Challenge failed and comment issues

Moving sucks. Last time I talked briefly about my thoughts after coming back home, but what is even more taxing and stressful is the physical side of it. We got an apartment on a second floor and it was a pain in the ass – literally and metaphorically – to move our furniture in. I’ve always had old creaky knees and back which bothered me during the move but the topper was the asthma attack I suffered halfway up the stairs with a love seat on my shoulder. All of it was further complicated by that wonderful Arizona heat. When it was all finished however, it was the most relieved I have ever felt in my life besides the day I was accepted into film school.

I ended my last blog with optimism that the editor of the film we made for the 48-hour film challenged would be able to put together a film that had a chance at winning the competition. That optimism was for naught apparently. It turns out that there was a technical issue when finishing up the editing process that put our team past the deadline and out of the competition. The producers wrote the crew telling us that they were sorry about the problem and encouraged us to see it as a “blessing in disguise” since we would now have time to put together a better cut with the extra editing time. A few of us, including myself, have voiced our disappointment in the result and our distaste for the sugar-coating that was put on the events that transpired. We didn’t join the group and put work into the project with the intention of making a “film we can be proud of” as they tried to spin the new effort. We joined because we wanted a shot at winning the prize.

In retrospect, I think I may have been harsh in calling out those that were directly involved with our missed opportunity so I may talk with them individually and tell them I misspoke. But I won’t outright retract how upset I was with the final outcome. I do recognize that in the process of making a film sometimes the final result won’t be what we first set out to do. I guess the frustration comes from not being involved at the end and not having a chance to help get the film done on time.

On the positive side, I’ve since been in contact with some of the people that I enjoyed working with on the film and we may be working together on projects or otherwise getting together to party in the upcoming months. I even got an invite to be crew on a set that will apparently include some Hollywood big-shots. If I can impress them maybe I do have a future in this business.

I saw the new Batman movie The Dark Knight last week too. It was amazing. I may be writing a review for it to post on the other site I write on so I’ll pass on the link through here. But suffice it to say that it was worth the three year wait since I heard about after the first movie came out. Heath Ledger is very deserving of an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of The Joker. There are many that will say that he would only get it because he passed away or that the movie itself is earning praise for that same reason. But I disagree on both points and cast my vote for the posthumous award.

I now want to take a moment to address some comments I’ve gotten from previous posts. There’s the infamous "babies" post that I wrote almost a year ago that is still getting comments on it. Even though I have since posted a retraction, people are still taking my comments to heart. The thought even crossed my mind to delete that talked about post so that it wouldn’t cause any more problems but I’m not one to censor myself or anybody else. Like I said in the follow-up post, I spoke that first time out of a reflexive frustration. I projected a lot of my own beliefs and thoughts onto other people and that was wrong of me. It was a moment of temporary insanity you could say. Some people don’t understand how strongly I feel about the topic of children. I mean, I’m even starting to look into the possibility of getting a vasectomy already so that I don’t have to deal with the possibility of having children. That’s how strongly I feel about it. But I’ve made my peace with situations beyond my control and I have since restrained myself from imposing my beliefs on others. After all, it is one of the things I criticize the most on other groups of people. If you still find fault in anything I say or write, please let me know and I will try to make amends.

Also, before I forget, if you are going to comment on this blog, please identify yourself. If you’re afraid of what I’ll think of you personally, make up a name. Just give me something to refer to you by other than Anonymous. If you say something about me referring to you personally, but I don’t know who posted, what’s the point of your comment? Thanks to those that already do this.

On that note, I’ll end this blog with a quote that really struck a chord with me that I found in a comic book of all places. It is from Alan Moore’s Watchmen which is being adapted into a movie. You can see the trailer here.

"Existance is random. Has no pattern save what we imagine after staring at it too long. No meaning save what we choose to impose. This rudderless world is not shaped by vague metaphysical forces. It is not God who kills the children. Not fate that butchers them or destiny that feeds them to the dogs. It’s us. Only us."

- Rorsarch from Watchmen