:: and suddenly i'm archived::

tuesday, november 25, 2003

oh my god! i just had the most amazing critique of my life! on my script no less, my script!

i was depressed heading to class because i'm losing my voice, i thought for sure things would be cleared up by 6, but they weren't if anything, my voice had just become furtherly lost. i was allowed to read my screen direction- couldn't very well do it anyhow even if i had been allowed. so i had to sit and listen to my whole text which was just terrifying! at least when i am reading my screen direction i can put myself in the script and block out the fact its my writing, but when i had to sit there and listen... wow. i mean, it was good because i was forced to really listen as an audience member compleatly detached, but it was nerve racking because i wasn't able to lose myself at all. if there was a flubbed line or a missed word i wasn't there to cover it up things just had to roll.
anyhow, we read through the script and the critique begins and my teacher starts it off with saying, "i don't think i have ever seen a script like this ever before... i keep thinking back through the years and no, i've just never seen anything like it" then everyone began discussing my language in it. my teacher said at first when he looked at the page he made a little note to himself reading, "dialogue too long" but then after a page of it he went to his back to his note and wrote, "or is it?" he said it was so medative and stylized it seduces you into listening to it. then another student voiced in and said my writing was "so crisp and clear" he totally forgot it was supposed to be in the 1900's when things and cities were so gritty and hard because the writing "sparkled."
then my teacher agreed and said the language was really delightful he read a line out loud and said, "that line there, i mean, it reads like poetry. it's a very poetic way of writing."
then everyone talked about how i was able to differentiate between character voices. how one character, a little girl, sounds and says things exactly like a little girl would whereas the two little boys are markedly different.
we also talked about dickens, since this is my dickensian tale and how he is able to have characters like the artful dodger (glee!) talk as though he is much older and savvy because the audience buys it. my teacher said though, it is very hard to sell stylized language through characters but that i had done it and done it well! he said even it is "even more difficult to do so with children, but you've done it."
then the class discussed where my script was going storywise. i told them how things were to play out (all in a whisper as my voice had all but abandoned me at this point) and then everyone said, "that's so sad! that's so sad." (one student: especially when told in a whisper)
which led my teacher to talk about the story itself. he said the story didn't have a big conflict or a big driving plot, rather it was more "slice of life" like and more about "the relationship of all these people" which he said makes it "timeless" and the stylized language add to the timeless nature of it. then everyone said they were excited for the end of it. my teacher said while i'm not talking to spend the next week writing as much as i possibly can (have to turn in all i have next week).

so yes! the most wonderful critique ever. i was really moved by it. so very, very, very happy because i thought (still do in moments of quiet) that the whole thing sucked on ice. but something he's never seen before! WOOT.
i saw my animation teacher earlier in the day (singing green acres in the hall) and he said my screenwriting teacher had been talking about students and my name had been mentioned (in a positive light, mind). anyhow, all in all, everything today has made me so happy. the class even liked a scene or two i though were on the whole really bad. so HOORAY!

i just spent sometime talking with my friend ana and i think i have officially killed my voice. this is totally karma for that other day when i wouldn't shut up!
oh so happy though, mood can't be spoiled.
also today in hitchcock class today we watched de palma's "dressed to kill" because it is a film made of hitchcockian appropriations. it is the best worst film i have ever seen in my life. so bad, i mean it's right up there with that lifetime movie, "mommy, may i sleep with danger?" starring tori spelling but a whole lot funnier because-- oh it just is! especially when you know your hitchcock.

tomorrow i am leaving town to see my grandma. hooray! atlantic ocean! i'm excited to see it. the atlantic is so different from the pacific not that i'm near it either, but the atlantic seems harder, colder... more old. i love it very much. speaking of scripts, i'm going to inspire myself by walking along the beach there which is covered with horseshoe crabs and sea glass. good holiday to those who are celebrating! know i am thankful for love and life and wish it to all others. g'bye!

suddenly i was @ 11:06 pm

sunday, november 23, 2003

i would just like to take this moment to say: i am actually have fun writing my script right now. i think it's level of suckitude is probably relatively high, but whatever.
i would also like to take this moment to say, though i started the writing process early and shut off the internet, television and im to do so (diana, please bare witness) i sat down wrote three words then passive aggressively fell alseep in my chair at my desk for over an hour.

GREAT.

i also drooled all over my mail.

p.s. i was up until 6 am yesterday. my late night/early morning a.d.d. activities included actually finding "oliver!" cd and listening to "consider yourself" on repeat.

my neighbors must love me!

30 minutes later:
whoa. i spoke way too soon. i just came about last sunday's work when i was having so much trouble. yeah... needless to say i think i shall delete all of this. ziiiiiip.

an hour later:
ha, now i'm at the part where i was feeling really fuzzy. right after i wrote this scene i watched the wizard of oz and cried. oh brother.

spite. is it really almost 4 am?
so i haven't chosen an exact place where my story takes place, right? somewhere in new england. whatever. this one scene however calls for one character to point out his home on a globe.

i give you ladies and gentleman a sample of my script, some screen direction.

"Felix nods. Kip stops the spinning globe and points to WHERE EVER THE CRAP."

high class, i'm so glad i caught that note to myself before i printed this and gave it to my class.

these have to be the most boring entries for people. i am so sorry.

glee! i am so excited! my little character, little Felix just grew up five years! that's right we finally bamfed ahead into time. I am so gleefully joyous. sniff, he's not a baby anymore this is so strange.

suddenly i was @ 01:13 am

saturday, november 22, 2003

gleeeeeeeee! i am in a hyper mood. i have literally not shut up once today. from noon onwards i have been talking. my mouth hurts. isn't that sad? i was in the animation room filming and apparently feeling social.

scenario of people i talked to:

friend joanne: topics, varied made to include mark lester who plays the artful dodger in "oliver!"

enter random kid who animated the hand thing: talk talk talk don't know your name but i'll talk to you anyhow, topics: good animation, animation club, animal motion dvd i should share with world

i leave visit art sale, see friends rachel and tammy. hello, hello. i talk and probably lose them a few customers as i won't leave the front of their table. topics: friend trauma drama, tammy's sales, rachel's free litho print.

i go to neighboring school, columbia and rent "the monstrous feminine" from their library, a book for my norman bates paper which i was led to believe was out of print. amazon.com, you lie!

i renturn. talk to joanne more. topics: singing is nice.

enter joel, graduated student who is returning dvds to joanne. i talk to joel about old acquaintance who joel now lives with, joel's new job, joel's animation.

joel leaves.

joanne and i discuss the old acquaintance again. he is not remembered fondly.

i write a telegram to tammy and rachel downstairs for joanne to deliver before she leaves. joanne leaves.

enter matt. matt is swell. he is the voice of my phineas. WOOT. matt and i talk. topics: matt's animation.

nameless joins conversation. topic: 3d animation software.

nameless leaves.

matt and i talk. topic: miramax intership.

tammy comes up stairs! woot! topics: friend rachel lost much weight lately and we are worried, friend trauma drama.

rachel comes up. double woot! rachel knows matt. rachel on matt: he's such a sweetheart! tammy, rachel and i go to dinner.

then... i got back to the animation room at about 10 and was alone. leave at midnight, called home and talked to my mom for an hour. really though! none stop all day. i'm mortified.

note: three reels of film and stupid film of mine is still not compleat. curses.

other thoughts:

remember that mini crush in my screenwriting class? i didn't think i was serious when i said one existed, but i really think now... that maybe i was right! so we read his script last week, right? and it was really good again. i loved it. i read one of the characters and every once and a while i have to chuckle at the line before mine because they are all so funny. my teacher after the script had been read and critiqued asked, "does any one have anything else to say?"
me: i have a compliment!
i turn to the said m.c.
me: i really, really love your writing.

aaaaaaaaaah! what the? i'm so embarrassed. i can't believe i said such a thing aloud (in front of whole class no less). to make matters worse the phrase "does not know i exist" cannot even begin to do this situation of mine justice. i think he said thanks but for the most part probably think i am a moron (understandable) and that's all right, because i rather sing with these four people in the class anyhow.
it's very funny. i have to share this mortifying story with everyone, because it isn't very serious but rather, all together very humorous instead.

what else? oh, i am really on one today. i have been on one all week- ever since the ttex 7 am extravaganda. the other night... last night i was playing my olaf b�r lieder cd when for god only knows what reason i decided to read "hamlet" out loud. so i'm pacing about saying "to be or not to be..." while olaf sings beethoven when i decide to set my alarm radio, the latter activity which leads me to discover "piano man" is playing on the oldies station. me: i love this song!
so the scene is: opera singer singing, me play acting "hamlet" all to billy joel's "piano man"
then i noticed it was 6 am and i was made to wonder, "why am i still awake?"

yes. it was a.d.d. gone wrong.

notes for tomorrow: SCRIPT WRITING!! i have a read on tuesday.

yawn. i have to go. it's almost 2 am and i've only been home for little over an hour.

p.s. diana, who i know reads this sometimes, did you know i had a huge dream with you in it last night? wild! oh and... 999? i didn't even know that was an option.

p.p.s. i'm so glad viv! i aim to please. it was great moment for me too. feel better!

p.p.p.s. i have "consider yourself" from "oliver!" on infinite repeat in my mind.

suddenly i was @ 01:34 am

thursday, november 20, 2003

i love mash!

You will live in Apartment.
You will drive a orange fell rider of the sky.
You will marry rosencrantz and have 1 kids.
You will be a screenwriter in scotland.

You will live in Apartment.
You will drive a black pt cruiser.
You will marry pippin and have 3 kids.
You will be a actor in scotland.

You will live in Shack.
You will drive a red bug.
You will marry papageno and have 4 kids.
You will be a storyboard artist in new york.

i never married pip or phineas (alas!) but i married papageno 700 times, pippin twice, rosencrantz finally once. i should put puck on my list next time!

suddenly i was @ 12:07 am

wednesday, november 19, 2003

oh my god i am so tired. i am in my animation class right now. i supposed to be filming even though this is vacation week.
haven't started filming though.

i am REALLY tired. forgive my typing and writing ska-zills today.

i am tired. i finally fell asleep at 7.30 am this morning. i tried to get up at 8 but failed and ended up wandering over to my classroom at noon.
why was i up so late you ask? well, i had screenwriting class last night till 10, got home, made dinner, called home, proof read 3 essays, showered and at 3 am i decided to pop in my new purchase, TTTEX. i had to watch it. the rest of this week i just haven't the time. so i really forced the issue. pay no attention to my math skills in that i thought the movie would be over before 6 am. HO HO!
yes, the extended version of the two towers. oh. my. god. it was fabulous. i have notes. hold on, i brought them with me. i shall annotate.

YES! ttex added back everythingi so desired to see in the original tt. i think the added scenes fleshed out and balanced the film as a whole. before it was such a biased heavy one-sided story only describing the plight of rohan and the battle of helm's deep. the other characters, merry, pippin and the ents and frodo et al. were tragically slighted, the former crew to the point of being laughable. suddenly though with ttex's addition of merry and pippin's humorous antics, gimli's did not seem to forced and abitrary. faramir's character suddenly has a bit more depth and simply "pissy."
really, just delightful.

chronological thoughts

1. i was delirious when i started the film at three am and had a humorous moment. the little extended bit with gollum when he disappears a moment in emyn muil only to pop up again to say, "come hobbits, follow me" i could have sworn he said, "taking a piss." really, i had to rewind to see if i had heard things right.
if you guys are bored, try it for yourself. i swear it sounds like it.

2. glee! the merry bit at the very first. i felt that scene was very true to book merry. a good stoic heart, but alway on the look out for his little cousin. i wanted to cry.

3. i am treebeard. remember him putting the hobbits to sleep, putting them to bed that is,afterward how he walks around muttering to himself? having lived with only myself for the past few months i can safely say, yeah, treebeard? i know how it is. you go on, buraroom, talk to yourself.

4. mr.willow made his appearence! i liked him eating the hobbits with treebeard better than with old tom b. anyhow.

5. gimli made some good additional cracks in fangorn i thought. grumpier gandalf, squirrel droppings, that's high class man.

6. �owyn singing. take my breath away. this was the one scene which actually really surprised me. i had no inkling of the lament and wasblown away by the power of it. otto has a fine voice. it was a lovely moment,if not cut off too swiftly.

7. i enjoyed the little extended bits with wormtongue and saruman. that is one weird relationship those two share. saruman pacing talking aloud though? also reminded me of living with myself.
me to my guppies: so you think you've found isildur's heir!

8. faramir is finallymore fleshed out and seems closer to his representation in the novels. "war will make corpses of us all." very faramir. a good line i thought. he is not out for war glory, he is noble and just.

9. nice touch, aragorn with the horse.

10. ha! �owyn's stew! though not pertinent to the narrative i thought this little addition was sweet because it added a little warmth and humanity to �owyn's oft lofty and untouchable character. she may be able to wield a sword, but she's hopeless in the kitchen!

11. the warg battle is still the most boring part of this film for me. if i want to watch mangy toothy snarling dog creatures, i'll go stir up my poodles.

12. ag! the elven telepathy with galadriel and elrond! i was really hoping something else would have been added there to make it make sense! but alas, no. it's going to be the "saruman talks about the balrog out of no where" bit of ttt for me ever more.

13. filmamir! thank god! you have been redeemed in my eyes! there is always one scene in these extended versions which i feel should have never been cut in the first place. in fotrex it was gladriel's gift giving. in ttex in was the put fun in dsyfunctional gondor royal family. i loved the flashback. boromir the partyfrat boy, "more beer!" and faramir the little brother tagging along, "glee-hee-hee!" very humorous.
this scene was such a crucial addition though because it explains all of faramir's motives. he even repeated some of denethor's lines in the original cut which having seen the added scene gives them credance and power, but without are weightless. with this flashback it was all put into context and everything made so much sense. it even explains the afore totally random trek to osgiliath.

14. elrond still wins the worst father of the year award. i mean, no elf daddy wants his daughter marrying (as my 5.45 am notes say) "a punk ass d�nedain," but does he have to be such a prick about it? lord, it's your daughter man!

15. faramir's men beating gollum? that's so awful.

16. at 6 am, me about helm's deep, "oh my god... my eyes..."

17. random: mydvd playerplays exactly one subtitle per film and always choses the best one to display. tttex's? gimli: you could have picked a better place.
go dvd player, go!

18. squeeeeeee! merry pippin pipeweed. taps nose, let's not be hasty...

on the whole. i liked it. to me now ttt seems like a finished film, before it was too, well, choppy for lack of better word. this version was cohesive, more balanced and fleshed out things which never should have been scanted in the first place. i am very pleased,very pleased indeed, even if it was forever long and that had only 30 minutes to sleep before i got up again. by the bye, forgive my typos i'm tired.
my only criticism is the emotional punch atthe end seems a little lost. in the theatrical version it was very moving... sam's speech over the montage of end shots, then leading into the final scene. grantedi loved the added scenes... but i wish they could have come before sam's speech somehow, because in ttex the emotional level hits an apex... then meanders a bit.... then ends. instead of emotional apex, sweeps you up and ends leaving you wanting more.
but then... god, merry measuring himself up to pippin was too priceless.
anyhow, good review. worth your money.

suddenly i was @ 05:58 pm

tuesday, november 18, 2003

it's raining out and i am waiting for it to stop because i have thousand errands to run, so i'm sitting here looking up olaf b�r on the internet.

i need help.

i read a funny interview with him talking about his recordings and how much money they don't make, "B�r laughs at the notion that he makes money from his many recordings. 'EMI paid an initial fee for the studio session, but royalties so far have been minuscule. Maybe there will be some for my grandchildren!'"
I will gladly put towards the cause! i just need 40 dollars...

you know it hasn't been raining for some time. i have to go. this is sad.

suddenly i was @ 02:05 pm

sunday, november 16, 2003

another weekend of scripting, though at this point i have not reached the "THIS SUCKS" apex as of yet. i feel this week my dialogue is entirely uneven. i can't get my one character's voice and i am utterly convinced it's because i've changed the book i'm reading in reallife.
note: i'm the only person in the universe who gets affected diction from the books she is currently reading.

but really, pip talks entirely different from the dodger. blast.

fascinating fact 406:
as of last week if someone came up to me in the street and said, "hey there, what is the given name of the artful dodger?" i would have had to put my hands in my pockets and sucked my teeth, because i couldn't have wagered a guess. this week though, i can proudly say, "jack dawkins!"
i totally spaced the dodger's real name.

now you all know. share the knowledge. jack. dawkins.

10 minutes later:
i spoke way too soon, the suckage vibes are a-comin' on.

15 minutes later:
it sucks.

fascinating fact 712:
my main characters are kip and felix. everyone likes kip but felix hardly says a word ever. i think i should call this writing, "felix looks around nervously" because i swear to god that's all he ever does.

3 minutes later:
supreme suckitude.

ok now i am just wasting time. i have a bit character i called tamino in my script after the prince in the magic flute (because i have no life) suddenly i wondered where the name came from which led me to my favourite name analysis site.
tamino: "Your delight in mystery could draw you into occult studies or religions."
or sarastro's cult, whatever.

then i typed in papageno and this part of its results made me laugh, "This name gives a certain amount of practicality to your thinking; but there is also a tendency to scatter your efforts for, although you want system and order and stability in your life, you are too apt to be distracted from the job you are doing and to become involved in spontaneous interests. "
spontaneous interests! like running off to save pamina?

wow. papagena's name analysis says the exact opposite. wonder how that marriage worked out?

perfect of course. says me. wouldn't do to have papageno suffer any.

OK! back to work.

lie. few more names.
so i looked up the names, phineas oliver and benjamin amadeus because currently those are my future sons and if the name are truly indicative of persona, then i will have a sweetheart and a strong will.

benjamin: You do, however, have leadership ability and would never be happy in a subservient position. You are ambitious and aggressive by nature.

amadeus: You are not inclined to merge your opinions and viewpoints with others, to accept compromise, or to work in a subservient position against your will. Your expression is invariably quite direct and candid.

phineas: Creates a most expressive nature, idealistic and inspirational, driven with a strong inner urge to be of service in some way that would uplift humanity as a whole. You have a generous quality to your nature, but you must guard carefully against giving more than you receive or you will find yourself doing without because you have helped someone else.

oliver: You feel and sense much that you do not fully understand, and you can be deeply influenced through the thoughts of others without realizing just how you are being affected. You are super-sensitive and intuitive.

let's look up my future daughter's name!

dora: You are a sociable person who appreciates the beauties of nature and the refinements of life, and is moved by music and the arts. You are very idealistic and romantic within yourself and may have tried to express your beautiful thoughts through poetry or writing.

�ponine: Gives you a responsible, reserved, and dignified nature, able to find a certain amount of success in anything you undertake. You have an appreciation for the finer and deeper aspects of life.

hmm. my first choice names (since the... 9th grade or something) have always been oliver and dora. i chose them because they both meant peace (according to some book i read.) though, according to behindthename.com oliver could possibly be derivitive of the germanic word Alfihar meaning "elf army." yes!

ok i am closing the internet, i can't have it open and concentrate. bye bees!

lie again! it's now been a few hours. i took a nap (or course) but continue to type. I've added this whole section which brings this one character to light whom i didn't want to have anything to do with and now i don't know what i am to do. Unless i pull a Magwich with him, which i don't feel like doing.
ha! notice my sporatic capitalization up there? me wearing down from proper writing.

7 hours later:
wow. sadness. i just got teary eyed over "the wizard of oz."

suddenly i was @ 01:17 pm

saturday, november 15, 2003

ok, so, why did today exist? last night, after the file fiasco i was up until 7 am, then i fell asleep- really crashed and woke up at 1. i ate lunch sat down to type my script- did so until about 4 or 5, went down for a nap and it is now near 8.

what a waste of time.

suddenly i was @ 07:53 pm

(meep) it to (meeping) (meep). god (meep) it (meepin') (meep). (meep) it. (meep)!!

you interpret to fit your descretion. i just over wrote my entire gallery file. colour me seriously pissed.
p.s. am not meeping in person.

read entry below for previous evening joy.

suddenly i was @ 12:20 am

friday, november 14, 2003

oh my god!! my olaf b�r cd came, my olaf b�r cd came! very nice. i've only listened to about 25 seconds of it and it's lurvely.

i still want the shubert one though! HEE HEE HEE.

today was a nice day. i've been riding in high gear since acting class, so now i am a bit tired.

OH MY GOD!!! my shubert song is on this disc!!

my friend rachel just left. we were going to go see master and commander, but it's not playing in the city, can you believe it? gah. so we stayed in and watched e.t. billy boyd adorable children and aliens. same diff.

suddenly i was @ 10:16 pm

monday, november 10, 2003

i'm having one of those morally sad moments in life. i'm looking up olaf b�r on amazon.com. b�r, of course you all know, is papageno in my version of the magic flute. glee, though, absolute glee. according to amazon, b�r is in cosi fan tutti, another mozart opera, but guess who else is? renee fleming! she is a very famous opera singer. i watched her in my opera class. but, but, guess what else she is doing? the return of the king soundtrack! muahahaha. who else watched her in... oh crap, what was it? salom�?
then, i am watching "witness" on television. it's a peter weir film about an amish boy who witnesses a murder and guess who is in it? viggo mortensen! muahahaha. i haven't actually seen viggo, but on principle, this is too great. harrison ford is a cop in the movie.

oh my god, someone buy me cosi fan tutti... must... have... all... olaf b�r recordings.

noooo! here is a b�r cd and it is out of stock! it has his name in the title! i want this! what ho? oh my god. there is one used for sale.

ATTACKS!!

i need this to live.

i am like a fangirl gone wrong, this just made me squeal out loud.
listen to the samples! i want this too. what a foxy voice. woof! but four discs... a bit much. is it all olaf b�r? quivers. this might be something for ebay. i have not 43 dollars.
oh my god, listening to this is making me giggle.

so, i am not doing anything. why? i don't know. i have a thousand things to be doing... sigh. no focus.

papagena, my female guppy may heretoforth be known as "psychotic the fish." she is evil! she is killling antony. you've never seen anything like it in your life. it's like wild planet in my gallon aquarium. antony's lovely tail has been ripped to shreds. papagena is violent! the other night i looked over and she was literally pushing antony into the tank gravel ripping and nipping at his fins. antony might as well not even have a tail at this point it's so destroyed. curse you papagena!

harrison ford is totally digging on the amish boy's mom.

message from the future: we have viggo. oh my god! he looks like he is 18!

suddenly i was @ 08:14 pm

saturday, november 8, 2003

ok, so i have done nothing today. my whole goal was to go to the library, but i never did. i responded to my pile of email i have been ignoring for weeks then debated between fleshing out an outline for my hitchcock final or proofing yet more of my screenplay. i opted instead to turn on my heat and fall asleep on my bed for near 2.5 hours. my stupid air conditioner won't turn off. it's so freezing in my room, but when i finally cranked the heat- god! i passed out. it was nice.
just now, i made a vague attempt of outlining the points i want to cover in my hitch final. i'm writing an analysis on norman bates and i have to say... i excited about it. i'm going to start with his real life inspiration- the hideous serial killer, ed gein and from there venture into norman's freudian implications to end with barbara creed's monstrous feminine theory in relation to norman and mrs. bates.
i think i'm going to have to write it out in sections. does that sound like a good idea? i don't know.
speaking of mrs. bates. that is who papagena my amazon guppy is. really! she is awful! she has nipped antony's tail fin in two. i am so angry. so antony's swimming all around with this deformed tail. he's still eating and acting normal... but dear god. i don't know what to do with her. if antony ends up mysteriously dead i'm going to the store and asking just what i might keep in the tank with papagena aka the monstrous feminine incarnate.
my script read went over decently enough. didn't get all the way through it. i am having mental issues because my timing is so slow.
stories about my script:
i decided i wanted to do a dickensian tale. save, i didn't want it in industrial era england because a. then it is just watered down dickens and b. i hadn't really imagined the dark, sooty environment of old school london for my setting either. when asked where else i would put it, if i was to choose a place i said, new england. ho ho.
during my first read someone said they had pictured the whole thing in the 1940's. this intrigued me. i love the 1940's. maybe, i thought, that could be my era.
issues with 1940's:
a. world war II. my characters live in a shipping industry. shipping overseas was greatly affected by world war II, i'm sure.
b. as i'm going for dickens, i want my kids to work but by the 1940's child labour laws were in place. it was still happened under ground to be sure (ie new york tenements where children were sent home to work on things like artificial flowers, since child labour laws applied to factories not to the home), but it was much less prevalent.
c. my characters grow up. the script is to span time. whereas the 40's still holds that never never land feel of being a long time ago, the moment one hits the 50's bam! you're in the modern era. i don't want my characters in the 50's and i want them no where near the sixties!

so. i thought. may i could push it back to the 30's?

problems with the 30's:
a. the great depression, because this was a time when the us had a theme for every decade. shipping died in the 30's as did many things.
b. child labour took a dip as adults were taking the low paying jobs usually filled by kids. when children did work it was in the fields ala grapes of wrath, picking peaches.

well crap! i then started flipping through my maritime history of the united states book looking for pictures which matched what i had seen in my mind.
i came across a place named hog island. it was a little mud ridden place in the delaware river outside philedelphia. a self contained city island which made ships. its visuals were what i had been imagining. hmmm! i said and looked at the date. 1911. the place made more war ships for wwI than the entirety of the uk.
i started looking up the shipping/trade industry of the time. looked good. shipping boomed in the early 1900's. before world war I america had been no where on the map in the trade force, england was top. then the germans set up their naval blockades. by sheer accident, the us literally slipped in a took over the industry because there was no competition. the president at time, wilson, didn't want war but strove to build a solid trading business and it paid off.
good says i!
i went back and started looking up child labour in the states in the early 1900's.
gold mine.
it was dickens, us style. see if you can find photographs by "lewis hine" on google. hine was an investigative reported working on exposing child labour in the states. he travelled the whole country taking pictures of child workers, then he would write down their statistics, names and a quote by the child. the pictures are amazing. kids did everything! bootblacks, newsies, miners, in the factory, millers, carried hat boxes, messengers, sewed artificial flowers... cut fish, peeled shrimp, shucked oysters, picked fruit, picked cotton... 12 hours a day at times! some as young as 4!
there was one beautiful picture of a little boy whose job it was to open the door to let the coal carts roll in and out of a mine. we was clear down in this tunnel for hours at a time, where it was pitch black and he was all alone. when hine developed his picture of the boy though, he discovered all these chalk drawings he had been drawing on the door. hine didn't see the drawings when he took the picture, owing the darkness, but yes! the lovely drawings of birds and swirls that this little boy had been drawing alone in the dark.
my point? when were these pictures being taken? early 1900's.

perhaps that was my era?

back to my timing issue. that was a huge tangent. the problem with using dicken's as a model is, well, i mean there is a reason when his novels are adapted the film is ten hours long.
sigh! i don't know if i should just barrel ahead and keep writing according to my plan, include everything, or if i should begin editting now. i think it would be better to include it all because then you can tell what is useless and what is important in the end, if you have all the cards on the table. it's easier to take out than add in.
GAK! maybe i should write my teacher, but i get so embarassed doing so.
still, everyone really liked my language in the script. that was really awesome! i didn't think much of it at all, but yes.
class compliments:
a. the language they said it was really delicate with a crispness to it (a good thing!)
b. everyone said it was really sweet. ie, "it's just such a... sweet story. it's so, sweet!" (also meant well)

the last compliment in particular sent me on wings. i thought for certain i was being maudlin.

yesterday was acting class. it also was much fun. the directing class came in and we're reading their work and their directing us. isn't that awesome? i've had two offers of roles. also in my acting class i played my sound piece wherein i play an old man. ha! even my cousin thought i sounded like richard harris, so it went over well, no one could tell it was me. the text came from a dream i had where i was an old man dying on a hill watching the stars. it was another piece i thought i was being totally cheesy with, but apparently not? maybe i'm over sensitive with this.

p.s. diana if you get this far, the name was fondlecock. sir coronel bartholomew fondlecock and his faithful manservant buttwaddle.

suddenly i was @ 08:13 pm

monday, november 3, 2003

as my illustration friend would say, "what the banana?"

i have to indulge myself with a little script rantage.

a. it sucks.
b. it's 48 pages.

i need this to be 25 pages or 30 pages... or just better written! but can't edit further. i need someone with a big fat red sharpie to circle all the badnesses and x them out.
for example... this current scene. X IT ALL TO BAMF. ag, blag, gag and all other e-euphemisms for annoyance.

5 minutes later.
yes. sharpie this scene too. give me strength.