Tag: screenwriter

The Movies That Inspired Me

Over the last 30 years, I’ve seen hundreds and hundreds of movies. So many, I can’t even remember them all. But within the last few years, some of them have had a major impact on me personally. These are the films I credit with my decision to pursue a career in film-making.

One of the first movies that influenced me was Logan. To be completely honest, I never got into the X-Men. Never cared for them. Never really understood them. Logan was a movie that forced me to look into the X-Men and what they were. And as a result, Magneto became one of my favorite villains in Marvel.

The way Logan was put together…written, filmed, the acting, it really did inspire me. The storytelling is some of the best I’ve seen. I loved every bit of that movie. To this day, Logan is still one of my Top 10 favorite movies of all-time, maybe even Top 5. I’ll still go back and watch it from time to time too.

The second movie that really influenced me was Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. The first one was great, and it was a nice addition to the MCU. The second one took a more emotional route, and I felt that was the right call. I loved the theme of it, and James Gunn is an absolute genius when it comes to making films that are both funny and heartfelt. While it did have fancy effects and cool sets, it also showed me that movies can be character driven. And when starting out with a low budget, you need characters to carry films.

The third movie I’ll talk about is Inception. While I didn’t understand the movie at first, I came to love it. The first time I saw it, I was very confused. I didn’t understand what was going on at all. Since then, I’ve come to love the movie. I’m super fascinated by the idea of controlling dreams, running missions in other people’s dreams, and just the idea that people got hired to implant ideas in other people’s heads. Inception solidified my love of Christopher Nolan movies, and as a result, he’s become my favorite film director.

If I’m being completely honest, Marvel has had a huge impact on my desire to make movies of my own. Everything they do is just so exciting and fun to watch, and that’s the stuff I want to do one day. I love the stories. I love the characters. And most of all, I love seeing these characters come to life. My ultimate goal is to make a Marvel movie one day. Will it happen? Probably not, but I can dream, can’t I?

I’m forever grateful for the films I’ve seen over the years, especially the ones that truly inspired me to take this path. Being a successful filmmaker is going to be tough, but I also don’t see success in dollar signs. If I make a movie, released it, and a couple of people see it, that’s success. I did what I set out to do. I made a film and released it.

But, as Saito, a character from Inception said, “Don’t you want to take a leap of faith? Or become an old man, filled with regret, waiting to die alone.” Eventually, I’ll have to take that leap of faith. I’ll have to jump into unknown territory for a chance at something more amazing. If I don’t, I’ll be stuck in the same spot forever. I have so many stories to tell, and I hope that one day, I can share them with the world.

New Year, New Set of Goals

Well, we made it! It’s officially 2022! What does that mean? Nothing really. It’s just another year when you look at it. But personally, there are some things I would really like to accomplish this year. What kinds of things? Well, they’re kind of all over the place to be honest.

First of all, I would like to put out two blog posts a month. That might not seem like a lot, but it is to someone like me. I find myself in the mood to write and then I procrastinate it over and over. By keeping to a two post a month schedule, I feel that I can actually get things done and post regular content.

Secondly, I’d like to read at least one book a month. For some that might seem easy. And it is. But like so many other things, I find it difficult to do. I find other things to do in its place. I’m currently reading one, but I’m not sure I’ll finish it by the end of January. That doesn’t mean I failed. If I can have 12 books finished by December 31, 2022, I will have accomplished my goal of reading one book per month. I would like to read more, but we’ll see how that goes.

Third, I’d like to finish the movie I’m writing. While it is technically done, I’m in the editing stage. How long will that take? Who knows. I’ll keep working on it until I feel it can’t be perfected anymore. Or until I think it’s good enough because otherwise, I’ll always be editing it. I also just came up with a few new ideas that I want to write in as well.

Fourth, I’d like to film my short film. Which one? Any of them. I entered Babylon into a few screenwriting contests in 2021 and I was waiting to see how that went before doing anything else with it. In the meantime, I’ve been working on another short film called Time Hunters. Time Hunters is actually a two-part series that I want to finish writing and film at some point. Who knows, maybe I’ll film Babylon and both Time Hunters 1 and Time Hunters 2 this year.

Finally, I’d like to improve my video editing skills. I know I’m a good video editor, but that doesn’t mean I can’t improve on it. There’s always room for improvement. I would also like to get familiar with After Effects. I’ve had it for years but never really used it.

2022 has potential to be a great year. I might not get everything done that I want to, but even if I get a few things done I’ll be happy. If I get none of them done, I’ll still be happy. At least I gave it an effort and in the end that’s all that really matters.

Now That I’m 30…

For the last month of being 29, I was dreading being 30. I felt like I wasn’t successful enough. I felt like I still had so much to do before I hit 30. It was quite stressful. And for what reason? None at all. I’m serious. I was stressing over nothing…literally nothing.

I’ve been 30 for about a month. I’ve had time to think in that month. What I thought was going to be a disaster, really isn’t. Sure, I’m not in the field I want to be. I still have student debt, but who doesn’t at this point. I was so focused on what could go wrong, that I failed to look at the things that could go right.

First of all, I have a job that isn’t at all bad. Not only do I have an awesome job, but I also have awesome benefits with that job. Sure, work can get crazy and stressful at times, but those times are rare and I can usually see them coming ahead of time. I’m also still in school, but I’m learning things that I hope to use in my future career as a film maker.

Before I turned 30 I submitted a short film of mine to a couple contests. I haven’t heard anything back yet, and I probably won’t for a few more months, but I’m glad I did it. It’ll allow others to see what I can write. It could also open the door for an opportunity that I wouldn’t have gotten otherwise.

I also had a YouTube video from three years ago go “viral”. I just checked on my channel one day and this one video had thousands and thousands of views. The more it got viewed, the more popular it became. As of writing this, it has almost 100,000 views and almost 3,000 likes. I’ve also gained over 300 subscribers on YouTube as a result of it. The video is short, and it’s of me playing Fortnite. If you are curious, the video can be seen here (viral Fortnite video).

I feel like being 30 is actually a good thing. It’s a time for me to discover who I really am. It’s a time for me to live. It’s a time to try new things. It’s a time to travel all over. Being 30 feels like the actual beginning of my adult life. I felt like a kid in my late teens and 20s. I felt like I was still growing up. Now that I’m 30, I feel like I’m in my prime and I have all the time in the world to do whatever I want.

Almost 30

So, here we are. A few weeks before my 30th birthday and I feel both excited and anxious. Being 30 isn’t all that bad I suppose. I mean, I am still 29. The difference between 29 and 30 can’t be all that much. One year older, and one more year to try to accomplish my goals.

Now, I’m not saying I’m unhappy with my current life. I’m actually really happy with where I am. Would I do some things over? Absolutely. Do I have any regrets? Nope. Not a single regret. I feel that everything I’ve done has contributed to where I am today. And when you can see how the past shapes the future, regret disappears.

When I go back and look at the journey of my life, I can pinpoint the things that led me to where I am today. Everything from getting straight C’s in high school to being a full-time Zamboni driver. It’s all connected.

Because I didn’t really care in high school and did the bare minimum to get by, I wound up going to Northern Illinois University. My grades were good enough for that and it was far enough away from home for me to finally be on my own. While I had fun, it didn’t last long.

I was put on academic probation and came home after my first year. I spent most of my time after that at community college just taking classes. Any classes, really. I didn’t fully know what I wanted to do yet. I dabbled in history, acting, creative writing, journalism, the list goes on and on.

Since I was going to community college, I needed a job. I got hired at an ice rink as a Zamboni driver, and that’s been my job for the last ten years. Why an ice rink? I love ice skating and playing hockey. Why not work somewhere you love being? It’s hard to believe I spent a decade making ice for people to skate on. And over the last ten years, I’ve become one of the best (at least in my opinion).

Over the last ten years, I’ve worked at five different ice rinks. Four inside and one outside. I’ve driven something like 12 different ice resurfacers. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve had a lot of fun. I’ve met some awesome people including professional hockey players and Olympic athletes. But at the end of the day, this isn’t what I want to do forever. I want to do something more.

Where I’m at now, it’s not a bad place. Coming here was probably the best decision I made. But at the same time, I finally figured out what I want to do with myself. It took about eight years of college to figure it out. To put it simply…I want to make movies.

Or if I can’t make movies, I want to be a part of making them in some way. I feel like I have good movie ideas. But if they don’t get made, it’s not the end of the world. I’ve also gotten very good at editing video. I’d happily edit movies as a career. Editing is it’s own form of creativity.

What if it doesn’t work out? Well, if it doesn’t work out, I still have a really awesome job to fall back on. One where people care. One where I have full benefits and don’t have to really worry about much. The job I have now is amazing. But as a creative person, I want more. I’ll always want more and one day, I’ll have more. But I will never forget where I came from. If it wasn’t for the job I got ten years ago, I wouldn’t have the opportunities I have today. I’ll forever be grateful for that.

Babylon Filming: Week 2

This isn’t really week two. It’s more of an update really. I had started filming my short film Babylon over the summer. Things were going well with it. Then I hit probably the biggest problem I could have. I ran out of time and my actors went back to college. Filming has been put on hold until we can resume it, whenever that may be. Is this a bad thing? Not necessarily.

I can’t say that I’m mad or upset about it. Because of the break, I’ve had time to think about things regarding the film. There’s a couple changes I’d like to make to the film. Nothing drastic, and it won’t be a script change. Changes are more about how it’s filmed and how I direct the actors.

One of the best things to happen was this break. While my actors went back to school, I also went back to school. I’m currently taking a film directing class. The things I’m learning are so important. I would have directed this film incorrectly before. Now, I’m armed with knowledge and tricks to direct the film properly.

I’ve learned how to think about things I never thought of before. On top of that, I learned about how important it is to rehearse before you film. Rehearsals are such an important part of film making. I know there’s at least one scene in Babylon that we will have to rehearse over and over. If we mess it up while filming, there is no second chance. We have to get it right the first time.

I was also looking to get an actual video camera to use instead of my Nikon D3300 DSLR. I did get a new lens for it, but I think a video camera would be a much better option. I talked to one of my classmates and he recommended that I get the Blackmagic Pocket Camera. I was able to play around with one at the college a bit, and I think it would be a great addition to use in my video projects.

Even though I already filmed a few scenes for the film, I plan on re-shooting at least half of them with the Blackmagic Pocket Camera after I purchase it. I came up with an idea I want to test out. I’m not going to get into it in detail here because I don’t want to ruin the surprise. Once the film is done, I’ll make a blog post about everything I did in the film and the cinematic choices I made.

I know I may not be the best filmmaker, or have a lot of experience, but I know I have great ideas. I want to tell stories. By doing this project, I’ll be telling one of many stories I have floating around in my head. But that’s not the topic of discussion here.

This extra break has truly been something good. I don’t have much free time as is, and being able to put a pause on Babylon has allowed me to focus on work and my film directing class. If I was also working on Babylon, I think I would of burned myself out a long time ago. And if that happened, I wouldn’t be excited about returning to work on it.