The Hollywood Complex

I watched a documentary the other night called The Hollywood Complex which is about the migration of hopeful child actors to LA for pilot season. It focuses on a few families who have come seeking fame and fortune and stay in an apartment complex that caters to those who are looking for their big break.
We see these young folks as they attend classes and seminars, go on auditions, and deal with the cruel business that preys upon the hopeful.
As a filmmaker I've worked with kids before. More than a few times. Each time I try and do my best to make the experience a fun one. I look out for them. Everyone on my crew does. The thought of them heading out to Los Angeles and being taken advantage of make me angry.
Another part of the flick that annoyed the heck out of me was a guy who was leading a seminar told the kids and their parents not to do student or indie films. Why? Cause they wouldn't make money that way. For me that's a terrible thing to instill in them. While most indie and student films don't pay their actor what the talent does get is experience.
Knowing how a set works and how to work under pressure is something anyone who wants to be an actor needs to learn. It will help build the confidence needed for those jobs that someone is laying money down for. Being confident is something I look for when in the audition process.
Of course I also really enjoy giving someone a chance who may not have had one in the past. You may not have a ton of lines or be the star but I will get you in the flick somehow just so that you can get a chance to work on a set and really find out if it's something you would like to do.
It's a good documentary that I think anyone who is thinking of getting into the acting game should watch especially if you are a kid or have kids who want to act. Be smart and aware that the road is not an easy one and there are trolls under every bridge.

See the film now on Netflix Instant Watch.

The first time I sat down at a make shift editing station set up in my living room to edit my first film on my own I had no idea that it was going to begin a career. Since that project I have edited all my own projects. I've even moved out of the living room into the spare bedroom after turning it into my office.

It was that first time though that I was thinking about while driving home from seeing a movie and a song came over the radio that triggered all sorts of memories. I listened to that song over and over again while editing that film and it now sends me back in time to recall all the fun of that edit even with the many issues that popped up while cutting.

One of the first things you learn when making a film is that just because something sounds good on the page it doesn't mean it's going to work coming out of someones mouth. A line that killed when you were writing it causes people to giggle when spoken out loud by the actor. There were a ton of those kinds of lines in this flick and most of them were coming from the same character. What resulted was the need to cut our about half the lines of that character. Surprisingly it didn't harm the storytelling but there was a short period of time when I really didn't know what to do with all that dialogue that just wasn't cutting it.

I'll be honest. It's not my favorite project I've made. It's hard for me to look past all the mistakes I made. I give myself a little break due to the fact it was my first attempt at doing something substantial but it was definitely an eye opener that pushed me to do better the next time. It seems each project I do has a little bit of that push as well. Each time I try and make sure I'm doing something challenging to make sure I never get stagnant. I think that is the problem with a lot of filmmakers in the DIY scene. They figure they can be lazy since they aren't a studio production. Good enough is good enough for them.

For me it's not good enough. I kick myself every time I start thinking that something is "good enough". Ever since I sat and watched that first project play out and I started making the list in my mind of things I should have done better I've always pushed myself to do better each time I set out to do another project. So far I think I've done a good job of delivering better each time but that doesn't mean that I can stop. It just means I need to once again truthfully evaluate my work and ask the same old question of myself.

"Now what can I do to make this better?" 

Busy. That's what I've been for the last few months. Projects have been building up as well as real world issues such as family, jobs, fun, etc. Now that the first month of 2012 has come and gone it's time to take stock in what I've managed to stir up this year so far...
I'm currently in production on a project that just might make us a little money in the next few months so that's always a good thing. It's a ton of work though and is taking up a ton of my time making it near impossible to get anything done on my own personal projects. Hopefully it will slow down soon and I can make some headway.
In a couple weeks I'll be working with another band of local filmmakers on one of their projects. It's going to be a few days of shooting and then a bit of editing. I'm looking forward to jumping back into a narrative project especially with these guys as it's always fun and professional. They are also very good at making those working on their projects feel like it's ours as well.
I'm getting the final bits put together on the documentary I filmed last summer. While the turn around time has been way longer than I would have liked I feel it's been one of my favorite projects to work on. Not only did I learn a lot about a style of film I love but I also made a couple friends in the process.
Along with some freelance vid work here and there I think I've done a good job at keeping busy so far.

Hopefully I'll get more time to write on this thing as well.