so i thought we were chugging along with the pre-production for Cereal Monogamy until i scrolled down to the bottom of the Excel spreadsheet. it’s one thing to create a shot list in Word, but when you actually get to see the tally of how many shots, it’s quite overwhelming.

so for those who may be unaware, rule of thumb is for screenplays, one minute should equal one page. for me, i tend to overwrite my action/description. while many can effectively communicate in a single sentence, i tend to draw out into at least three – to focus on the mood and tone of what’s going on. that said, with this bad habit of overwriting, i’m pretty sure i can trim down the running time from the estimated 14 minutes down to approximately 8 (max: 10). so let’s do the math: 133 shots divided by 8, maybe 10 minutes – that’s 16.625 shots per minute or 13.3 shots per minute. that’s not quite a new shot every 3-4 seconds like what you see in music videos, but man, that ratio seems a bit high to me. granted, a lot of these shots are really quick, almost montage-y, but i have to think about how important a 3 second shot would be if it will take at least 20 minutes to set up (lighting, blocking, camera placement, etc.).

back in 2003, i tried to shoot a short. i failed miserably and the movie remains incomplete because of three reasons 1) the shoot wasn’t properly planned 2) the script was horrible and 3) i was deluded into thinking that reasons #1 and #2 weren’t problems. so as you can imagine, a lot is at stake for me with Cereal Monogamy. i’d like to think i’ve gained some wisdom in this arena, and i’m doing my best to implement the lessons i’ve learned. it’s a humbling experience to not be able to follow through on a project you ‘thought’ you believed in. in the end, there will be mistakes made…hopefully not repeat ones. you make the best movie your abilities allow. and by abilities, i really mean everyone involved in the project, from the script’s inception, to the burning of the DVD. i’ve got a good crew, folks who believe in the project, but more importantly, believe in me as a director. (at least, i hope they do!) i’ve got a good cast…one that should hide any directorial flaws. and lastly, i’ve got good friends, who push me to be grander, and pull me at the same time, to keep me from delusions of grandeur.

it’s been almost a month since my last Three Rats update, and i’ve been removed from the show approximately 10 days now. it’s still a bit weird that i get to go home right after work. i have to fight mind and muscle memory from going on 101 N to SF instead of going south on Lawrence Expressway back to my house. ok, so now for my thoughts on the show and the entire production.

all in all, the production was a positive experience. while i don’t think the show was as strong as previous Revival Arts Shows, i definitely felt there were some really, REALLY bright spots with direction and performances.

while i’m sure this will sound completely egocentric and megalomaniacal, i really have to say my favorite of the three plays was Three Rats. this experience was immensely rewarding, from the inception of the concept, to the execution of the actual show. it’s always a great feeling when your original idea of what something could be is improved upon tenfold. Three Rats was like this for me – a concept that started out as a tiny flame supernova’d into a HUGE fireball of creativity. paciano did some wonderful work with the set and lighting design, while joce held it down on the props, costume and stage managing end. i felt that i was able to create a mood and tone with Three Rats, a mood and tone different from previous Revival Arts shows and even Bindlestiff shows that i’ve been a part of.

i also can’t say enough about the cast. it’s always bittersweet when a show ends – like the end of summer camp. you’re ready to go home because you’ve been away for so long, but you don’t want to leave the friends you’ve made. granted, i’ll be seeing many of these guys soon enough (since they’re all directly involved in my current project, Cereal Monogamy), but the ones who don’t come around often (specifically Shenna) will be the ones i’ll miss hanging out with. i mean, yeah, we rehearsed…but we were really all hanging out. it felt the same way with Screeching also. [SIGH] good times.

it’s a bit unfortunate that i couldn’t enjoy the glory a bit more – i’m currently in pre-production for Cereal Monogamy, my final student short project. it’s been a bit tough juggling the two projects. true, most of the work on Three Rats was done, but i still had to be there for the entire closing week. sadly, a lot of my pre-production tasks were pushed to the wayside. i pushed through, though. the final draft is about 90% completed and the rest is starting to fall in place [crossing fingers].

but the absopositively best part of Three Rats is that my number one fan, Tess, surprised me on the Friday night of Closing Weekend. She flew over 3000 miles to come and see her boyfriend’s work. it was a bit surreal for me (ok, a LOT surreal) because i had just returned from NYC to celebrate her bday three days prior! and i swear, i was chatting with her on AIM that day and i thought she was at work (in NYC) the ENTIRE time.

friday night was the night to impress. my girlfried, mom, brother, and friends were in the audience that show. it was funny because after seeing Tess, i went back into the dressing room and immediately told my cast “ok, don’t fuck up!” the pressure was on…and i wasn’t even gonna be on stage! chuck’s performance that night was absolutely IN-SANE. he knocked it out of the park. so thanks Chuck for impressing Tess – she liked it. she really did. and now she doesn’t have to humor me.

ok, enough break time. gotta get back to work.