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Monday, December 17, 2007

"The Dark Knight" trailer cuts a smile on my face


"The Dark Knight" trailer was released this weekend attached to some movie named "I Am Legend" or something like that. Anyways, back to the trailer.....very nice! Check it out here for yourself! Next summer it's gonna be on with Batman fighting for box office bucks against Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk. Good time to be a comic book fanboy nerd like myself right now!

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

"w00t" is added to the dictionary; old people confused


Yes, "w00t" is a word, officially. Just look at that word for a moment. w00t. Now you must be wondering "That shit ain't a word, man. It's got two numbers smack dab in between a dubya and a tee!" If that is indeed you saying that statement, congratulations.....your wrong and your old. According to this, the good people at Merriam-Webster Inc. have named "w00t" the new word of the year and are going to add it to the dictionary. L33t speak (pronounced "Leet Speak," "leet" being a degenerate form of the word "elite") has been around the net forever, but it wasn't until a good friend of mine introduced the proper name for the language a couple of months ago. The term "Pwn" has been in my vocab for a while now and I use it in my everyday speak. Sometimes I get people who get it while others just look at me like I just said I like to smash bottles into my face for fun. But I'm still old compared to the kiddies whose entire vocab is proliferated with the terms. Every time I go to Riverpark or the mall, I can't pass a group of teens with hearing a "WTF" or a "BFF" as they walk by, increasing my urge to SMASH and wondering "What the fuck am I doing here?" follwed by a "Fuck I'm old" (notice I didn't abbreviate of those). The world is truly turning into that damn AT&T commercial and if that's the stuff I'm going to have to deal with with my kids, someone's gonna end up getting choked! But for now, the intro of l33t speak words to our "normal" speak dictionary can only mean the end is near. Or those uncreative bastards over at Merriam-Webster are just a bunch of saps looking to gather some attention the the fledgling dictionary industry.

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Birth of Hulu brings laughs, Natalie Portman



Well, the much publicized battle between Apple & NBC has gave way to HULU, to which I received my beta key this morning to test the site. And that's when I saw that Natalie Port....actually, she'll always be Mathilda to me so let me amend that....Mathilda stars in from an old SNL, it brought smiles to my face. For those of you aware, NBC (as are most other networks) was always been scary about other sites such as You Tube & Google Video posting clips from their lineup. For a while, iTunes was the answer for that, selling episodes there. But that came to an end earlier in the year and NBC promised to start up their own digital distribution center. Hence, HULU. So far so good. The site loads pretty speedy, the clips are high quality and they have some old, good stuff. I don't personally watch any NBC shows (don't watch that much TV, period) but it cool to have all these clips available to embed and email to friends. What was weird was that there are also other network shows such as "Family Guy" and "The Simpsons" from FOX and some Bravo shows available there, too. What does that mean? I'm not sure, but I think NBC is ready to go to war with Apple & ABC, there gonna need all the help they can muster and FOX could be a good ally. If you get a chance, check out HULU and sign up for the beta to check out a hefty library of clips from all the NBC library. Oh, Mathilda.....all grown up and looking good in high quality streaming video. This could only mean good things for the future, right?

Friday, November 30, 2007

Del Toro answers my question, makes me feel good


So a while back I noticed that an official Hellboy 2 web site had opened up and on that site, there were some forums where people could ask director Guillermo Del Toro questions. I asked, he answered. Check out the thread right here. Pretty cool, huh? I've met Del Toro when he was doing the press for the first Hellboy movie and he was a great guy and he even threw down a sketch of himself in my sketchbook. It's awesome that a director of his caliber is always cool with mingling with the fanboys like myself. And for those of you who don't know what the RED camera is, check it out here. Basically, it's a digital camera that shoots very close to film quality. How close? Nearly indistinguishable. The first feature that will be shot entirely using this camera is a little movie named "Wanted" based on the mind blowing graphic novel by Mark Millar. Check out the trailer or the samples you can find on the RED site (along with a short that Peter Jackson shot as a test for the camera). Very good stuff. And all for the low, low price of around $20,000. Truly a baragin, no joke. Soon enough, all video quality will be looking like Hollywood and not like someone ran it through a meat waffler. The future is here and with classy directors like Del Toro always willing to do fan service, cinema, as a whole, has a bright future ahead! VIVA MEXICO, CABRONES!

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Jumping back on the stencil train


A long time ago, a couple of friends and I decided to make stencils to paster our images around town, a sort of competition to see who could get there art around the city without getting caught (I guess that's every graf artists M.O. but I'm far from one). Well, at that time, I was very much enamored of a certain Michelle Rodriguez (laugh all you want but back then, she was an up and comer with potential and I was rooting for her). Hence, the stencil I created as you can see above. Well, as far as our friendly competition, it never happened. The only thing I ever used the stencil was on a white box I bought at the Uhaul store when I moved from my old apartment and that box has been chilling next to my desk at home. Recently, I've been wanting to get into my roots but I wasn't very sure about how. Should I bone up my drawing skills? Naw, I suck. How about painting? I mean, Bob Ross could do it, why not me? And then one night I was looking for something around my pile of shit and there was Michelle staring right back at me. She's fallen off my radar these days but I remember making that stencil and the fun I had doing it. And so that image up there was born: a 14x18 canvas board with a little accent added, just to test. Easy and fun! Here are some sites if your interested and this art form and be scared to try it yourself....just remember that tagging stuff that isn't yours is illegal and shouldn't be done....EVER! Now that that's out of the way....anyone up for a friendly competition?

Street Art
- What Wikipedia has to say about the art form.

Banksy
- Further proof that if we were to get the worlds graphic artists into a battle royale, the UK would undoubtedly defeat everyone else.

Stencil Revolution
- A good source for ideas and examples of existing stencils and awesome tutorials.

Stencil Tutorial
- Pretty much says it all. A beginners guide to create your own stencils in Photoshop

Stencil Street Art
- Another good gallery

Stencil Archive - Yet another archive

Stencil Nation's Fickr Account
- Swear this is the last one! Check it out!

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Fisher-Price My First TV Interview


Wow, that's kinda cool to see "Director" follow my name. Anyway, here is my interview that I did for the friendly folks over at Zona Azteca, a local show that airs every Friday at 6pm on TV Azteca Ch 39 here in Fresno. Visit their web site here for up to date info. I tried to wear a solid green shirt as to have just my massive head floating in front of the green screen and have some cool graphics behind me but I couldn't find anything in my size in time (wow, the camera really does add 125 lbs.) and I wasn't about to go all Charlie's Green Man for this. Anyways, check it out, enjoy my pillaging of the spanish language and my 2 Best Buy name drops....I should really stop promoting those devil bastards. Also, watch out for my stupid little laugh at the end. Reminds me of this guy's laugh at the end.......damn, is my head really that big? Cast your vote in the "Head" poll over to the right! NYUP!

Friday, November 9, 2007

Wanna see me destroy the Spanish language?


So I was interviewed for the show "Zona Azteca" for local station TV Azteca. The thing is, it was all in spanish. Now, my spanish is normally pretty good (just don't tell Diana that) but being that this was my first TV interview (the Laidlaw bus crash doesn't count) AND my first interview in spanish, well, that didn't help much. Wanna see the train wreck? Tune in to channel 77 tonight at 6pm to find out. Oh, and that's channel 77 if you have comcast cable. The regular, over the air channel is 39. I'll be talking about the film, the film community here in Fresno and you can see some clips from our short "An Inch Or A Mile." What a way to start off your weekend, right?

While I'm here, I'm also going to reward you for making it all the way to the end of this post. Go to BFAds.net to get a jump start on how your going to empty your bank account the day after Thanksgiving (commonly known as "Black Friday" in the industry) by checking out the ads for some major retailers. Have fun in the mosh pit of people but try not to lose your wig!

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Local Distrcit 7 personally responds to my email


Dear Roque,

Thank you for contacting our office regarding drag street racing. Our office is un aware of any proposition in Fresno. If you have any other questions please feel free to contact our office.

Sincerely,

District 7


That is the email I got back when I decided to contact District 7 Councilman Henry T. Perea (he was supposedly seen at the Film Festival last weekend where my street racing inspired short played and a fellow SJMer, and might I add) about the city council possibly supporting the opening of a local drag strip here in Fresno. I guess the district he represents has become self aware and is now doing it's own PR by fielding questions (hey, at least it spelled my name right). Well, at least I got a response (that's more than I got from Autry's camp), but not exactly the one I was hoping for. And the entropy continues....

Monday, November 5, 2007

Apples & Oranges


Well, the short film competition at the 1st Annual Latino Film Festival ended with a winner: A full length documentary film. "WTF?!" you might say (I said worse), after all, the film entry requirements for the competition called for films under 30 minutes (the winner was 50 mins. in length). Fair or unfair, I guess but we have to start somewhere, right? I feel sorry for 15-year old Antonio Garcia, whose film "You Owe Me One" also played there (and both met the requirements AND was extremely entertaining). How would you feel if you showed up to your first pick-up basketball game thinking your facing off against a peer only to find out that you'll be facing a player from the NBA. Not cool, especially when your that age and your craft is still developing. Hopefully, next year, the festival will make sure that these kind of mismatches don't happen again and it'll make the competition fair for all that enter. But most launches are a little rocky so we'll chalk it up to the shiny, brand-newness of it all. Hopefully, next year will bring in more entries, more attendees & a better over all experience for all who enter and attend. Thanks to the Fresno Art Museum for putting on the show!

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Latino Film Festival begins today!


It's finally here and I'm actually pretty excited. I mean, even if nobody shows up, just being able to see our film projected....that should be cool. And seeing your name in print is always cool, right? Check out this article from the today's Fresno Bee for more specific info on the festival as far as times and dates are concerned. We'll be playing Sunday at noon so if you can make, come on out! Spread the word, post it on a bulliten over on Myspace, tell a cousin, a friend, a co-worker, WHATEVER! Lets just try to get some people to realize that there's a lot going down right here in our very own backyard. Enough yammering from me, now you can enjoy the trailer for "Matando Cabos" the opening film playing tonight. It's highly recommended!


Matando Cabos - Theatrical Trailer (Spanish)

Posted Aug 23, 2005

Mexican teens are just as quirky as Americans ... as demonstrated in this dark comedy about teens who kidnap a retired wrestling legend and a parrot.



And just for kicks, here's a clip from the film. Enjoy!

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Fresno creatives get together to talk film, misspell names



This past Sat. was not only the day to get drunk while dressed up like your favorite fictional character, but it was also a day of reckoning for the film community here in Fresno. The Fresno Filmmaker Forum took place in downtown Fresno early in the morning as although it started off a bit much like a city council meeting with people yelling out ideas as the speaker tried to keep up with all the spewage, it suddenly turned into a good meeting of people and ideas. Ray Arthur, the Fresno Film Commissioner was present and that lent a aire of authenticity and that was important. To see that the city is going to actually take an active role in not only courting Hollywood but maybe, just maybe, we can nurture and cultivate our own productions & filmmakers. Although my name was misspelled on my name tag that I paid $12 for (weird...that was the first time ever that has happened), overall it was a good experience. "So what else happened?" you might ask. Well, I had to take off to get my Thor costume ready for the night's festivities. But something tells me that this won't be the last forum held simply due to the sheer amount of people that showed up and really showed an interest in creating something from nothing. Keep an eye on the Fresno Filmmaker Forum website and this very blog for future events!

Friday, October 19, 2007

RZA Makes More Beautiful Music

Step 1: Even if you've already heard it, just press play.



Step 2: So you like? I'm sure some of you won't, but listen to RZA spit about how the song came to.



Did that 2nd video change your perspective of the original song? Good back and really listen to it again, I'll wait.............cool? Aight, now ask yourself this question (hope you like asking yourself questions): At what point does something become art? I mean Roger Ebert refuses to acknowledge video games as an art form all while the hundreds of graphic designers, animators, illustrators and art directors that the industry supports are making a good living doing what they do best: being artistic. I guess that poses another question: What defines a piece of art? Is it some guys Virgin Mary painting made out of shit? Is that any less art than the poster promoting an upcoming concert at the Fillmore? I don't know, just seeing that just a little bit of thought was put behind making the music speaks volumes to me, especially when we live in these "pimpin" days where everything is pushed along by the bottom line. I guess the Clan was right on target with C.R.E.A.M.: Cash really does rule everything around us. Almost. Fortunately, RZA wasn't listening to his own message.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

An Inch Or A Mile



So here it is. Our first "complete" short and the end result of what felt like a 2 week long face grinding. Shot entirely here in Fresno, this is just a little preview of what's to come (hopefully). If you like what you see or you don't like, let us know. We will continue making films and try to improve our skills so for being our first, I'd have to say it didn't come out too bad. Just training for "Blur" So if you wish to see this in it's non-web compressed format and projected onto a screen, come by the Fresno Art Museum's 1st Annual Latino Film Festival Nov. 2-4 where it will be screened. No for sure date yet, but I'm thinking it's going to be on Sun. between 12pm & 5pm but check the website for further updates. Come on out and help support local filmmaking! Also, for you of those around here in Fresno that are into filmmaking, you should attend Fresno Filmmakers Forum taking place Saturday, Oct. 27 in downtown Fresno. The cost is $15 and it seems to be a day long conference filled with some good film related talks. If interested, definately check it out.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Geeezzz.....FIANLLY!



Yeah, it took me a couple days (what can I say, I'm lazy) but here's the video for you guys. Nothing mind blowing but nonetheless interesting to see these legends walking around all the while those bastard PAs trying to get in the way of your shots so I cut out some of the fat and this is what you get: A couple of minutes of the Star Wars creator (see that fat head? That's where it all came from....shit's deep) & Indiana Jones himself walking around in Fresno. Hmmmm.... mano a mano, who would win in a fist fight, I wonder? Comment away!

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Random Thoughts



• Nissan was forced to spill the beans on the new 2009 GT-R when Motor Trend accidentally let their Dec. cover image slip out a week or so before the car official unveiling over a the Tokyo Auto Show. Sucks for them, good for everyone else. The car looks AMAZING! Disagree? Suck it, that car kicks ass! Just ask this lady:


http://view.break.com/381553 - Watch more free videos

I love my Subie but this car is simply breath taking. Specs to come soon, hopefully!

• Apple announced Oct. 26th as the release date for the latest OSX update, playfully named Leopard. Can't wait to give Steve jobs even more of my money.....asshole. Yes I caved in and bought the iPhone after the price drop last month and I love it, but Apple always finds to extract more & more money from me. Even though it pains me to spend, every product I've ever bought from them has been good to me (except that Apple II GS....I still want my money back for that bullshit-ass computer, Steve).

•Anyone else pick up Stephen Colbert's "I Am America (And So Can You!)?" Haven't had a chance to dive into it very much but the guy's been all over the boob tube last week. GMA, Larry King Live....and, of course, The Colbert Report where he was interviewed by....Stephen Colbert?!



While we're here, check out this story on Mexico's 1st EVAR Taco Bell:



•For those of you who care, the Lucas/ Ford video should be up later this week, maybe even as early as tomorrow. So for now, I gotta get back to work on my Halloween costume. Anyone know how to sew?

Monday, October 15, 2007

"It Belongs In A Museum!"







"No, Dr. Jones....You do!" Sorry, that's my favorite line from "The Last Crusade" Yeah, kinda odd, but for some reason, that's the one that sticks out. So as some of you locals might have heard, the movies were in town last week to film a portion of the latest Spielberg film, "Indiana Jones and The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull." Shooting in Fresno and at Eagle Field in Firebaugh (Damn you Spielberg! That was my location!) I went over there to see what I saw and I saw some cool stuff. Harrison Ford, Shia LaBeouf & Señor Estar Gwars himself, George Lucas were on the set and captured by my lens. No Spielberg for me but some uber-dork (who was running around with DVDs asking people how much they thought he could sell a beat to shit copy of Jurassic Park 2 signed by Spielberg) said he heard him over a loudspeaker giving direction. The airport was used as the airport for Mexico City circa 1950 or so as you can see the Mexican flag flying over it in the pic. Here's the local news report on it. Check out the pics and enjoy. Also, check out Late Update here for more pics & videos. I'll post the video of Ford & Lucas sitting down for tea time later.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

How Myspace Will Destroy My Campaign For President


As the debates rage all over the air waves about Hillary's laugh & Obama's lapel pin, I've started thinking: Imagine if the internet was around when these candidates were in their youngin' days. Imagine all the dirt the media would be uncovering about the contenders. Now, fast forward 35 or so years ahead and think all the dirt that will uncovered when someone over at the New York Post finds Susan Hopeful's Myspace blog from her high school days calling Bush a imperialistic fuck face for the war in Iraq right next to the blog calling Jessica Sanchez a "beaner bitch" cause she stole her boyfriend. As you know, all the stuff you post on the internets is archived and can (and will) be accessed for decades to come. That pic of you wearing next to nothing? Archived. That blog where you described your acid trip while you drove to your buddy's house? That's there, too. So you say you never, ever plan to get into public office? That's cool, but never say never. And remember, when that lawsuit comes up and your comment on someone's thread from 15 years ago contradicts your testimony, there's only one person to blame. Shit's crazy and by even venturing out into the nether regions of the net, you risk opening yourself up. But then again, every time you drive anywhere, you opening yourself up to a gruesome death, as well. Just be careful about shit (haven't you seen those wonderful PSA's on the telly?). I already have the claim that Cesar Chavez is a communist on my blog and I'm sticking by it (for now). Maybe one of these days, that comment will lose my the hispanic vote and cause me to lose my 2040 Presidential bid......more like Firebaugh city mayoral bid, actually. Either way, it's gonna be very interesting to see how all this is gonna come into play in the near future. You think it's bad now? Just wait. I'm positive it's only going to get nastier. But the question is should they be held accountable for the ideas and thoughts they had as teens or young adults? In my opinion, no. But the media doesn't care and news is news. Headlines sell and always will and they will. It's just crazy to step back and realize that the arena of the presidential campaign is ever so dynamic. A lot changes in 4 years. I mean the You Tube debates? Who would of ever though that kind of stuff would be happening 4 years ago? Now, the candidates are taking questions from a SNOWMAN! A FUCKEN SNOWMAN!! Next election, I'll be asking Stephen Colbert what he thinks was the best video game system of all time and why, all while we blast each other away during an online game of Halo 5.

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Festival Update & Misc. Info



After the marathon that was "An Inch Or A Mile" (AIOAM) I've been taking it a bit easy. Between Halo 3 (yeah, I'm still not online) and general "resting" I've recently started plotting my next screenplay. No, it's not "Blur" but rather just a side project that I don't plan to tackle for a while, just an idea that's been brewing. But I got an email this morning announcing that the 1st Annual Latino Film Festival was pushed back to Nov. 2nd-4th so make sure to mark the dates, because with the email about the date change came word that our little project was accepted and will be shown at the festival (hence the exploding head up there)!!
So that's great news! Don't know the exact date and time but as soon as I hear anything, I will update here. So while you wait for that, please mosey on over to One Picture's Worth, a new site set up by my close friend and co-writer of AIOAM Robert Anaforian. Quick overview: Submit a picture and he writes a short about it. "Impossible," you say? Shit, try it out! I mean, to take something a picture that you'd soon pass right over in your pile of pics and have an story fleshed from it......yeah, that sounds cool to me. My man's got the skills so start submitting and see what you can extrapolate from your mundane pics!

Friday, September 21, 2007

An Inch Or A Mile



It's fucken done & turned in. My first film is in the can and now in the hands of the kind folk over at the Fresno Art Museum for their 1st Annual Latino Film Festival. For those of you who don't know, we've been working on this short for the past 2 weeks, pretty much non-stop. Now, I'm sure you've heard this term "non-stop" many times before. Probably even used it yourself a couple of times. But this production truly was the definition of that cliche. Thanks for everyone who helped out and gave up free time to get this off the ground. "So where can I see it?" you might ask. Well, I can show it to you in person but I rather not place it on the web for now. If it does get accepted into the festival (Oct 19-21, 2007), you can see it there and I'll probably post it up soon ofter that here. Thanks again to everyone who helped out and keep checking here and the museum's site for more info. Spread the word, people!

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Blur Teaser v2.0



Fast and furious. No not the production of Blur, rather these last couple of weeks. We're working to get a short shot (huh?) in about a week or two of total production (from concept to final) for the local Latino Film Festival held at The Fresno Art Museum next month. In the mean time, I had some free time this weekend and wanted to mess around with this trailer. Sounds horrible but just to get a look. Also, as you can tell, I've made it all black & white....and I think it looks nice! Most of the film will be shot at night so that will help as well. Maybe we should do the film like this? What do you guys think? Check it out here or here. Or just watch it here. Let us know what you think!

NEW Blur Teaser Trailer

Add to My Profile | More Videos

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Don't buy from here if you're fat...


...but if you aren't, totally go over there and check some of there stuff out. I'm sure some of you guys have already heard of this site, but if not, Threadless is a wonderful site that not only sells cool shirts, you can also submit your own desgins to be voted on every week by your internets peers. If your choosen, you get some cash along with some Threadless swag. Click here to check it out! But be forewarned: The 2XL are kinda small and they don't fit me too well. Just a heads up, one fat man to another!

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Not So Much A Guitar Hero...



The other day I was surfing on the interNETS and I came across an awesome deal happening over at Toys R' Us. Long story short, I picked up Guitar Hero 2 for a grand total of $36 brand new. Awesome deal, indeed. But the real cost: me realizing how much I suck at these kinda games. Yeah, I haven't had the chance to master the digital axe quite yet but I can't beleive how some of my friends are able to shred on this freaking game. I guess perhaps I'll just wait until that Photoshop Hero comes out. Then I'll be on top, mofo's! If you like that comic, go over to Penny Arcade and check out there comics. Real good stuff going on there.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Postsecret



Postsecret is a real eye opener. The premise of people anonymously submitting secrets for the world to see and judge really serves not only as a therapeutic exercise for the person submitting it but also as a way to help others free themselves from the shackles of similar restraints. Sometimes it serves as a barometer of humanity and shows us a mirror to our own self-worth, which a sometimes, can be a both good and evil at it's core. Check out this new video montage they just put up and don't forget to got to the site every Sunday when it is updated with new secrets. Bookmark that bastard NOW! It'll help you.....seriously.

Friday, July 20, 2007

Guess What I Did Yesterday?



Went to the Grizzlies game, had a few dollar beers, went to BJ's got smashed. Oh yeah, I got engaged. The date is 10/10/10.....but that might change. Shall we continue this party this weekend?

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

The Frank Castle of the Import Scene



Did you see it again for the the first time? Remember seeing that there trailer in a pre-9/11 2001? Oh how things were so much simpler back then. The Limp Bizkit song that actually worked with the trailer (again, nostalgia rears it's ugly head into that thought), the recently out of production Toyota Supra racing a Dodge Charger, that awesome crash at the end....looking at it now, it was destined to be a classic just from the trailer ( I mean, shit....it's one of those "In a world..." trailers!). And on June 22nd, it was released. And, as a direct result, within months the scene was dead in Fresno. "How can a film change things in the real world?" one might ask. This was one of the first times that I saw first hand the imprint film was capable of leaving in our real world. But overall, was it was a good or bad imprint? That's the question with this film. On one hand, the attention it brought onto the scene that was, ultimately, the cause of it's implosion. On the other, it was the fertilizer that caused it to bloom into the $257 billion dollar business it is now. Sellout? Perhaps. But it was going to go mainstream eventually. What I ponder is what if this wasn't the way it was supposed to happen. Think about it in terms of a musical artist. Would you rather be know for working hard out of your apartment putting out record after record, playing joints that only very few people had actually ever heard of, all before being signed to a major record label and then blowing up or would you take the instant fame that would be thrust upon you by winning a national contest such as American Idol? No training, no background, no history. Just bam! Your a star. Either way, the outcome is the same, but the means of getting to that point are vastly different. This film, as a whole and it's lasting effects, is not too different from what The Punisher does. Sure, he only kills bad guys, but killing is killing, right? Or is it okay in some instances? Well, this'll be up for debate for years to come but please, I'd like to hear your views on this anit-hero of a film that is TFATF! Because all in all, I'm just a filmmaker trying to make my own imprint in the real world, without having to resort to Frank Castle-type tactics. Or is that the path I should be taking with Blur?

Monday, July 2, 2007

Internets Gold (formerly Interweb Gold)



So geniune, so real. That's what makes this clip so good. The slight lisp is just icing on the cake. Enjoy!

Downtown: Can it be revived?


I'm fucken tired of this issue already. No one seems to care about downtown anymore and although it was all that our local politicians could talk about a couple of years ago, not much action has taken place. Poor Reza has his lofts going and I wish him the best with that venture but it seems like Autry and his gang have left him hanging with the whole matter. Housing is a good start but without further development, it's gonna be hard to convince people to live down there. But that's just me, maybe I don't know. Perhaps I'm just talking out my ass but I thought that people were really going to try to change things and build up. But nothing after what seems like forever. Oh well. One of the initial reasons I started to write "Blur" was to showcase downtown Fresno. I wanted it another character in my film. The stage for the actors. As I worked through the script over the years, it became central to many scenes and the centerstage for the climactic finale. It's sad that a ANY city's downtown is so similar to the dead of night that is found out in the middle of nowhere in the dead of night. Downtown Fresno is just like the track of yesteryear only without all the people. That's a horrible state for the city.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Blur Progress

So the pre-production continues. Although only 3 of you read this space on the internets (and you 3 are already in the production), I figured that I'd give you all an update.
Robert Anaforian has been so kind to go through over the script and give it a re-write. Yup, the dreaded re-write. Actually, it's not so bad. He trimmed some fat, added some spice and made it over all more digestible and mo' better flowing. We're still on track to start filming this summer. For now, all I can offer you is this:


Yes, you've all probably seen this and yes, that footage is over 2 years old. But something is better than nothing, right? Hmmmm, maybe not. Anyways, I'm confident that this project will get going soon and with my team helping me out, it'll get done good! Damn....and because of this, I'm gonna go home and watch a Renny Harlin film tonight! "MMM, MMMM, BITCH!"

6/14 UPDATE!!: Here is an example of what the final logo might look like:



Click on it and make it your desktop, put it on your cell phone, get a tattoo, whatever you want. Comments? Suggestions? Leave 'em down here!

Monday, June 11, 2007

Can you just give me my paychecks in Apple Store credit?


So Fresno finally got an Apple Store. No longer must we put up with the shitty customer service over at the retail chains and the other local "specialty" Apple stores. Although the Bee news article paints me as the "I'll do anything for a free T-Shirt" guy, my favorite part was my quote. As you could guess, my girlfriend was non to pleased by that one. I didn't go get in line, but I did go in the first day. Very nice looking store with the noob employees in your face every 10 seconds trying to answer any questions you might have. Finally, a local Mecca for all the nerds. So if any of you out there got an extra shirt, kick down.

Monday, June 4, 2007

Robots......FFIIIGGGGHHHTTTIIINNGGGG!!!



Saw the trailer this weekend on the big screen. Anticipation must be restrained or risk disappointment. And this clip doesn't help.....freakin sweet.....

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Free film school!


Sometimes I wonder "Should I have gone to film school?" After reading Robert Rodriguez' A Rebel Without A Crew, I knew film school wasn't for me. I mean, I was....shit, I AM a product of higher education. Now, don't get me wrong: College is important. I mean, one needs the discipline in order to learn the basics of whatever field you decide life is telling you to go in. Nurses, accountants, engineers: their fields are based on these basics and they never change. But an art-based field such as graphic design, film...that's a bit more organic (shit, I sound like a hippie, don't I?). You develop a style, a sense of working. You never hear about a surgeon who has his own style of doing open heart surgery, right? (Except for House....that foo is CrAzY!) That's the reason I wouldn't go back to school as a filmmaker. Instead, I plan on watching people make mistakes and learning what little I can learn from the Fox network. I'm talking about "On The Lot." Now I hardly ever watch TV, much less reality TV. But I've been really wanting to see this show and after the first episode, I'm hooked. I love to see these "creatives" butte heads as they try to find a solution as to how to light a scene. Fucken hilarious. It's great to see the gears turning in the contestants heads. So if you want an education in film, read Robert's book, rent some of your favorite films to see what you should do. And see this show to learn what to not do.

Monday, May 21, 2007

Local Boy Does Good....Again


So, Mr. Bryan Harley, your everywhere these days. If it's not designing award wining Web sites, making films or winning contests....it's appearing in the online edition of the NY Times. After giving the man crap for standing stoopid holding giant "I AM" cutouts, I have been pwned. He won some cash and now getting publicty for his mad video skills. Congrats, Mr. Harley. He's available for weddings and birthday parties as well (he loves doing those)....actually, if were to do those, he'd probably win some kind of award for those, too. Fucken guy.....this why I've tagged him to shoot Blur for me! Sir, if you can win awards for this, you are truly a god!

Click here to see the award winning entry for you lazy bastards!

Friday, May 18, 2007

Interweb Gold



Such a great song from the late J-Dilla and an awesome video from Daniel Garcia. Simple, effective and heart warming. Lovin' this shit!

Thursday, May 17, 2007

My "funny book" history Pt. 1

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It's over. Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch's brilliant run on Marvel Comics' The Ultimates has finally come to and end and I'm a bit saddened. With this book, these guys reinvented comics and injected the often misunderstood world of comics with a dose of gritty storytelling, artwork and reality based credibility and will forever live , in my book, as one of the greatest series I've ever read. Always viewed as kiddie material, comics these days are far beyond that. Quite frankly, I'm not sure if I would of been able to understand today's comics back in the days and it's almost as if the industry has grown up right along with me. I started reading comics back in the early 90's when I was at a Madera Johnny Quik on my way home from a visit to the hospital (I can't quite remember for what, though). On the rack there I saw it and it jumped out at me. I remember thinking, this has to be the stupidest thing I had ever seen up to that point in my life: NFL Superpro #1. Yup, that was my first comic book, or "funny book" as my dad used to call them. I bought it and I laughed my ass off for all the wrong reasons. That shit was absolutely horrible. But, it was that book that lead my to start reading comics and the more I read them, the more I was pulled in by the Marvel Universe and it's many inhabitants. As the audience and creators got older and became bored with this universe, they began to create comics aimed at an older audience. A revolution was started and the mid-90's brought us the Image Universe, a creator owned imprint that would let artists work on characters spawned from their own imaginations and not have to worry about decades of back story and continuity issues. As good as it sounded, the end result wasn't what everyone thought it was going to be. The creative freedom didn't do much but create second rate characters with female sidekicks adorned with giant boobs and wraped around with shiny chromium hologram covers. Anything to sell books to my adolescent demographic and sometimes it worked, but I quickly lost faith. As did most people, it seemed. In turn, the industry was almost killed. Marvel was in shambles. DC was worse. And besides the brand name artists, Image was sucking big time. I went back and read my Superpro and thought "Geez, we haven't progress that much further than this, have we?" I flat out stopped reading comics.

Autobots! Roll out!

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I'm a child of the 80's so I'm loving this stuff. Check out the new trailer over at yahoo.com

New Transformers Trailer

Oh Mr. Bay....I hope you did us good with this one, I really do.

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

And so it begins....

Welcome to my corner of the room. For those of you who know me, I apologize: You got jacked when God was handing out friends. I'm a gregarious, sarcastic asshole who will, no doubt, get on your nerves every once in a while but I hope not enough to stop listening. "So why should I even start listening to you?" you might ask. Well, maybe your friends with me already, maybe I saved your life one time or another, maybe I owe you money and your waiting for me to give out my exact location so you can come and rape me, I don't know. So what's the reasoning for this blog? Well, not one thing in particular, just another way to get my projects out there and release pent up anger and what not. Hopefully I can provide you with a laugh from time to time, maybe begin a discussion and hopefully not ignite a malestorm of hate towards myself or my crew. NYUP!