You Know What I Did Last Summer

So I seem to take holidays from blogging during the standard holiday times. Over winter I had a large gap in my blog, and now summer has come and gone -- with another big lull in my blogging. Here is an abridged list of things I did over the summer.

We now return to your regularly scheduled program.

My Michael Jackson Connection

All-America DavidOn June 13, 2005 I got a call from my sister. She and her roommates had decided to drive up to where the Michael Jackson trial was being held to witness the craziness that was happening there daily. Ventura, where I was living at the time, was on the way so she asked if I wanted to come along. I am always in for an adventure, so I hopped in the car with my sister Harmony, and her roommates Sarah, Joanna and David and set course for Santa Maria California. I took a lot of pictures on our adventure, but this is the first time I have published them.

Heal the World.When we arrived we had no idea that this would be the day that the verdict was delivered. We got to the courthouse very shortly after the news went out: The Australian"Not Guilty." It was pandemonium. People were cheering, some were boo-ing, total strangers we hugging in the streets. I remember specifically one man from Australia who came out just to support Micheal. He gave many intense news interviews. We heard that after MJ's arraignment, he had invited everyone present to come back to Neverland to enjoy the carnival-like atmosphere. We thought this might be a possibilty now and we weren't going to miss out on that. We also weren't the only ones with that idea.

Never, Neverland.The gates of Neverland were firmly shut, but that didn't stop the throngs of supporters who were content just to be there. It was a truly bizarre scene. A few of the Jackson entourage came out to thank the supporters. At one point, Tito Tito on the Scene.said hello from behind the gates. Everyone was waiting to see if Michael would come out and say something to the crowd, but eventually we were told that he was tired and would not be seen. Our Jacksonian adventure was over.

Although I love his music, I am definitely not one of the hardcore Jackson supporters. In fact, I still think he most likely committed some crimes against children. However, his contribution to music and culture cannot be denied. He was an utterly complex individual with many positives and negatives about him. Does his story remind anyone else of that of Anakin Skywalker? Hopefully Quincy Jones isn't working on a Vader-style suit...

More photos from my day on the Michael Jackson news beat.

Why I Make Films.

A room full of rodent bones.There are many reasons why I decided to become a filmmaker. Many of the reasons are fairly normal; The thrill of creating something new, the joy of collaboration, the allure of fame, etc. However, one of my primary motivations is quite different, I think. I make films because of the strange and random situations I get to experience in the pursuit of making a film project. When I am in a unique situation, I always think that I would never have had this experience if I wasn't in this business.

The following is a list of things I have done with the end goal being some kind of motion picture project(in no particular order).

  • Saved Matt Czurchy's pants, so he could go home.
  • Met someone in a parking lot because they had a russian accent.
  • Shoveled Mud until 5am
  • Met friend in London for two hours just to shoot a music video.
  • Sat behind Morgan Spurlock at a swank Hollywood awards show.
  • Went on a very long quest for enourmous wings.
  • Been Backstage at a fashion show.
  • Hiked the longest glacier in the alps with the father of trick skiing.
  • Watched goats walk through a restaurant terrace.
  • Been at a long-out-of-business 50's diner at dawn.
  • Sped through downtown LA, shining a strobelight out of the window.
  • Went to SF to meet the EFF.
  • Drove an hour and a half to give someone pants.
  • Cleaned a room full of rodent bones.
  • Video production with a still camera.
  • Attended a World's Strongest Man competition.
  • Had Sushi with a web startup that eventually went belly up.
  • Had Free champagne and free reign of a hip dance club.
  • Ate Spaghetti with H.R. Giger.

And countless more.

From what I can tell, filmmaking is one of the only jobs that can give such unique experiences while still being the same job. Does that make any sense? 

Enjoying my blog? Subscribe by RSS or follow me on Twitter

Holiday Downtime

It's a common phenomenon for blogs to go silent during the Holidays. The cold weather, combined with holiday events and 'beginning of the year malaise', cause the blogosphere to settle in for a long winter's nap. Ok, I have no evidence for this. It's just an excuse for my laziness.

So here is what has happend since my last blog post in list form.

Phew! All caught up!