A Phone And A Knife
This is Finish Your Monsters, a weekly blog/newsletter/blogletter about the creative process. I'm sharing adventures in art and life as well as setting CLIFFHANGER goals for myself, so--
DID I MAKE MY GOAL?
Last week, I committed to getting a rough cut of the new sizzle reel started!
And I absolutely did NOT do that.
I’m not going to spend too much time making myself sit in the shame corner for missing this goal.
Maybe one of these weeks I’ll make my goal “forgive yourself for weekly goals you’ve missed.” I will light a candle for every single missed goal and wish them well as they float off into the land of resolved regrets.
I did film the sizzle reel and thought a lot about the editing. But I did not even start it because I was very busy doing a lot of other productive things that should have maybe been my actual goal for the week!
ADVENTURES OF THE WEEK--
I’m late writing the blog this week because I just got home to Los Angeles after a week long trip to my hometown of Minneapolis to do pre-production work for our feature film, Dead Media.
I got a ton of work done. I toured the theater that will be one of the primary locations. I worked on some set decorating for the house we’re filming in. I met with the scene shop building the final location. I had a good meeting with a potential investor.
I held the first round of auditions to cast talent from the Twin Cities. I filmed the new sizzle reel. (But did not begin editing it, I know, I know, leave me alone, shame). I handled some Los Angeles casting from afar. As well as giving notes on financial projections for the pitch deck.
Perhaps, most importantly, I bought a spooky mug to leave at my Dad’s house for when I return to Minneapolis in October.
In-between all of the work, I got to spend some quality time with my Dad—see him play drums at a jam session, take his old truck to the toy store to buy an absurd action figure, eat lots of cheese, etc. I also got to see more friends, family, and just generally enjoy the city.
But some of the work parts of the trip were fairly stressful. The movie’s filming dates are coming up fast and I’m scrambling to do a lot of different kinds of work at the same time.
At one point during my trip, I was working on a prototype of a set-piece—a stylized theater flat. I was in my Dad’s garage, paint on my fingers, knife in my hand, and waiting for an important and stressful call about casting one of the lead actors.
The phone rang and I had to juggle deal memo talk while trying not to drop a knife on my own foot.
This is neither a “look how busy I am” brag NOR a “look how busy I am” cry for help. It’s just a reality I need to process.
Multitasking is a necessity in our lives and our work. I’ve usually been pretty decent at multitasking, but I’ve never, ever liked doing it. Particularly, when it comes to creative work. My ideal work schedule is like a little Wes Anderson film—everything is in tidy boxes, symmetrically framed, and gorgeously color-coded.
But the reality is, at this point in the process, I have to multitask. There will be days I have to handle casting, financing, set design, script revision, sizzle reel editing, etc all at or around the same times.
Most days, I will have a phone in one hand and a knife in the other. Some days, it will be a metaphor. Other days it will not.
And, of course, I’m lucky to have help with a lot of this. And, as more and more folks join the project, I’ll have more and more help.
But thinking about multitasking made me have even more respect for everyone who is finding time to be creative and joyful despite the zillion distractions. Parents with young kids still working on a novel. People working three different jobs still making time for their garden. People dealing with a serious illness still showing up for a book club. It’s a stressful, distracting time to be alive and every little moment carved out for joy is a victory.
I’m lucky to be working on something I care about so I’ll gladly accept working with a phone in one hand and a knife in the other. After all, it’s pretty symmetrical.
LIGHT PLUGS—
If you want to help me with the film, here’s how!
I’ve set-up a fiscal sponsorship with the great Twin Cites org, Film North. They can accept one-time, tax deductible donations that will go directly toward funding the film!
I’m doing a push on social media this week so if you’re interested in contributing this would be a great time to do it!
For full info, please check out the page for the upcoming horror film, DEAD MEDIA!
MY GOAL FOR THE WEEK--
Okay, this time I really mean it. Not only am I going to start editing the new sizzle reel, I’m going to finish it. So, by this coming Tuesday, I’m committing to finishing the new sizzle reel!
YOUR GOAL FOR THE WEEK--
I would absolutely LOVE to hear what you're working on this week in the comments below. What's your goal? What tools will you have in your hands? How can I help you finish your monsters?
A LITTLE SKETCH--
This week’s sketch is a light, fun, fluffy self-portrait. It was very cathartic to take a moment and single task on this. I hope everyone has a wonderful week with a balanced amount of tasking!
