This is Finish Your Monsters, a weekly (or at least it will be again in the new year) 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?

My last post was back in October to promote the Minneapolis premiere of our horror film, Dead Media. Back then, I set this goal: By the next time I post I want to jot down a few more ideas for the next film I want to make.

I very much made this goal!

I started scripting the next film I want to do, then my not very helpful mind changed its mind about the next film I want to do and I’ve got half an outline for the new idea.

The larger missed goal was to get back on top of posting this blog weekly. Which I will do in 2026!

Big picture:

The premiere in Minneapolis on October 20th went fantastic! Here’s a very nice (spoiler-free) write up of the film and the event.

After the premiere, I returned to Los Angeles and made a bunch of tweaks to the film (mostly sound mix stuff and a few little visual things) to get it as close to FINISHED as time and money will currently allow.

Then it was our wedding anniversary, Thanksgiving, my wife had a dance show, I had a stand-up set, podcasts to record, books screamed at me to read them, etc.

I pushed myself very, very hard to finish the film. I stuffed a lot of regular life stuff, paperwork, emotions, going outside, etc into a box. I thought, “It will be so nice to get back to a kind of regular life.” Then I opened the regular life box and it was like a jack in the box filled with one thousand clowns all popping out at me at the same time.

Basically, I just needed to crash a little.

It’s taken some work to get my feet under me and start the next challenge: Getting the film out to the world. I’m submitting to film festivals, working on booking other screenings, setting meetings with various connections, etc.

All that said, if you’re looking for a tax deductible donation and want to help me get the film out into the world, we still have our deal with Film North to collection donations. The marketing and promotion is another huge mountain to climb and we can use all the help we can get!

2025 GOALS - DID I FINISH MY BIG PICTURE MONSTERS?

For the last few years, I’ve been trying to write concrete YES or NO goals. Let’s see how I did at finishing my 2025 monsters!

FINISH THE FILM - Yes. I did that. I finished Dead Media. Twice. And it took most of my time and energy in 2025.

GET THE FILM TO MARKET - This one is too mushy! Nice try, past self. A good attempt to give present self some wiggle room. Anyway, I’ve chatted with one film sales agent and I’m following up some leads on others. The film has been submitted to multiple festivals and already accepted to one that I’ll be able to announce in mid-January. I’m on the path. So I’ll give myself a mushy maybe with a hint of yes on this one.

WRITE THE NEXT FILM - This is a solid NOOOOOO. I did not make this goal. I feel very lucky to have many ideas I want to pursue. And like I said above, I have started. I just need to carve out a chunk of four days where I can concentrate on nothing but the script and get deep into a first draft. The rest will flow from there. I’m very excited to write a screenplay after having actually shot and edited a film. It feels great to go in with a different kind of practical knowledge. I’m going to be so realistic and specific with the screen directions!

MAKE ANOTHER SHORT FILM - This is a yes, but a tricksy one. I spent a lot of time making a teaser trailer for Dead Media so I’m going to count that as a short film. I’ve also shot a little tribute to David Lynch that I’m planning to put music to in time for his birthday on January 20th.

WRITE 100 VOTE FORWARD LETTERS - Big yes! A fantastic, non-mushy goal with numbers and everything. Good job, past self. If you’re not familiar with Vote Forward, it’s an organization that helps you write non-partisan letters encouraging people to use their power and vote. Full info is here!

VOLUNTEER/FUNDRAISE TWICE FOR SPECIFIC POLITICAL ACTIONS - Another yes. I wish this one was more. My co-hosts on the ForceCenter Podcast hosted a fundraiser stream to support the Trans community and I attended several protests.

CONFRONTING FEAR IS THE DESTINY OF A JEDI - This is a quote from the 2019 film, The Rise of Skywalker. A film many people dislike and some people vehemently hate. To this day, you can search online for the title of this film and find people wishing bodily harm to the director. I enjoy the film and don’t wish bodily harm on anyone involved. Anyway, I’ve been listing the quote in a jokey but honest way every year on my resolutions. I find comfort in the quote. It’s a simple reminder that fear holds us back constantly. That fear is a battle to be fought every day. I beat fear seven times to get this blog post out. So I’m going to give myself a YES on this one.

READ 25 BOOKS AND/OR COMIC BOOK RUNS - Yes! I love reading but unless I make it a stated goal I don’t prioritize time for it. Since finishing Dead Media in mid-November, I’ve read seven books. This goal helps me to stop the mindless social media scroll. “Instead of these words, you could be reading words you like!” my mind tells me. Thanks, resolutions.

So that’s it for 2025: Eight resolutions. One solid no. One mushy maybe with a hint of yes. And six solid YESs.

LIGHT PLUGS

Three light plugs!

DEAD MEDIA MAILING LIST: We’ve got a mailing list for Dead Media. I’m only going to send out messages occasionally with concrete info and asks for help—screening dates, sales news, help getting the word out, etc. You can sign up here if you’re interested!

SHORT FILMS ON YOUTUBE: This January, I’m going to release three short films I’ve made over the last couple years. There will be a new short film every Thursday starting January 8th. First up is THE NARRATOR. An experimental cosmic horror comedy starring Phil LaMarr. It would be huge help if you subscribed to my YouTube channel!

DONATIONS TO DEAD MEDIA: As I mentioned above, we need all the help we can get for film festival submission fees, advance money to book theaters, etc. Through Film North, you can make a one time tax deductible donation here. Thanks for all the help and support!

MY GOAL FOR THE WEEK--

My wife and I are going out of town for New Year’s so my work time will be limited so here’s a very realistic monster to start. My goal for next week is to get started on building a dedicated website for Dead Media.

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? How can I help you literally finish your monsters?

A LITTLE SKETCH--

This week’s sketch is a totally normal human face easily fitting into a pair of novelty glasses. A visual description of how emotionally prepared I feel for 2026. I am very excited to get back to the weekly blog with sketches. Happy new year and thanks to all!

Anyway, thanks for reading, I hope you hear and tell some good human stories this week, and best of luck finishing your monsters!