Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

For the past few months I’ve been seeing this title for a movie coming out and I finally got to watch the trailer, it looks awesome. If the chemistry is there this movie might be extremely moving. It is about a boy who looses his farther to the tragedy on September 11, 2001. But after finds a key that he must find the lock it goes to. Searching for anything that could bring him closer to his dad.  I think this film will be something like Little Miss Sunshine or Sunshine Cleaning. A movie that when you leave the theater you leave happy for what you have and who you are.This movie also seems like a comeback movie for two falling stars.

Martin Scorsese and 3D

I read an article about Martin Scorsese and how he has dipped his fingers in about every different kind of genre and then I found out he was switching to 3D for his movies. He said because of his experiences with his recent feature Hugo, he has 3D in mind with his next movie. 3D is a touchy subject to some and in my opinion more like a fad. It comes and goes but never really catches on. Maybe I’m wrong, but Scorsese wants to use the 3D as a tool that adds depth as a story telling technique.  I like Scorsese because his films are about the emotion, acting, and the story. I’m just not sure if 3D fits in.  However, back to the article about Martin Scorsese and his ability to fit into all genres of film. Below is an info graphic pointing out different films in certain genres that Martin Scorsese goes through. From Who’s That Knocking at My Door to Boardwalk Empire, Scorsese has done it all. He is also the founder and chairman of The Film Foundation, which has restored more that 550 old movies.

Ed Ulbrich: How Benjamin Button got his face | Video on TED.com

Very Cool. 

Elizabeth Gilbert on nurturing creativity

“I'm going to keep writing anyway because that's my job. And I would please like the record to reflect today that I showed up for my part of the job.”

After watching this speaker I felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulder and that I could actually be ok with the path that I am taking and the choices I am making. I have always had the worst luck with getting that idea and it never came at the right time and one reason could have been focus but I think the opportunities and choices that I am making now are inspiring me and creating that creativity. Attitude is what I feel like its about. A huge part of going through life is your attitude is going to decide a lot. Being able to just brush off the loss or failure and get back up to start working on the next product is the best feeling ever. But it doesn’t happen all the time and its like Elizabeth was saying, it just come to you and it unexplainable. I think that this is touching on a subject that I am really concerned about. When are we going to adopt better teaching methods? I’ve written about that more in the read more section but needless to say I’ve been inspired so much by this ted talk that every Thursday I’ll post different Ted talk that I think is worth watching. Tune in next Thursday for Thursday is Ted Day!

My First Inforgraphic

I just finished an Inforgraphic for class and wanted to post it so you guys could see. Its about how the majority of people going to the movies is way smaller than what it should be. Only 33 million people go to the movies twice or more and its upsetting. the movies are structured to fit their needs, not the other 144 million people who only go maybe once a month. Hope you enjoy!

The MoMa and the movies

Well for my birthday I'll be asking for a plane ticket to NYC to go to the MoMa, or Museum of Modern Art. Twitch Film.com recently posted that in November the MoMa will screen films that focus on the early Hollywood pictures of Spencer Trey.

Films include Face in the Sky, Man’s Castle, Quick Millions, Bottoms Up and “Now I’ll Tell” by Mrs. Arnold Rothstein. They are also celebrating the distributor Fortissimo Films and their legacy of bringing Asian films to an international audience. Full Info and Tickets Here. The last thing is their annual Best Film Not Playing At A Theater Near You. From the 18^th to the 21^st

USC to restore and release John Carpenter’s first student film

Last month at USC a man by the name of Dine Everett stumbled upon a very interesting roll of film. It was John Carpenter’s first student film called Captain Voyeur.  This 8-minute short follows a man at a boring computer job who eyes a woman at work and followers her home. He dons a mask and attempts to kill her but is shot by his co-worker. 

Visually Stunning vs Story driven

I’ve noticed after reading the MPAA’s theatrical market statistics for 2010 that there has been a 5% decline in the number of tickets sold per year. The lowest it has been since 2008.  Its crazy, even though there are so many factors that contribute to the loss in sales, one that is starting to arise is I think people are getting tired of the big budget movies that have high CG and baldy written features. Everything is becoming so unoriginal and the studios are using way too many special effects and aren’t providing enough content (story, acting, direction).

The Raven

     Seeing how comic books are all the rage right now, why not go to short story and novels. In the latest news from Total Films John Cusack will be staring in The Raven, a movie made from Edgar Allen Poe's Short stories. John will be a detective who is uncovering murders done like in Edgar Allen Poe's book. The Director James McTeigue says he wants to stay away from the idea of it being like the movie saw and have his movie more compared to the Se7en. Comparing the two right off the bat there are similarities, unlike saw where the main character is testing his victims and in Se7en where he is killing people based off the seven deadly sins, just like The Raven, where two detectives are searching for a killer killing based on the works of Edgar Allen Poe. If you are unfamiliar with the works of Mr. Poe i suggest you check out this link. 

George Clooney and Set Etiquette

Everyone the wheels are spinning and a script is being written. I hope I have a rough by the end of the week. But I read an article about a new movie coming out called the ides of March. Matt Chapman from Total Film talks about this movie and one of the lead actresses talks about what she feels make a good environment on set. She talks about how George Clooney is a great director because he makes everything fun on set and its relaxed. But at the end of the article

Busy Weekend

      Ok so I went into my closet in my office and decided to take out one of the books I got from my film degree. Its called The Guerilla Film makers Movie Blueprint by. Chris Jones. I’ve been reading the producers blue print and realizing that this weekend is going to be a a lot of work for me. Now that I have my script I need to get somewhere to shoot it and something to shoot it with. At this moment I have a Canon Rebel T2i and it is looking like the best choice. The canon T2i is a great SLR that has the performance of a 7d but is lighter and less durable.

 Specs on the Rebel here if you are interested

      This weekend the location I want to shot at needs to be contacted and set up a time to discuss shooting. I’m not going to reviele my story but one of the locations is a Bowling Ally. I’m hoping that when I call this local one in my hometown they will be more than happy to let us use the place afterhours. On top of location I also need to find cast and crew. On top of getting the crew and actors, the only way ill get this done is with a little bit of cash. In my hometown there are a few local places I know the owners to and will see if I can gather funds. My goal is to get 3,000 dollars for the pilot’s budget.

 http://livingspirit.typepad.com/blog/2007/06/out-of-the-blue.html here is the link for the book

Change

Well every I have decided that my script writing skills are not up to Par. I started looking around Campus and met a new friend who is actually good at writing, we are meeting today and I can’t wait. Other than that I found a website called Tongal and am entering a video into the contest this weekend. If you are looking for a way to earn extra cash video contest are where its at. This website for example is a great way to get your ideas out there and get money for it. So you click on a brand or a contest and there are different phases like concept and pitch, etc.. well if you submit a concept and it is a finalist you win money and a little prize but say someone used your concept to make their video, well that is another chunk of change and it is an awesome way to get more people involved and have better commercials. For the commercial I am doing I didn’t have to think of the idea I just looked at the concept and found one that I could see shot for shot in my head and now I am shooting it this weekend. SUPER EXCITING! Here is the contest website if anyone is interested.

After one of my classes in my master's program I realized I can't be the jack of all trades and other people can do things for me a lot better and I need to hire these people and connect with these people. The motivation today is high! 

Schedule for this week:

Today- Meeting with writer

Thursday-Finishing storyboards for commercial

Friday- Shooting

Saturday- retake day if needed

Sunday- Get someone to edit it!

 Click here for the link to tongal!

Writing

Hey everyone, my name is William Sherrod and I go by Alex. I started this blog to show the progress of a script I am working on and articles I read to help my screenwriting skills. I also have a goal of starting a project every month. Whether it is a short or a commercial idea, ill be posting statuses and different aspects I learn and obstacles I run into. The first thing I did was buy a script writing software. Its called final draft 8 and it works awesome.

http://www.finaldraft.com/?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=AdWords&utm_content=HomePage&utm_campaign=Exact&gclid=CMa6hOT5n6sCFRFR7Aod00nEjQ