2011!

Happy new year! Hope you're feeling sexy after Xmas!

Roar.

Well, its time I changed the name of my blog.
Also, it seems my original purpose of the blog, to chart my ability to make a film a month, has passed its sell-by-date.

I failed. Sigh.

Success means different things to different people, as does failure...I failed not because I didn't make a film for every month of the year of 2010, I failed because I lost my passion and drive to try. After the mid-way celebrations I was so disappointed that I hadn't made a film a month SO FAR, I didn't want to risk failure by trying to do it in the second half of the year...the irony is that even though I might have failed if I had tried, I DEFINITELY failed by not trying.
I am not good at dealing with failure. So I'm just going to have to grow up, in many ways.

However, Christmas has been a very creative time for me in terms of writing and having masses of ideas, spurred on by the fact that now I have a camera I can actually do some of the stuff I think of, rather than faffing around doing nothing. I even did a bit of filming today, the first of a prospective series of story telling videos...that's me copying Jj again.
Check out his website, by the way: JOEL BUCKLAND DOT COM.
One thing I forgot, but remembered upon transferring the clips to the computer, is that HD takes up LOADS OF DISC SPACE.
I will not forget this again in a hurry.

Also on the horizon is a potential filmed element to Britta's and my film blog, Couple of Spoilerz (check it out, it needs the traffic, and there'll be reviews of Tron Legacy and Monsters up there soon) but I'm not telling you exactly what it is yet, becuase that would spoil the surprise.
Finally I am planning a theatre-cum-vodcast project entitled Cardboard Playhouse which fits in nicely with the proposed project I am doing with Jason Phelps, a film of Waiting for Godot.

In vaguely film related news I recieved a copy of 'Its Only A Movie' by my hero Mark Kermode from my lovely bro Tom. I enjoyed reading it very much on the train yesterday, and it was very comforting finding out that there was a time when the quiffed wonder was just as down on his luck as any of us.

In other news good matey Polis released a new dream-film right before Xmas called "Birthday Boy" check it out on Vimeo, right HERE. It has some really haunting imagery of things you might not ever think were scary...

Well, I think that's enough for now. I'll just leave you with a teaser...

Consider yourself teased.

Make way for film!
Jim

Updates - 24/5, Degree a New Camera

Hello all
Well, lots has been happening since my last post, but the most important parts have gone on inside my mind.
After a long time of apathy, possibly brought on by fear of faliure or worries about how my previous films turned out, I was fired up again by the thought of entering the Derby-based 5-lamps 24-hour film competiton (or 24/5) with my good friend Neil. He did most of the work, sorting out equipment, plotting the film out and arranging actors, like the proactive film squirrel he is. I did the paperwork and a few other bits, and when it came to the day (Saturday 20th November) things went well.

We attack from the north!

Although frayed nerves began to show in the long evening, we made it through. One sleepless night of film jiggery and pokery with Neil and Chris (another good freind who is always a trooper when called to the film stand) later and we had a pretty darn good film titled 'No Good Deed' which will shortly appear on the Ootoob. Our actors and additional crew were great, and all in all it was a grand experience.

The screening and awards were done a week later on Sunday 28th at Derby Quad. Sadly 'No Good Deed' failed to win a prize, but then the competition was stiff. I can't deny I was a little upset, but of course there's no telling what heights the full cut of the film (without the 3 minute restraits of the competition) will soar to.

Also I must mention that the screening formed part of the ID Festival at the Quad, a celebration of British Films, and we must continue to support this kind of thing, as it was awesome. You can read my own and Britta's reveiws at our other blog, Couple of Spoilerz.

Anyway.
So, I have decided not to go on to do a Masters Degree at this time.
Financial, practicle and artistic worries assail me about it, and I have come to the conclusion that its just not the right thing to do. I should, I think, be getting serious about my life of film making, something which I have for far too long given lots of enthusiam and no practicle action. The money alone would not have swung it, but I feel that a move back to academia would be a move into hiding, not a move into the world. Only time will tell if I am right about this.
To this end though, instead of the EXPENSIVE professional camera I was going to buy with my loan, I have instead bought a REASONABLY PRICED camcorder with my own money, along with some spiffy accessories. It is a Canon HF200, which shoots excellent HD footage onto memory cards. I am looking forward to seeing what I can do with it.

More updates soon.
Make way for film!
Jim