Snapshots of awesomeness :)

Yes, best semester indeed.


Inside the Disney El Capitan theatre waiting for A Christmas Carol to start

The stage musical before A Christmas Carol began

Disney dancers


Jeffrey the drama king and Brent the guy who goes to every TV show taping. haha.

Conan O' Brien + free sandwiches from Jim Carrey. definitely one of the best moments so far.


100 Monkeys performing at The Viper Room on Sunset Blvd

The Viper Room!!! Johnny Depp's ex-club

Cute guitarist whose name fails me. but so cute huh. and jackson on vocals.

Jackson up close and personal. so cute. and totally gives off the Johnny Depp vibe. and yes, we were THIS CLOSE!

Jackson Rathbone and cute band member who was totally stoned.

Me, faith, dana waiting in line for the concert


'80s partyyyyy!

Maggie's film shoot

My attempt at being '80s. Epic fail. hahaha.

My life is now complete - Twilight mania

Here's why.

I SAW THE ENTIRE CAST OF TWILIGHT: NEW MOON ON THE RED CARPET AT TODAY'S PREMIERE!!!!

:)

New Moon Premiere

After signing up for every single contest in the hopes of getting tickets to the ever elusive New Moon premiere, we gave up and decided that standing on the red carpet seeing the stars was better than nothing.
So... we went to the venue of the premiere at 12pm, realized the line to get on the red carpet was 200+ people long (some people have been camping out since THURSDAY), and went to stand across the street from the red carpet. After hours of waiting and waiting, celebrities started arriving at 5pm!!!!! it was seriously madness. there must have been at least 500 crazy fans there. it was pure insanity. i'm half deaf from idiotic girls screaming in my ear and my feet hurt from everyone pushing like mad.

We saw EVERYONE in the cast, from the werewolves to the vampires to bella's friends. and then random celebrities like Jennifer Love Hewitt and 50 Cent appeared. it was crazy. they were all in limos with tinted windows, and they all got interviewed by the radio station DJ.
And then the big stars arrived!!! Dakota Fanning, Robert Pattinson, Nikki Reed, Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone... i saw them but they didn't come sign autographs :(

But guess who did??? Kellen Lutz, he was right in front of me, and he was gorgeous. and then TAYLOR LAUTNER, also like an arm's reach away from me, signing autographs, as cute as ever. i love him!!! and then Kirsten Stewart, whom nobody cared about, but we still got pictures and autographs. it was SO COOL.
And so tiring. But totally WORTH THE WAIT.


SAW ALL OF THEM!! and my throat hurts now from screaming like a crazed adolescent.
And they all looked exactly like they do on the big screen and in pictures. how can people be so beautiful in real life???

Sunday's crazy events

Sunday was SO uneventful.

First we went to the Dream Center's church, called Angelus Temple. It was this HUGE contemporary church, totally like FCBC with lights, a huge worship band, cameras, screens, people jumping and clapping. and i liked it. there was a children's choir that performed Miley Cyrus' song 'The Climb' and they were SO ADORABLE. cutest thing i've ever seen.
And then... of all things, Danny Gokey, who placed 3rd in American Idol and has a new single out, came on stage and SANG. his voice was awesome. And then the mayor dropped by, and we prayed for him. so random!
But overall the church was weird. Way too commercialized and it felt like they were promoting their Dream Center mission because all the pastor talked about was helping the homeless. he was kind of bizarre, felt like some of the stuff he was saying was a little weird theologically. oh well. good experience. and they DO have a lot of good outreach programs, it just felt like their church existed solely for the purpose of promoting their mission.

And then we went to Sunset Boulevard and randomly bumped into KATE BOSWORTH from 'Into the Blue' and 'Win a date with tad hamilton'.

So unexpected! she was at a bookstore browsing, and she looked painfully skinny. like a skeleton! but still pretty.

And then we went to The Viper Room (a club Johnny Depp used to own) and saw 100 Monkeys in concert. It's the band of Jackson Rathbone (Jasper from Twilight), and so of course we went to see him, not knowing what kind of music they played. So when the band members passed us by on the street, we totally didn't recognize them. But they were actually pretty decent!! Their music was like alternative punk weirdness, but they were so charismatic, and all 5 of them played every single instrument since they rotated on different songs. it was so cool. and we were RIGHT IN FRONT of the stage, standing and happily looking at Jackson's coolness. he so totally reminded me of Johnny Depp. has the same weird, eclectic vibe. :)

so cute :)

SUCH a crazy day. this kind of thing only happens in LA!
Although, I must say, this whole 'waiting in line and see celebrities' thing is getting a little old. no wonder all the people who live here in LA don't care about such things. haha.

Christmas Carol

Friday night we went to the Disney El Capitan theatre to see A Christmas Carol in 3D! And it was awesome!! There was a stage performance with dancers and mickey and minnie and singing and all that! Felt so christmas-y. The movie was a little scary for all the kids who were there, but it was cute.


Griffith Park

Saturday we went to Griffith Park Observatory and had an awesome view overlooking LA's city skyline. and we were there at 4pm, when the sun was setting. totally gorgeous. I LOVE when cities have parks in the middle of them, it gives a little oasis away from all the bustling madness. although... i heard there were mountain lions in Griffith Park ('cause it's in the mountains) so that was kinda scary.

But yeah, CRAZY AWESOME WEEKEND!!!!!!!!!

Free time = good

Halloween party at the center (where we have classes) - me and nicole on youtube


Our slate for 'Two Hours' (our film) --- the thing that people hold in front of the camera and say 'Two Hours, Scene 1, Take 1, Action!'
i love that thing. i wanted to steal it. haha.

Now that all the producing worries are gone, the film is none of my concern. so glad. although we did have a meeting with our executive producers, and they were like, you guys didn't follow set protocol, blah blah blah. well, excuse me for running around trying to make things work in the stupid mall. at least we got our shots. and no re-shoots, for the time being. hoping against hope that we won't have to do ANY pick-ups at all. hopefully we got at least some useful shots.
okay, enough about HPW.

Gothic monday

So tas and i were kind of bored on monday night, and we decided to go out. it was a fail. went to universal citywalk, but it was like a deadtown. i guess no one parties on monday nights. we did see a rock band perform, but they were pretty boring. so we ended up at this weird club where everyone looked all gothic and stoned. i was half expecting someone to turn into a vampire and bite someone's neck (no more twilight/vampire diaries for me). the place was just weird. they even had video games. in a club. who does that? but oh well it was kind of fun. we made friends. haha.

Boring classes

Theology in hollywood is without a doubt the most boring theology class ever. she drones on and on about... i don't know what. i'm too busy texting or sleeping. something about films that i've never seen in my life and analyzing them, all that deep stuff. it just goes in one ear and out the other.

Learning

Although.. i will say that this semester has definitely taught me a lot about film. i find myself noticing things i never noticed before. like editing cuts, lighting, audio, background noise, use of music, position of actor in the shot, costumes, set design... even the credits. haha. it's pretty darn amazing how everything works together just to create that one shot. no wonder it takes YEARS to make a movie! from pre-production planning to casting to actual production to post-production editing and stuff. craziness.
I think it would be fun to be a PA (personal assistant) on set, even if it's just to run around and get coffee and stuff. it'd be fun to watch a movie in actual production.

I wish i had a time machine

So I could travel back and forth and have more than 24 hours in a day because there's so much to do in LA!!! :)

Hollywood Halloweenie parade + afterparty

Random photos of funny people all dressed up at the parade.


Example of how many gays there were at the parade. Even the Flintstones are both male.


This guy was a walking advertisement for recycling.


The X-Men crew. they were really cool.


These people were facebook lovers and twitter haters. really funny.


this couple was the best. such elaborate and shiny costumes.

So since we had to film all day and couldn't have a proper Halloween (plus people here are obsessed about this holiday), we had our very own LAFSC Halloween afterparty. people dressed up as characters, from YouTube to a jellyfish to Lizzie McGuire to Superman to LOST/Avatar/Star Trek characters, it was funny. we had a competition to determine who had the best costume, and my roomie the jellyfish from Planet 51 won movie vouchers. plus there was free food, so that was fun :)


Tera, my roomie, as Lucille Ball from I Love Lucy


Steve as House. doesn't he look totally like Hugh Laurie?????


Sarah as.. i don't know who that is, but she looks like her. she's our residence director, and she's awesome :)


Eric and josh as Jack Shepard and Sawyer from LOST.


Nicole as a YouTube video and Brandon as the little kid from Avatar. haha.


Bethany, my roomie, the awesome jellyfish.

And then we went Karaoke-ing after that, in true Asian style (a.k.a. in a tiny room to ourselves instead of screaming our lungs out in front of the entire room), in Koreatown.

Conan O' Brien Show

On thursday, faith, brent, jeff and i rushed from class to the Universal Studios lot to see The Conan O' Brien Show!!!! it was absolutely awesome. we ran all the way there from the parking lot (i realize i get all my exercise from dashing to premieres and TV shows lines) and waited an hour before we got in!!!

Oh funny story. we were so paranoid we weren't gonna get in, faith and i made the guys go and get in line first. so at a traffic light, we told jeff to get out, and he seriously took forever to open the door and get out. so the light turned green. and faith MOVED THE CAR. and of course, he had ONE FOOT OUT the door, and at this point everyone was SCREAMING, including the random terrified guy on the street, who had his hand out and ran toward us in slow motion. i was shrieking, get out, get out! faith was yelling, get in, get in! brent was... i don't know what he was doing. i think he was too shocked to say anything. jeff was confused and put his foot back in. and then we were all yelling and traumatized 'cause jeff almost got run over!!! but looking back, it was kinda funny. at least he's still alive -- that's what i tell him, 'cause he's such a drama queen and keeps telling anyone about how faith nearly killed him. haha.

So anyway, we got into the studio, which was pretty small, and waited excitedly for Conan to come out. he was HILARIOUS. the show was WAY better than any others i've been to here. he showed us this video where he randomly met this asian IT consultant guy at the Universal souvenir shop, and they hung out for a day. and this guy, named Wing, told him he volunteered at a women's defense class (as the assailant) and did tai chi and fencing in his spare time. he was so funny!! when Wing did tai chi, he made a circle with his hands and moved it from side to side. he was like, now pass the circle to mary. and Conan was like, who's mary? and Wing was like, just an imaginary friend. hahaha.

And then JIM CARREY came on the show!!!! he looked different, with longer hair and a beard, and he put on weight (for his next movie). but he was so funny!!! totally like how he is in movies. goofy and weird. and he gave us FREE SANDWICHES!! for everyone in the audience!! he randomly pulled out a sandwich and started munching, and was like, you know how everyone at the Ellen show or at Oprah always get free stuff?? well, now everyone here is getting a free sandwich!! and we were all like, YAYYYY!!! free sandwich from jim carrey!! life can't get much better than this!! haha.


Jim Carrey promoting his new movie, A Christmas Carol.

And then Olivia Wilde came on the show, she's from The OC and House. and then the Zac Brown Band (some country group) performed.

Olivia Wilde. she was absolutely gorgeous. and apparently she's married to a REAL LIFE PRINCE. lucky.

Definitely the best and funniest TV show so far :)

The last of HPW

YES now my life is back in full swing. yesterday marked out last HPW film shoot!!!!! when jeffrey yelled 'it's a wrap!!' we all jumped around and rejoiced.
But omg, it was a crazyyyy 7 hours before that. crew call was at 4.30am at the mall, so i was up at 4am and ready to go. and when we got there, it seemed like everything that could go wrong, did go wrong.

it was SO noisy the entire time, people were cleaning the place at 5 in the morning. then there was music blaring over the speakers, and people kept walking by INTO our shot and staring INTO the camera. so our sound editors were going crazy 'cause we now have to record the actors' voices separately, which is gonna be hell 'cause they have to match exactly the movement of their lips. sigh. but there was just too much background noise in the mall.

and i was running around, begging and pleading people not to walk by our cameras, and yelling at people who did, and then just waving madly at people to walk by without staring directly into the cameras, 'cause we can't use those shots. it was pretty crazy, especially when the mall opened at 10am, and people started standing right by us and watching, like they had nothing better to do. i guess since it's a ghetto mall, no one's ever filmed here before. sigh. so it was hard to get good shots. and i approached all kinda of random people to ask them to be extras in our film, 'cause we didn't have enough. and as if it wasn't hectic enough, our Executive Producer (our professor) turned up to observe and make sure we were running set properly. and we only had 4 hours to film 3 pages of script. so yeah, tensions were running high and people were not very happy.

BUT IT'S OK, because it's over!!!!!! at least my part is. YAYYYYYYY!!!!! now i'm tossing the footage over to the picture and sound editors and i'm home free!!!!!!! :))

So we went shopping today after church to celebrate :)

Premieres!! Celebrities!!!

AFI Festival


Robert Deniro, Drew Barrymore, Sam Rockwell, Kate Beckinsale!! :)

This week's the American Film Institute Festival, it's pretty much AWESOME! it started on sunday with the premiere of Precious, which we didn't go to, unfortunately. and then we heard all kinds of celebs were at the premiere, including Will Smith, Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey and Jamie Foxx. sadness. OH WELL.

And then monday we rushed from work to Hollywood and Highland to the Chinese Theatre for the premiere of The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. we waited anxiously in line for rush tickets, meaning we would get in if the theatre wasn't full. so after 30 mins of stressing out, WE GOT IN! and got to see the movie for free! and we thought johnny depp/jude law/colin farrell might be there, since they're IN IT. but no... the director introduced the movie and told us to lower our expectations (wisely said, because the movie was awful), and Lily Cole (i think she's a model) was there, so was Verne Troy (the midget Mini Me from Austin Powers). So that was kinda cool, but not as cool as it would've been, had mr. Johnny Depp been there!!

Anyway, like i said, the movie wasn't that great. which was sad, this being Heath Ledger's final film and all. visually, it was stunning and very quirky, but it was also weird and too artsy for me. about this guy who sells his soul to the devil for immortality, and he can allow people into his mind, where their imaginations come to life, and they have to choose been good and evil. it was the weirdest thing ever. i almost fell asleep.

And then today, we rushed back to Hollywood and got in line again for free tickets to Everybody's Fine, and we GOT IN!!! and i saw KATE BECKINSALE and ROBERT DENIRO on the red carpet!!!!! SUPER EXCITED.
and then we got good seats too, very near the front, so i could see their faces when the director (Kirk Jones), Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale and Robert DeNiro came on stage to introduce the movie. i was seriously THIS CLOSE to them!!! the girls were SO beautiful, now that i've seen them in person, it's so weird! it's like they really do exist, and they really ARE gorgeous, no photoshop needed!!

And the movie was really good too, about family and relationships and all. it was a good holiday movie, although it was really sad and emotional too. but best free movie i've seen so far. and definitely BEST celeb sighting. I LOVE DREW BARRYMORE!!!! :)





Crappy pictures, but better than nothing! (from my friend's camera, since mine's not working) Drew and Kate on the side, and DeNiro introducing the movie.


Work

Monday was an accomplishment. i FINALLY finished shredding that MOUNTAIN of paper in the office. everyone cheered and rejoiced, especially me. no more breathing in paper dust! and now... i have nothing to do. haha. it's been pretty quiet around here. wonder where are all the breakdowns. doesn't anyone need actors anymore???

Can't believe it's november already. THREE MORE FULL WEEKS of work, and i'm DONE! YAYYY!

Happiness on a platter

Holding the boom mic yet again, this time at Tas' shoot last weekend. You would think I've become an expert grip, but nope. One of the actors actually came up to me and taught me how to hold it. And can I just say, never again. The 'real' way to hold a boom is gripping it WAY above your head with arms extended all the way. like a real workout!!


SIX FLAGS -- X2, BEST RIDE EVER.


Vertical Superman ride!!


I LOVE THEME PARKS!


I seem to have this fetish with photos of myself in 'jail'


If you look past the blond's big head, those creepy creatures did the Thriller dance.


I refused to pet the goats at the petting zoo because they looked like they were going to EAT me. Doesn't this goat look dangerous??


With the Six Flags man!


YAY we made it to SIX FLAGS after weeks of anticipation and excitement :)

Video-making while bored

Me and Faith bobbing our heads to 'Butterfly' in the computer lab
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PXRPGNhICQ

Me and Faith (and Jeffrey) reading 'The Adventures of Brutus' -- this weird story we got from the screening of 'Gentlemen Broncos'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQ4WACCYMfk

Yes, we were pretty bored :)

Most exhausting weekend ever

Seriously. Definitely. It's only 8pm and i really really really want to go to bed. Plus I have to work tomorrow. THIS sucks. feels like i didn't even have a weekend at all.

It all started on friday night...

Filming of 'Two Hours' - Day 0.5

So Friday night, my co-producer and i called a meeting to prepare our crew for our weekend of filming, and we had EXCITING NEWS, because we finally found a damn office to film in, after FULL DAYS of searching and calling and waiting and hoping. And then everyone just slammed our hopes to the ground by totally bringing up all the risks involved in going to the office we found. And i guess i understand what they mean, i was a little worried about that too, because we just found the place (at the Christian school), we've never seen it before, we don't know how big it is or how much lighting it would need, we don't know how well it would fit into our script, we don't know if we'd be able to shoot again next week if we need pick-ups, we don't know if we can finish shooting 7 pages of script in less than 6 hours.

So after lots of arguing and heated discussions, i called the nice guy back (at 11pm) and told him we wouldn't be needing the office the next day after all. i felt SO bad for inconveniencing him, it was so unprofessional. and they were letting us film for free, too, and they didn't even know us! we just had to pay a fee of $100 to the guy 'cause he was giving up his sat to open the school for us.

But anyway, after we changed our location last minute to our casting suite at our school, tensions cooled and people felt better. and i did too, i wasn't as stressed out. i was just VERY UPSET because it wasn't my fault that we didn't have an office in the first place. my co-producer was supposed to find the office, i was supposed to find the mall. i got the mall after calling at least 50 places, not kidding. he didn't get the office, because he only called THREE PLACES. and then i scramble last minute to find another office because our crew was disappointed and didn't wanna film in the casting suite. so i try to help the situation, but then i find an office, and they turn it down, don't want it anymore. i was like, WTH, if you didn't want it, you could've told me so i wouldn't waste DAYS and DAYS trying to find a place. and i just felt like people were looking at me like it was my fault, because i was the one who found an office last minute and didn't know what it looked like. PLUS i'd been praying so hard and begging so many people to let us film, and i REALLY FELT LIKE it was GOD who answered my prayers and gave us this damn office. but then we just threw it back at him because everyone freaked out and was so paranoid that the office would be nothing like what we wanted. SIGH. i was just like, fine, u wanna shoot in the damn casting suite, GO AHEAD. if it turns out to be a crappy film, which it probably will, it's NOT MY FAULT.

And so we spent friday night working out butts off trying to make the casting suite (which is an empty room) look like a real office. so of course we were there till 3+am, even when crew call the next morning was 8am. and honestly, i would not work with some of my crew members ever again. people just weren't doing their jobs, and then us as producers had to do it for them, because we were supposed to make sure everything was happening smoothly. UGH. the incompetence of several crew members was just GETTING ON MY NERVES and that is why i HATE group projects because some people are just useless bums that really don't do anything unless they're kicked in the butt.

So i was annoyed and upset and frustrated most of friday night, but i still had to be professional and work to get things done like setting up the set to make the office.
if producers have to deal with all this last minute stuff falling through all the time, and people giving them such a hard time 24/7, i can safely say this is one job i know will not be in my future.

Day 1

Everyone in our crew was pretty much tired from having to do last minute set-up the night before, but i was surprised at how hardworking they were. no one complained, everyone was so efficient and productive and we got stuff done and wrapped up at 6pm. i was very pleased at how smoothly it went, because people keep saying things ALWAYS go wrong during shoots.

And can i just say, our little 8-year-old kid actor is just about the cutest thing in the world. floppy blond hair, dimples, playing with his dinosaur... omg adorable and perfect for the innocent little kid part. And our other two actors were so good too, i'm so glad we picked these people. So i felt a little better about the film. Plus i didn't have to do anything on set, since all my work was pre-production. so i just sat around and ran errands, got lunch, made sure everyone was happy :) i liked that part.

Halloweenie events

Even though we were super tired, some of us went to the Annual West Hollywood Halloween parade on santa monica boulevard!! it was crazy fun. EVERYONE was dressed up, except us, because we were SO tired and had no costumes. but it was insane seeing everyone dressed up in ridiculous outfits, from Wall-E to Twitter to X-men to Michael Jackson... and there were a ton of trannys. at least half the people there were gay. it was so weird. a car of gays tried to hit on my friend, and he gayish-ly responded, 'hiiii!' with a gay wave (he's not gay). it was hilarious. and there were stages set up with performances and crazy acrobatics. it was so fun but didn't stay long 'cause we were exhausted. i actually went to bed at 11pm. earliest ever.

Oh and we had daylight savings yesterday, so the time difference is now 16 hours, not 15.

Day 2

Today went really well too. early crew call again, but i didn't really have to do much except buy snacks. bought a lot of cookies, which was a mistake, 'cause our kid actors ate at least 5 donuts and went CRAZY. he was on a sugar high for an hour, jumping, crawling, running, telling stories to anyone who would listen...then he CRASHED and was so lethargic he couldn't do anything. it was pretty funny but after lunch he was back to his good old cute self.

So thank God our shoots went well, unlike others' shoots... my roomies are pretty stressed out 'cause someone dropped the camera and something broke, and an actress fell over in her chair during a shoot and injured herself, and some actors didn't turn up for another shoot... so comparatively, ours went great. phew.

Totally don't wanna go to work tomorrow. feels like i didn't even get a weekend 'cause i didn't get any time off since we've been working all day yesterday and today :(

Countdown

Less than two weeks from now, my producer stresses and worries will be OVER! just need to get this weekend and next weekend's shoot over and done with, and YAY i'll get my life back!! :)

After calling a gazillion schools and churches (found them randomly online -- they were all Christian because we realized Christians are nicer and more likely to let us film for free. haha), we got a few maybes. so... we're crossing our fingers and toes and hoping to God that someone, anyone, says yes. please yes. we just need one office to shoot in, that's not too much to ask for! and we already got our request to shoot with our own cameras turned down, so we're shooting with crappy cameras, and people aren't happy about that. if we have to shoot in the crappy casting suite as well, this is going to be one crappy film. again, it's not like i care because this isn't crucial for my future career, but it means a lot to others. so here's looking forward to two weeks from now!!! :)

Went to the advance screening of Gentlemen Broncos at The Archlight, and saw another premiere going on for some movie called Boondocks II. no idea what that was, but there was a red carpet and everything. and then the star of the movie, jemaine clement, who was in Flight of the Concords and other TV shows, came to the theater to introduce the film. he was funny, the movie was not. at all. i guess coming from the producers of Napoleon Dynamite and Nacho Libre, i couldn't have expected more from it. it was the lamest crap ever, filled with slapstick humor and lots of unnecessary puking. and some people actually found it funny! don't know why. but oh well it was free :)

And i'm almost halfway through with my script!!! 45 pages of screenplay! my new title is Miss Match. I kinda like it. it's cute. haha.
And here's my logline - Convinced that the celebrity of her dreams is her true love, a psychic matchmaker attempts to meet him face to face, and realizes that love can be found in unexpected places.
It's not perfect, but my prof said it's 85% there. so... getting there, slowly but surely! and i'm realizing there's lots of me and my life in the characters and the script. haha. i guess writing what i know best is easiest.

Overwhelmed and overloaded

Producing stress

OMG. if i knew how much of a hassle producing was going to be, i wouldn't have signed up for it. and i know i'm just getting a little taste of what real producers do, since our film is only 10 mins, but even this is driving me insane. i now have tremendous respect for all producers everywhere - they do all the crap work for pre-production, production AND post-production, and they hardly get credit outside the industry. we've all heard of famous actors, directors, sometimes writers. but producers? never. i hope they earn lots of money (they probably do), because doing all this crap for measly pay is not fun at all. not that i get paid.

I'm so over this whole producing thing. can't wait to start filming and be done with it. it's just that producers are the ones who are overall in charge of the film, and anything that goes wrong will probably be blamed on us. so much stress with everything weighing on my shoulders!

We did our casting callbacks on Sunday and THANK GOD we found three amazing actors - the cutest little kid with floppy blond hair and adorable eyes, an old funny british man, and a versatile boss. seriously, i'm so glad we locked them in and got them for the miserable pay of $25 per day. so that part's settled. hope they don't disappear the day of filming (because that's happened before).
also, THANK GOD i finally secured a mall. it's a little on the expensive side, but we really didn't have any choice. so we went to check it out, and our director of photography and production designer really liked it, so YAY that's a huge load off my shoulder.

But then we found out yesterday that our office, which is our main filming location, FELL THROUGH. total insanity followed. now i have to spend the entire day tomorrow calling any and every office in LA to beg for them to let us film (hopefully for free). sigh even though there aren't any exams or tests in this program, this whole internship/producing thing is more stressful than any pop quiz.

I need to go do something fun. soon. if not i'm gonna go crazy, because my entire life has been revolving around this film.

Weekend

We did a service project at the Dream Center on saturday. it's a really cool place that has a few hundred outreach ministries across LA, and we met some people who actually stay at the center and reach out to people on a regular basis.
So even though i think they weren't expecting us, we ended up going to a small community and helped clean the streets, gave out free food and stuff, and played games with the poor kids. it was kinda sad to see this... poorer part of LA.

Then the rest of my weekend was consumed with FILM SHOOTS. three shoots in two days. so tiring.
Helped josh with sound (holding the boom mic again) on sat, helped maggie as an extra in her film the same day, and helped tas (my roomie) with errands and set design and sound on sunday. didn't even have time for church.

But we did have an awesome '80s dance scene during maggie's shoot, which turned into a crazy dance party afterwards for two hours. haha. let loose all the stress. it was funny to dance to no music/sound during the shoot though, since the sound would be added in post-production. we were at a 'party' and had to pretend to be talking, so we all had to converse and laugh soundlessly, and pretend to be dancing to an awesome song when there was actually no sound. funnyyyyy.

Work

Work has been the same. I just wish I would get paid. money is a wonderful motivator, i've realized this. oh well. at least i have a new goal in life now - FINISH SHREDDING THAT RIDICULOUSLY HUGE PILE OF PAPER before i get done with my internship.

I am a backpack

We had to think of a metaphor for class that described our lives at this point in time, and i thought that was really interesting. some people had funny descriptions, like a puzzle, dolphin, sponge, beard, ocean, car, iceberg, piano....
So here's mine :)

I am a backpack because I’m a laidback and easygoing person, and I rarely get flustered or bothered over things. I’m pretty stable and reliable, and I am responsible in keeping my word and doing what I set out to do. Sometimes I help carry others’ burdens in my effort to lighten theirs’, and I end up carrying more than I can handle because it’s hard for me to say no to others when they need help.

I am a backpack because I’m usually zipped shut and closed up, and it’s not easy for me to be outspoken about my inner thoughts and feelings, unless I’m with close friends. Sometimes I’m afraid that people will judge me or reject me if I open up and let myself be vulnerable, but I know it's not healthy to keep things bottled up, so most of the time I unload to close friends or family.

I am a backpack because God is my ‘owner’ and He guides me to the path where He wants me to be. Although I have no idea what my future looks like, He knows where He’s leading me to, and He has my best interest at heart. He carries me through the highs and lows of life, and when my burden becomes too heavy, He unloads some of it and only takes the essentials.

I am a backpack because backpacks have lots of different designs and colors. My backpack has many pockets with varying depths, because there are facets of my personality and life that go deeper than the surface. There is a mix of different pastel colors to portray my neutral and easygoing nature, and to show that I’m not one who yearns to be in the spotlight. There would also be several
patches and holes where I’ve made mistakes and been broken and learned from them.

I am a backpack because I enjoy being that source of encouragement and support for others, and I like being able to help others with their problems. But sometimes I take on more than what I can handle, and I end up lugging this huge weight on my own strength, without realizing I can actually ask for help. I also tend to carry things I shouldn’t, like fears of the unknown, of failure and of rejection, and past experiences I haven’t been able to let go. Most of the time it ends up being God, my family, or close friends who set me down and unload some of my burdens with advice, encouragement and prayer, so that I can continue on my journey toward the destination that God has planned out for me.

So that's me. What are you?

All the above

On the search

On Friday, we all piled into faith's car and went on route to find the 1 out of 3 Olive Gardens here in California, only to find ourselves stuck in a ridiculous traffic jam on Hollywood and Highland ave. Why? No idea, there must be some huge concert going on at the Hollywood Bowl. Seriously, we moved slower than a sleeping snail. There were probably ants crawling along the sidewalk, snickering at us as they passed. So after an hour, we gave up and went to the next nearest Olive Garden (faith was determined to get to one cuz it was her birthday celebration, and birthdays in the midwest usually means Olive Garden/Flattop/Cheesecake Factory. there isn't much variation with the traditions).

So we happily arrived at 9.30pm, starving half to death, parked the car, and walked around the block 1000 times before asking someone where on earth this legendary Olive Garden was. And they laughed and told us it closed down TWO YEARS AGO. great. so much for breadsticks. we ended up at California Pizza Kitchen, which was pretty good too, but it wasn't Olive Garden. so that was the end of that.

Oooh funny quote of the day: 'why am i sitting next to the two food coma patients??' -- Dana
Because Hani and i were slumped over in the backseat of the car, ready to fall asleep after stuffing our faces. haha.
Also, i was cleaning my side of the table with a napkin before we left, and josh was like, 'whatcha doing?', in a really confused and amused way. i think i've given off the impression that asians really love cleaning. and then he was like, is it true that it's bad luck to stick your chopsticks straight up in food? i was like, um, no, i don't know where you get this kinda information from. haha

More Flags, more fun!

Sat we went to SIX FLAGS!!! it was completely awesome and totally exceeded my expectations. the park was HUGE! i think it's one of the bigger Six Flags in the US.
we got in for only 10bucks 'cause of some discount coupon, and paid 30 more to get the FlashPass! totally worth it, because we waited in line for like 5 mins for all the rides, except those without Flash passes. so while everyone else was in the hour-long line, we flew right by and went on all the rides!!! it was one after another so fast that i actually got a little dizzy from non-stop rollercoaster rides.

the Superman ride?? it shoots you right out of a tunnel, and you go straight up in the sky, VERTICALLY. and there's a Superman figure waving at you in the sky on the top of the ride. COOLNESS.
the Tatsu ride was awesome too. you're strapped into a harness, with your legs dangling, face and stomach toward the ground, so it's like you're flying. i was actually kinda scared, cuz if the harness were to give way, there'd be nothing to stop me from falling and splattering all over the pavement.

But the best was definitely the new X2 ride. OMG. you get on, and it flips you so you're lying on your back, facing the sky, and then you go up this slope, and it plunges you down backwards, headfirst!! and then it spins you around so you're upright again, with your legs dangling in the air, and throws fire at you, and spins you 360 degrees at least 5 times!! it was totally INSANE and i've never been this scared on a ride before, but it was also definitely the BEST RIDE i've EVER been on, and i've been on a ton of rides!

If you wanna see the X2 ride from the rider's point of view, here's the link (start from 2:30min)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOrVO1wiFmw




CRAZINESS! :)

And then since Halloween is approaching, the park got all decked out when the sun set, and they had people dressed up as scary creatures prowling the park, jumping on people and chasing them around. it was pretty intense! and they had a Michael Jackson Thriller dance off, and a huge stage, and crazy music and lights. it was so awesome!!! they had tons of haunted houses and mazes too, but i was too chicken. haha.
SO fun though. i love six flags and all 10++ rollercoasters and crazy rides they have!! we were there from 10.30am till 9.30pm :)

Mondayyy

Today was another slow day at the office. lots of shredding paper again, which was actually kinda fun. i got to read a book, a magazine, and play my DS while waiting for the stupid shredder to cool down every few mins.

Watched the movie Rear Window for class tonight, it was interesting. the first Alfred Hitchcock movie i've ever seen. i always thought Hitchcock was known for his scary movies, but this was not scary AT ALL. i think maybe we've become so desensitized to violence and gore that a movie from the '50s hardly even raises our eyebrow.

Randomness

Flinging my hair in the wind

Holding the sun as it sets

Me and Faith at Venice Beach. we saw DOLPHINS doing flips in the air right near us at the pier!

Me and hani at the Fame premiere at The Grove

At chinatown eating crappy chinese food during mooncake festival

Work

Tuesday my entire day was spent shredding paper. i know right, fun stuff. well, actually it was kinda fun, for the first hour or so, then it just got monotonous. and it didn't help that the shredder was another ancient piece of metal that overheated every 2 minutes and took 10 minutes to cool down. but it was ok, i read magazines and books in between.


Wednesday this script supervisor who worked on all kinds of movies in Hollywood came to talk to us about crafting stories, and she was really interesting, talking about how to structure stories to keep audiences on their toes. you know what i realized? audiences are a tough crowd. that's you. and me. all of us! we judge movies, or any form of entertainment, so harshly and our expectations are so high that people in the entertainment industry have to keep pushing the limits and raising the standards just to keep audiences coming. it's kinda ridiculous.

Went to The Grove at night to chill and read free magazines at Barnes and Nobles, and i tried this dish called Jambalaya at the Farmers Market. it was so good! rice with spicy sauce and chicken and sausage. yums.

Still on the search

Today stressed out more about our film location search. sigh. we start filming in two weeks, and i don't even have the stupid mall permit. why do all these malls have to charge a few thousand for us to film??? do they not understand we're poor college students on a tight budget?! doesn't help that people are breathing down my neck and looking over my shoulder, pressing me to intensify my search.
And then... okay this is going to sound awful, but faith told me everything was gonna be okay, and then she said, 'you need to just trust God that He will provide.'
And i was like, wait. trust. God? so... i realize i've been relying on my own abilities and i totally forgot i could actually pray and ask God for help. says alot, doesn't it. but yeah, now i'm just going to surrender this whole thing to Him and trust He will provide the best mall for us (for a low cost).

New York I love you

Went to the free advance screening of 'New York I love you' today, it was really messy and confusing and i spaced out after a while. so glad i didn't pay to see this movie, because it was so not worth it. sure, it had tons of famous people in it, but it was just a mess of short love stories that didn't have endings. they didn't tie anything up, everything was just mixed into another story and no one ever found out what happened to the characters. very disappointing. although.. it did make me miss NYC. a lot. i've never actually missed a place this much before. sure i miss sgp, but for the people (and the food), not the place. but New York... i'm honestly just counting down the days till i can go back and live there. i love it so, so much! and i don't even know why!

anyway, sometimes crappy films like these make me think there's hope for amateur writers like me, because if these awful movies can somehow make it to the big screen, i'm sure i can write something better than this. i just need the right person to read it at the right time. easier said than done.
although... i thrashed out 7 pages of my script, tentatively titled 'Cut to the Chase,' and brought it to class today. after reading/acting it out, people seemed to really like it, which is awesome. and i feel very relieved, because i was so sure it was a shitty first draft. now i'm kinda motivated to continue and finish the script! 20 pages down, 90 more to go!

One and a half months later...

Time flies
So excited for all the plans my friends and i have.
Six flags, Universal Studios (yayy for seasonal pass!), Road trip to LAS VEGAS, Chilling at Venice Beach, Trying out lots of different restaurants, Thanksgiving meals, Black Friday shopping madness, Christmas shopping at outlet malls, Halloween madness, and tons more premieres and free movies!!! -- All this to do in only 2 months! :)

Film Geek night

Figures at a film program they'd have a movie night called 'film geek night.' i went for the first time on friday, just 'cause they were showing WOLVERINE on the big screen in class. LOVE that movie. can't understand why all guys hate it. but most girls love it and i'm one of them. superhero movies = awesome.

Venice Beach

Saturday was kinda chilly, but we still headed to Santa Monica for some much needed Panera Bread!! One of the 5 Paneras in the entire California! haha i don't actually know, but it seems that way, because California just has something against chain restaurants.
And then on to Venice Beach, right next to Santa Monica Beach. but Venice was WAY better. it had a skateboarding park, TONS of cute little shops along the boardwalk, a pier with people fishing... and we saw lots of people surfing in the cold waters, AND dolphins doing flips in the ocean right by us!!! it was so cool. we stayed till the sunset, and it was beautiful. although there were lots of people smoking weed, it felt kinda like Jamaica actually, for some reason. but i love that beach. totally going back to go cycling and shopping!!

Koreatown

We failed at our second attempt to go karaoke-ing at Koreatown. haha. they said a minimum wait of 30 mins, so we just headed into the Korean cafe next door and ate till we burst of happiness (and still managed to bring back leftovers).
Why is it that the korean and jap food here is so authentic and delicious but the chinese food sucks and is totally catered to americans??? i've tried 3 chinese places and have yet to find a decent one. really disappointing, all that greasy food.

Casting call

Sunday was another casting call... this time the pressure's on, because we're casting for our huge Hollywood Production Workshop class, and we HAVE to find the right people, if not we're screwed. so... only like 3 old men turned up for our elderly british man role, and 3 cute little boys turned up for our little kid role. most of them were sick at the last minute. sigh! need to do another casting call.

Jay Leno show

Today i went to the Jay Leno show with faith and brent!! it was fun. some people cancelled on their tickets, so we snapped them up! and we got there an hour early too, so we managed to get into the soundstage! and sat RIGHT IN FRONT of the stage, SECOND ROW. we discussed it and decided that they liked us because we were young and full of energy. 'cause when the show started, we had to run up to the stage and crowd around Jay. and i got to high-five him, so that was pretty cool!
The guest star was this comedian named Dana Carvey, he was funny. and then Justin Timberlake appeared via satellite to answer 10 random questions. i was like, i see JT on the screen ALL THE TIME, i wanna see him in PERSON, not on the screen again!!! but he was in Vegas, sadly enough. he was so cute though. and brent got a free 'jay leno show' t-shirt. the crowd was pretty old, but REALLY energetic. everyone was clapping and dancing and having fun. a day off well spent :)

back to work tomorrow!

Stress and de-stress

Classes

Really feeling the pressure to perform in class now. this whole entertainment industry thing is no joke. there are TONS of people wanting to make it big everyday. actors, directors, producers, writers... and i'm just another face in the crowd. i'm beginning to realize this is hard work. WRITING is hard work. inspiration doesn't just strike with perfect timing. you have to sit at your computer and let it flow, even if the writing seems to be nothing of value. then from those 100 pages of nonsense, maybe there's 2 pages worth using. sigh. that's what my professor said - writing is not an easy task. those people at Walmart working the monotonous, brainless 9-5 shift? yeah, they used to have dreams and goals too. but somewhere along the line, they gave up, they let go, they settled for financial stability and an ordinary life. because being an artist requires more time and effort for less results.

sometimes i wonder why God placed me in this... creative industry. writing. producing works of art. it's all so subjective. and there's really no guideline, no path to follow to ensure success. it's just a lot of hard work, blood, sweat, tears, and luck. meeting the right people, being at the right place at the right time. sounds very risky huh. but it's a risk i'm willing to take. i'd like to know i gave it my best shot before settling for a dreary and mundane 9-5 office job. it'd be easier to follow a straight path to be a doctor or lawyer, at least you'd have jobs after graduation. but a media comm degree in the outside world? means absolutely NOTHING -- this fact has been pounded into us since day one, to make sure we understand what we're getting ourselves into. it simply means we can maybe write or read better than the average person. but it doesn't really consist of any real skill, unlike practicing medicine or manufacturing a computer.

so yeah. i'm feeling the pressure to work hard. very hard. i'm pretty satisfied with my script outline now, working toward starting it soon. the rest of the class + my prof seem to like it too, at least i'm getting positive responses, unlike some others. but this whole scriptwriting thing... i'm not sure if i truly love it. it's fun, definitely, coming up with ideas and plots and falling into this world i've created with characters of my very own. but getting down to business and actually writing the script is very... grueling. and exhausting. i wish i could just pass my idea on to someone and let them write it. that'd be easier huh. but nothing in this life is easy.
anyway, i'm excited about my script. it's a ROMANTIC COMEDY! and the more i write it, the more i'm like, I TOTALLY WOULD GO SEE THIS AT THE THEATRE! I WISH SOMEONE WILL BUY MY SCRIPT AND MAKE IT INTO A MOVIE! can totally imagine Sandra Bullock being the lead!! haha. more about the plot later. when it's fully developed and locked.

also, this whole thing about being a producer is HARD WORK. who knew it'd be so hard calling every single mall in LA and surrounding areas, trying to find a dang place that's nice and colorful and has a carousel and photo booth -- that will let us film???

Disney mania

wednesday was our day off for producers. instead of working hard, hani and i took a break. haha. we attempted to find a dim sum place for lunch, but ended up at this tiny chinese restaurant on Sunset Blvd, which turned out to be like any other chinese place - crappy.

but then we went to the Disney El Capitan theatre in Hollywood to see the special double feature - TOY STORY 1 & 2 in 3D!!! it was pretty cool. the theatre was magnificent. majestic red velvet curtains draped over the walls, huge screen, colorful organ on stage playing disney songs, even Woody and Buzz performed a little dance sketch! it was terribly cute.


Woody, Jessie and Buzz dancing on stage. haha.

Coolest organ ever.

El Capitan theatre!

Crazy day

Thursday was crazy. class in the morning, class in the afternoon. i think Theology in Hollywood has got to be the world's most boring class. all we do is talk about film. every. single. detail. of. the. film. from lights to color to music to tone to atmosphere to dialogue... omg. i'm so tired of analyzing films i couldn't care less about.

Anyway, we went to the free advanced screening of Law Abiding Citizen, starring Gerard Butler and Jamie Foxx! my roomie worked the premiere two days ago, and she got to go to the after party, where she BUMPED INTO Gerard Butler and RAN AWAY speechless!!! funny. the movie was gruesome and had lots of unnecessary scenes of grisly violence. it had an interesting message about the justice system and how justice isn't always served, but i don't think i'd go see it again.
It made me think of what my prof said about creating characters in our stories. he said the best villains are those who absolutely BELIEVE without a doubt in their cause. it can be something horrendous, like Hitler's, but he did believe his cause was righteous and true, even if it was twisted to the world. interesting huh. the best villains are also those we can kinda relate to. 'cause they're human too, and circumstances just turned their life down a different path from others.

As we left the theatre, fire alarms were going off in the parking lot, and security people RAN PAST US, muttering something about a fire/bomb threat!!! and then tons of security people were checking cars and closing off exits. omg. it was kinda scary.

And then since the night was still young, partyyyyy!!! :) i still think partying in NYC was more fun. oh NYC, i will be back! the place was 18 and over, so the crowd was... very hyper and adolescent. they even had a dance group perform on stage, and it felt like i was at some high school prom. haha. but it ended up being fun :)

Until...

I woke up today and hated myself for staying up so late last night. ugh. had to go to work too. wasn't a very happy person, or cheery. but i got to sit in on an audition at work, and watched 2 adorable kids perform a monologue. it was so cute :)
and then the bus took 2 hours to get me back home.

but YAY THE WEEKEND'S HERE!! and it's a long weekend too!!!! off till tues!

Beginning of fall

Crunchy leaves

Fall has officially begun in California. and it's kinda chilly, not as warm as i'd expected, which is fine with me, because i get to whip out my coats, scarves and boots! yay! i think fall is my favorite season. it's cool but not cold, and not ridiculously hot either. although... i've been wearing my winter coat, and it seems like i'm the only one. other people are still in t-shirts and shorts. haha. i guess i just can't take the cold. i'd rather be nice and toasty and have people stare at me weirdly than be shivering in t-shirts and shorts, thank you very much.
I kinda miss the changing of the color of leaves, like in Indiana. it's SO gorgeous. one of the most beautiful sights i've ever seen in my life. the leaves go from green to red to orange... it's so pretty. definitely should be on the list of 'must-sees' in life.

Reality LA

Sunday i tried out this church called 'Reality LA' with a couple of friends, and it was actually really cool. not what i was looking for, because it was all young people, even the pastor seemed to be in his late 20s. but the worship was so awesome, something i haven't experienced in a while. very contemporary and moving. the worship leader's voice was so enchanting and soothing, i totally fell in love. haha. besides that, the sermon was long but good, and they had a long worship session after the word, and everyone just did their own thing, worshipping God in different ways, as the lights dimmed and it was just us alone with God. it was pretty cool. i think i might go back there.

Twilight craze

So... faith, dana and i are officially Twilight fans. we went to Barnes & Nobles, planning to do homework, but instead we sat and read the Twilight magazine, complete with pictures and bios on each character. haha. we're totally going to camp out the night before the New Moon premiere in Hollywood, so we can see Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner!!! and dana was like, you should pretend to be Cho Chang from Harry Potter ('cause apparently she's good friends with R.Pat) and get us into the premiere and the after-partyyy!!!!
i was like, all asians don't look alike!!! now people think i either look like
a) Cho Chang (we didn't even know her real name, so we googled it and found -- Katie Leung)
b) Mulan
c) Pocahontas
seriously??? i don't look like any of them!! oh well. guess i have options for Halloween costumes now. haha.

Working life

Work is getting kinda exciting. i think they're trusting me to do more as they get more comfortable with me being there. everyone's so nice and funny, it's pretty cool. and when i get free time, i usually work on homework so i don't waste time.

This week i got to make more rejection phone calls. it amazes me how no one picks up their phone here. what's the use of having a phone if you're not gonna answer calls??? and then i got to pull more headshots of actors for roles in TV shows. i realize some of the actors they represent have been in a TON of things! granted, they're small, supporting roles, but still! these people got to work with major stars!! that was cool.
OOH i also SAVED MONEY last week! only spend about $20 the entire week, because i brought my lunch to work and ate dinners at home. YAY proud of myself. the temptation to take the easy route and buy food is always there, but i resisted! :)

Today i got to do coverage for a script. OMG. it was seriously the worst script i've ever read. not that i've read a lot. but still. it was just a pointless, meaningless short film that simply emphasized horror and gruesome things.
it was about this writer who goes to the countryside to find inspiration for her writing, and she ends up being assaulted and raped multiple times by a gang of guys, and then she falls off the cliff and fakes her death. so they think she's dead, but she comes back for revenge and kills each and every one of them in gruesome, horrific ways, all the while savoring their suffering. one guy she pulled out all his teeth, one by one, then castrated him!!!! another guy, she pushed into a hole with spikes jutting out (which of course pierced his feet and legs), and then sewed his eyelids to the top of his eye so he couldn't blink, and let crows bite it until his eyeballs were completely gone!!! another guy she let piranhas eat him alive. and then she goes psycho and gets addicted to torturing random guys. WHAT KIND OF SICK WRITER IS THIS??!?!! i was totally traumatized for the rest of the day.

PLUS i was reading Shutter Island at the same time, which is an awesome book but also about psycho people, so my mind was just overwhelmed and exhausted by the end of the day. the twist at the end was major. i think the movie's gonna be awesome. coming out in feb!

Night classes

I hate night classes. walking to the center at night is a little creepy. yesterday we had to watch a movie for class, 'The Lives of Others' -- was a pretty interesting foreign film, about a government spy who becomes attached to the people he spies on and helps them at the cost of his career. and then today we had a guest speaker - this producer guy who was really nice and like a friendly grandpa, but he just went on... and on... and on... and never stopped. it was cool how he met the legendary Walt Disney himself, and Walt actually paid for his tuition for film school!!! and he did lots of other cool things too. but man... the talk was 3 hours too long. my friend was like, if only i had a tomato (to throw at him). hahaha.

Conversations

So every morning and evening i get a ride to work from this guy who works a few blocks away from me. he's pretty cool and we got to talking about a lot of stuff. one day we were talking about homeless people.
there are 60,000 homeless people here in LA, isn't that crazy??? that's a TON of people pushing shopping carts and begging for change on the streets everyday!!! i get at least 5 people asking me for change daily, and i feel so bad but i can't give all my money to every single one of them. it's so sad, i don't know why the government doesn't do more to help. makes me wonder how they ended up homeless and why aren't they doing anything to change that. also wonder how come there are so many more homeless people here than in singapore.