Everything Is A Broken Shark
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 doing more work on the feature film I’m producing. Specifically, I declared I would send a combined total of 15 messages about fundraising, casting, and locations.
And I made it! In fact, I over-made it. I sent about 22 messages, most about fundraising. Thrilled that I met this goal.
I might set more of these quantifiable goals. Sending loads of messages can be challenging. I’m concerned I’ll get a negative response. I feel bad about “bugging” people, even though everyone who responds is very kind. It’s a mixture of my cultural upbringing and a reflection of how much I love this film project and want to make it happen—it’s scary to get bad news.
But taking all of those emotions and turning them into a NUMBER GOAL that I want to meet is great. It helps me acknowledge the emotional challenge and just push past it. Because look how close I am to Number 15!
What number will this week’s goal be? I don’t know yet! Let’s keep typing!
ADVENTURES OF THE WEEK--
Another week, another shock at how many different things I did. Fun, stressful, necessary, healing. All those things in one week.
A bountiful week of entertainment included watching the new episode of the Star Wars show The Acolyte three times to cover it on ForceCenter Podcast/YouTube Show. Then, an episode of Doctor Who that gave me true, actual nerd chills. Trying to avoid spoilers, the episode built to a twist that was both emotionally resonant for the characters (they deeply want connection and in searching for that they unleashed the complete opposite) but it also made me jump up from the couch and buy an action figure I’ve been coveting for years. Art inspires action! Beautiful!
Sara and I also went to a great summer program here in LA called Last Remaining Seats—classic films played in grand old vaudeville/movie houses. We got to see a vibrant 35 mm print of From Russia With Love with a 1000-plus other people who all laughed, applauded, and gasped.
This week was also the one year anniversary of my Father-In-Law passing. It was, of course, very difficult. But for me, it was also healing to set aside time and reflect on his memory—trying to imagine what he would think and say about our various adventures. I would have loved to ask him his thoughts about From Russia With Love!
In his honor, we also spent some time in nature at the great Descanso Gardens and I jotted down some notes for a future short film.
While jotting down these notes in a notebook called “Notes”, I had an epiphany about the work that took up the vast majority of my time and energy this week: BUSINESS STUFF.
I’ve mentioned on the blog many times the helpful distinction of the phrase “Show Business.” It helps me remember that both elements are important—the creative stuff and all the work to produce, share, and sustain the creative stuff.
For the feature film, I’m deeply embroiled in the BUSINESS stuff. This week, I sent out all those fundraising emails. I read 35 pages of dense legal documents and sent thoughts to lawyers. I gave notes on shooting schedules and budgets. Had multiple zoom calls, etc.
I was reflecting on all that while I was writing my creative notes in the park. I was grumbling to myself about not having time to be creative. Then I realized, “But wait. Now that I’m thinking abut the BUSINESS stuff, I’m kind of happy about it. Why? WHY?”
And I think it’s because the creative stuff and the business stuff is both a form of problem solving.
For a creative problem you might ask, “What’s the wildest choice the character could make in this scene that still fits her worldview?” For a business problem, you might ask, “What’s the fastest way to get an answer to this question, but make sure the answer is still accurate and reliable?”
Both are problem-solving. Film buffs love to bring up the shark animatronic in Jaws not working and forcing Spielberg to shoot more creatively. Every step of both the show and the business is a potential “shark not working” opportunity/challenge/challentunity.
For both creative and practical problems, I’m trying (and sometimes failing) to concentrate on the idea that THERE IS A SOLUTION. My job is to be creative and find it.
To bring it back to my garden epiphany, one of the things I admired about my Father-In-Law was that he was both very creative and very pragmatic. He loved the arts, loved expressing his own creativity in his cooking, photography, poetic notes on birthday cards, and more. And a lot of his work was in administration—dealing with practical realities that also need creative solutions, relationship-building, difficult choices, etc.
I wish I could talk with him about this Show Business journey I’m on. But it’s also nice to think about his experiences balancing the creative and the pragmatic and be inspired to find the creative in the business.
Finally, I had a great phone call chat with my Dad for Father’s Day. He continues to be incredibly supportive and insightful about my adventures and support me in my various interests. Yesterday, he texted me to let me know Star Wars Oreos exist and added “WHO KNOWS WHAT’S NEXT???”
Indeed.
MY GOAL FOR THE WEEK--
I’m staying on the quantity train one more week. I still have a lot more reaching out to do about the feature film. So my goal this week is to send a combined total of 20 messages about fundraising, casting, and locations. Once more into the scattered world of multiple forms of communication!
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? Is it creative? What are the challenges? What are the joys? Will Oreos be involved? How can I help you finish your monsters?
LIGHT PLUGS—
Awooga! Big news! For many weeks, my blog goal was about getting all the materials pulled together for a big birthday show. And here it is! To celebrate/resist the existential dread of a milestone birthday I’m doing a fun comedy-variety show about aging. It’s called HORROR YEARS OLD and tickets are live here! Friday, August 16th at Lyric-Hyperion. I would love a packed house so if you’re interested, grab the tickets now!
The kind patrons of my Patreon keep my production company, Strange Path, afloat. Costs for computer programs, accounting fees, film festival submissions, etc. Right now, our short film The Narrator starring Phil LaMarr is available exclusively to patrons months early. Other films coming to Patreon soon!
I also wanted to share about Vote Forward—it’s a program where you sign up to write letters to voters. There’s a typed form and you add a personal message about WHY voting matters to you, nothing partisan. The org has done follow up studies and it really works to increase voter turnout. My goal this year is to write 200 letters. I’ve written 40 so far. If you’re interested, you can find out more by visiting Vote Forward!
A LITTLE SKETCH--
This week’s sketch was scribbled out at Descanso Gardens when a perfectly posed squirrel moved too fast for me to take a picture with my phone. I would not be denied the squirrel imagery, though!
