Down

Sick-ish

So that little sore throat i had on sunday? yeah. full-blown cold/flu by tuesday, and it's gotten worse till now. sucks.
went to work on monday, only to be told by my boss that i should go home, lest i make everyone else in the office sick. so he gave me a couple quarters to take the bus back, and let me take tuesday off too, which i was happy about. who doesn't want sick days? the bus ride was an hour long, and the bus itself was filled with fat old grumpy people, mostly blacks and hispanics. there was also a strange musty smell, which kinda weirded me out. i'm glad i get a ride from my friend back and from work. i really don't like that everything's so spread out here in Los Angeles. much prefer the accessibility of New York.

Piles of homework

So i spent most of my sick time finishing homework, since i've been neglecting it the entire time cartoon was here. had a ton of stuff to do, but got it done and got some much-needed sleep too. and then for Hollywood Production Workshop, we got a TON of new homework assignments for producers. Script breakdowns, schedules, budgets, casting calls, location scouting... ugh so much to do! at least we kind of know our budget now -- about $1600. hopefully that's enough! now we need to find a mall and an office to film in, hopefully one that is cheap-ish and fits with our script too. sigh so stressful. doesn't help that everything's so far away and gas is so expensive.

Lecture from an actor

oh and last night, Tony Hale, the guy who acts in the TV series Arrested Development, came to talk to us. he was really funny and cool and gave us lots of advice. he said to remember that in this business, rejection is normal. in fact, TONS of rejection is normal. and not to worry, because everything will somehow turn out alright. that, and the fact that he's a christian in this crazy industry, was strangely comforting.
oh and he used to live in NYC in his 20s to early 30s, it's where he got his start as an actor. that was so cool. he said he absolutely LOVED it there and would recommend anyone young to go there and get their start, because it's such a great melting pot where people of all trades get together. and it's much more accessible and easy to get around, too. i totally agree!!

Jews in Hollywood

Today a Christian Jew came to talk to us for our Theology in Hollywood class. she said some really interesting things, like how Hollywood is literally run by Jews. did you know that? i certainly didn't. about 70% of people (especially top level executives) who work in Hollywood are JEWISH! whoa! all the major studios were founded by Jews! they totally dominate film and they control everything we see on the screen! that's... news to me.

and you know how that made me feel? slightly ashamed to be Asian -- Chinese, in particular. what have we done? Built restaurants with crappy food, invented powdered eggs and kids' toys painted with lead? sometimes i wish us Chinese had more of a community. really envious of Koreans.. everywhere they go, they accept each other with welcoming arms, all their fellow Koreans. But Chinese don't really care... and then i come from Singapore, which narrows it down to... no one. no singaporean community overseas, except maybe Malaysia or Australia, which sucks. but oh well, nothing i can do about it. sometimes i actually like being the minority. makes me stand out more. haha.

Anyway, she said that so many Jews nowadays don't even know the Old Testament - their own bible. and that they're afraid of Christians because all we want to do is show them love. i think that's so true. sometimes us Christians keep trying to LOVE one another that we just become too un-engaging and too spineless. we don't dare to speak out or do anything that causes controversy because we have to love one another and accept each other. which brings me to the topic of... is there such a thing as GOOD christian art? i think.. sadly... not really.

Oh christian art

when you think christian art, you don't think awesome movies like Gladiator or Slumdog Millionaire. you think lame movies like Left Behind and Fireproof. granted, christian music isn't bad, but it doesn't appeal to non-christians because they don't understand our lingo -- sacrifice, cross, jesus, sins, atonement. and so we're just preaching to the choir. plus i think christians are too scared to offend. i mean, if a pastor were to produce a movie that involves sex, drugs and violence, the entire christian community will go CRAZY with outrage. even if the movie was simply highlighting these issues in a realistic manner and showcasing the need for change. these things are real. they're happening every day. yet we ignore them and produce fluffy 'christians love everyone' movies 'cause we don't wanna cause an uproar. so that results in bland, bad quality movies that don't provoke people to discuss issues and do something about the problems in society. i think that's sad. what's also sad is how every single filmmaker-wannabe friend i have hold lots of disdain for christian films. that says something when even christians can't bear to support christian films.

i could go on and on about this.

Casting call + cute guys

I love casting calls. they're SO fun. u get to sit beside a desk and watch actors act out scenes, then you get to pick and choose which ones you want! isn't that awesome??
today i helped faith with hers -- she needed 2 guys to act as brothers, one teenage-age, one 20+. so the 15-year-old kid that came to audition for the little brother role was ADORABLE. like a cute little skateboarder with black skinny jeans and floppy over-the-eyes hair and the BIGGEST, CUTEST eyes ever. so he got the part, no questions asked. hahaha.
the other older guys were alright. some were a bit weird, but i guess actors are always weird huh. one guy had the WORST headshot in the world. it was like a facebook profile pic, NOT professional at all. anw that was fun and we're gonna be filming sat :)