An Idea Is Born

I finally got my first work-out at the gym today, and boy was it satisfying! I felt more fit simply being on the elliptical for about fifteen minutes. Geoff joined me; we tried out the sauna afterwards and were both very pleased with it.

After getting all cleaned up, went to my good friend Sierra's room to watch Wall-E with her. Definitely a feel-good kind of movie.

At about nine o'clock, Geoff, John and I began our plotting... for filming of course. We quickly agreed that we should start off with a simple screenplay, possibly thirty minutes in length and fairly easy to shoot. John is already demonstrating the outstanding qualities of a director, which is really exciting. As soon as we decided to start coming up with a theme/message we want to get to our audiences, John took a glance at a poster hanging in Geoff's room of a skateboarder in mid-air after having shot up a ramp. The caption below says "Today the sidewalk, tomorrow the sky." John didn't even hesitate to suggest "possibilities and being open-minded" as our message.

We spent a good couple of hours sitting in the darkness of John's room coming up with ideas for a story. By the end of the night, we came up with a pretty decent concept that will continue to be worked upon, but is for sure going to happen. Hopefully writing will begin by the end of October (or sooner) and filming will take place in the dorms.

Extraordinary Friday

Today was a blast in classes. Film Genres is becoming more and more enjoyable with each session. Pete lectured us today on becoming aware, as artists and actors, of what's going on around us in our current day in age. "There's nothing more interesting than a room full of artists who are involved," he said. Afterwards, we watched an hour-long AFI video on Romantic Comedies and how they have developed since the mid-thirties. Lastly, we watched most of Bringing Up Baby with Katharine Hepburn, one of the most amazing classic screenplays I've seen.

Lunch was nice and relaxing. Geoff, John and I decided to start getting some prioritizing done this weekend and see what we can start doing about spare-time filming. I presented John my script and he was very anxious to read it. Hopefully we will get together later on tonight.

My excitement for Actor's Lab just sky-rocketed. Our homework was to bring in an object that holds particular personal meaning in our lives. We sat in a circle to share our objects with the group and discuss what they mean to us. The objective was to bring out an emotional state that would further guide us onto a set path for our monologues and teach us how to live moment-to-moment. There were lots of tears the entire two hours of class, and the quality of these monologues was sharpening at an alarming rate. Although only about half of us were able to present, Ruth was blown away by our work and class ended on a very successful note.

Thursday (Off Day)

Thursdays are always interesting. Hardly anybody has Thursday off from school except for I and the people in my group... the people in my group and I... I sat at my desk, in front of my laptop for about 70% of the day, replying to emails, checking facebook, finishing homework... I kept getting distracted by the television. First, Invasion came on with Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig. Not a bad movie, I must say. Kind of strange, but interesting nonetheless. Then Max Payne came on, with Mark Whalburg. Not a good movie, I must say. Poorly acted. There was a quick reference to V for Vendetta, so I put in V for Vendetta and watched that all the way through. There are very few movies out there that get me to tears, and V for Vendetta is one of them. Lost, while a television series, is another...

Geoff, Janey, A.J. and I walked on over to Trader Joes a few hours ago. Wow! The prices were absolutely unbelievable, and nearly every one of their products is organic. I felt healthy simply being there. Might take a few minutes to get to, but it's well worth it! On the way back, I ate a large turkey club wrap that was only four bucks!

Trip to the VMAs

To the VMAs and Afterwards (Pictures)

Movement... MOVEment...

What a day, and it's only 4:34 p.m. right now. I didn't have to go into school until 1:30 this afternoon, so I had some time to relax in the room, eat some cereal, open packages of food sent by the momma and the aunt Jan.

Movement class today was extreme. We've been working on various types of stretches as well as workouts for abs and arms. Balancing is a big part of... well, everything in that class. Ultimately, it's a very exhausting two hours, but boy is it going to be worth it down the road. Already I'm beginning to notice a change in my posture; I correct myself as much as I can if I find I am leaning on one foot or the other. Mr. McNabb told us by the end of the year we will all be about an inch taller do to all of the stretching.

One of the exercises we did today was an arm and neck work-out. He came around to each of us to check our progress. After complimenting me on my work, he asked, "you've had dance training, right?" I told him I had not and he replied very enthusiastically, "excellent work, you're a natural." Confidence booster!

Last night a small group of us went to the VMAs (Video Music Awards) to star-see. Didn't actually see much, but I've got a little bit of it on film for you all to see shortly. Take care!

9/11 Rain

September 11, 2009. It's a very quiet morning here in New York. No sirens are wailing in the distance, no corse sounds of construction across the street. Just the prolonged sound of nothing ringing throughout the city. I took a gander out the window to check the weather for today. It is raining.