I'm still working, plan b conceived

It may not be evident by this blog, but I'm continuing to work toward the goals expressed earlier in this space.
I have what I'm calling "Plan B" and am quietly working to make the transition -- whenever it may come -- easier.
I may write more about that in some time, but for now I feel its best to keep it under my hat. Regardless, of future employment I'm determined to keep the side projects moving here is an update on a few things I'm been working on:

• My short film PINK needs some work, maybe a lot of work. After leaving it alone for a while I had the distance to really evaluate it. Something I don't think I really got before. Right now its a collection of some interesting scenes from an interesting story, but it doesn't really tell a story yet. There is no story arch. The question remains: can it be done in a 10 page short.
• ARENA. I've decided to tape another show for Access Sacramento on Sacramento's arena debate. The goal will be to do it before September. What I need now is a sponsoring organization that doesn't impinge my journalist integrity. 
• As noted before I dabble in video editing. The more and more Pinnacle Studio 11 fails me, the more convinced I need to become a Mac guy. I'm working on a longer multi-shot video, but here is the raw iphone video of by buddy Joe Boes singing You are my Sunshine. 
• 
  

Script rejected, should I proceed

Three months ago producing a film wasn't even on my serious radar. But after signing up for a screenwriting class and writing "Pink," my short about a 1969 landmark obscenity trial, I was getting increasingly excited about actually producing it.

Yesterday, I got a form rejection email from Access Sacramento.

Thank you for submitting your script for the 2011 "Place Called Sacramento" film project. The competition was very challenging and several scripts were within a few points of each other after being reviewed by at least two different professional filmmaker evaluation panels.

Unfortunately, while your script came close, it was not selected in the final ten. I encourage you to continue polishing the script and resubmit next year. I know this is disappointing news but I ask you to not be overly discouraged.

No offense to scripts chosen in previous years or this year, but I find it hard to believe mine was not one of the best written, most Sacramento-specific in subject matter and potentially entertaining.

The festival has a family-friendly requirement. Just like any body making artistic judgments on the appropriateness of art -- be it the Motion Picture Association of America's rating system  or be they the obscenity police of the 1960s -- there are bound to be problems. As Ron Cooper, Access Sacramento's executive director, attempted to explain the rules, it was apparent quickly there might be issues. While attempting to avoid specifics, such as "don't say fuck," he tried to impress upon people that family-friendliness was a category in the scoring formula.

Giving the PG intentions of festival, maybe a film based on a strip club obscenity trial was a bad idea. The rejection letter encourages flunkies to polish their script and consider bringing it back next year. But if I was tossed because there will be some (tasteful) skin, there is no point. Which leads me to the questions: Is there a better venue for this script? And should I self-produce it anyway?

Here is my tagline: A landmark obscenity trial, set in Sacramento, takes a sexy twist after Judge Earl Warren, Jr. agrees to move the trial to the club where the girls were arrested, the Pink Pussy Kat.  

At least one other rejectee is considering going forward and possibly creating a film festival. Loyal blog readers please offer some sage advise.

P.S. Please point me to a good way to share the PDF of the short script online       

Now I'm a master video editor

After completing my Final Cut Pro video editing class, I can pretty confidently say the my next computer will be a Mac. I've been more or less a PC guy because they a cheaper. I've long recognized the superiority of the Apple computers, but I've never judged it to be worth the price.
But as I've started dabbling in video editing and online content creation I find more and more reasons to buy a mac. I might go on with the thread later, but the original point of this post was to show you the video I did in my video editing class. The class was funded by the employee union, which I think was a great offer.  It counts as a community college course, but there is so much to learn.

Is "Plan B" needed? If so, what is it?

At age 6 Ed wanted to be a doctor, lawyer,
race car driver, fire fighter and a pimp.

It's fair to say I've been in a funk lately. But when your work world is collapsing I think it's OK to be a little off.
This morning, I considered whether to take a personal day. I don't believe in skipping work willy-nilly, but on occasion it's best for you and your employer. Such action is justified for a specific reason. The problem is there is a good chance I could wake up tomorrow and feel the same way.
It's a new feeling for me.
I've loved my career. Since I first started writing for my college paper The Southern Digest, I've never really dreamed of doing anything else.
The life plan was to pay my dues as a reporter, one day become a columnist and eventually go into management. I've never felt a greater sense of purpose, felt more challenged or had more sustained fun than my years running the college paper.
Going into management was a dream I mainly kept to myself.
Now as the newspaper industry hemorrhages jobs and another round of layoffs loom at my newspaper a new dream may be required.
This is new to me.
No need to get too far ahead of myself. Who knows if there will actually be layoffs and/or buyouts. But with several other newspapers within the chain having announced layoffs in the last few days a foreboding malaise hangs over the entire newsroom.
Unknown questions:

1. Will there be layoffs/buyouts?


2. Would my neck by on the chopping block?


3. Is the chopping block really freedom?

At this point, only a fool would not consider their options.

When I was in elementary school I refused to select one job when the "What do you want to do when you grow up." I'd have six jobs. One day I'd be a doctor, another I'd be a lawyer. I think firefighter, police officer and race car driver was in the mix too.
As I spend more and more time contemplating my "Plan B," I still have trouble settling in on one plan. Here is my list of ideas:

• event promotion/planning


• screenwriter


• professor


• radio personality


• non-profit director


• legislative staffer


• public/media relations consultant


• advertising creative


• columnist/free lance journalist


• television producer


• lawyer

Undoubtedly, somebody is reading this and thinking "Man I've changed jobs six times and I'm fine." Well, I haven't.
This whole thing would be a lot easier if I could easily sell my house and relocate without the worry of a house worth less than I paid for it.
The upshot is that in preparing for the future, I've enjoyed developing my multimedia skills, am bubbling with television and movie ideas and am examining my talents like never before.
Now, if this funk would just go away.

Walking in Her Painful Shoes

Last Saturday, I walked a mile in some terrible red heels. It was more than a mile, but the point was I did it for charity. The WEAVE event raised money for their important cause.
I was struck by two things: one how painful it was to walk in those damn things and, two how well some of the men did running in serious heals.
Our team raised of five raised $1200. Several of my friends, coworkers and family supported the effort. Being a man of my word below are the visual evidence.

My Japan trip multimedia masterpiece

In a lot of ways I think multimedia is my true calling. It takes advantage of my multitude of tools and hides my deficiencies. During the trip, I took pictures, captured audio and took notes in hopes of putting something together. Doing it was a challenge on by the content gathering front and the video creation side. Ultimately, I used all free software (windows movie maker, audacity, screencast-o-matic.com, and google earth) to produce video.
I'd like to thank Brandon Oreno for producing the music and for audio and computer support. Andy Alfaro and Angela Gentry for being my sounding boards. While I'm in the thanking mode I'll also give some more props to the foundation that sent me the East-West Center and the Japanese Newspaper Publishers Association.

Working on film short, help needed

I've been very busy lately. I have two projects that need to be wrapped up soon. One is the video slideshow I've been working on about my trip to Japan. The other is a screenplay for a 10 minute film short based on a true story.

I started out working the Japan slide show like gangbusters after returning. I stalled, in part because my technology and software keep failing me. Also because I wanted to strike the right tone with the earthquake and all.

About the same time as the Japan trip started to be a real possibility I paid to take a screenwriting short course. As it worked out, literally the first day I'm back from Japan was the first of three 4-hour classes at Access Sacramento. (I missed that one.)

I made the next two. The beginning of the second class Ron Cooper from Access Sacramento came in to talk about the "Place Called Sacramento" Film Festival. I stumbled upon my topic after the second class. It was a case former Bee editor Bill Menton and I talked about some years ago.

Here is my tagline: A landmark obscenity trial, set in Sacramento, takes a sexy twist after Judge Earl Warren, Jr. agrees to move the trial to the club where the girls were arrested, the Pink Pussy Kat. 

After reading the newspaper clips I knew the basics of the story. The challenge has been to imagine those conversations in my head and then to allow myself to fill in the gaps of the story.

I don't know that my script will be selected, but the application process asks what assets I have in hand. This is when you artisans email me offering to help. I'll need help with music, sound, costumes, makeup, hair, lighting, videography, editing, catering, and I'll need actors. So yeah everything.

Meanwhile, I liked to wrap up the Japan slide show. It has video clips, audio clips, music and now I'm adding a voice over track. I don't want to build it up to be something great, regardless its given me a chance to work my way though several new applications and web-based apps. It's been a real learning experience.

Here is to growing experiences.

Last summer camping trip

Oregon Coast Slideshow: Ed’s trip to Beachside State Recreation Site (near Waldport), Oregon, United States was created by TripAdvisor. See another Waldport slideshow. Take your travel photos and make a slideshow for free.

"The Theory of Perpetual F" explained

Ed Fletcher circa 1992

Now, seems like as good a time as any to explain the name of the blog.
Early in life, I discovered that some people find spelling and math time tables easy (pause) and then there is me. I struggled with those basic things, and still do, but had little trouble with applying theories and conceiving ideas. Over the years, I battled my way from average student classes to geek squad classes.
But after cruising through the lower-level classes I discovered I had a fight on my hands when I reached Ms. Curtis honor's English class.
Frustrated by my inability to get an "A" on a essay after essay I challenged Ms. Curtis.

INT. CLASSROOM -- DAY

After the bell rings, FLETCHER waits behind, trying to hide his disappointment, as the other students file out. CURTIS collects her papers as large Hemingway print looks over her shoulder. 
FLETCHER: Clearly THIS essay is better than the last paper. If that was a "B+," then this paper must an "A."
CURTIS: The paper was better. But my expectations for you have increased since then, so this essay earns a "b" for that assignment.

To which I penned:

"Theory of Perpetual F."
As your knowledge and skills increase
your teacher's expectations will increase at at proportional rate
therefor you maintain a perpetual f

Ms. Curtis loved it. It became one of the few items in her religiously sparse classroom.
As I approach the middle of my journalistic career, I need a new Ms. Curtis. Perpetual F is a reminder to keep increasing my expectations of myself. Teach myself new skills. Test the limits of my capabilities. Expand the scope of what is possible.
I don't have a firm endgame, but as the newspaper industry struggles, its inherent that I both prepare to outlast the ugliness while simultaneously preparing to do something else that fills my cup emotionally.

Update Since I'm sharing about Ms Curtis: I tracked Ms. Curtis down once, just to chat. She said she had nothing left to teach me. She might be wrong. She called after my forum piece I wrote recently. Didn't leave a number just said she was proud.

Language gap makes ordering an adventure

Language barriers, foreign food and the dreaded group decision can turn travel meals into a stressful situations. Thankfully, our Japan exchange group benefited from having half noted food podcast and blog The Sporkful  team.;By the time we arrived at our hotel, Mark Garrison had scouted the "must eats" from the region. Communicating our dinner plan was another matter.

If and when Mark posts a report, I'll link to it.

Three religions

TITAF (Things I think are funny)

Here is what I found in the desk drawer of our hotel room in Osaka

Japan trip shortcourse

Here is a link to a gallery of my Japan photos. The fact that I forgot my battery charger didn't stop me from squeezing off more that 400 pictures. I'm of the option that you show your audience more respect by your photos of content and size, thus respecting their time. A good friend suggests a total dump is on order, thus allowing the audience to decide when their seen enough photos. The 50 plus picts in this file represent a compromise. Next step mixing the photos and videos to create more focused multimedia displays.