I will now tell the Panda story to illustrate the importance of the presence or the absence of the comma.
This panda walked into a tea shop and ordered a salad and ate it. Then it pulled out a pistol, shot the man at the next table dead, and walked out. Everyone rushed after it, shouting, "Stop! Stop! Why did you do that?"
"Because I'm a panda," said the panda. "That's what pandas do. If you don't believe me, look in the dictionary."
So they looked in the dictionary and sure enough they found Panda: Raccoon-like animal of Asia. Eats shoots and leaves.
(h/t to Ursula K. Le Guin - from Steering the Craft: Exercises and Discussions on Story Writing for the Lone Navigator or the Mutinous Crew)
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
STAR WARS: A New Dawn book review
“Aren’t you afraid?” Zaluna asked.
“Anyone would be. But the Jedi had a saying about fear. It leads, ultimately, to suffering.” Hera paused. “Someone has to break the chain.”
“People can’t talk about the Jedi anymore.”
“Maybe they should.”
OK, let's talk about the Jedi.
STAR WARS: A New Dawn is the first book published by the Lucasfilm Story Group, the new group formed to oversee the future of Star Wars storytelling across all media. Why is this important to a Star Wars fan? Because for the first time EVER, all Star Wars stories are on equal footing, existing as part of a cohesive plan to tell one grand, unified story in a galaxy far, far away.
Some background on my Star Wars literary history. I gobbled up the Expanded Universe books during my teen years. As soon as I found out there were Star Wars novels that continued the story, I read each and every one. The Courtship of Princess Leia. Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command. The clone Emperor’s Dark Empire, the Jedi Academy trilogy, the training of Han and Leia’s children. I even got to meet Mark Hamill once upon a time and he signed my copy of The Crystal Star. But I grew older, and after the stories told in the prequel films failed to live up to the stories unfolding in my imagination, I grew disinterested. I stopped reading Star Wars. The galaxy that once lit up my mind started to dim, and eventually, I turned out the lights.
Then something amazing happened — an event as unlikely as the Rebel Alliance taking out the first Death Star. Lucasfilm sold to Disney. A sequel trilogy in production. John Williams returning. Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, R2D2 and C3PO. JJ Abrams directing an incredibly intriguing cast of new actors. A return to practical effects and a script penned by Lawrence Kasdan, the writer of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. The decision made to nullify the stories of the Expanded Universe in order to give JJ and Kasdan free reign to tell the best story.
I fired up my John Williams’ soundtracks. The stars began to brighten. I could see Hoth, Endor. Tatooine, Kessel. The Millennium Falcon.
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…
When I heard that A New Dawn would be the first book in the new Star Wars canon, I resolved to read it. And page by page, I became more and more excited — not just by the unspooling of an entertaining story that felt like classic Star Wars, but by the dawning realization that Lucasfilm and Disney have a HUGE vision for where Star Wars is going to go. They’re planning to bring the fun back to Star Wars, and they are almost definitely attempting to revive the meaning of Star Wars in a way audiences haven’t experienced since the original movies. They feel confident, like the Force is with them. After finishing this book, I agree. The Force is on its way back. A New Dawn represents the first step into a new and exciting future filled with possibility.
So what’s the story? Here’s the prologue:
For a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights brought peace and order to the Galactic Republic, aided by their connection to the mystical energy field known as the Force. But they were betrayed — and the whole galaxy has paid the price. It is the Age of the Empire.
Now Emperor Palpatine, once chancellor of the Republic and secretly a Sith follower of the dark side of the Force, has brought his own peace and order to the galaxy. Peace, through brutal repression — and order, through increasing control of his subjects’ lives.
But even as the Emperor tightens his iron grip, others have begun to question his means and motives. And still others, whose lives were destroyed by Palpatine’s machinations, lay scattered about the galaxy like unexploded bombs, waiting to go off...
A New Dawn is a direct prequel to Star Wars: Rebels, the new animated TV show (premieres October 3!) that explores the founding of the Rebellion against the Empire. It takes place between Episode III and IV, during THE DARK TIMES. And it truly is cool to return to that time period, just before A NEW HOPE, where the Ralph McQuarrie inspired aesthetic of TIE fighters, Star Destroyers and stormtroopers dominates the setting. Where Jedi and lightsabers aren’t everywhere you look — they’re being hunted, on the run, in hiding. Where the ignition of a lightsaber blade isn’t a first move, it’s a last resort. Because nobody’s allowed to talk about the Jedi…
The two main characters are going to be our leads in Star Wars: Rebels, and they are legitimately complex and entertaining. Kanan Jarrus is a ‘cowboy Jedi’ — think Luke Skywalker and Han Solo rolled into one. He’s a womanizer, a drunk, a vagabond. But he’s got intriguing depth. He’s a former Padawan who survived Order 66 but turned his back on the Force and the Jedi. He’s so wounded by the extermination of his people that he almost blames the Force for the Jedi’s destruction. Hera is the other lead, and she’s an ace Twi’lek pilot with a mysterious past. She travels to the mining planet of Gorse (where the action happens in the book) to meet an informant and learn more about Count Vidian, a member of the Emperor’s inner circle who’s arrived to increase the system’s yield of an essential ore needed to power Star Destroyers in the Empire’s rapidly growing fleet. Hera’s determined to gather intelligence and contacts so that one day, when the people are ready to stand up to the Empire, the Rebellion might have a chance.
A New Dawn is about how Hera and Kanan meet, and how she begins to make him feel something again. It’s about why the Rebellion starts, what the Rebels stand for, and why that’s important to not just the Star Wars saga, but to everybody who experiences the story of Star Wars moving forward. The Empire consumes. The Empire expands. It flexes its military power and stomps on individual lives. For the first time, Star Wars feels like its commenting on our world today, from the nature of what an Empire is, to how its nobility profits from never-ending war, to the difficult choices supporting characters must make in order to make a difference. Zaluna, quoted in the opening to this post, is a fascinating character, a Sullustan surveillance agent who has an Edward Snowden-esque change of heart once she realizes what the Empire can do with the data she’s spent her whole adult life collecting. Her justifications for spying on ordinary citizens mirror real world politics in a way I never thought I’d see in a Star Wars book. Equally as intriguing is Skelly, a disturbed veteran of the Clone Wars who’s full of paranoid theories about the Empire and just wants somebody to listen to him.
I think A New Dawn really is the perfect gateway novel for new readers interested in where Star Wars is going, and old readers who left Star Wars behind. The writing isn’t what I’d call beautiful, but the storytelling is well paced and the characters are strong. It drops you back into a narrative that lets you re-experience the core elements of a good Star Wars story. And it gives you a ton of confidence in the Lucasfilm Story Group’s abilities.
Lastly, regarding EPISODE VII clues -- they’re almost certainly there. The author does a great job laying out the behind the scenes machinations of the Empire, what the Emperor’s plans for it might have been (interesting that his ultimate goals never became clear, even in the OT), and the politics occurring offscreen. I can’t help but think these sections are building foundation for why the Rebellion is so important to the overall conflict of the saga, and why the Empire did not necessarily fall after RETURN OF THE JEDI.
Look, I was clearly an easy sell here. Star Wars was like a religion to me, my younger brother, and my Dad. It provided my family with endless hours of enjoyment, meaningful memories and exciting experiences. There’s 5 or so more novels coming between now and EPISODE VII, and a season or two of Rebels. I am fully on board. For me, Star Wars is back, it’s in better shape than it’s been since the 80s, and I believe it could truly end up being better than it’s ever been before.
I think for awhile there I became like Kanan, turning my back on the Force as I grew older. I forgot about the Jedi. I forgot why they meant something. Now, I’m starting to remember. I’m starting to feel the Force again.
I think I’m not the only one.
“Anyone would be. But the Jedi had a saying about fear. It leads, ultimately, to suffering.” Hera paused. “Someone has to break the chain.”
“People can’t talk about the Jedi anymore.”
“Maybe they should.”
OK, let's talk about the Jedi.
STAR WARS: A New Dawn is the first book published by the Lucasfilm Story Group, the new group formed to oversee the future of Star Wars storytelling across all media. Why is this important to a Star Wars fan? Because for the first time EVER, all Star Wars stories are on equal footing, existing as part of a cohesive plan to tell one grand, unified story in a galaxy far, far away.
Some background on my Star Wars literary history. I gobbled up the Expanded Universe books during my teen years. As soon as I found out there were Star Wars novels that continued the story, I read each and every one. The Courtship of Princess Leia. Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command. The clone Emperor’s Dark Empire, the Jedi Academy trilogy, the training of Han and Leia’s children. I even got to meet Mark Hamill once upon a time and he signed my copy of The Crystal Star. But I grew older, and after the stories told in the prequel films failed to live up to the stories unfolding in my imagination, I grew disinterested. I stopped reading Star Wars. The galaxy that once lit up my mind started to dim, and eventually, I turned out the lights.
Then something amazing happened — an event as unlikely as the Rebel Alliance taking out the first Death Star. Lucasfilm sold to Disney. A sequel trilogy in production. John Williams returning. Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, R2D2 and C3PO. JJ Abrams directing an incredibly intriguing cast of new actors. A return to practical effects and a script penned by Lawrence Kasdan, the writer of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. The decision made to nullify the stories of the Expanded Universe in order to give JJ and Kasdan free reign to tell the best story.
I fired up my John Williams’ soundtracks. The stars began to brighten. I could see Hoth, Endor. Tatooine, Kessel. The Millennium Falcon.
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…
When I heard that A New Dawn would be the first book in the new Star Wars canon, I resolved to read it. And page by page, I became more and more excited — not just by the unspooling of an entertaining story that felt like classic Star Wars, but by the dawning realization that Lucasfilm and Disney have a HUGE vision for where Star Wars is going to go. They’re planning to bring the fun back to Star Wars, and they are almost definitely attempting to revive the meaning of Star Wars in a way audiences haven’t experienced since the original movies. They feel confident, like the Force is with them. After finishing this book, I agree. The Force is on its way back. A New Dawn represents the first step into a new and exciting future filled with possibility.
So what’s the story? Here’s the prologue:
For a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights brought peace and order to the Galactic Republic, aided by their connection to the mystical energy field known as the Force. But they were betrayed — and the whole galaxy has paid the price. It is the Age of the Empire.
Now Emperor Palpatine, once chancellor of the Republic and secretly a Sith follower of the dark side of the Force, has brought his own peace and order to the galaxy. Peace, through brutal repression — and order, through increasing control of his subjects’ lives.
But even as the Emperor tightens his iron grip, others have begun to question his means and motives. And still others, whose lives were destroyed by Palpatine’s machinations, lay scattered about the galaxy like unexploded bombs, waiting to go off...
A New Dawn is a direct prequel to Star Wars: Rebels, the new animated TV show (premieres October 3!) that explores the founding of the Rebellion against the Empire. It takes place between Episode III and IV, during THE DARK TIMES. And it truly is cool to return to that time period, just before A NEW HOPE, where the Ralph McQuarrie inspired aesthetic of TIE fighters, Star Destroyers and stormtroopers dominates the setting. Where Jedi and lightsabers aren’t everywhere you look — they’re being hunted, on the run, in hiding. Where the ignition of a lightsaber blade isn’t a first move, it’s a last resort. Because nobody’s allowed to talk about the Jedi…
The two main characters are going to be our leads in Star Wars: Rebels, and they are legitimately complex and entertaining. Kanan Jarrus is a ‘cowboy Jedi’ — think Luke Skywalker and Han Solo rolled into one. He’s a womanizer, a drunk, a vagabond. But he’s got intriguing depth. He’s a former Padawan who survived Order 66 but turned his back on the Force and the Jedi. He’s so wounded by the extermination of his people that he almost blames the Force for the Jedi’s destruction. Hera is the other lead, and she’s an ace Twi’lek pilot with a mysterious past. She travels to the mining planet of Gorse (where the action happens in the book) to meet an informant and learn more about Count Vidian, a member of the Emperor’s inner circle who’s arrived to increase the system’s yield of an essential ore needed to power Star Destroyers in the Empire’s rapidly growing fleet. Hera’s determined to gather intelligence and contacts so that one day, when the people are ready to stand up to the Empire, the Rebellion might have a chance.
A New Dawn is about how Hera and Kanan meet, and how she begins to make him feel something again. It’s about why the Rebellion starts, what the Rebels stand for, and why that’s important to not just the Star Wars saga, but to everybody who experiences the story of Star Wars moving forward. The Empire consumes. The Empire expands. It flexes its military power and stomps on individual lives. For the first time, Star Wars feels like its commenting on our world today, from the nature of what an Empire is, to how its nobility profits from never-ending war, to the difficult choices supporting characters must make in order to make a difference. Zaluna, quoted in the opening to this post, is a fascinating character, a Sullustan surveillance agent who has an Edward Snowden-esque change of heart once she realizes what the Empire can do with the data she’s spent her whole adult life collecting. Her justifications for spying on ordinary citizens mirror real world politics in a way I never thought I’d see in a Star Wars book. Equally as intriguing is Skelly, a disturbed veteran of the Clone Wars who’s full of paranoid theories about the Empire and just wants somebody to listen to him.
I think A New Dawn really is the perfect gateway novel for new readers interested in where Star Wars is going, and old readers who left Star Wars behind. The writing isn’t what I’d call beautiful, but the storytelling is well paced and the characters are strong. It drops you back into a narrative that lets you re-experience the core elements of a good Star Wars story. And it gives you a ton of confidence in the Lucasfilm Story Group’s abilities.
Lastly, regarding EPISODE VII clues -- they’re almost certainly there. The author does a great job laying out the behind the scenes machinations of the Empire, what the Emperor’s plans for it might have been (interesting that his ultimate goals never became clear, even in the OT), and the politics occurring offscreen. I can’t help but think these sections are building foundation for why the Rebellion is so important to the overall conflict of the saga, and why the Empire did not necessarily fall after RETURN OF THE JEDI.
Look, I was clearly an easy sell here. Star Wars was like a religion to me, my younger brother, and my Dad. It provided my family with endless hours of enjoyment, meaningful memories and exciting experiences. There’s 5 or so more novels coming between now and EPISODE VII, and a season or two of Rebels. I am fully on board. For me, Star Wars is back, it’s in better shape than it’s been since the 80s, and I believe it could truly end up being better than it’s ever been before.
I think for awhile there I became like Kanan, turning my back on the Force as I grew older. I forgot about the Jedi. I forgot why they meant something. Now, I’m starting to remember. I’m starting to feel the Force again.
I think I’m not the only one.
Tuesday, July 15, 2014
Sunday, December 1, 2013
post-NaNo victory lap
Total word count: 50,014
I think I only missed writing one day this month, which I’m hugely proud of and is maybe the most important takeaway for me. I’ve written long stories before (though only screenplays, and they’re a different sort of beast), so crossing the finish line didn’t bring the kind of elation you get winning a poker tournament in Monaco or anything. For me, ‘winning’ NaNoWriMo brought more of an overall sense of satisfaction, like finishing a lengthy run and taking in a giant breath of fresh air.
A bunch of people have asked me how they can read ‘Nightmare 1.0.’ Firstly, y’all are awesome for offering! Just delightful. But the gift of having interested readers is not something I take lightly (because, like, who reads these days?!). Writing 50k words in one month does not produce a great, or even good book. Great stories of any length take a lot of time and effort, rewriting, editing, and whiskey. Anyway, this particular story requires a lot more time in the oven, a lot more blacksmithing or what have you, for it to be worthy of readership, or visual adaptation, or toy lines and t-shirts and video games and midnight book store parties. Because without midnight book store parties, WHAT IS THE POINT.
I’ve printed the draft out and put it in a box along with the last screenplay I wrote (also a first draft). I like writing these long form works and putting them away until my brain wakes up one day and is all like IT’S CLOBBERIN TIME! In the meantime I’m working on a few different projects in the short term: some short stories, The Micros, and a stoner poker comedy. Some might argue The Micros is a stoner poker comedy, but hey, that genre’s got plenty of room.
Thanks for cheering me on! It totally helped.
I think I only missed writing one day this month, which I’m hugely proud of and is maybe the most important takeaway for me. I’ve written long stories before (though only screenplays, and they’re a different sort of beast), so crossing the finish line didn’t bring the kind of elation you get winning a poker tournament in Monaco or anything. For me, ‘winning’ NaNoWriMo brought more of an overall sense of satisfaction, like finishing a lengthy run and taking in a giant breath of fresh air.
A bunch of people have asked me how they can read ‘Nightmare 1.0.’ Firstly, y’all are awesome for offering! Just delightful. But the gift of having interested readers is not something I take lightly (because, like, who reads these days?!). Writing 50k words in one month does not produce a great, or even good book. Great stories of any length take a lot of time and effort, rewriting, editing, and whiskey. Anyway, this particular story requires a lot more time in the oven, a lot more blacksmithing or what have you, for it to be worthy of readership, or visual adaptation, or toy lines and t-shirts and video games and midnight book store parties. Because without midnight book store parties, WHAT IS THE POINT.
I’ve printed the draft out and put it in a box along with the last screenplay I wrote (also a first draft). I like writing these long form works and putting them away until my brain wakes up one day and is all like IT’S CLOBBERIN TIME! In the meantime I’m working on a few different projects in the short term: some short stories, The Micros, and a stoner poker comedy. Some might argue The Micros is a stoner poker comedy, but hey, that genre’s got plenty of room.
Thanks for cheering me on! It totally helped.
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Day 12
15432 words. Observations:
1. Writing a novel is fing hard
2. Writing a science fantasy novel is really fing hard.
3. It is hard to write super fast and write good sentences. Counterstrategy: each day write down a random sentence from a book, spend all day trying to measure up.
4. I’m really happy I took this Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction class last year.
5. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood’s first episode is brilliant. Band of Brothers is amazing.
6. An iPad mini makes a sick reading/writing/music instrument of destruction.
7. Coffee?
8. The process of writing a novel seems like it could have lots in common with playing a ton of hands of online poker. Long, tilting, some days you win.
9. I’m behind pace, but 50k words and a complete story is happening. Lockdown? Lockdown. LOCKDOWN!
10. This draft will be a POS, but progress is progress. Writing a good story is like getting out of Shawshank.
11. The structure of a novel is a completely different problem than the structure of a screenplay.
12. Do better.
13. Fuck
I wish I were able to shelve every other responsibility for November, but we’ve had some exciting BET RAISE FOLD developments. I’m not making 3 hours+/day consistently, but I’m almost always getting at least 2 hours. Weekends are tough but I’m growing the beard to remind myself that I’m supposed to be a hermit.
goals for this week:
Draw
More writing
More reading
Keep better time tracking/word count on sessions
Tea
1. Writing a novel is fing hard
2. Writing a science fantasy novel is really fing hard.
3. It is hard to write super fast and write good sentences. Counterstrategy: each day write down a random sentence from a book, spend all day trying to measure up.
4. I’m really happy I took this Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction class last year.
5. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood’s first episode is brilliant. Band of Brothers is amazing.
6. An iPad mini makes a sick reading/writing/music instrument of destruction.
7. Coffee?
8. The process of writing a novel seems like it could have lots in common with playing a ton of hands of online poker. Long, tilting, some days you win.
9. I’m behind pace, but 50k words and a complete story is happening. Lockdown? Lockdown. LOCKDOWN!
10. This draft will be a POS, but progress is progress. Writing a good story is like getting out of Shawshank.
11. The structure of a novel is a completely different problem than the structure of a screenplay.
12. Do better.
13. Fuck
I wish I were able to shelve every other responsibility for November, but we’ve had some exciting BET RAISE FOLD developments. I’m not making 3 hours+/day consistently, but I’m almost always getting at least 2 hours. Weekends are tough but I’m growing the beard to remind myself that I’m supposed to be a hermit.
goals for this week:
Draw
More writing
More reading
Keep better time tracking/word count on sessions
Tea
Thursday, October 31, 2013
November: in which I write a lot of fun stuff really fast
I'm about to start NaNoWrimo - national novel writing month. The goal is to write a 50k word novel in one month. I read lots of books, and I’ve tried this before, but I have too much respect for people who actually write novels to say that I’m writing one. I’m writing a 50k word "exploratory draft" of a science fiction story! The last time I tried to do something insane like this I wrote a screenplay that reads like a Wes Anderson movie crossed with Kung Fu Hustle (coming to Google Glass in 2018?).
I don’t know how much blogging I’ll do during this, but it’s much easier to crush this kind of thing when you make your goal public. Because it’s so incredibly shameful if you fail. So this blog post is my failsafe.
Also, I have a side bet with Kristy Arnett - if either of us finishes, the other has to make a video dancing on 5 strangers in public for 10 seconds each, and buy them a $100 book/writing gift. There is no way I will lose, Kristy!!! At least one of us is going dancing. (edit: unless both of us make it, then the embarrassment bet is a wash but we still get each other presents!)
Goals for NaNo:
1. Finish it, 50k words or more
2. Write for 3 hours+ for 30 straight days.
3. Be dramatic, comedic, and entertaining.
made a Pinterest board with some tools
I don’t know how much blogging I’ll do during this, but it’s much easier to crush this kind of thing when you make your goal public. Because it’s so incredibly shameful if you fail. So this blog post is my failsafe.
Also, I have a side bet with Kristy Arnett - if either of us finishes, the other has to make a video dancing on 5 strangers in public for 10 seconds each, and buy them a $100 book/writing gift. There is no way I will lose, Kristy!!! At least one of us is going dancing. (edit: unless both of us make it, then the embarrassment bet is a wash but we still get each other presents!)
Goals for NaNo:
1. Finish it, 50k words or more
2. Write for 3 hours+ for 30 straight days.
3. Be dramatic, comedic, and entertaining.
made a Pinterest board with some tools
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Pacific Rim is the best summer blockbuster in years
As a child I spent many a weekend gorging myself on summer action adventure blockbuster movies (and sour candy). Those escapes into the cool theater were a favored way to pass the time with my younger brother and father. Star Wars was our absolute favorite, the king of the hill, but we saw all the others in the hopes that something could match it and let our imaginations run wild. Nothing really satisfied (the first Indiana Jones movies, Jaws, Jurassic Park, Independence Day and the first Matrix the exceptions). As I grew older my viewpoint on these kinds of movies grew more cynical. Nearly everything Hollywood spat out seemed like an excessive waste of money, a retread of the same old story, and a gross failure to deliver on what makes these movies resonate (the escapist thrills, a sense of fun, adventure and wonder, larger than life heroes and villains and meaningful conflict portrayed on an epic scale). This was our pop culture cinema, Hollywood was the only entity with the machine in place to create this particular kind of dream, and they were (and still are) failing miserably. 90% of blockbuster movies basically steal your money, feed you cancerous snacks, and leave you psychically violated with a primal urge to rant on Twitter.
So my childlike curiosity sent me looking elsewhere, in books and on television. Some of my favorite stories came out of the East, in the form of the giant robot/mecha genre of sci-fi. Maybe it was because Voltron was just so super cool!, maybe it was because Robotech offered a layered tapestry of characters set against a philosophically sophisticated war saga, or maybe it was the nightmarish traumas splashed across the colorful, trance inducing images of Neon Genesis Evangelion. This stuff coming from Japan was much more imaginative than the stories the West was producing, and I lost myself inside these worlds. I often tried to imagine what it would be like to see them realized using live action and visual effects. I assumed it couldn't be done, or that if Hollywood went for it, they’d fall flat on their faces (case in point: the Transformers movies).
I’ve seen Pacific Rim twice now, and Guillermo Del Toro and Travis Beacham fucking did it! The first time I saw it in IMAX 3D. The 3D was impressive, but we sat too close (rookie mistake), and my high expectations for the storytelling were disappointed when I realized the script played more like a campy Saturday morning cartoon than an epic philosophical meditation on the nature of war against monsters and the kinds of people who have to fight them. But they got SO MUCH right! In doing so they cracked my mask of adult cynicism and returned me to the silly state of a boy smiling in pure wonder. It’s an amazing achievement.
This movie delivers astounding visual images of heroes (real heroes who leap into action, not the emo, brooding kind found in most superhero movies) being heroic. The Battle for Hong Kong is one of the greatest action sequences I’ve ever seen in my life. It's so fun! This kind of pop culture cinema is important for our future. These are the dreams burned into the imaginations of the next generation, and Pacific Rim offers a humanistic, cooperative, positive dream. It doesn’t match the resonance of Star Wars, but it’s so visually intelligent, bursting with detailed love for this kind of operatic cinema. There were literally people whooping and cheering, bursting out of their seats in both screenings I went to! It gives me some hope that we can go to a movie theater in the future and have a great time again.
If you like blockbuster movies with amazing spectacle, and think GIANT ROBOTS vs GIANT MONSTERS sounds pretty cool, you have to see Pacific Rim on the biggest screen possible. Watch it as if you were 12 years old again (or bring a 12 year old with you if you know any), Discard your cynicism, have fun with the story. Be an optimist again.
*The new Star Trek, INTO DARKNESS, is pretty good too. It's really entertaining and features some crazy images and fun sequences. JJ Abrams is going to hit a home run with Star Wars 7, imo.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Applied Game Theory
I'm part of a new video series with Josh "sthief" Plotkin on DeucesCracked called Applied Game Theory.
Applied Game Theory is your introduction to applying game theory to poker. In this series, you will learn to calculate EV tables, analyze equilibria, apply toy games to NLHE, and plug your own leaks. Join KRANTZ and Josh in learning about the ways that game theory can complement an exploitative approach to poker. Follow along they review Jay's fundamentals, discuss practical examples (including some high-stakes hands), and walk you through the slow, but rewarding steps to using math to improve your game.The first two videos, "Introduction" and "Foundation", went up today.
Thank You.
This is so cool. As a boy I always dreamed of playing poker or making movies. To combine both into one experience… it's only fitting that poker made another dream of mine come true. That's what poker has done for me, and I feel very fortunate right now.
In co-producing BET RAISE FOLD I was put in an interesting position as both an online poker player and a member of the poker community. I found myself on the outside looking in, trying to analyze who we were, and after Black Friday, what had happened to us. From the outside what I saw was unsettling. I saw that Black Friday had destroyed our spirits. We loved online poker and we loved the lives we were able to live because of it. We were dreamers, but in one fell swoop the absurd forces that exist in the world turned us into cynics. We took the ultimate bad beat in Black Friday because it robbed us of the chance to keep grinding through the downswing.
Here's what I believe about poker. The spirit of the poker maverick is enduring. It will not be extinguished. The dream is not gone. If you work hard and believe in it, it will always be within your reach. I hope BET RAISE FOLD can help start to heal the wounds of Black Friday and give us hope for brighter days ahead. From the inside looking out and the outside looking in, I'm proud to be a part of this community.
Monday, June 10, 2013
our bet is made
It's hard to really articulate what I'm feeling as I head off to Las Vegas to premiere BET RAISE FOLD: The Story of Online Poker in front of almost 200 friends, peers, and poker world colleagues who have, like me, such a close and personal connection to the online poker story. Overwhelming excitement trumps everything. Movies and poker have been the two defining throughlines of my life, so to have them coming together like this is such a huge event for me that I won't know how to piece together the significance until I can look back from down the road. I'm trying to just enjoy the moment and capture it in my memory as best I can. Mentally I am in the zone. Like the great Bruce Lee says, "I am water."
Despite the amazing success of our Kickstarter campaign so far, it's surprised us how cynical some people have been about our motives. I wanted to repost a reply I wrote on TwoPlusTwo to a fellow poker player/pro who wrote "I think it's kinda sad that some of the BRF fundraising is done under the guise of "this is +EV for poker as a whole" and not "You can financially support a project you will like"
My reply:
Take that for what it's worth, but our bet is made.
Despite the amazing success of our Kickstarter campaign so far, it's surprised us how cynical some people have been about our motives. I wanted to repost a reply I wrote on TwoPlusTwo to a fellow poker player/pro who wrote "I think it's kinda sad that some of the BRF fundraising is done under the guise of "this is +EV for poker as a whole" and not "You can financially support a project you will like"
My reply:
I think it's sad that so many of my peers are so damn cynical!
Firstly, the BRF = +EV for poker = a small portion of our Kickstarter. We list 4 reasons for making the film and "to do good for poker" is the fourth reason.
Secondly, this is generally what we mean when we say the film is good for poker (as listed in our FAQ):
This is not a promotional movie. We have no ulterior motive beyond the desire to tell the story of online poker. When we say we're trying to "do good for poker", what we mean is:
How many online pros, casual players, and poker fans have been met with a blank stare when they tried to explain their passion/profession to family and friends? The online poker boom created a multi-billion dollar industry and a massive sub-culture that changed countless lives, but it's still so difficult for people outside this bubble to really "get it". You can't ask "outsiders" to spend weeks sifting through thousands of classic TwoPlusTwo posts or hundreds of YouTube videos in an attempt to better understand online poker. You can ask them to sit down in a comfortable chair with a bag of popcorn for 100 minutes and watch an entertaining story that explains what all the fuss is/was about. BET RAISE FOLD is foremost a piece of entertainment, but beyond that, it's meant to act as a communication tool -- a film that will finally bridge that gap of confusion between you and your family/friends. After Black Friday, it's more important than ever for people to understand that online poker is (was?) a legitimate profession that should be legalized and regulated in the USA -- because these days, it often feels like that blank stare is accompanied by misguided suspicions of criminal activity.
Beyond that, 10 years from now, some of you might still be playing poker, some of you may have moved on to other interests, but wouldn't it be great if there was a movie you could watch any time you want that perfectly captured that unique, once-in-a-lifetime period of your life when online poker was new and fresh and everything seemed possible?
Nothing like this has ever existed before, and we feel like that's "good for poker".
Thirdly, I personally do believe the documentary is going to have a positive impact on the perception of online poker in the public consciousness. I know I said earlier that I'm not trying to be a "white knight", but if this film wants us to be the "white knights" of online poker, if it needs us to be that for it to succeed, then that's what we will have to be. We are all-in on it. Black Friday hit all of us in the stomachs and we survived to tell the story. We were the only people to capture the drama on camera as it unfolded from the POV of the players. Now we have a vehicle to give players impacted by it a voice in the wider world. If you think believing this (or trying to get others to believe in this) is sad, we don't see eye to eye on a lot more than just this movie and Kickstarter campaign.June 12 is the theatrical premiere. June 30 we release online, worldwide, from betraisefoldmovie.com. I'm all-in on this movie. So are many of the top thinkers and players of my generation, ~500 Kickstarter backers, and all the people who helped in front of or behind the camera to make this happen.
Take that for what it's worth, but our bet is made.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
thoughts on learning GTO after 4 sessions of 'blah blah GTO'
blah blah GTO = video series running now on DeucesCracked in which blah234 trains me in the art of learning how to completely rethink poker from an EV-based, mathematical perspective.
it's really hard, especially given how much time I'm spending on BET RAISE FOLD. it would still be really hard even if I had all the time in the world to devote to it. DC shipped me a copy of Matt Janda's new book but I haven't even had a chance to read more than a few pages.
DCer Zinger posted a comment in the latest video thread that I've been mulling over. I definitely feel the truth in this, and though I know we are a long way away from a GTO solution to poker, I find myself wondering exactly where poker is headed. What do you guys think?
There's a lot of focus on what GTO could be from all the latest poker training materials. Analysis tools and poker bots are also getting better.
With the flood of information creating an army of near-GTO bots, poker's future looks bleak. Games were always getting tougher but the idea that you could be playing someone with no weaknesses to exploit is utterly depressing.
It sounds so cold and boring. To me, poker's a creative endeavor and while I don't think someone's nose-picking is an indicator of hand strength, I'm still a bit of a romantic. *plays Rounders clips* A great hero call or well-timed bluff give me satisfaction. I feel like an explorer in a jungle of unknown variables. Was that sexy play actually right? It gives me a little puzzle to ponder over and catalyze further improvements.
However, it seems the future flair or creativity will be what CREV spits out in yet another of thousands of simulations. Poker feels less like a game and too much not just like work but like drudgery. Instead of seeing myself as a child when trying to integrate this new conception of poker, I reflexively see a tired accountant with endless spreadsheets to sort through. I certainly don't see Chris Moneymaker winning the WSOP. There are lots of ways to make good money but unlike most of them, poker was supposed to be more fun.
I could live with the fact that tomorrow will always be harder than today, but I laid my hope and motivation on the notion that I could always beat anyone if I improved sufficiently. With guys like Sauce123 actively trying to play GTO, this idea no longer holds merit. Poker's looking increasingly like an absolutely terrible career choice. I thought Black Friday was bad but this new approach to poker makes me feel even worse.
Poker 2015: We worked so hard so we can now trade rake! In a theater near you!
Monday, March 18, 2013
Game's the same, just got more fierce
Poker blog, entry 232. Yeah that's right, I ain't retired yet…
While I haven't been playing high stakes poker competitively since Black Friday, I still have been playing some poker - primarily in the form of micro and small stakes training videos for DC. These videos have me building my bankroll from scratch as I work out all the leaks in my game acquired from disengaging my brain from the dailyness of thinking and obsessing about hand histories, 3bet percentages, and which avatar suits my screenname best (clown, long may he reign). What I like about these videos is that they've allowed me to open up a dialogue with other players at these levels, where they can help critique my game and follow along as someone with a lot of experience approaches sharpening his skills in the modern era of online NLHE.
OK, so what skills am I sharpening right now? On DC there has been a lot of geeky discussion led by a group of super smart poker minds - blah234, improva, shuttle, and sthief - in a new poker theory forum that's been created. These dudes are working on applying a GTO approach to their game, which really intrigues me as it seems like a) this is where the best players are headed and b) applying math and theory to my decision making has always been the weakest part of my game. Lately I've found that I'm making too many wild guesses about my opponent's ranges and blah has pointed out repeatedly that guesswork is a losing proposition and the GTO approach could give me exact answers.
So in the coming months I'm going back to school and attempting to unlearn all my old habits, replacing them with a new foundation born from mathematics. Since I can't spend 8 hours/day doing this, it's going to be a long, tough road... but I plan to simultaneously chart my path in an extensive video series on DC (where I'm under the tutelage of blah) in order to help others who might also dare to remake their game. In the end, I think this will provide a sweet guide for players who might find this stuff interesting but are also intimidated by all the math and work away from the tables. And I think it will make me a deadlier player than I ever was, even at my peak.
For awhile before Black Friday I felt like I had hit a ceiling in terms of achievements, but these days I'm older and wiser and realize that poker is a game that's miles deeper than most people think. The challenge of mastering it over the course of my lifetime is something I now relish, and knowing that challenge lies ahead has done a lot to renew my passion for playing cards. So that's where I'm at and where I'm going - I'm rethinking poker, and I hope to have more frequent thoughts to share as I continue to do so.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
documentary release variables
We're in the home stretch with the BOOM documentary project, and as we inch even closer to finishing the movie, we're receiving more questions about firm or even approximate release dates. This post is to help answer these questions to the best of my ability.
As of today, we are fairly confident the movie will be picture locked by March 1. This means that all editing will be finished and the movie will be for the most part complete, and all that remains will be final polishing aspects like sound mixing and color correction.
We submitted a rough edit of an earlier version of the movie to SXSW and unfortunately were not accepted (they only took 8 films out of 905 submissions). We have two other major film festivals coming up: Hot Docs in Toronto (we are notified of acceptance by 3/18, festival runs in late April) and the LA Film Fest (unsure when notified, festival runs in mid June). Our distribution and broad release plans go hand in hand with whether or not we get into these festivals, and how the movie performs at them. However, we don't have all our eggs in these baskets…
Sometime in early-mid March we will be launching our website, powered by VHX, which will be the online home for the film from then on out. We're fully embracing the new models of hybrid independent film distribution and plan to follow in the footsteps of documentary success stories like Indie Game: The Movie, We Are Legion, and Sound City. We'll be going live with a new trailer and the ability to digitally pre-order the film, as well as join our mailing list. The important thing to note here is that regardless of our film festival results, we will be distributing the movie online, globally, in a wide variety of standard digital formats, so you can buy the film directly from us and watch it wherever and however you want to. We will be rolling this out no matter what happens, so the only thing in question now is a timeline (which depends on the festival results and distribution deals we could be offered). At the latest we hope to be available in wide release by this summer. We could hold the movie and apply to other major festivals later this year, but you guys have been waiting long enough and we believe it's important to get this out there sooner rather than later. We also have faith in our collective ability to reach people who really care about the online poker story and will share it with friends and family!
Lastly, we are strongly considering Kickstartering a theatrical tour to take the film to poker hotspots/communities throughout the US and Canada (and possibly further abroad). This wouldn't kick off until the summer, but we think it would be a great way to keep drumming up support for the movie and continue to spread awareness. Plus, the movie looks good! We want to see it on a big screen with everybody else!
If you have any questions, fire away, we are happy to answer! Exciting times ahead...
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Books
“The man who does not read has no advantage over the man who cannot read.” - Mark TwainBooks are awesome. If you're not reading books (or listening to them on audiobook at least), it's my opinion that you're missing out on important ideas and arguments and real knowledge, the kind that you can't find in your daily Internet browsing simply because the authors' arguments require detailed thought and a lot of pages. This is a big problem, as our society (the US, *fake coughs*) is becoming dumber and dumber in only a kind of funny way, so we should take a lesson from the Dark Ages when Rome collapsed and all the monks who could read used their uncommon and highly valued knowledge to rise to the power elite. What I'm saying is, those who have the knowledge will win the post-apocalyptic power.
So I read a fair amount of books in anticipation of the collapse of civilization, and being as it's a New Year and everyone has all these resolutions they can't stick to (replace one you don't like with "reading more books!"), I thought I might share some books I've recently read and am reading that have been stretching my own mind and motivation:
Dialogue is a huge component of screenwriting, but it's a practiced skill that a lot of writers seem to forget about. There's a reason why Aaron Sorkin and David Mamet's characters' words sound like musical ping pong--they honed their shit over years and years of rigorous practice. A theme of mine for this year is SKILL SHARPENING (both writing and poker) and this workbook is a whetstone for sharper dialogue.
Another writing workbook I discovered through the Google+ Writer's Discussion Group. Basically full of creative exercises designed to help writers hone all their skills. I plan to use this one a lot throughout the year.
Kind of in line with Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hours concept, this book weaves together biographies of great masters of various disciplines (the arts and sciences), past and present, to illustrate various strategies to find "your calling" and spend those 10k hours optimally. Highly recommend this one for anyone creative or looking to become more creative, or generally feeling lost about what you want to do with your life.
A collection of essays, notes and interviews by and with Hayao Miyazaki, one of the greatest directors of ALL TIME!!! and the most respected animation director in the world. If you haven't seen his work, check out Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away. If you like animation and/or Pixar movies, you'll love him, he has inspired pretty much everyone working in animation today.
I'm a huge Tommy Angelo fan, and his book The Elements of Poker and video series The Eightfold Path to Poker Enlightenment are musts for any serious poker player. But last WSOP I read Jared Tendler's The Mental Game of Poker and immediately realized he had completed the mental game trifecta. Jared applies strategies rooted in sports psychology to help fix tilt, emotional control, confidence problems, fear and motivation, both in life and at the poker table. Tommy and Jared's books have definitely influenced the growth of my game more than any other poker literature I've ever read.
Francis Glebas, a legendary storyboard artist at Disney, teaches visual storytelling. This book is an amazing read for any visual artist interested in storytelling, and if and when The Micros comes back you can attribute some of the increase in quality to my learning lots from this book (and the diabolical John Wray, ldo).
Interviews with famous tech company founders like Steve Wozniak (Apple) and Max Levchin (PayPal). I've read a lot of books about how to build successful enterprises (especially during the first few years of DeucesCracked), but this book is always one of the first I recommend to budding entrepreneurs as I think it contains the most practical wisdoms--lessons learned through painful experience. From what I understand there's another book like this called Coders at Work that's a great read for programmers.
So do you guys have any good book recommendations from 2012? Post in comments and help us get all the gold!
Saturday, December 22, 2012
sharks + mavericks
Hollywood is a scene. Actors, writers, producers, and directors all climbing the totem pole. Everyone is all about movies and entertainment and making a hard, cruel, living at it. There are really steep canyons. In between long sessions of editing, Internet surfing, labradoodle walking, ZERO DARK THIRTY watching, car riding, and future postulating, it was a +EV place to be.
Throughout the course of this project, many movie people have asked us the question "what audience are you targeting?" I have thought about this question a lot, really since the days of From Busto to Robusto, and have almost always come back around to the same conclusion: if we can recapture the energy and spirit of the online poker boom, and make it easy for poker players to support, we will find the bullseye. I think this past week was time well spent towards doubling down on that ideal. Leaving LA, we're in good shape: the final movie will be about the online poker boom of the 2000s (ldo), but it will be centrally focused on the evolution of poker and the professional poker player, embodied by three modern day pros: Tony Dunst, Martin Bradstreet, and Danielle Moon-Andersen. $$$
Yeah, yeah, that sounds great Jay but tell me something REAL!!! In early 2013 we will be launching a website where you'll be able to get more frequent updates (we have a lot of cool media to share) and information about the movie. Meanwhile, Taylor and I will continue to work on our distribution strategy. As soon as the movie is finished, we will be aggressively trying to get it in front of you.
Heading North for Christmas (I get 2x presents, suckers!). Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!
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| bonus fortune cookie: strive to make 2013 > 2012. You will acquire new skills and find money on sidewalk. |
Sunday, December 16, 2012
BOOM lockdown
Right now I'm in LA, living in the documentary editing room (literally) for one week. Ryan recently made a great 2p2 post explaining what we're up to with the movie. Basically, we had always intended on sending out our latest edit to a group of people whose opinions we really value -- experienced filmmakers, storytellers, poker industry professionals and the like -- who we could trust to supply us with the kind of brutal, critical feedback you need to truly see all your weak spots and how to fix them. Our SXSW edit is not bad at all (in fact I think if we released it many people would still enjoy it), but Ryan is right when he says it's just not good enough and doesn't quite do justice to the expectations we established with our first trailer, and to the story we set out to tell. I think it's fortuitous that we didn't get into Sundance, because it gives us a little bit more time to get this done right.
So where do you start once you make the decision to make some large structural changes to a story? After you go to the Tilt Room you get back to basics. What we had was a combination of a character driven narrative and a detailed expose of the shifty, shadowy nature of the online poker industry. That sounds intriguing on paper but because we're a documentary and reliant on footage we've shot already to tell the story, it was hard to make it completely resonate for an audience member who sits down with no preconceptions. We knew that Black Friday was the crux of the plot, and we knew that the way to deliver the most powerful story is in connecting with our characters and the choices they were making on various levels both before and after the pokerpocalypse. So once we made the decision to fully commit to telling their story through the shifting context of the online poker boom (rather than placing the emphasis on the details of the rise and fall of the industry), and after a lot of deep thinking, discussion, and index carding of scenes, we found the heart of our story again.
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| LOCKDOWN!!! |
And with this new, clear angle in mind, we're repurposing what we have in full support of that heart.
Why should this matter to you? You've been waiting forever and like Ryan said, this probably sounds a lot like perfectionist nitpicking. But it's important to understand that we (and I mean we as a poker community, as enthusiasts of the game, of people who experienced the crazy thrills and spills of the past 10 years in this wild world) only have one shot to have a movie we can love and share that truly captures the spirit of what it was like to be a part of the online poker boom in the 2000s. The road to that movie may have been long and circuitous, but your continued support and enthusiasm for this project has really been a major driving force in getting us to the finish line with something we are confident that we will all be proud of. Thank you for that. As a creator there's nothing that makes you feel better, more optimistic and confident than support and faith from your audience.
Now back to work I go -- right now we're fine tuning and repurposing a fun scene that we've fondly referred to as "the Party Poker boom." Ahh, nostalgia.
Monday, December 3, 2012
November recap
I was aiming to get one of these posts up per week, but November kicked my ass. A huge leak of mine is setting unrealistic goals and falling short. But better lofty goals than none at all...
My inklewriter story still isn't out of development. I have the concept in mind and ended up doing a bunch of research into CYOA interactive paths and player choice in narrative (I played 999, which was insanely awesome, and The Walking Dead Episode 1, which I thought was both better than the TV show but not fun enough to get me to play more episodes), so I feel like I'm in pretty good shape as far as understanding what makes interactive stories successful. But the writing itself has been basically nonexistent. I'm mainly stating the obvious, but choice should matter a lot, and there should be incentive for going back and getting all the endings...
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| This game is the cat's pajamas. |
I did develop a few other ideas simultaneously. One by myself, which I'd describe at this early stage as a "realist Hayao Miyazaki epic", and another during an extended lockdown session with Alex, my zany writer/director pal. We spent 3 days bunkered up pitching ideas and spinning stories until we burned out upon realizing just how insanely hard it is to generate something original. Twice we thought we had zeroed in on something great only to find that both concepts had been done already...
On the non-movie front, my younger brother and I have been working on a new web series, which may or may not see the light of day but has been a lot of fun to collaborate on, and led to an 8-hour Halo 4 campaign co-op extravaganza (research!!!) the likes of which we hadn't seen since our days spent jamming on toy lightsabers.
As far as BOOM goes... we submitted to SXSW (we didn't get into Sundance :-/) and sent our edit out for one final round of critical feedback, which was incredibly helpful but also tremendously daunting. Ryan and I have one final month to slay our demons and claim Gladiator-style victory. We're feeling juiced up and inspired. The key now is to fearlessly manage all 10,000 variables in play while focusing the story even further in order to make our argument more emotional and coherent. Happy to say there was no better training for making a movie than my years spent playing high stakes poker!
So no new goals for December--for now I'll continue plugging away at all these projects (and The Micros! Viva Chase Berger!), and aim to get more ravishing blog posts up more often. A few ideas I've got percolating: "the 7 Skills of Poker"; "Lessons Learned in Making Our First Feature Film: "; "Favorite Fictional Character Relationships"; "Action-Adventure Movie Analyses."
Rungood, readers...
Monday, November 5, 2012
STAR WARS!
Star Wars rumor-mongering is back en vogue. Can't really express this unlikely scenario any better than this text message string with fraternity brother 'Masshole':
MH: Episode 7!
J: I got it DVRed guess I should watch tonight (thinking he is talking about The Men Who Built America)
MH: well that too.
but im talking Star Wars
J: also want to see Oliver Stone's Untold History of the US coming out on showtime
J: Wait what?
MH: bring back the Sith!
J: What????
MH: @NECN: #Disney says it is buying 'Star Wars' maker Lucasfilm for $4.05 billion from George Lucas
J: Holy fuck
or this Twitter back and forth between me and BJ Nemeth:
or this WhoJedi blog post: http://whojedi.tumblr.com/post/34669234235/my-first-blog-this-is
or this image John Wray shared on Facebook:
But I will try anyway. Because Star Wars is back?! Like BJ I never thought I'd live to see this day, and I always imagined if I did it would simply be another hollow echo of the true power of the Force. But it's not! Disney just literally fairy godmothered a generation of people's dreams--removing George Lucas from the equation and replacing him with the combined talents of some of the greatest artists and storytellers working together on the planet today. I seriously can't believe I'm writing this and it's true true.
Yeah--a lot could go wrong and they could fall way, way short of greatness. But who cares? The possibility is actually there again! The Jedi, the Force, all that they stand for and mean could actually resonate with a new generation of people. Here's why I'm optimistic: these people who work at Pixar, and Disney, and Marvel, and Lucasfilm, they understand the unique power and potential of the Star Wars myth. George Lucas basically took cave paintings and thrust them onto the movie screen as an epic action-adventure space fantasy drama about the Skywalker family and a son's coming of age in the shadow of his lost father. Now Disney has the chance to do that again, except this time across the modern day mythic canvas of movies, television and video games. They will attempt to make the most of this opportunity.
Ten years ago, I had just arrived at Boston University, fresh out of high school and enrolled in film school with delusions of grandeur. One of our first assignments for COM101 was to give a speech to our discussion section about why we were there. While writing this post, I wondered if I could dig up that speech. Here are my intro and conclusion:
Have any of you ever been inspired? I mean actually, truly, deeply inspired to do something? And has anyone ever actually been inspired in this way by a story? I have. A long time ago, in a place far, far, away, I was inspired to learn the ways of the Force and become a Jedi. I gazed longingly at the stars, wanting so badly to fly starships through jagged canyons, banter with droids, and save Princess Leia from the clutches of evil. And of course, I dreamed of carrying Jedi Master Yoda on my back, as I grew to become my own sort of Jedi Knight. When I was 5 years old, my father sat me down on our cozy brown couch in my square living room back home, and popped in an old videotape version of George Lucas’ Star Wars. I actually sat there for the entire time, enraptured by this man’s epic vision. And when I was done, I needed more. I couldn’t stand to wait 3 years like my father did in 1977 until Empire Strikes Back, and there was no way I could sit for 6 years until Return of the Jedi. I craved more strange-looking aliens, more of Han Solo’s crooked smiles, and I NEEDED to see those amazing lightsabers in action just a few more times. So I watched. And watched some more. The more I took in of Lucas’ world, the more I admired him. As I grew older and more mature, Star Wars stayed with me, even when I wasn’t watching the movies. I wore the Halloween costumes, read the novels, and even collected the toys. George Lucas created more than a mythology in crafting the Star Wars saga, he gave birth to a way of life. The stories he designed taught me more about life than simple notions of good versus evil. They taught me about the spirit of adventure and the power of imagination. Today, I want to be a screenwriter so I can bring that type of excitement and enjoyment to people’s lives all over the world.
Emile Durkheim, a religious ideologist, wrote about a theory of effervescence to describe religious phenomena. Effervescence is that excitement that comes over a crowd before a big football game or concert; the feeling in the air is so pervasive but you just can’t quite put your finger on what it is. That’s effervescence. This past May 15, I stood online for 5 hours eagerly anticipating a midnight showing of Episode II. The anticipation was so palpable you could smell it. When we stepped inside that dark theater with the stadium seating, you just knew something big was about to happen. And when the lights dimmed and those epic words came on: A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, the theater erupted in applause. It was finally there, the next chapter of the story that let us live out our childhood fantasies and taught us lessons about morality, virtues and values. And I was in awe of the sheer emotion. That’s why I want to write screenplays. All I want to do is tell a tale that will dare a new generation of children to dream. George Lucas’ story has inspired me to introduce my own type of effervescence. Although the business is risky and only a rare few make an impact, I’m going to do it. Like Anakin Skywalker, I see things before they happen. And if anyone tries to tell me I’ll fail, all I need to do is look to the words of Han Solo as he flew through an asteroid belt. “Never tell me the odds.”
It's sort of crazy to me that I still feel this way, and though I may have un-deified Lucas in my mind (deifying Joss Whedon in his place!), I can't deny that this man achieved something incredibly special and influenced cultural development in a huge way. And I'm not the only one who knows this--I guarantee a majority of the people working on the new Star Wars are there because of similar feelings. And he's donating the $4 billion he made to education! George fucking Lucas!!!
So here I am, astonishingly, once again optimistic about the future of Star Wars. This must be sorta how the citizens of the Empire felt when the Empire crumbled. Vader is dead? The Force still exists?
Is this possibly... the return of the Jedi?
Sunday, October 28, 2012
the power of Cloud Atlas
“Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb, we are bound to others. Past and present. And by each crime, and every kindness, we birth our future.”
If you believe this, Cloud Atlas is a powerful experience. Epic and audacious. Exciting, mystifying, moving. I'm not surprised that it's polarized audiences: this is not a movie that you're used to seeing, and to really connect with it you'll need to discard your cynicism. If you can do that, this movie can give you ideas that might even eradicate cynicism from your palette altogether. Maybe we need more of that. We absolutely need more movies like this.
The Wachowskis are back--not in the same way they exploded into the zeitgeist with The Matrix, a perfect sci-fi action thriller--but in the way they blew our minds by molding entertainment around ideas, reaching deeper and farther than most filmmakers making big budget movies would be able to go. Cloud Atlas interweaves the stories of six different characters, set in different times and places throughout the past, present and future, connecting them with symbols and sounds and souls. Each story is from a different genre: there's a mystery thriller, a sci-fi adventure, a comedic farce, a tragic love story. There are incredible acting performances from a troupe of accomplished actors all playing multiple roles. It's a puzzle box of connections that taps into the mythic power of images, music, and editing.
I haven't read David Mitchell's novel. It's been on my Kindle for months and now I can't wait to read it. It must be even more profound. We acquired language to solve our basic problems, without realizing that language itself is a problem--truth is something we can't describe but can only understand when we're in its presence. The creators of this humanist symphony show us truth. The argument here is that we will be presented with choices throughout our lives. Each choice represents potentiality. Not simply for the direction of our own lives, but the direction of our collective future. They hammer this into us again and again until we know it in our bones.
My initial reaction leaving the theater was conflicted. That was a great movie, I knew that. But I didn't feel like it was "the best movie ever", like some of its critical adherents have been claiming. I had to think about it further. I was supposed to go to a friend's Halloween party, but I went home. I found myself reading reviews, Internet chatter, listening to the Cloud Atlas sextet again and again. I felt sad, for some reason, and I couldn't shake it. I went to sleep early and dreamed about the movie. I can't get the music out of my mind.
This movie reminded me that we are significant and matter in ways we can't understand. It's easy to think the world is meaningless. We have access to all this knowledge that dispels a lot of the magic and myth our ancestors believed in. But we are not omnipotent, we are limited by our minds. We are part of a complex system outside our understanding. Atoms drifting in the solar winds, somewhere in space and time.
See this movie in the theaters and talk about it. It may be challenging but it won't be boring--three hours long but always entertaining. Even if you end up not liking it, I think you'll be glad you gave it a chance.
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