In the News…

Just last weekend we had another few days of filming Lien On Me.   The weekend started with a guerrilla shot on public property.  We drove to the end of Springdale St. in Huntington Beach… where the street dead ends.   The plan was to get a shot of Blake trying to cut the chains of a fence and break into what would presumably be the US post office.  (you’ll just have to watch the show to know what I’m talking about)  Suffice to say, not more than 5 minutes into our stunt did the police helicopter start flying overhead.  Next thing we know there is a cop car rushing up and pulling us over.  We were at a dead end and three of us were outside of the car… and I was driving without a seatbelt… so I decide to get out of the car.  I should preface this by saying again it was a dead end.  There were no lanes.. it’s not like I got out of the car with any kind of traffic.  But the cop yells, “Get back in your vehicle” and gets out of his car WITH HIS GUN POINTING AT ME!!!  So I do what any sane person would do… I got back in my car.  The cop in the passenger seat approached our car and asked ‘what are you guys doing?’  we said, ‘making a short web series film type thing’    He said, ‘is there a woman involved?”  we say “No”  and we are now very confused.  The cop runs back to his car.  The driver cop yells, “nobody move” and they get back into their car and peel out down the street, leaving us to tend to our own shit filled panties.

What this amounts to is being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  It’s our guess they got called for some domestic problem that involves a woman in the same neighborhood where we happened to be.   The up side is that they had other fish to fry and could care less if we were running around their city filming an illegal movie on public property with no insurance or city approval.  On a slow night they would have given us a lot of shit for being there.  Anther upside is that I had a cop draw his weapon on me!  That is a first for me.  Or at least its the first that I can remember.  There might have been some alcohol induced drug raid in college but that was so long ago and my memory of that is gone.  So this now stands as the first and only time I’ve ever had a cop pull a gun on me.  Chalk that one off the bucket list!

We decided to go home after the cop incident.  However, we did go back the next night and re-shot the scene.  The second night not even one cop nor any helicopter showed up.  Soooooo  Disappointing!    But the rest of the weekend was great.  Had a few baby delays but nothing we didn’t expect when we signed up with this show.  Rule one:  No animals and no kids.  Well, we have both and we somehow make it work… with people flying in from San Francisco, sick kitty cats, baby bedtime crying, quiet time after the baby goes to sleep… and very little sleep but we still manage to pull off three episodes in two days… not too shabby.

D

I was asked recently, “where did you get the idea for The Learning Curve“.  Seriously?  I have to answer that question?  No, I don’t… but lets give it a go:  Uh…. I don’t know exactly but Sometimes you get these ideas… like, ‘let’s make short videos about fun topics and for no apparent reason let’s fart in a jar”.  Then you go ahead and turn that idea into something real.  then you say, “did I seriously just do that?”  Side bar:  I remember back in high school… I think it was Scott or Don Peterson who had a fart jar. It was ceramic with a cork to capture the gas giant. Genius to say the least. But why? Well I had three sisters and right there was a pretty good reason why. Besides as boys go, you really don’t need a reason to capture a fart in a jar, you just need somebody to give it to.  Ahhhh, a boy’s youth.  I don’t suppose I’ve grown up much.  But farting in a jar isn’t the point… well maybe it is. Who cares!?  And maybe ‘who cares’ IS the point.  It’s about unplugging from expectations and doing something stupid.. even if it makes you look stupid in the eyes of your peers. I think often times, we are so caught up in playing the game of appearances… You know, making sure what you are doing doesn’t negatively alter any one’s opinion of you.  My God, it sounds like I’ve just justified the genius of The Learning Curve.  I’ve just done what I learned back in my art classes in college.  Which is we used to sit around in a circle and deconstruct every one’s paintings or sculptures.  Each artist would go on some long boring diatribe about the cultural significance of their ‘piece’.  Jesus, the bullshit people would come up with!  I became a master at fabricating the subcounscious reasoning behind a painting of a giant vagina.  I would say it was my dormant maternal insticts… it was the opposite of penis envy.  It was vagina envy.  Where as it was really just my 21 year old need to get laid. (didn’t work by the way)  And the point is that The Learning Curve is Just plain old Genius.  And with like minded discoveries  like gravity, E=MC2, Theory of Evolution and non-stick cooking ware, the combination of factual news and farting in a jar will revolutionize popular culture.  It’s as if some all powerful force is speaking through me and delivering a message of clarvoyance.  Something for the masses.  Something we all can do on a daily basis to bring peace and harmony to the universe.  It’s just genius.  Learn to live with it.

Is it a safe arguement  that American Culture has deteriorated over the past 200 years?  In the span of this great nation’s history, have we actually gone backwards in evolution?   That is why I believe that NOT expecting more than you can do in any given day is highly overlooked as an acceptable option.  It’s okay not to constantly be ‘doing’.  Really.. it is!   It’s the opposite  attitude Microsoft has… their montra is, “Do More, Faster”.    But rather, a much more agreeable lifestyle would be, “Do Less, Slowly”.  It’s an enterprising endeavor, trust me.  In a culture that prides itself on doing as much as it can in the shortest amount of time, just imagine the rebellious characteristics that come with doing the least amount  possible.  I’m certain that  buried within the gloomy day to day ‘business as usual’ attitude  there are shiny little diamonds of opportunity that we all take for granted.  Like the opportunity to kick off your shoes and stare out the window.  Make some afternoon Tea and relax.  Go for a walk.  Break out some crayons and draw a picture.   It’s  possible that putting off what you can do today until another tomorrow’s tomorrow is actually a good thing.  Next thing I want you to do is find yourself a nice solid jar, one with a screw top lid.  Take the open jar put it right beneath your butt and let one rip.  Quickly screw the lid back on tight.  This is one of life’s precious moments… Give your gift to some unsuspecting friend.  This is a true token of friendship.  Honor your prize.  Treat it with kindness.   http://www.davidbeatty.net/learningcurve.html

Here we are already at 2010!  I thought for sure we would all be traveling around in jet packs, have solarcars, peace on Earth or at very least a black man in the oval office.  Well, we are evolving on some levels and that means there is hope for us all.  As 2010 brings us around, all the great topics seems to plague the newswire:  Health Care, The Environment and War.  I realize I’ve only been on the planet a couple few decades, but my great, great, great ancestors tell me that these same topics have been water cooler talk for at least the last 7,000 years.  At very least since the times of the Sumerians.  C’est La Vie as the French would tell us. 

As I look back over 2009, I can’t help but make lists of all the great movies I’ve seen… but alas… there are far too many other websites who do the same damn thing… so here is my favorite:  http://www.smartcine.com/top_independent_fall_2009.html

Happy New Year and have a great 2010.

I found all my old journal entries.  http://www.davidbeatty.net/blog.html/ 

Saw Avatar this past week.  Seems to me that because there is so much hype about this movie everybody who sees it will feel like they must have some kind of opinion.  I understand the need for the hype.. after all the money investors have put into the film, they need as much PR as necessary to get people in the theater.  So far reactions have not been overwhelmingly positive.  Saw a few Facebook comments from people who didn’t think it was spectacular.  But that’s the problem with hype… people begin to expect so much more if they are swimming in the film-maker’s drvel about how great his film is.  I think the typical reaction from people who didn’t like it seems to be  “Visually it was stunning, but story was nothing special and I don’t know why people are making such a big deal”.   Well, I saw it and I think either you ’get it’ or you don’t.   I too join the band wagon and feel like coughing up some kind of reaction.   So, in a nutshell, here’s what I think:   I think the film is brilliant.

For anyone paying attention, I decided to give my website a make-over. I think you’ll find the new look slightly more appealing and user friendly… I don’t really know if that’s true, but ‘user friendly’ sounds like I know what I’m talking about.
A few cool things…. One is a British TV show called “Spaced” with Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson. It was broadcast in 1999 and 2001 and I’m finally getting around to seeing it… It’s really great.. check it out! If you’ve ever sat through all three Star Wars movies (the real three Ep 4,5 and 6) You will like this show. However, the show isn’t really that nerdy… but it does make many reverences to other films… like Taxi Driver, One Flew over the Coocoo’s nest, Matrix, X-Files and many many more… okay.. maybe it IS that nerdy!

David Beatty, Ammar Mahmood, Claire Bennett and director Nino Mancuso

Claire Bennett, Nino Mancuso, David Cramer and the Moosetache Man... Christopher Shaw

Lien On Me is the title of our new web series! After a few long debates, we finally decided. I think it’s the perfect balance to describe the show and the characters in the world we’ve created. The show is about a family who has fallen under hard financial times and bands together with their friends in order to save their house before it’s foreclosed by the bank. Given the world’s financial crisis, it’s obvious how relevant this subject matter is… and We realize this might seem a time sensitive topic… And we are hoping that works to our advantage. However, we also are aware that it’s just nearly an old topic. It really is last year’s news. Depending how long it takes us to get the show up and running, it could work for.. or against us. However, if we stay away from making the show about the nation’s recession, it really isn’t a time sensitive subject.  Obviously it’s highly unlikely the typical American family will stop the tradition of Mortgaging their home just because we are (theoretically) out of the recession… HA!  As if!

I shot a few new pics this week. Check my photo page for more shots…

Well, the episode ‘Hopeless’ Aired last week and there I was getting my ass kicked, beaten and killed.  Little chance for a re-occuring role, but maybe if enough people write letters to CBS, I could come back as a twin brother seeking revenge!   Thanks to all who watched the show, sent me text messages and emails!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii2LJdBuWvE  Here is the Youtube opening sequence.  I’m right in the beginning of the episode.  First couple minutes.

Erika Tai and Steven Parker... my two stars of The Seed Perfection

The Seed Perfection had it’s premiere at the The SoCal Film Fest September 14th.  Thanks to all my friends, family, cast and crew for turning out to see the show. 

Feedback from the audience has been really interesting so far.  It seems the movie can have several interpretations.  I thought much of the film was very strait forward… sometimes I thought I was too straight forward with my ideas.  But folks have had some interesting ideas of how they interpret the story. 

It’s thrilling to see the audience react to some of the more disturbing images. Albeit the images are  tame considering modern films….  But it’s  fun to see audiences cringe or turn away completely. 

Me and Melita Ann Sagar

The Festival has only one day left.  I hope to catch a few more film tomorrow.  Just tonight I saw Bug Hutch (Director Robin Hays and D.P. Trent Opalach) and The Last Hurrah (Jonathan Stokes & Chuck Derosa) Both Very good films.  Both very different films.  I liked The Last Hurrah especially becauseit is similar in nature to my film, Surviving New Year’s.  It was shot in one continuous take and filmed entirely in one location.  Acting was very strong and the camera work for such a daunting task was exceptional.  Bug Hutch is a very smart, witty and fun story about a young girl raised in a farm community who wakes up one morning to discover she has a New York accent.  It is a brilliant little film with outstanding characters who completely sold the reality of the situation.

Me.

I didn’t get a chance to see every film shown this year…. but luckily the ones I did see, I liked very much.  A few of my favorite shorts include: Silent Treatment from director Johnathan Rothell and Pissing Vocal Gold (John W. Mann).     The entire list of films is at  www.socalfilmfest.com  (However, I wish the SoCal website would link you to the film-maker’s website)  But You can still see trailers.

 However, the one film that I liked most is a documentary called Signs of the Time.  www.signsofthetimemovie.com It is, on the surface, a film about the history of hand signals in baseball.  However, the film is about so much more.  It’s about overcoming obstacles and disabilities… It’s about the evolution of communication… not just for baseball but also how communication affects the mythologies of our culture.  How stories become myth.  And how myth becomes fact.  And it captures American ideals of living to your full potential.  I was very happy to shake the hands of film-makers Jim Hughes and Ray Manard.  These guys have a great movie on their hand.