deployment and a warning that “One mistake will destroy nations.”

The train of the film is moved forward with McNamara’s 10 Lessons and a sea of dominos that fall and reverse topple as the train moves forward. 

Errol Morris uses camera language to allow the audience in on specific thoughts about power and truth.  The use of high, low and Dutch angles is appropriate and effective in his edits. 

McNamara is out and no one knows what might have been, the fallen dominoes return upright.  This exposition is an interesting way to beg the question that the world will never receive an answer to. 

Errol Morris ends his film with McNamara’s refusal to respond to a question, which he responds to by saying, “You’re dammed if you do and dammed if you don’t, I’d prefer to be dammed if I don’t.”

In the end, we are treated to the marvelous insight of TS Elliott. “We shall start exploring and once we return, we shall know the place from which we started – for the first time.”  I loved this film!

J’ai Ete Au Bal by Les Blank – 1989

In J’ai Ete Au Bal, a documentary about Ziadaco music and the mix of Creole, Acadian and Cajun cultures, the filmmaker, Les Blank uses an ethnographic voice from within the culture using multiple individuals to tell the story. 

The music is first presented as simple.  The people tell the story of their ancestry and of the immersions of the three cultures, in their own voice, which makes the film folksy.  This approach offers the audience a sense of being invited into the homes and backyards of these individuals. 

From yard to yard and house-to-house, we are given a taste of this part of America today (1989) and the use of unique stills gives us a sense of time past. 

We discover that the music is complex and rich with history.  There is a love surrounding the music.  We discover that the social aspects of dance and music brought these cultures together. Music is a language that is a part of these people. 

The cultures have differences and while outsiders seem to lump everyone in French Southwest Louisiana as Cajun, their history, dialect and cultures are vastly different, yet are bound together by music and dance.

Old reels begin the opening credits showcasing body builders with average physiques flexing unimpressive muscles. We segue from vaudevillian sideshow to crowds cheering during a “1975” competition for the modern bodybuilder. Arnold Schwarzenegger & Italian, Franco Columbu, train to enhance their posing skills and improve fluid mobility through ballet.

The story telling offers bodybuilding as an art, not to be confused with the mockery of the images shown in the opening credits. These are athletes in the purest form.

Graphics & sound design are more sophisticated.  The exposition has been beautifully laid before us.   Weight lifters sweat and grunt salutations welcoming Schwarzenegger as he enters Gold’s Gym located in Venice, CA.  This is “the” facility for those serious about training for the amateur title of Mr. Universe and the professional title, Mr. Olympia.  Arnold is a celebrity here.  He’s won both of these titles, multiple times. The training is intense and focused.  Schwarzenegger is serious and ruthless.  We enter his life, his photo shoots, his training methods, etc. Various bodybuilders are introduced.  We’re invited into their homes and everyday lives as we watch their training and progress.  We see how they push forward to compete for the titles they desire.  We see them jockey for position.  We watch them maneuver to psyche each other out and we see Arnold, smug and self–satisfied, a master at the game.

The train is established – who will win the competition?  The characters are emotionally compelling, the opponents are worthy and the interest in knowing what happens next continues to intensify.

Introduced are Americans Mike Katz and Ken Waller.  They are competing for the title of Mr. Universe in South Africa.  In their moments of truth, Katz’s story offers a creepy subtext of the boy who was bullied.  He found that bodybuilding gave him recognition and self-esteem.  Waller’s behavior is juvenile and mean spirited, similar to that which drove Katz to the gym in the first place.  Waller takes 1^st place with 2^nd and 3^rd awarded to other contenders.  Katz takes the loss hard, but remains a good sport and congratulates Waller on his win.  Katz was 4^th place contender.

The point of attack occurs with the competition for Mr. Olympia.  Arnold has been jerking around and is overconfident.  The guys razz him about a 6’5,” 270LB contender named Lou Ferrigno, training on the east coast.  Lou isn’t part of the California body builder mix, and for now, is away from the California “head games.” Lou’s father is his personal trainer; the family supports his goals and they are very serious about beating Schwarzenegger. Italian, Franco Columbu is also competing for the Mr. Olympia title. 

Arnold realizes he needs focused hard training to retain the arrogant boasting rights he’s earned.  He trains with the guys at Gold’s Gym and with Franco Columbu. He talks openly about psyching out Lou and if it comes to it, undermining his friend Franco as well. 

At the competition, Arnold invites Team Ferrigno to breakfast and behaves in a fashion of jovial seriousness mixed with psyche out messages. The Ferrigno family behaved with grace.  Arnold seems worried.  The competition begins with Schwarzenegger, Ferrigno and an entry from France, Serge Nubret.

The winners of the 1975 Mr. Olympia competition in Pretoria, South Africa are none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger in the over 200LB category and Franco Columbu in the under 200LB category – the same two featured during ballet lessons at the beginning of the film – very clever Mr. Fiore & Butler!  Arnold is still #1 and Lou who placed 3^rd is empowered to train harder.  Arnold announces his retirement. 

The film ends with team Ferrigno and Schwarzenegger on a bus talking about Arnold coming to their house for dinner and possibly dating Lou’s sister.

The story is voiced through the bodybuilders with very minimally used narration.  It is a narrative story structure with a beginning, middle and end. While I wouldn’t classify myself as the target audience, this film captured my attention and really worked on multiple levels.



In the films Actualities (Lumiere Bros. 1890 – 1910), Nanook of the North (Flaherty 1922), Regen / Rain (Ivens 1929), Drifters (Grierson 1929), Triumph of the Will, (Riefenstahl 1934), Olypiad II – Diving Sequence (Riefenstahl 1936), The River (Lorentz 1936) and Night Mail (Watt & Wright 1936) the filmmakers want us to believe the way they do and portray a one sided story. 

During the early years of film, people were naïve. By 1910, coast-to-coast calling was possible in America and most towns had a local telephone franchise, but this was hardly the information age.  Verifying facts through world news and early media was either painstakingly slow, unavailable or beyond most persons resources.  Today’s audience has more resources at its fingertips than has ever existed.  To be pandered to or told what a certain reality is will not go unchecked.  If a filmmaker creates a purely subjective film, the audience will not be easily fooled and speaking points will be checked.

In Flaherty’s, Nanook of the North (1922), the score and repeatedly used supers give a narrative spine or train element in an effort to drive the story forward.  Exposition unfolds at the beginning with a super stating that Nanook, the subject of this film has since died of starvation.  While Nanook did die, his death was caused by tuberculosis.  Flaherty manipulated the text of these supers because he needed us to care about Nanook and wanted to draw the audience in. It is important to motivate viewers to want to know what happens next, but this type of manipulation is no longer possible with the advent of the World Wide Web.

By 1929, filmmakers use the score to give credence to the theme of the film.  In Ivens film, Regen / Rain (1929) the montage imparts a familiar scene of daily life.  Life without rain is mundane and lacks a certain momentum.  Once the rain begins, the music perceptibly changes and the imagery changes to rivulets of water.  The imagery, which focused only on objects, changes to include people and their reaction to the rain.  The music makes the rain feel friendly, familiar and welcome.  It has a personality.  Its theme suggests the world is more interesting with rain and the people serve it by being out in it.  It is subtle, soft and artistic.

In  1929, Grierson’s, Drifters, used supers combined with cross fades, long dissolves and optical printing to help the arc of the story.  The characters transform from countryside villagers to salty sea dogs and men scratching out a living, making their catch and hauling it to market, feeding their families and the world.

By 1934, Riefenstahl’s, Olypiad II (Diving Sequence), took the world on a turbulent ride from observer to participant.  She set up her shots beginning with an observer’s perspective.  Once lulled in, she took shots from high and low angles, in front and behind, full body to close up and edited shots in reverse.  She provided a provocative dance allowing us the feeling of participation. She invented the optics for these shots and was the first to give the world under water imagery.  While narrative film is character driven, this film breaks the confines of time and space allowing the viewer to become the character.  It’s thrilling and physically dizzying to watch.

By 1936, crude soundtracks were available to filmmakers. Riefenstahl’s, Triumph of the Will (1936), takes her character, Adolph Hitler into a movie star stature with dramatic storytelling, making him heroic and strong before the German people.  Dialogue is cut efficiently for power and exploitation.  Various camera angles are used to diminish others and exalt Hitler.  He is always portrayed as taller than those around him, never small.  When Hitler is eye level, he connects with smiling well-fed, well-groomed people and pretty young girls admire him.   His protagonist is poverty, starvation and a diminished Germany that he alone is capable of saving.  The people of the time were completely held by the film.  The lengthy parade sequences of enormous crowds pledging their loyalty to Hitler equaled the satisfactory ending German audiences craved.  If they support Hitler they will achieve a unified Germany.  The sequences played out so long, brain washing the population; it was easy to believe that every loyal German supported Hitler.

Lorentz, The River (1936), used poetic narrative to describe the destruction happening in the lands touched by the Mississippi.  The clean and beautiful Mississippi is a highway and the beauty begins to fade once man touches it.  “Men and mules, mules and mud.” 

Finally, Watt & Wright’s, Night Mail (1936), has dialogue on an optical sound track.  The story of a letter as it makes its progress on the postal special, a night train, becomes a frenzy of activity.  The postal workers, their pride and the risks they take to deliver our mail and manage our dreams.  “We all dream of receiving mail, and who can bear to be forgotten?”  The film is poetry.  It is a clock ticking in constant repetition.  It is how we expect the mail to continue – ever on.  The world is good when the postal special runs.

The exposition of these films cover who, what, when, where and why differently, not always waiting to give the audience what we need when we needed it. 

Symbolism, iconography, montage, supers, camera language and sound have always reached the audience, but the ability to fact check combined with a well-traveled population and higher levels of education have made it more difficult to hold and entice that audience.  It is for these reasons that objectivity is necessary as we explore increasingly complex content in documentary filmmaking. 

Colorado Film School – Intro to Film 16MM Production One announces auditions for: “RETIREMENT” - A Short Independent Film (non-pay – no fee)

Where:

The Colorado Film School                                                                                                                      9075 E. Lowry Blvd., Bldg. 965                                                                                                           Denver, CO 80230

Visit:  www.coloradofilmschool.net for directions

When:

Friday, February 5, 2010 (9:00AM – 5:00PM)                                                                                    Callbacks if necessary will be Saturday, February 6, 2010.

By Appointment: Please email renee@zuzingo.com to request an audition time

Cast:

“Edna Piedmont” – Female (55 – 75 years old) She's sweet pleasant sociable little small town lady, who is bright, has her wit  and has a bit of spunk.  She is enjoying her age, and retirement, not losing her spirit She chooses to live in the moment .  Expert with a straw and spit wads– LEAD.

“Slick” – Male (20 – 29 years old) is a boisterous selfish inconsiderate ignorant loudmouth bully punk- like Biff from Back to the Future – LEAD.

“Harold Piedmont” – Male (55 – 75 years old) is a wise old man, but still has a boyish streak in him, but, he loves his wife and they are definitely a team as they both enjoy getting away with things in their retirement that they've waited a long time for – SUPPORTING.

“Police Officer” – Male (25 – 45 years old) is Peaberry's town deputy sheriff, in charge of all those parking violators! On serious ticket patrol, cool, collected keeping the peace, but doesn't take any business from anyone when he's on his beat.  Not quite Gomer, but not really Sheriff Andy of Mayberry either – SUPPORTING.  

“Sam Walker” – Male (30 – 50 years old) – is the friendly hard working town banker or businessman, pleasant and handsome – SUPPORTING

Extras Needed:

Townspeople of Peaberry. 

Bit parts include:

Barista – Male or Female 18 – 29 years old                                                                                            Eye Rolling Girl – 18 – 25 years old                                                                                                        Group of 18-25 year old females

Audition Details:

Bring:

-       Resume

-       Headshot (If none available, please include any photo)

-       List of Conflict dates

Prepare:

-       To do cold readings from the script

-       To perform bits from the script and embody the character you are auditioning for

-       Please arrive 15 minutes earlier than your scheduled audition time for paperwork and to become familiar with the script

-       If auditioning for Edna – practice your quick draw spit wad abilities!  Edna is able to whip her straw out of her purse or coat pocket in the blink of an eye.

Storyline:

A slice of Americana still exists in the quaint town of Peaberry.  “Harold and Edna,” a retired couple and long time town residents are in their favorite coffee shop when a boisterous hooligan “Slick” slams through the door.  Slick proceeds to disrespect and pester the patrons even making fun of Harold’s bum leg mimicking his need to walk with a cane.  Edna stops Harold from a head on confrontation with Slick but gets into a confrontation with the town sheriff ticketing the car parked in the handicapped space.  The confused cop is struck with a spit wad to the glasses and proceeds to find numerous reasons to slap tickets on the car.  In the end, Slick gets his due.

Rehearsals:

Friday, February 12^th                                                                                                                       Saturday February 13^th

Shooting Schedule:

Friday, February 19, 2010 (6AM – 8PM)                                                                                            Saturday, February 20, 2010 (6AM – 8PM)                                                                                         Sunday, February 21, 2010 (6AM – 8PM)

Shoot Location:

Colorado – actual location disclosed at auditions           

Executive Team:

Executive Producer:  Tony Pfau                                                                                                   Producer:  Mara Baker                                                                                                                Director:  Renee Berberian                                                                                                             Director of Photography:  Jeffrey Anderson



“George Lucas in Love” was a fun farcical look at the creation of the Star Wars trilogy.  The ridiculous and bizarre events having a correlation to the films were a joy to see.  The short was an excellent parody. 

“Film Club” was a parody of “Fight Club” and made a horrible mess of the movie.  I really disliked this short.  I also felt the background music was at best, annoying.   The other irony was the minimum wage clerk working at Blockbuster, who could somehow afford super expensive camera equipment.  This production fell short with me.

“Evil Hill” was another parody of the Dr. Evil character in the Austin Powers / Mike Myers movie series.  It had excellent production values, but was very long and the screaming children were very staged and put on.  The film could have been edited into a shorter version and would perhaps have worked, but it was sad to see so much effort fail.

“Validation” was a wonderful short with a unique premise and an excellent plot and pay off.  I truly enjoyed this film about a parking validation attendant and his ability to make everyone feel good, enriching their lives.  I hope I can make a film as original and inspired one day.

I presented “Wasp” today based on our having viewed it in Writing The Short Script.  The film was an excellent short.  The talent brought a genuine desperateness to the screen and the situations were jarring and uncomfortable.  I found “Wasp” difficult to watch the first time and was able to be more analytical the more I viewed the content.  I spoke about the stasis and intrusion points in the film and how the filmmakers kept the forward momentum throughout.  Thanks for introducing this film to our class to me personally.  We spoke of the economic need that Zoe had, the responsibilities of caring for the children, the poor choices and decisions Zoe seemed prone to make, David as a not so shining knight in armor and the lack of any individual who could recreate stability for Zoe.  We discussed the frantic, unnerving, tense and uncomfortable pace and portrayal of the lower working class surroundings Zoe lives in.  The fact that Zoe wants to be taken out of her reality and the great fear we all had for the welfare of the children.  The filmmakers had an uncanny ability to make ordinary life feel more frightening with their gritty film style and camera work.  The camera language was stomach churning and the visual surroundings made you fear for the children’s safety.

I showed some friends “Spider” today.  I was interested in seeing their reaction to the accident and the payoff of the needle in the eye.  There wasn’t a still body among them.  No one seemed to think twice about the slate at the beginning of the film proclaiming “It’s all fun and games until someone loses an eye.” 

The beginning with the couple fighting is rather long on second view and the stop at the gas station finally moves the story along. 

I think the station being run by two foreign men made for interesting cinema and the purchase of the variety of convenience store items was attention grabbing.  Naturally, the purchase of the spider was eye catching as it relates to the title. Naturally, the guy that takes things to far can’t resist throwing in a little prank with his forgiveness gifts. 

The first time I saw the film, I failed to notice where the spider was hidden, so the second viewing was more fascinating once I saw where the spider had been placed.  Although the fighting continues after leaving the service station, she finally forgives him. 

I loved the flowers on the dash and that as irritated the girlfriend was, she easily forgave him with the bribe of chocolate morsels.  Who wouldn’t forgive anyone anything for bits of chocolate???  Well…perhaps not anything, but some things J

The spider dropping from the visor seems to magically happen and is woven seamlessly into the film.  It never felt staged and the fright seemed genuine.  She is terrified and almost crashes.  She stops the car. 

When she pulls over and get’s out of the car, we immediately feel for her safety.  Although the boyfriend says the spider is a toy, he proceeds to again take things to far and tosses it at her causing her to jump back.  She is immediately struck by a car and pays an ultimate price by his taking things to far. 

Everyone watching JUMPED when this happened and let out audible sighs and gasps.  I knew it was coming and probably also jumped in spite of myself. 

At this point in the film, you are so horror struck by the events that have taken place that it’s easy to miss the reemergence of the spider.  I missed it the first go round and only saw the needle in the eye.  This time I saw all of the events and the paramedic reaction to the spider and the needle puncture were brilliant.  I need to watch those edits in slow motion to see how they were able to produce such an effective action scene. 

In the end, she may die and he maybe loses an eye.  I know some said he got his, but did he really….

“Truman” was a terrible short with what could have been a wonderful premise for a story.  The production values were excellent and someone spent real money to make this film.  Sadly the story wasn’t really presented well on the page and that definitely showed up on the screen.  It really is telling when you start with a poor script. 

We actually did a table read of the script and discussed problems we saw with it.  Those problems were magnified on screen and this was an interesting revelation.  Somehow I thought things could be fixed once the screenplay reached production…not so.  This was valuable for me to see.

I know every movie exists in 3 forms –

1. What is on the page
2. How it is shot
3. What is edited together

Though this seems to be the understood convention, component A carries a lot of weight.

The talent felt put on and staged and the suspension of disbelief never occurred. I never felt that Truman was pro active and therefore the ability to move the film forward was sorely lacking.

The visualization combined with the energy on screen was scattered and never gave a general sensibility to the piece.

The classmate’s sudden acceptance of Truman was to contrive and the kids were all much nicer than kids tend to be when paying for the failures of the underdog.  No way would the crowd of children cheer Truman on after they paid the price of his failure with laps around the track.  I believe they would reenter the gym and become upset that Truman could have climbed the rope and chose not to.  They would be pissed.  They would not suddenly rally for this kid.

When the coach questions Truman about his future, it was intensity without provocation…”It’s only a rope today, what’s it going to be in your future?”  Really… 

A noose was used for visual intimidation.  This was one of the only assets to the film that felt appropriate.  The civil war fantasy showcasing fear of the coach was very loose.  The fire fighter rescue fantasy was somewhat apt in showing Truman’s fear of heights.  The Robin Hood fantasy again showing fear of the coach was half-baked.

The film was trying to do to much in the span of a short and the little time it had to present Truman’s dilemma and the reaction to this dilemma became muddied with all the side story.  Now I understand how to many directions can obscure the road.

The end scene where Truman vomits was nothing more than a cheap attempt to have the audience laugh. 

The coach becomes a buffoon at the end and throwing balls around in a room that has recently been vomited in.  This is completely unrealistic.  Who the heck would hang around a vomit filled room and potentially touch a ball that has rolled through it. 

“Life Lessons” part of the New York Stories trilogy released in 1989 is a Martin Scorsese long short that I thoroughly enjoyed.  It was 44 minutes long and I’m not sure why this wasn’t slightly extended to create a feature.  The talent was marvelous.  The beginning scene brought you immediately into the action with beautiful inserts of a canvas, paint, brushes and expensive booze.  We then see the bad tempered artist “Lionel” as he argues with his agent. 

The twists and turns of the plot unfold when we learn that Lionel isn’t just picking up his assistant at the airport, this person is his love interest and she wants to leave him. 

She has had an affair while on holiday but is no longer involved with that individual. 

She is no longer interested in continuing the relationship with Lionel even though he doesn’t care that she has cheated on him. 

Lionel somehow convinces her to stay on as his assistant without any expectation for intimate involvement.  She agrees to stay on in her studio room with salary.

Paulette (the assistant) has an unconventional room in the artist’s studio.  It has no privacy whatsoever and there is a giant hole in the wall that serves as a window.  Lionel can bust into the room any time he wants and he is distracted by her presence.  Lionel bugs her, he enters her bedroom repeatedly, and he professes his love for her to her.  They have sex and he says he loves her.  She says that she will love him back.  He has his inspiration and can work.

The next day, Lionel looks at Paulette’s work and takes her down several notches.  He is not supportive and deflates her.  She calls her mother and says she wants to go back to school and asks to come home.  Paulette has again decided to leave.  She storms out to let Lionel know of this decision and watches him passionately painting with fierce strokes.  She sees the small details at the heart of his creativity.  She craves some of that brilliance within her own work.  She stays, though it is clear she no longer wants a romantic relationship with Lionel from this point.

Paulette and Lionel go to the opening of his art exhibit together.  He is very social and schmooze’s with everyone while completely ignoring Paulette.  While he’s doing the social thing, he’s constantly aware of where Paulette is and whom she is talking to. 

Paulette is flirting with a man who takes her across the room.  Lionel notices and becomes very jealous and possessive.  He locks Paulette in a closet after telling her that people are laughing at her for being taken in by the flirtatious man.  Paulette is not concerned about her social reputation and is only relieved that they are not laughing about her artistic capabilities.

It’s clear by the conversations within the socialites at the opening that no one is aware of the prior union between Lionel and Paulette.  While they are in public together, they keep the persona of artist and assistant, diminishing Paulette more.

Lionel and Paulette seem at an impasse.  She is finally released from the closet and hooks up with the man she had been flirting with earlier.  In spite, she takes him home – to the artist’s studio where they sleep together in the studio room.  Lionel gazes up to the hole in the wall window and reverently continues to paint his masterpiece while Paulette and the boy toy have sex.

Lionel is a crazy artist who wants Paulette.  Paulette is still hung up on the guy (a performance artist) who she cheated on Lionel with in the beginning of the film. 

Lionel suggests they go see him perform to prove she’s over him.  Lionel suggests she talk to him.  Paulette does and then is ignored by him at the event he showcases. 

Paulette is deflated and is extremely angry with Lionel for making the suggestion she talk to him in the first place. 

Lionel again professes his love and says he’ll do anything for her.  She pulls away and while walking home she asks him to prove he loves her by kissing a random man on the mouth.  He agrees and she selects a police officer.

Lionel actually goes up to the police car and attempts the kiss at great risk to his person.  He can’t go through with it and when he turns to look back at Paulette, sees she’s left the area.  He feels degraded.

Lionel returns to the studio where Paulette lounges dressed in underwear and a robe.  He’s pissed.  He says he is the invisible man.  He could do whatever he wants to her and no one would know.  Lionel feels dangerous at this moment and we, the audience wonder for Paulette’s safety.

Later Paulette is in a diner with her girlfriend and Lionel.  The performance artist shows up, a fight breaks out and Lionel stands up for Paulette’s dignity from the previous night. Paulette leaves, mortified and embarrassed.

Paulette returns to the studio and decides to leave.  She recognizes that she is needed to help Lionel as his muse and inspiration for him to work.  Paulette has called her brother and packed her bags.  She departs with her brother after final words with Lionel.

This new fight inspires yet more creativity for Lionel and he paints again, finally finishing his masterpiece.  He can now have his show.

At Lionel’s show, he meets an attractive woman who is an aspiring artist.  He offers her Paulette’s job.  We see that this new assistant is the bridge for the next masterpiece and the creativity needed to create it.

“Kosher” was part of a culmination of “Crafting Short Screenplays That Connect.”

It was a very cute premise that came out of Florida State’s Film School.  A little boy asks a girl to marry him.  She accepts.  They find another kid to marry them – they are 6 years old.  The other kids say it isn’t possible for them to get married because the girl (Rachel) is Jewish and the boy (Charles) is not. 

Charles decides to become Jewish for Rachel.  He refuses to eat the ham his mother makes for diner, which causes his mother some confusion.  The scene here got a little long and there could have been more conflict than the desire to forgo ham, but it was cute.

Anyway – the next day the kids are somehow able to get married and once the deed is done – Charles exclaims Hoy’Vay when he realizes he will have to kiss Rachel.

The film school at Florida State also put out another short on this DVD called “My Josephine.” 

This was done post 9-11 and the message was somehow tied to the post 9-11 American Arab tension.  I kept waiting for something to happen.  There was a great deal of tension and a lot of care in washing American flags.  The flag washing is done for free. 

There certainly was symbolism and I get that the female lead (Adella) was the male lead’s Josephine, but the story of Napoleon and Josephine were not the story of this short.  I found it confusing and thought the filmmakers were also confused.

“Mt. Head,” a Japanese animated short from 2005 was really weird.  It had a 3 dimensional quality to it and the subtitles did not seem to translate exactly???  The other thing that was interesting was the portrayal of the lead.  He is clearly NOT Asian and has round western eyes – hmmm.

He never throws anything away and is called the stingy man.  Why not frugal or environmentally friendly?  He finds glorious cherry’s fallen from a public cherry tree.  The man takes them home and enjoys eating them.  He is portrayed as being greedy and dirty.  Why is frugality dirty to the Japanese?  Obviously this is cultural, but the fact that he is portrayed as a westerner shows hostility that I was surprised by.

The man is one who cannot connect with others.  He never throws anything away.

When he swallows a cherry seed, a tree begins to sprout from his head.  The sprout grows into a tree on the top of his head.  A mini society of people picnic under the tree on his head.  They all abuse the resources and pollute the world of his head.  They publicly urinate at the base of the tree and throw trash everywhere. 

In the mini society, the view was sexist.  The men were all grouped as businessmen and the girls were all grouped as office girls. 

He finally realizes he must throw away the tree and pulls it from his head.  A giant hole is left atop his head that turns into a pond.  The party on his head continues and only gets worse. 

As he looks down at the pond to see the reflection, he sees reflection after reflection after reflection of himself and the pond in repetition. 

In the end, the message was confusing.  The man ultimately joins the collective by throwing himself into the pond, which becomes an abstract flag of Japan…

“Das Rod,” a 9-minute animated German short was lovely to watch. 

The film shows an ever-changing landscape of the world from the beginning of time from the prospective of two boulders on a hilltop. 

The future rushed past until the planet became great, then crumbled then regenerated. 

The rocks make comments on seeing things change.  They start out complaining about the moss growing on them and in the end are once again growing moss and proclaim that “That was lucky.” 

The rock conversation takes place really slowly while the progress moves at an extraordinary pace. 

This was a cool animated short.

The 2003 winner for Best Animated film was “The Chubb Chubbs.”  I loved this short!

There were various sci fi creatures in a bar that were spoofs from Alien, Star Wars, Lost in Space and the Wizard of Os. 

The cute little alien only wants to sing, but is doing the lowly job of mopping floors. While he dreams of singing, he pretends the mop is a mic pole and he begins dancing around and trips over cords plugged in for the stage entertainment.

The cute little alien gets kicked out for killing the electrical to the mic.  Everyone in the bar glares at him for his clumsiness.  They look at him like he’s a goof off.

Once outside, he learns that a dangerous enemy army called the Chubb Chubbs is on their way. 

Concerned for the other creatures in the bar, he makes his way back in to warn them.  He slams open the bar door and crushes the main stage entertainment. 

He is again booted from the bar.

His concern for these creatures is not rested.  He again tries to go in to warn them, but is barred from entering.  He makes his way to the roof and the ceiling caves in.  He lands on the main stage entertainment. 

We see his body soaring through the air as it lands outside in a puff of dirt with audible thud. 

He only wants acceptance and love, but has no one.  In the dirt, on the ground in front of the bar, 3 adorable little childlike creatures gather near him.  They bond just before a sentry comes and warns him that the Chubb Chubbs are coming.  The sentry looks down, screams and tears off.

The alien now concerned for the little creatures he’s bonded with gathers them up and makes for the bar.  Immediately behind him is the army of Chubb Chubbs.  Ironically they turn out to be many more of the sweet looking little creatures our cute alien has bonded with.

Suddenly, he has the acceptance he was looking for and because the entire planet is fearful of the Chubb Chubbs, our cute alien becomes the main stage entertainment while everyone looks fearfully on. 

The short was amazingly fun to watch and referenced many other films.  The fantasy sequence in the beginning alluded to our alien’s desires as he sang with the mop. 

He also gains our empathy when he’s booted out repeatedly and still cares for the creatures that want nothing to do with him. 

I loved it.



Here we go!  I got up early, had an opportunity to hug Marlo goodbye and start the packing process.

The pressure to be out the door at a certain time marginally exists when you fly yourselves.  In good weather, it can stray a bit one-way or the other.  If an incoming weather front must be avoided, we hustle to either beat the weather or bag the flight.

Today looked like great flying weather.  We left the house at 10:15AM for Rocky Mountain Metro Airport and arrived at our hangar.

We fueled up, pre-flighted and took off. Paul flew us in our Cirrus SR22 http://cirrusaircraft.com/sr22/ aircraft.

Unfortunately, the pickings over the Rocky Mountains were slim.  There were numerous clouds and turbulence that caused an extra long journey.

Typically, after we cross the Rocky Mountains, Paul keeps the plane at around 10 to 12 thousand feet.  From that altitude we catch great scenery and it’s usually very pleasant flying. 

Because of the crazy turbulence, our path took us to an altitude of 16,500 feet and we had to use oxygen for a long portion of our journey, I hate using oxygen.  Meanwhile, the scenery was still great.

We finally landed 3½ hours later, at Henderson Airport.  While our journey was long, the overall flight experience was lovely. 

Sometimes air traffic control vector the small aircraft over McCarran International Airport.  I hate going right over the main airport, it feels really dangerous with all of the big planes coming and going.  Surprisingly, this type of vectoring is typical. 

Today, air traffic control gave us a good vector around McCarran.  We landed with the strip directly in front of us.  Nice.

Henderson airport has really gotten huge!  The FBO (Fixed Base Operations) where private aircraft land and pilots flight plan, arrange for parking, pay for fuel etc. was unrecognizable.  They’ve even built a new runway since our last landing here.

My Dad and Step Mother Sue were waiting at the FBO to pick us up and were given a ride out to the tarmac.  We met, hugged and were glad to see one another.  The driver helped us gather our luggage and once Paul finished replacing the 49 gallons of fuel we burned, we went to their terminal building.

The fuel prices were amazingly good - $4.69 a gallon!  Awesome – I think our fuel price at Rocky Mountain Metro was $5.99.  This makes our one-way flight costs $293.51.  This of course doesn’t factor in annual maintenance, hangar fees, professional fees, insurance or the parking fees at Henderson, but we would have spent more money and burned more fuel driving. 

The next leg will be cheaper since the fuel costs were less.  Paul will be flying to Burbank while I go commercial back to Denver.  Fuel in Burbank is probably $6.99 a gallon.  It’s amazing how much fuel can fluctuate from airport to airport.

They got us to our hotel (Planet Hollywood) and stuck with us to see our mutual friends Larry and Simine Tepper who also flew in from Boulder for the U2 weekend in Vegas.

We all had an early dinner at Yolos Mexican Restaurant in the Planet Hollywood complex.  The food was absolutely marvelous! I was surprised at how good the food actually was. I had crab cakes with mango chutney salsa and then street tacos with grilled mahi mahi in sweet corn tortillas.  A delicious mango chipotle sauce enhanced this dish.  I was super starving, so this was a delightful and truly appreciated experience!

Dad and Sue were so gracious.  They loaned us their car.  Actually, they loaned us the nicer of their two cars so we could get around comfortably without having to use a taxi.  How generous of them!

We said goodbye to Dad and Sue and hustled to get ourselves together for the concert.  After a brief 20 minutes of room time, we were in the car on our way to the Sam Boyd Stadium where 70,000 people were headed for the sold out concert.

The 9-mile journey from Planet Hollywood took an hour and 20 minutes, but with our good friends for company, we managed to keep our sanity. 

After a successful parking job, we made our way into the stadium. 

When we arrived at our section, I could hardly believe my eyes.  First of all, our seats were excellent – but I knew that before going in. 

The big surprise was the stage!  This stage, which I had viewed as a graphic line drawing during seat selection, was far more elaborate than I had imagined.

It was an amazing, futuristic structure resembling a space ship with the anatomic features of a King Crab. 

The circular stage was suspended between 4 enormous spiny crab legs.  The legs and head of the crab structure had a stretched canvas skinning the frame and were knobby giving the illusion of a hard outer shell.

The canvas was similar to that of DIA’s architectural roofing, which spans the main terminal building and emulates the mountains. 

The entire frame of the crab changed colors depending on the lighting focused on the canvas skin.

The structure was massive and the legs supported numerous platforms at various levels.  The platforms lived inside the incline of each leg providing spaces for lighting, camera rigging, speakers, etc.

The exterior sides housed the strobe lights, disco lights; colorizing lights, smoke machines, etc.   

If I were asked to guess the girth of these legs, I’d say they were at least 30 feet in diameter at the base and grew from there. 

NPR did an entire segment on the custom built staging.  The structure takes a solid two days to dismantle and a solid two days to build. 

The tour hasn’t been in any city for more than one night.  They were in Arizona last night and are off to Pasadena tomorrow, soooooo I have to wonder how many of these amazing stages they undoubtedly own?  This also means they have numerous crew managing several sites simultaneously.

AMAZING!

The head of the crab sported a tower.  The tower is a needle and was adorned with an enormous disco ball.

The sides of the tower are vented and produce smoke. 

The ball, when lit with the smoke in the background, turned the entire outdoor stadium into a disco palladium.

Hanging from the thick upper portion, below the head, was an accordion like jumbo-tron in circle vision. Think of it like the tube from the mother ship, extending down from central command. 

The jumbo-tron could move as a single unit up and down or expand in a mesh shaped cone toward the stage. 

Remember – this visual feast wasn’t even the main attraction.

The Black Eyed Peas opened at 7:30PM – only 30 minutes delayed and put on an energy filled riotous show.

The group has been together since 1995 and has their act together in a big way.  They were humble, thanking the audience for showing up early to see them.

They also joked that when they got this gig “it was like – hey, we’re opening for U2!” 

Then when they started playing the gig, “it was like, hey – everyone’s coming to SEE -U2-?!?”

They admitted that they had never played a stage like this anywhere in their careers and that it was awesome to be doing this tour.  Fergie was of course marvelous.

The group was dressed in black.  Sequins and lights adorned much of their stage wear and had the tailoring styles of a futuristic Yellow Submarine era Beatles meets Devo. 

Large sunglasses and oddly coiffed hair finished the look.  They totally rocked the crowd!  I need to purchase more of their music. 

After an hour + performance, The Black Eyed Peas left the stage and we had an opportunity to prepare ourselves for the main event.

The last time we were in Vegas was August of 08 and flew commercial air.  We purchased commercial tickets then because we couldn’t risk bad weather and needed to be in Vegas for the wedding of my ½ sister Katie.