Holy potatoes. I
should feel astonished. It's the last week of the semester, but somehow it doesn't quite seem that way. The rest of campus bears a different sentiment. Mobbed computer labs, congested libraries - these small products of life escaped me long after I signed up to sell books for over a year. Some of these kids need to understand that academic life is not to be confused with reality. I'm talking to you, freshman. You're privileged to have some borrowed time on your hands before enlisted to work at the local bag factory. Sometimes I'm tempted to pull up a chair next to some unassuming student and grab his or her pockmarked face and say, "stay here... stay as long as you can."
A lot of transitioning happened on the way to make it to the end of this first leg of grad school. Some of these pivotal adjustments came from the film project I made and the others that I've assisted with. I never really did a proper follow up to the production that took place. Perhaps some stories are best shared in person. Big lesson of the semester that will carry over into post-grad work: You are incapable of controlling every aspect of your plans before a shoot.
My lead actress unexpectedly had to drop out in the middle of first day preparations. What to do? Step in and take her spot and make appropriate arrangements in between directing the crew. Welcome to the
Biz. No time to pout. Fortunately, I managed to complete a
coherent film utilizing film stock. What a remarkable feeling to break free of the digital camera for once. Earlier I collected the rest of my rushes to present before break. While reviewing some footage in the editing suite I took some random stills to post here:
I'm holding both a croquet mallet and an umbrella and the refrigerator stored around four or five gallons of milk. I can't say I deliberately set out to include that much milk as part of the mise-en-scéne for the kitchen, but if it gives the film some edge I'm completely on board.
Josh Koury's We Are Wizards is not simply Trekkies for the Hogwarts set. It is not so much about the obsessed as it is about the inspired; spotlighting Harry Potter enthusiasts who have turned fandom into a source of creativity. A bulk of the documentary focuses on "wizard rock", a genre of music influenced by the books and movies in which interviews alternate between the popular Harry and the Potters to the lesser known "Wizard Rock Partridge Family", The Hungarian Horntails. Somewhere in between we get testimonies from members of groups Draco and the Malfoys, Grop, The Whomping Willows, and mention of a band called The Wands, who sing exclusively from the perspective of being a wand. Roughly 300+ bands are touring or playing shows under the guise of a specific theme from the franchise.
photo courtesy of Stefanie Warmouth
My friend Kayla.
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