Everything She Wants

Besides the usual Depeche Mode and Bjork downloads I'm quite proud of my Wham "Everything She Wants" download. Its 1984 in its sweetest form. Makes me wanna work out to Buns of Steel and grow Sea Monkies at the same time. I think I should be good for the rest of the night with this song alone. If only I had a ghetto blaster to play in on, or at least a headband for my bopping head.

Scenes

Woah this semester has been busy. Lots of scenes have been shot; for my "Directing the Scene" and "Directing Actors" classes lol Please do visit YouTube to have a looksey at some as I continue to post. I go under the name McReDox (one I created during my Biology Major Years).
I am currently de-interlacing my "Lieberman in Love" scene which I hope other people find as funny as I do. Its rather sad to be laughing at your own work at 3am all alone in your tiny, dark, dorm room but there you have it.
I tried to re-vamp my "New Year" but YouTube quality made the camera work look pretty lame. Lamersausages.
Just as an inside note, the opening score was done by Moby, I totally garnered the rights by asking. Thank you Moby, your music will continue to inspire artists for decades to come.
I still have my mini-doc to upload, but before I do I have to insert a very important sound bite for my lead actor. Justice will be served- just when I have more time; like after I clean my room.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXbYEta-3-Q
That should be the link to New Year.
So as the lovely Bjork says, enjoy.

Social Suicide

It has been my opinion for quite some times that men's fashion is far more stylish and cool than women's. I envy them for being able to wear full suits (like Tom Ford), while women feel socially obligated to expose as much of themselves as possible, (like Scarlet Johanson and Keira Knightley in the same famous spread). Well if I were a man, or simply had the money to afford it, I would dress in Simon Waterfall's "Social Suicide" line of clothing only. What imagination, what class! These suits are as cheeky as they are gorgeous, I would love to dress my boyfriend up and parade him around town in these blazers. One has the word ARMED stitched across the back with a white revolver embroidered on the right pocket. So hot I wish I could be robbed. There's another which has on the inside lining a very life-like rolled-up porn mag embroidered as if you were toting it on the inside of your jacket. Brilliant brilliant brilliant.
I know it seems like it does take much to impress me, but I am so fed up with the sheep mentality you so often encounter in school, depressingly even in Universities. I wish I could go all Harajuko out like I did in Japan, but the looks and assumptions made here by how you dress hold too lasting of an impression on people. Clothes today should be frivolous, cheeky extensions of one's flippant mood, not an established solemn affair that you will be judged by now and forever! Oh and please don't get me started on the high-waters and flip-flops look that EVERYONE in Thatcher has been wearing EVERYDAY for the past TEN years with another ten to come. Good Lord it bothers me! Ah, I can only wait till I get the reins of a big production and can dictate the costume design myself, much like Hitchcock did ^_~

Doll Inspiration

So it's been a long long time since I've posted anything, but thats because I ended by internship with Platform 1 Entertainment back in April. They're a great company and it was a lot of fun, but without any prompts to write I didn't feel any need to. Well I'm finally in the true summer mode of routine that I feel I can earnestly start up again. To commemorate, I'd like to post a link to one of my all-time favorite blog postings, its quite famous actually, and it got me addicted to reading the best of Craig's List New York blog postings for a good 2 months straight! Here is it: http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/nyc/51526837.html "My little nazi dolls (pics)" lmao good stuff, it really is. So heres to hoping I can break the monotony that is Thatcher with some good ole fashion web posting. ^_~ Cheers

CMI

Alright so here is the line-up of some awesome indie bands touring this summer:

Twentyfour64: Los Angeles, CA
The Features: Nashville, TN
The Gin Riots: London, UK
Strange Face: Raleigh, NC
Brite Lite Brite: Boston, MA
Mav Viola: West Hollywood, CA
Glasko: Chicago, IL
Pinstripe 45's: Chicago, IL
Early States: Sacramento, CA
On Blast: Long Beach, CA
Hogni: Copenhagen, Denmark
Our Satori: Santa Cruz, CA
Televandals: Boston, MA
Conservative Man: Nashua, NH
Rising Sound: Los Angeles, CA
Offshore Radio: Olympia, WA

Now it is with great pleasure that I say my favorite of these is without a doubt Conservative Man. What a brilliant band. When I heard "Room Call" I absolutly fell in love with their up-beat, synthesized sound. I'm so glad band leader Ian McCarthy decided to turn his "one-man studio project to a live act" as last.fm wrote in their profile about the band (http://www.last.fm/music/Conservative+Man).
Please check them out if you're in the area, you wont regret it!

Alas, I am too far from New Hamshire to see them in person; yet there are so many bands playing California (which for argument's sake I will refer to as regionally close enough to attend) that I have a wide assortment to choose from. I'd have to say Early States is my favorite of these bands playing in CA. Check out some of their music on YouTube, (especially "Back to the Start"), their Maroon 5-esq vocals and chill guitar and bass sound makes for memorable beats that are good for long car rides. Major props to a band who's members can look so good AND be so talented.

Well thats my two cents, but as that dude from the show Reading Rainbow would say, "but don't take my word for it" (i.e. go see them in concert!!!!). ^_~

Music Supervisor

So we all love it when we hear our favorite song in movies so a hip film plays an array of contemporary music that sets the date and tone right away. (Was that a complete sentence?) At any rate, if I had to choose my favorite uses of music in American Cinema (drum roll please) they would be as follows:

Opening Credits: The Pink Panther (And I'm talking the original 1960s Blake Edwards one- not the Steve Martin nonsense. The composer of this song Henry Mancini is a Genius!!!)

Car Chase: Repo Man (Circle Jerks)

Love Scene: Silence of the Lambs (The part where Buffalo Bill is putting on make-up and hair to become a woman. I know its not a traditional love scene but he's so in-love with himself that it counts. Lazrus Q's song "Good-bye Horses" makes this scene a cinematic moment"

Fight Scene: No Country for Old Men (The total lack of non-diagetic  sound creates great tension and suspense- really good stuff ^^)

Ending Credits: The Godfather (The Godfather theme is as beautiful as it is timeless. One of the best films of all time I had to include it)

So there you have it, pop songs are not always the best choice and sometimes you don't need any music at all; it just depends on the mood you're trying to create. Just a little wisdom for you to mull over ^o^

Blessings from Heaven

Hey hey hey! Just wanna say I got a Premiere Internship with the NALIP Producers Academy in Santa Fe New Mexico this August 4th through the 20th (which works out perfectly cuz DM will be in PHX on the 23rd)! This is more than I could have ever imagined, I'm so blessed. And as if that wasn't enough, the same day I found out I won the "La Unidad Latina" Scholarship for this year. Now I can pay for my stay in New Mexico with that money! I'm really so thankful to the Lord and how generous He is. I'm in awe at how kind He can be. ^_^

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Well, I hate to judge things based on trailers. A whole different group of people (Marketing peeps) are involved in the process separate from the production team entirely so they can edit together whatever mood they desire, creating something significantly different from original piece. However, since a trailer is all that's available for "Where the Wild Things Are" I'll share my thoughts on the film. 

It seems current Michael Bay and J.J. Abrams techniques of throw in a f-ton of special effects to make the audience not notice the PWP (Plot? What Plot?) syndrome inflicting the narrative has crept into even this children's book classic. I remember reading the book when I was little and thinking ya, freakin rage! It was so close to those dark moods kids feel now and then, threatening to eat their mothers and such.

But in this, I saw an effeminate boy surrounded by explosions and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon type effects. If thats whats going down in this movie then laaaaame. I ain't chill with that. I'd be happier with a quieter, indie feel, or a darker, Tim Burton feel. I curse the day Michael Bay got accepted into the DGA. 

So I must inform all who happen upon this blog, texting "UA Mode" to 306-44 will save you tons on restaurants near campus. Its totally free and you can text "Stop" at anytime to discontinue the service. I signed up months ago and have gotten cheap Jamba Juice, Johnny Rockets, Silver Mine Subs, Good Fellas, and drink specials to places on 4th. It has my complete recommendation. ^_^

Also, for some sweet free music downloads, text "Plat1" to 320-75. This is also completely free and will take you to a website stock full of free music! Life doesn't get much easier than this. 

Well what's also going down this August is the music extravaganza Lollapalooza! Aug. 7-9 at the Grant Park in Chicago, artists Radiohead, Rage Against the Machine, Nine Inch Nails, Love and Rockets, Gnarls Barkley, and Kanye West will be performing. I am quite excited with the line-up. Its diverse spanning across generational appeal (from 80s Love and Rockets to 90s Radiohead and NIN to contemporary Gnarls Barkley and Kanye West). I happen to be very fond of a lot the bands, and would just love to go. My music video for Slain Gecko Productions was recently in the line-up with Radiohead in the Tucson Film and Music festival and I thought their newest single House of Cards was inspiring and beautiful. So lets all pool our monies and hit up this  bad-ass fest; should be orgasmic on several levels of coolness ^_^

VIOLATOR

All my dreams will shortly come true; I will have done everything I've ever possibly hoped to do come this August. -Depeche Mode is coming to Phoenix in August!!!!!!- I can't believe after all this time I'm actually going to get to see them in person. I plan on splitting open my veins at the concert and letting my blood run to the beat of the music. lol I'm such a dorky fan but DM has been such a strong influence in my life I just don't know what to do with myself sometimes. 

But if I could only choose one album out of their many as my favorite, hands down it would be their 1991 release- Violator. It has their most popular songs, Personal Jesus and Enjoy the Silence. I actually got rid of and re-bought this CD over 5 times. Initially because I was just a little kid and the subject matter got really dark in some of the songs, and then because I wanted to get over my obsession, and even because my mom told me to lol. But eventually I just got over all my reasons not to love it and now keep several copies. 

I appreciate it because its my soul in audio format. The joy, the perversity, the loneliness, the egotistical view points, all of that I feel in me. I dunno how to pin-point it exactly, but this I hold in my heart and am deeply moved by these songs that I consider very personal and wish I could keep all to myself. Its just the definition of music love for me. 

Click on www.depeche-mode-tribute.com/index.html for an awesome offer ^_^

SXSW

So we all know the South X Southwest Film and Music Festival is the shiznit, so I'd just like to do a shout-out to my favorite band playing this year: Monokino. This electronic trio hails from Holland and Beijing producing a unique sound that is playful and smart at the same moment. Right now they are the rage in Holland, Germany and China showing the broad diversity and catchiness of their beats. I think its something like a cross between Franz Ferdinand, The Darkness, and Vampire Weekend. Cute and kitschy, check it out on the sxsw.com website ^_^ 

Dream Concert Line-Ups

If I could create my dream concert line-up within 4 different genres using any music artist in recent history I would totally have things under control. 

For my 80s Alternative Rock concert, my opening act would have to be The Smiths. Now imagine them followed by The Cure. The magnitude of such an awesome New Wave line-up would be the headliner Depeche Mode. This would be the sweetest concert ever; heads would roll. I mean usually if you like one of these bands you automatically love another. Synthesizers rule old skool. 

To go even more back in time, for a classic Jazz concert I'd want to open with Nancy Wilson and have the fabulous Cab Calloway as my mid-act. To follow up his dazzling number I'd headline with the best female blues singer of all time, Billie Holliday. I know this line-up would not be possible today, but to see those two together would be quite the experience; memorable to say the least. 

Now for a contemporary Hip-Hop concert I'd like to open with a personal favorite of mine, Palo Fiasco.  The mid-liner would have to be another favorite 3-6 Mafia; but the headline would have to be one thats many people's favorite: the talented Lil Wayne. This would be an interesting concert that would bring in so many people just because of how big these names are. 

My final dream concert would be a massive, Spanish-style rave where people would loose their minds to the orgasmic ecstasy of the moment. The opening act would simply have to be M83, a headline act in their own right. Following them MSTRKRFT would rock the blood out of every body in the stadium. Now if this was mind-blowingly awesome enough so far, I'd headline this rave with none other than DJ Tiesto, the most sought-after DJ of all time. It doesn't get much better than him; not only mine but everyone else's dreams in the techno fan world would be thrillingly fulfilled.

Damn I feel like going to a concert now lol 

CANTED MAGAZINE

The U of A Media Arts program has some really cool cats within it. The ones who came together to create the media-oriented Canted Magazine are a great example of this awesome phenomena. You should check out their sweet website, decked out with goodies galore. Its entertainment in cute bite-sized, gummy bear form; a delicious delight to be sure. 

Susan Tan is this month's featured student. I just worked with her today filming an experimental lighting project, she's the perfect partner. I'm hoping I'll get to be featured in the CM interview section sometime because that would just be sick. 

I have one of the creators of this new mag in several of my classes- Estevan  Castellanos that beautiful boy. I remember him saying they're hoping to get more U of A funding to publish their stuff for mass consumption. I also hope so because as sweet as their website is, they can get more readership if they were in print. 

At any rate, its creations like Canted Magazine that make me proud to be a Media kid at the U of A. Someday we'll all make it big. 

www.cantedmagazine.com

MSG

There's MSG in all the cheap, college-kid price friendly food. They put it in Ramen, Easy Mac, Nacho Cheese, Doritos chips, lots of Chinese food, anything with an addictive, spiced flavor. MSG causes a chemical reaction that creates an excessive love to what you're eating. Kinda like sugar, but in a bad way apparently. I guess what the difference is is that MSG is addictive and sugar really is not. And supposedly it causes, Altimers, but then again my boyfriend's mom said that and according to him she's crazy. 

But MSG is yummy, and I like it. I'm just indignant its potentially dangerous. They're always trying to kill off poor people. Or at least make our brains pudding. Jeeze life is hard enough as it is.

Tonight: Franz Ferdinand

So Franz Ferdinand just released their album Tonight: Franz Ferdinand last week. Its already #9 on the Billboard 200 list and with good reason; this album is a sheer pleasure to listen to. The 4-some who brought you the post-punky Take Me Out have a refreshingly new sound that still resonates the same "dirty pop" sound that they're famous for. 

I love the extensive use of synthesizers on this album and the way they add flavor to destined hits Ulysses and No You Girls. The soft, acoustic Dream Again provides a sentimental touch while the flirtatious Katherine Kiss Me maintains the catchy, pop feel of the band. The range is quite impressive and I know these will be played extensively on the radio as soon as everyone else catches on. 

The U of A had the pleasure of having FF perform on-campus at Centennial Hall about two years ago and I can only hope we are able to somehow snag these talented boys again; too much fun ^o^