The Worldwide Guide to Film Locations

The Worldwide Guide to Film Locations

This is pretty awesome. I was perusing the internets in order to find out what the name of the diner was that was featured in Pulp Fiction when I came across this great little website. It lists off the real-world locations for various scenes in famous films. So, while I was sad to find out that the diner was torn down shortly after the film’s release, I could instead visit Johnny’s Coffee Shop, which was featured in film’s like Reservoir Dogs and American History X. This is great for any movie buff planning on visiting Tinseltown. Check it out!

UPDATE: I also found this site, which shows locations via Google Maps, making it ideal for planning trips to the locations – <http://www.movielocationsguide.com/movie_location_maps/California_(Los_Angeles).php>

The Hollywood Assistants Handbook

The Hollywood Assistants Handbook

So, I stumbled across this little gem while in the Barnes and Noble at The Grove in Beverly Hills. While most of the information is quickly learned if you simply work in Hollywood for a little while, this book can definitely give you an advantage if you’re just starting out in the business. The first third of the book includes information about getting started in Hollywood, which is good to know for ANYONE trying to get started in the industry. The last two-thirds is designed more for assistants and future power-players, as the title suggests. But for whatever you’re trying to do, take a look at this. I’ve posted the first 45 pages, courtesy of Scribd.com, but if you like it, it’s pretty cheap for a good reference to Hollywood film culture.

How to be a reader

The other day, a friend told me that he’s thinking of moving to Los Angeles and that he might want to become a reader at a production company. For those of you who don’t know, a reader is someone involved in the development stage of production. Companies hire readers to *gasp* read scripts. They then write up a review of the script, highlighting all the important stuff (the good, the bad, etc.). This document is called “coverage.” Producers use this coverage in order to determine whether or not they should read a script or whether a project is worth developing. They also use it to pinpoint problems in a script or where there is room for improvement. Essentially, readers provide a knowledgeable perspective that is different from the producer’s. The material read is not just limited to scripts either. Readers can be assigned books, articles, other movies, anything with potential for development.

I wrote up a message to my friend with all the basics on being a reader. It seemed to be pretty good advice for any aspiring writer/producer, so I thought I’d share it with you guys. Here’s the excerpt:

…

“In terms of being a reader, I think I mostly got by because I had done a few internships before. Also, being a writer helps too. Generally, when you apply for a reader position, an assistant will send you a script and a piece of their own sample coverage. It’s then your job to read the script and provide coverage in the same format as the sample.

A single piece of coverage consists of three parts: general details, synopsis, and comments. General details are things like genre, character descriptions, logline, etc.; all of which you’ll need to determine based on the script. The synopsis is the hardest part in my opinion. You have to write down all the major events in the story in an understandable manner. You also need to determine what parts of the story are necessary and what are not, and write your synopsis based on that. This is important in order to keep the length down. In my first few pieces of coverage, my synopsis went on for 4 pages. You generally want to keep it at 2, or 3 for a heavy script or a book.

Then there are the comments. Keep these at 1-2 pages and just make sure that you’re critical enough. I gave up talking about positive aspects of scripts a long time ago (save for a few sentences). I feel that talking about the problems is much more effective and useful for the person reading it.

Lastly, just try to be able to get through the scripts quickly without being sloppy. If a company sees that you can provide very quick turnaround for a script, it’ll make you all the better in their eyes.

Otherwise, suffice it to say that it’s a pretty simple position. I actually got mine by going for an interview for an internship. During the interview I asked about any available reader positions and the position happened to be available. They’re pretty hard to come by (a lot of companies don’t even have readers and just use their interns to write coverage) and they pay little if they pay at all. If you can’t find a reader position right away, I would suggest going for an internship. Most internships actually have you do coverage anyway, so that’s a good way to build up to being a reader.”

…

Ranjit out.

RipIt

Hey everyone,

Again, haven’t posted in a while. Oh well. Oh yeah, and the Oscars are coming up. I’ll probably write about it. Stay tuned.

So, first off, Happy Valentine’s Day! Yes, it’s that special time of year when all that plays on TV are re-runs of the “Valentine’s” episodes of the past. I’m keeping the TV on in the background while I write and seeing how many Valentine’s-Day-Based TV shows come on. So far, I’ve got Sin City and Yes, Dear; but I’m still pulling for Frasier, Will and Grace, and Everybody Loves Raymond.

Anyway, on to some more interesting news. As many of you may know, Mac computers have a destinct deficiency in DVD ripping/burning options. Yes, the computers that are so wonderful in their media-organizing and designing abilities are actually relatively useless in terms of ripping. Thus far, there have been only a few programs out there like the insanely over-priced Toast or the useless-when-it’s-a-Sony-or-Disney-DVD Mactheripper, that is, until now.

The other day, I was perusing the interwebs when I came across this fine little gem: RipIt. For all the movie-buffs out there, RipIt allows you to rip any DVDs straight to the hard drive of your choice. You can rip to the basic Video_TS file or even better, as a compact dvdmedia file, allowing for easy transfers and portability. Can you imagine going on a trip and being able to take your entire DVD collection with you? With RipIt, it’s actually possible.

After using it, I realized that RipIt is quite possibly the simplest ripping program I’ve ever seen. It’s easy to use, nice to look at, and fast! Even better, the price is very reasonable – a mere $20 for this nifty little app. I know what you’re thinking though. We’re filmmakers. $20 is $20 until you’ve hit the big time. This is especially true for all the writers out there. Working on a $0 salary myself, I e-mailed the RipIt guys and let them know that I thought their program was great, but expressed my regret that I lacked the necessary funds to buy their app. And wouldn’t ya know? They were kind enough to send a copy to me for FREE. So here’s my advice: download RipIt, try it out, if you like it and can afford it, throw the guys 20 bucks and buy the full version. If you can’t afford it, ask them very nicely, and maybe they’ll return the kindness.

Generally, I don’t give straight up plugs for any products, but in this case, I’ll make an exception. These are good people that have put out a good product and they deserve the recognition.

Catching Up

Hey all,

So I realize that I haven’t posted in a while. This is half because I’m lazy, but thankfully, it’s also because I’ve been insanely busy and I apologize if at the end of the day, I’ve felt more like crashing in bed than sitting up on the computer that I’ve been looking at all day.

That’s right. I’ve been writing. Hurraaaaaaaay!

Actually, that’s the main reason I’ve been away from the blog so long, that and the event-filled mess that has been the holiday season. Once the holidays and my vacation time were over, I got to writing and I haven’t stopped since. Already I have a treatment and outline ready for my NEW SCRIPT! I’ve very excited about it, but I can’t reveal much more than that. Anyway, on to other things.

You should know that I completed my Kennedy/Marshall internship. It was amazing. Things really started picking up toward the end, around the time of the premiere of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. After working hard, the company was kind enough to extend me an invite to one of the premieres at the Paramount Theater. Side note: the Paramount Theater is the main screening theater on the Paramount lot. It is one of the best theaters I’ve ever been to in my life and a true experience that keeps the film as the focus (There are no phones, no snacks, and I don’t think they even let you take water inside. Crazy.). The screening was great and I really enjoyed the film. I also got to see Julia Roberts, so that was fun. But better yet, I got a chance to talk to Kathy Kennedy and Frank Marshall and extend my thanks for the opportunity to work at their legendary company. Have met them, I have to say that Kathy and Frank are two wonderful people and their kindness, intelligence, and professionalism are clearly reflected in the films they have produced.

Oh yeah, and they both agreed to sign some DVDs for me…

Signed copy bitches!

So after that, I parted ways with the Kennedy/Marshall Company in hopes that one day I would return as a writer and director.

The Christmas break went well. I got some CDs, DVDs, books, a pair of swanky professional headphones, and a digital voice recorder, for my writing. Now I’m back in LA, writing like crazy, and *gasp* I’ve set up some meetings with producers. Cross your fingers for me.

Otherwise, I’m still working at Andrew Lauren Productions as a reader. I can’t stress this enough, if you are a writer and you are moving to Hollywood, GET A READER POSITION! They’re not too hard and they will help you a lot with your writing. Also, it’s like Jim Jarmusch said, “Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination.” I’ll leave it at that, since my boss might read this.

So yeah. That’s where my life is right now. I’m going to try to update more often from now on. Also, I’ve decided to start including movie reviews, so stay tuned for more.

Ranjit out.

Columbus Day

So today was Columbus Day and in honor of a man who randomly wandered the Atlantic Ocean until he found land, my girlfriend and I ran errands today. That took us all the way to Burbank, where we hit up Ikea and Home Depot before heading back toward the Blick art supply store for some matting material. And who did we happen to see walking in to Blick as we were checking out?!?! Why, it was Hayden Panettiere! Star of Heroes and other miscellaneous Disney movies of the past (along with a few other indie titles as well).

Photo Credit: www.sidereel.com

Surprisingly, she pretty much looked just as one would expect, as in, fairly similar to her Heroes counterpart. She also seemed pretty nice. I noticed her signing an autograph for a little girl while we were heading out the door. She didn’t skimp on it either. She got a permanent marker, found a hard surface, and filled out a decent little message for the girl, who I believe was jumping in excitement at the moment. I’m pretty sure I was doing the same thing, while the cashier and my girlfriend simultaneously rolled their eyes. They just don’t understand.

Nevertheless, I resisted my urge to serve up a plate of dolphin-safe tuna to the young startlet and left for my car. My friends tell me that I should start getting over this celebrity obsession. I can’t be getting giddy everytime I run into a celeb in Hollywood. The mentality here is that celebs are people too, to which I reply, “yeah, super-rich successful beautiful people that could boost my career with one phone call.”

I mean, that has to be one of the most hypocritical ideas I’ve ever heard. We live in a city that is entirely dedicated to the worship of celebrities and yet it is considered a faux pas to run up to one and say “hi” if you’re above age 5?

Well, screw that. Part of what got me out here is my love of this industry, these people. I can’t just “get over” it. That’s what makes me who I am. The moment I start acting nonchalant about this stuff is the moment I’ve lost touch with my own sense of fandom and what made me want to get into the movie business.

Of course, this philosophy will be all good and well until the day I have a meeting with Spielberg and the conversation goes like this:

Me: “OMG!!! You like totally did Jurassic Park, right?!?! I soooo loved that movie! Those sequels were so crazay. LOL. I can’t wait to work with you!”

Spielberg: “You’re fired.”

Spotlight On: Santa Monica

I know…I KNOW! It’s been a little while since my last post. I’m sorry, but what with all the script-reading, coverage, and other riff raff, I haven’t been able to get a moment to myself, or rather, myself and my laptop. But hey, this gives me an opportunity to start fresh (and I have a sense I’ll be repeating that statement more often as I’ll be getting busier in the coming months).

Nonetheless, I thought I’d take some time to write about one of my favorite places in the Los Angeles area: Santa Monica.

Photo Credit: www.legendsofamerica.com

SaMo, as the locals call it, can be described simply as one of the strangest places in all of Los Angeles. It is where the idealism of the California lifestyle is truly achieved and sadly, reaches its end. As I wander up and down the Third Street Promenade, I cannot help but think about what this neighborhood looked like before it was taken over by the Gaps, Hollisters, and Apple Stores. Now, what was once unique and interesting has become a tourist hot-spot. While the restaurants and bars may reflect a more independent mentality, the prices do not. Expect to spend a pretty penny when visiting SaMo, if you stick to the well-lit areas that is.

Which brings up the fact that Santa Monica is not the epitomy of perfection. It has its dark places. It has its secrets. Beneath the mask of perfect weather and endless beaches can be found desperation and sadness. In this way, Santa Monica is different from the rest of Los Angeles, and the rest of California for that matter. All around the country, around the world even, lie those who seek escape from the ruins of their everyday lives. And where do they run to? Where do they find solace? California. Countless movies have told the tale of a group of friends journeying to the Western coast, the land of a thousand sunsets. But what happens in the end? In the case of a film like the Britney Spears tragedy, Crossroads, or a television show like Going to California; nothing. Nothing happens in the end. There’s the necessary trip to the ocean, a walk amongst the cool waves, and then it’s time to go home. Maybe it’s the fault of the films themselves, fantasizing the idea of such an excursion, but regardless, every year, California sees the newcomers arrive in droves. When they get here, the only natural thing to do is continue West, at which point they reach Santa Monica.

While the end of the line might not be so bad for those who are well-off, Santa Monica has become a pergutory for the vagrants, the homeless, and the mentally handicapped. They wander through the streets. They wander around the fancy cafes, the trendy restaurants, the Gap. They lie on the cool grass under the palm trees, shut their eyes, and soak in the California sun, taking in the warmth of the day so they may endure the night. They sit in alleys, in crevices, in alcoves, playing a drum, a banjo, a guitar, or whatever it was that allowed them to survive the journey.

Photo Credit: http://moneydick.com

While I sit and contemplate their strife, I must admit that I know nothing of the troubles of a California vagrant. When I see them all over the street, my first instinct is to offer food or money, but maybe I’m the one at fault. Maybe I’m the one that has mistaken a man that is homeless for a man that is poor. Perhaps my years growing up in other cities has led me to judge to quickly. It is often my impression that a man of the street is one that desires food, shelter, warmth, and a better life. But while I can recognize someone that is homeless or broke, I am unfamiliar with the vagrants, the hippies, the loners, and the stoners that occupy this part of town. I do not understand that mentality or that lifestyle. For all I know, the vagrant could be more free than I.

Best/Worst

It’s Friday! I love Fridays!

“I clap my hands every [Friday] morning and say ‘This is gonna be a great day!’”

In honor of it being Friday, I have decided to start a new weekly post entitled “Best/Worst.” Every Friday, I’m going to pick someone who is involved in the film industry and showcase the best example of their work alongside the worst. I could pick a writer, director, producer, editor, cinematographer, or even a grip. No one is safe.

So, to get things started, I’ll place my proverbial hand into the proverbial hat and pull out the name…

ADAM SANDLER!

The First of the Best/Worst

Actor/Writer/Producer

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001191/

After his 5-year, 88-episode run on Saturday Night Live, Sandler quickly moved up the comedy ladder. After playing minor roles in films like Coneheads, Airheads, and other films that end in “heads,” Sandler hit it big with Billy Madison, in which he played a spoiled man-child, forced to go back through every year of school in order to gain the respect of his rich father.

After the success of Madison, Sandler’s follow-up in 1996 was the film that would cement him as a comic legend in the industry. And that film was…

Happy Gilmore

This film was simply hilarious. The absurdly random nature of Sandler’s writing actually played well for this film, which Sandler wrote and starred in. The jokes weren’t exactly smart, but Sandler’s crude behavior, when contrasted with the likes of Christopher McDonald, Carl Weathers, and Bob Barker.

"The price is wrong, bitch!"

In box office terms, the film made was fairly unsuccessful, grossing a measly 8.5 million in its opening weekend, but Happy made up for the loss and made Sandler a household name… if that household was filled with adolescents, ages 12-17.

However, as with many celebrities, with money and fame came trouble. Sandler went on to make a number of films, written by him, and based on his own characters. These included such “classics” as The Wedding Singer, The Waterboy, and Little Nicky; and it became clear that Sandler’s “random insanity” style doesn’t exactly translate to all stories and characters, and it has a tendency to become redundant. Very redundant.

Somewhere in the mix there, you do find one movie that was fairly successful: Big Daddy. The film at times took a more serious tone than Sandler’s previous works and actually had somewhat of a message to convey. Based on that films success, Sandler’s recent filmography is somewhat of a hodgepodge of ridiculous comedies with a message (Big Daddy, 50 First Dates, Click, I Know Pronounce You Chuck And Larry) and the just plain ridiculous (The Animal, Mr. Deeds, Anger Management).

This brings us to his latest and worst film:

WTF?!?

You Don’t Mess With The Zohan

 

Really, Adam? Really? What were you thinking?

The Nature of Scripts Today

I can’t remember who told me this first, but I had always been under the impression that in order to get your script read by a producer, it needed to be perfect, at least in terms of structure and formatting. I was told, specifically, that if my script was in the wrong format, had more than 120 pages, or had fewer than 90 pages, that no one would read it. They would simply throw my hard work in the trash faster than you could say “burger flipper for life.” So I made sure to learn all the little intricacies of script formatting and structure so that I would never run into that problem.

Imagine my surprise when I make it to Hollywood and start writing coverage for major companies, only to find that the scripts I see on a regular basis have mistakes out the ass. I’m not just talking about a typo here or there. I’m talking about insanely stupid formatting errors and script structures that make no sense whatsoever. Honestly, anonymous screenwriter, what were you thinking when you decided to include scene numbers and NO PAGE NUMBERS? I’ve also seen continuity errors that would make a script supervisor want to bash their head in with a tack hammer.

Partial summary from a script I recently read:

Page 23: Guy goes into a bar and says, “hey, that chick looks hot.”

Page 24: Guy is getting married to a lamp post.

Page 25: WTF?

My problem is not that these scripts are being written, though. It’s that they’re actually being READ by major companies and considered for projects. These writers are putting down garbled streams of consciousness on a page and they’re getting paid for it! I saw one script a while back in which the words did not even construct logical sentences. It was literally unreadable. And yet, I had to sit down at my computer and write 5 pages of coverage on this piece of shit/poor translation of the writer’s acid trip/Hollywood gold.

Where have the standards gone? Really, these lazy writers just need to get over themselves. No, you are not William Faulkner. You are not allowed to reconstruct the formatting however you see fit. Screenwriting is not an abstract art, it’s a structured one. Learn the structure.

The Starbucks Artist

Could this espresso-sipper be the next Mankiewicz?

I’m not talking about your local barista that can paint flowers into the foam of your latte or charm the change out of the even the most tightly bound pockets for a little extra “college tuition.” No, I’m talking about a different kind of artist: a wordsmith, a master of the phrasal arts. A writer.

Over the years, writer’s have occupied a number of workspaces. Often, the place where an author writes can be incredibly meaningful and telling in regards to his or her work and personality. Whether it’s a bar, a cafe, a den, whether it’s secluded or public, whether it’s dark or light; could make all the difference to the writer and to his writing.

The city I grew up in was not exactly a big city, but it wasn’t small either. When I started getting serious about writing, I would often drive around forever, searching for a place that I could settle into. In order to get my best writing done, I usually need to be in a place that’s quiet and devoid of distractions. However, I also need the place to have some background noise. Too much silence makes me nervous and too much noise will distract me. It’s a very delicate balance. Oh yeah, and they also needed to have free wi-fi.

There were a few places that fit the bill. Often they were not-too-popular franchise cafes. They’re usually recently opened or soon to close, providing me free wi-fi, an aim to please attitude from the staff, and a quiet atmosphere with nothing more than some Kenny G muzak filling the background noise. When I would enter these places, I was usually the only writer. While I was writing my first script, I have to say that I never saw a single other writer in any of my haunts.

But I’m not home any more. This is LA. Everyone has a script. Everyone is a writer. Insert Tyler Durden: I am not a beautiful and unique snowflake. I search and search and every time I enter what looks to be a cool, casual indie cafe, I’m greeted with the glowing white screens of would-be poets typing away on Final Draft or their customly formatted Word documents.

And now I can’t concentrate any more. I’m haunted by the idea that I’m not working fast enough, that these writers are better than me, more experienced, more likely to make it in the dog-eat-dog world of Hollywood writing. And even if I do finish a script, there’s no guarantee I can get it sold, or that I’ll be compensated in any significant way for my work. Because, again, I’m not special. In Hollywood, they can always get someone faster, cheaper. But that’s the way it is. That’s why we work so hard. That’s why you have to show everyone that even if you can’t be the fastest or the cheapest, that you’re the better. That’s why you have to show them that you don’t just write to pay the bills or to pass the time. You write because you have to write. You write because you have no other choice. You write because there is an inherent thirst within you to do so. You can write any time, anywhere. When you feel that, that’s when you will realize…

You don’t need the cafe.