Disneyland on my Birthday!
Posted by Jeremiah on July 15th, 2009 @ 04:00 AM | Comments (0)

On July 8th, I turned 29 years old. It was the first birthday I’ve ever spent away from my family. Thankfully, the kind folks at Disneyland stepped in to help me through it. They let me in free and gave me a button announcing to the cast members and park guests that it was my birthday. Throughout the day, I had people wishing me a happy birthday. I ate lunch at my favorite restaurant in the park - The Blue Bayou - and got a special birthday desert - absolutely free.

Here is some video I took from the queue of my favorite ride - Pirates of the Carribean.

It was truly a magical day and I’ll never forget it. Everyone should take advantage of this deal and go on your birthday. Disney knows how to make you feel special. Not as special as my mom makes me feel, but pretty dang close.

Movie Recommendations
Posted by Jeremiah on July 14th, 2009 @ 04:00 AM | Comments (0)

You all should see

1) The Bad and the Beautiful

Here is the synopsis from Netflix: “Charismatic but ruthless film producer Jonathan Shields (Kirk Douglas) needs a blockbuster after producing three consecutive flops and falling out of favor with the studio. To help him make a comeback, he appeals to three Hollywood heavyweights — a director (Barry Sullivan), an actress (Lana Turner) and a writer (Dick Powell) — who owe their success to Shields. Unfortunately, they all hate his guts and have vowed never to work for him again.”

This movie is awesome. It was a stark reminder to be careful out here. It’s easy to get used. But the film says even though you get used, sometimes it works out for the best. And we all know that “all things work together for good…”

2) The Orphanage -

Netflix: “Fueled by fond memories from her childhood, Laura (Belén Rueda) persuades her husband (Fernando Cayo) to help her revamp a seaside orphanage into a facility for disabled children. But soon after the couple moves in, their son, Simón (Roger Príncep), begins exhibiting disturbing behavior. As Laura tries to understand Simón’s increasingly malevolent actions, she becomes drawn into the house’s terrifying secrets in this unnerving chiller.”

This movie was amazing. One of the best scary movies I’ve ever seen. Check it out. This director knows how to scare you without gore and cheap tricks - like The Sixth Sense. And it’s not just a scary movie - its also sweet like The Sixth Sense. SEE IT.

Video Posts
Posted by Jeremiah on July 13th, 2009 @ 04:00 AM | Comments (1)

I haven’t written anything in the blog in about a month and instead of blaming my laziness, I’m going to blame my new iPhone 3GS w/ video. I’ve been posting videos directly to my youtube account. I thought I’d share some of these posts here to catch you up with what I’ve been doing. For the most part, I’ve just been working nights. I moved to an apartment in Burbank on the 3rd of July. My friend Nate McGill came out and helped me move and then we spent a week exploring LA and the surrounding area.

Here is my first post - a view of my edit bay where I work -

Screenwriting -

Mountains -

California Driver’s Test -

Travel Town in Griffith Park -

My first Hollywood Party/Screening -

(We won the competition)

On the Fox Lot -

The Getty Center -

Malibu (Beautiful!) -

The Devil’s Punchbowl -

To continue seeing my videos, subscribe to my youtube channel here.

Good Quote from a Great Guy
Posted by Jeremiah on June 16th, 2009 @ 05:00 AM | Comments (4)

I flew home on Saturday for a quick trip to Florida with my family. On Sunday, I got to hear my dad preach at the church where he is serving as interim pastor. (First Baptist Dudley, Georgia.)

My dad spoke on faith. He said we all have this box around us called security - most of us stay in this box our entire lives. But we’re meant to trust God and step out of the box to follow Him, even if it doesn’t make sense to everyone around us.

He said something that struck me as really profound.

“If what you are doing in life doesn’t require faith, you’re probably out of God’s will.”

God wants us to step out boldly and follow Him. I feel like I’ve taken that first step toward a faith-driven life. But I run the risk of being stagnant. It’s not a one-time leap but a constant free-fall. I have to be careful not to grab on to something as I go. This job could really derail this faith journey - I have to remember, my security is God and not my job.

Anyway, I thought you guys might want to hear what my dad had to say. He’s a really cool guy. Not your typical pastor.

PA Work
Posted by Jeremiah on June 15th, 2009 @ 05:00 AM | Comments (1)

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to work as a PA on a music video for Disney. The artist was Demi Lovato. I could share some behind the scenes details about her and how she acted on set but I won’t.

About 7 years ago, I worked for a month on a really bad feature that was shot in Sarasota, Florida called The Bail. It is also known as Fizzy Bizness. The film never got distribution. Some poor guy is out $2 million. The good news, is I got my first IMDB credit from this film. That was awesome.

Check out the trailer here.

Anyway, this was the first time I had ever been on a film set and I was blown away. The production process is so cool. I could live on a film set. I love it.

But at the time, I didn’t love being a PA. (Who does?) I was really intimidated by the whole thing. I was only 21 so I guess that’s excusable. But I always hated the thought of having to PA again because I wasn’t very good at it.

One of the things keeping me from moving to LA was this fear. I knew if I moved to LA, I’d probably have to PA again. And I really didn’t want to. But after much prayer, God helped to to lay down my fear and pride (I’d directed a feature - PAing was beneath me - haha.) So I moved to LA and met up with a music video director who is also a pastor out here and he got me booked on this music video for Disney as a PA.

On the Disney shoot, I wasn’t the greatest PA in the world. I made mistakes. I got yelled at by the AD (it wasn’t my fault - I had a faulty radio but try telling that to an AD.) I spent half the day nervous. But by the last half of the day, I had discovered that the real key to success as a PA is just plain old hard work. Run faster. Work faster. Never take a break.

I learned that even though I’m not the best PA in the world, I could try and be the hardest working PA. So I busted my butt. There were other guys who were way better than me but I tried to work twice as hard as them. It was a great day. I was so sore the next few days but it felt so good.

I had conquered my fear. PAing still isn’t my favorite thing in the world but I’m not afraid anymore. Evening being yelled at by the AD wasn’t the worst thing in the world (I used to have nightmares about the AD who worked on The Bail.) He actually apologized for yelling at me. That guy (named Chef) broke every AD stereotype in the book by doing that.

God was good to give me closure to my “Bail” experience. I’m very grateful.

Last Friday night, I volunteered as a PA on a night shoot. I was feeling pretty comfortable as a set PA. But early on, they put me in Camera department - doing some of what a 2nd AC would do. I’d never worked in camera before so this was new. I was a little nervous but mostly excited to learn. And it was a great experience thanks to a nice bunch of camera department guys.

So that’s one more fear I faced down. Next up, I think I’ll try to watch Neverending Story with the lights off - that Gmork scares the crap out of me. I’m serious. I have nightmares about that thing.

Oh, FYI -

PA= Production Assistant
AD= Assistant Director
AC = Camera Assistant (I know the words are swapped - its just how it is)

I have a job in TV!
Posted by Jeremiah on June 12th, 2009 @ 05:00 AM | Comments (3)

So my car broke down, AGAIN. This time, the Radiator. Apparently, what I fixed wasn’t the problem. Haha. At least I tried. I ended up taking the car back to the people who replaced the engine. $425 later, I had a new radiator.

During this whole car thing, I was getting really low on funds and actually thought about packing it in and going back to Georgia to live with my parents. After praying and hearing from friends who encouraged me to stick it out, I realized that I was being stupid. God has called me here. If I were to leave, I’d be like Jonah from the Bible. And God would send a whale to swallow me.

A week ago, I got a call about a job. A job as an assistant editor for a reality show. The pay is great. The hours are not so much - 6pm till 4am, Monday thru Friday. But the best part is, I didn’t have to interview. A friend from college recommended me. Wow. I’ve been here two months and God has provided me with a job.

So with the money I make from this 2 month gig, I should be able to pay my bills and save a little for the lean months. This is awesome.

That’s what has been going on. Thought I’d check in.

Keep on truckin’.

Gremlins screen w/ Joe Dante - pt 2
Posted by Jeremiah on May 26th, 2009 @ 05:00 AM | Comments (0)

Check out part 1 from yesterday.

After speaking about the first Gremlins, Joe began to speak about Gremlins 2. Joe said that Gremlins 2 is what Gremlins 1 was trying to be. He said Part 2 had way more of himself in it.

They were trying to get Rick Baker to do the Gremlins puppets for the second film but he didn’t want to because someone else had already done the first. Rick didn’t feel like there was an opportunity for him to create anything new. So Dante came up with the science lab story point about all the mutated Gremlins. Baker then agreed.

Dante pointed out that Gremlins 2 bombed because Warner Brothers waited too long to make it. It came out 6 years after the first one.

They other reason it bombed was because it was advertised to be released in May but Warner Brothers ended up delaying it till July. They wanted it to compete with Dick Tracy. Because of this, neither movie made much money.

Joe spoke of his next film. It is called The Hole. It is a 3D film shot on the RED camera. That’s kind of cool that one of my heroes is now shooting on the RED. Though kind of sad too.

Joe talked about why all of his films are ensemble films rather than films about one lead character. He said, “I like to work with lots of actors. The more actors the better.”

Someone asked about Dick Miller who played Mr. Futterman in Gremlins and has a small part in just about every film Dante has made. Joe said Dick is fine. He is semi-retired but did a cameo in The Hole. That makes me happy.

Joe was asked about working with Jerry Goldsmith, the composer of just about all of his films. He said Jerry was a genius. He initially worked with him on Twilight Zone: The Movie because Jerry had been hired before Joe came on the project. He liked Jerry so much, he used him until Jerry’s death. For his new film, he had trouble finding a composer. He ended up using the composer who worked on Pan’s Labyrinth. Joe worked with Jerry Goldsmith on more movies than any other director. (Jerry Goldsmith is my favorite composer, FYI.)

Joe mentioned a Youtube clip that he really enjoyed. Apparently some guy made his own Gremlins and put them into a series of famous movies like Batman and Raiders of the Lost Ark. I checked it out. Amazing –

He also brought up a really clever British Telecom commercial that used Gremlins.

To finish the Q and A, he talked about the possibility of a 3rd movie. He said without a doubt there will be another movie – though it may just be a remake of the first one. He doesn’t know this for sure but said they are remaking everything now so its makes sense. He also said there is no way they’d ask him to make it. Unlike Zemeckis and Spielberg, he doesn’t command as much respect in the industry at the moment. Maybe his new film will put him where he belongs.

He did say it would be a shame to make Gremlins with CG. He pointed out that part of the charm of the first two was they were made primitively with puppets. I agree- CG gremlins would be awful.

His final comment was that he prefers the second film but he does like the first one. It was the only film he made any money on.
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After the Q and A, Joe was mobbed by a dozen fan-boys with several more waiting to pounce on him as he left the theater. I really wanted to meet him and talk to him one-on-one but I didn’t want to be just another fan-boy talking about how much his films meant to me. So, I stayed away.

I’m hoping that one day, Josh and I will be at a point in our career that we can call up these directors that have meant so much to us and schedule some time to learn from them. And possibly develop a friendship.

So that’s my Gremlins/Joe Dante experience. I hope you enjoyed it.

Gremlins screening w/ Joe Dante - pt 1
Posted by Jeremiah on May 25th, 2009 @ 05:00 AM | Comments (0)

This past Friday night, I had a very unique experience that typically only happens in LA. Because this is a movie-lover’s town, there are dozens of opportunities to watch older movies pretty much every day of the week.

On Friday night, there was a screening of Gremlins and Gremlins 2 at the Aero Theater in Santa Monica. Normally I might have passed up this opportunity but I noticed one minor detail about the screening – Joe Dante was going to be there to take part in a Q and A. So obviously, I had to attend.

Joe Dante is one of my top 5 filmmakers. He sits up there with John Ford, Frank Capra, Steven Spielberg and Robert Zemeckis. Let me recap the movies he has directed that have made an impact on my life.

Gremlins – One of my favorite Christmas movies of all time. That opening sequence where Billy runs through town is amazing. This movie serves as a good bridge between Halloween movies and Christmas movies – as does Nightmare before Christmas.

Innerspace - I first saw this movie while my family was house-sitting for an extremely rich family. We were essentially homeless for a short time so this movie (and that amazing house) provided an escape from our present circumstances. Dennis Quaid and Martin Short = the perfect odd couple.

Explorers - the film that inspired me to dream incredible dreams… and still does. (I can excuse the sort of lame ending because the beginning is so magical.)

The Burbs - possibly my favorite comedy of all time. Tom Hanks’ finest comedy for sure.

Gremlins 2 – This is an excellent example of a director putting his entire voice into a film. It’s way more wacky than the first movie and I really like that. Still, the first one is my favorite of the two.

–
So I went to the screening and noticed immediately that the theater was filled with over a hundred fan-boys. Everyone in that theater absolutely LOVED the films of Joe Dante, just like me. So that was odd, being in a room full of my clones.

Joe took the stage and introduced the movie. He informed us that this was the preview version that he screened before the final cut. There were 6 additional minutes in the film but I’d seen all of the additional scenes on the DVD release.

Then we watched the film. After the film, Joe and Glynn Turman came on stage. Glynn Turman played Mr. Hanson, the science teacher.

Here are some of the notes I took on the Q and A.

Before he made Gremlins, Joe was at low point in his career. He had just made The Howling, which made money, but he didn’t make any because he was not in the director’s guild.

Steven Spielberg saw The Howling and contacted him about making Gremlins. Spielberg intended Gremlins to be the first film produced under his Amblin company and it was. Warner Brothers had to make the film because Spielberg wanted it made and they had a deal with him. They also wanted Joe to direct it because they wanted the film made for extremely cheap and since he still wasn’t in the DGA, they wouldn’t have to pay a lot.

The first version of the script was not a comedy. Chris Columbus (now a famous director) wrote the script as a gruesome horror film. He never intended for it to get made. He just used it as a writing sample.

Joe said, “Chris Columbus’ original script was definitely more of a horror film than what we developed Gremlins into. His original version had the monsters killing the dog and cutting off the mom’s head and tossing it down the stairs. We realized as we continued developing the project we needed to have a different tone.”

The film became a comedy as Joe started to put his touch on the film. He’s a filmmaker with a definite voice - something I strive to have.

The film ended up costing $11 million – way more than Warner Brothers wanted to pay initially. But Joe was firm that he couldn’t make the movie for less because of all the puppetry involved.

Steven Spielberg had final say on the design of Gizmo. He didn’t like any of them until they decided to color Gizmo like Spielberg’s cocker spaniel. He approved the next version.

Glynn Turman was asked about working with Mogwais. He said it was an exercise in concentration because there were so many guys operating it, it was hard to focus and forget about all those guys.

Joe was asked about the production. He said the worst part of production was after the initial production with the actors. He shot for a month and a half after everyone left with just the puppets. He said it was a nightmare.

One cool bit of movie trivia – the close-ups of Gizmo were done with a giant Gizmo head.

Glynn Turman pointed out that the script was Top Secret. Each script was given a code on each page so they’d know who leaked the script if it ever got out.

They talked about Mr. Hanson’s death. They initially shot a version where Billy finds Mr. Hanson laying on the ground with 6 needles stuck in his head. They had to use the alternate which was Mr. Hanson’s body underneath the desk.
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Come back tomorrow for part 2 and hear Joe Dante’s thoughts on the sequel.

Car Trouble again!
Posted by Jeremiah on May 24th, 2009 @ 10:03 PM | Comments (4)

As you may remember, my car blew an engine 7 weeks ago on my way into LA. I had to have the entire engine replaced (meaning a lot of debt.)

Last night, my car overheated. It had spewed coolant all over the place. Thankfully, it happened outside my house. After consulting SEVERAL people on Twitter and Facebook as well as talking to my father back in Georgia, I decided to try and fix it myself. The most likely problem was that the thermostat had gotten stuck closed. So I filled the radiator with water and drove to the local Napa Auto Parts.

I bought the parts and coolant I needed for $30 (PRAISE GOD) and went back to the house. I borrowed tools from the people I’m staying with and set about fixing my car. I’ve never fixed anything on an engine in my life. So this was a big deal. (I can rebuild a computer with ease but a car engine is a mystery to me.)

Two hours later, I had fixed it. (Those of you who know about replacing thermostats will understand that this was way more time than it requires. Haha. But I’m a newbie.) I watched some videos on YouTube and read a couple of how-tos online. No joke. That’s how I did it.

There was only one mishap during this process. The only container I had to catch the coolant when I drained the radiator was a pizza box. And of course, wet cardboard doesn’t contain liquid. (It wasn’t my idea - just to be clear. But I did accept it as a solution so I am equally at fault.) To sop up the coolant running everywhere on the pavement, I opened my trunk and grabbed a 12-pack of extra absorbent toilet paper. And boy did it work. Thankfully, I don’t think any neighborhood cats will be dying because of me.

The point of this story is this - I’m out here in LA essentially by myself. I don’t have my dad to fix every problem for me. God’s not going to fix every problem for me either. This whole thing is one big adventure - and from what I’ve seen in the Indiana Jones trilogy, adventures are hard and dangerous, and sometimes bad things happen.

In the end, this whole thing was an answer to prayer, although masked in a whole lot of frustration. I had prayed that God would give me strength and confidence out here. Paying a mechanic was OUT of the question - I still don’t have a job. God put me in a situation that I had to face and had no other options. And by facing it head on and trusting God to guide me through it, I now know how to replace the thermostat on my car. That gives me confidence to try some other minor fixes on the car. Confidence.

Every day is an adventure out here. I recommend it. Take a leap. Whatever your “LA” is, go for it. Life is too short to live a boring, normal life. You’ll never feel more alive. And your relationship with God will never be more sweet than when you have to rely on HIM for EVERYTHING!

My car has a backseat again!!!
Posted by Jeremiah on May 18th, 2009 @ 04:30 AM | Comments (0)

I moved to LA a little over a month ago and have been living out of my car. My backseat was my closet. My passenger seat was my kitchen. My trunk was my garage. Thankfully, I never had to sleep in my car. I slept on a series of couches for about 4 weeks.

But last week, all of that changed. I now have my own room and my own bathroom. It’s a garage apartment at a friends’ house. It is only for two months but I am so thankful for it. God knew how much time I could take living out of my car and now I know - 4 weeks exactly. I was about to go crazy. Usually I am a very organized person. My room at home is always in order. But it is so tough to keep your car organized when there just isn’t enough room.

I am so thankful to have all my stuff out of my car. Its been so cool to see God provide exactly what I need when I need it. I have to move out of this place at the end of June but I know God will provide the next step.

I don’t have much to write about at the moment. I’m still interning and getting more comfortable on the phones. I’m still meeting and networking with people pretty regularly. One person of note that I met with was Gregg Bishop, director of Dance of the Dead. He’s a great guy.

It is so surreal to be here. I was at Starbucks with Gregg the other day and mid-sentence, I realized that the Warner Bros. Studio water tower was right down the street and I just had to comment about it. This place is amazing.

Hooray for Hollywood.