On July 8 (6pm - 9pm)and July 9 (3pm - 6pm), I'll be holding casting sessions, with callbacks on July 16 (3pm - 6pm). They're going to be held at Media Arts Center San Diego (2921 El Cajon Blvd, 92104).

These are the roles that are being cast:

Female, appears 16-18, preferably Latina. Must have brown eyes. Lead role.
Supporting roles:
Female, appears 30-40s. Any ethnicity. 
Female, appears in 50s. Any ethnicity.
Male, appears 30-40s. Any ethnicity.
Male, appears 40-60s. Any ethnicity.
Male, appears 16-18. Any ethnicity.

Anyone who is interested in auditioning should email me at lisad_01@msn.com to schedule a time/date. Be prepared to read a short monologue of your choosing and do a short cold read. Shooting dates will most likely be 4 days in August, but dates have not been nailed down. If you have any questions, please feel free to send me a message and ask.

Thanks!

So some of you have asked me what my movie is about. Well, at the risk of sounding like a jerk, it’s about magicians.

It’s not a historical film, and it’s not meant to be informational and teach you anything about magic. It’s just about a family of magicians. The real meat of the story concerns the mother and daughter, who are left alone when the father/husband dies suddenly.

I don’t want to hash out the entire plot (you have to come see it, right?), but the story is basically a story about illusions: the ones we see and the ones we don’t. It’s about women. It’s about family, duty and independence.

I know that doesn’t really tell you very much, but I don’t want to give the whole thing away. It’s supposed to be magic!

In the writing of this film, I have done a significant amount of research, reading biographies of a couple of magicians (I would rock a Jeopardy! category) and watching a documentary about magic. I’ve also watched any other movies about magic I can get my hands on, and I plan to re-visit the work of Georges Melies, who was a magician before he was a filmmaker. If anyone has any suggestions for ‘magic’ films I need to watch, let me know.

I’m also planning a trip to LA to visit the fabled Magic Castle, which I’m very excited about. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a magic show in person in my life, so I am prepared to be amazed. Through my research, I’ve learned how certain tricks are done, but I don’t think that spoils it. I think it only makes it more amazing, because the timing and coordination of the illusions has to be so precise and practiced, the mere fact they are able to pull it off is amazing.

I’m also planning to visit a magical place called the Museum of Jurassic Technology. I’ve been there a couple of times, but there is something about the place that changes the way the world looks in that it becomes apparent that you can’t really tell the difference between was is real and what isn’t.

So that’s some background on the film and how I went about learning about the subject matter. I hope that helps.

So last week I ventured to the north to visit the LA Film Festival, and to check out the Fashion District. The visit, albeit short, consisted of a lot of walking, Stella Artois, and checking out the downtown sights. I've always had a love of architecture (it was my first major in college), and LA has tons of great examples. Many of the buildings conjure up images of old hollywood, when everything was new and shiny and film noir hadn't been invented yet. When screwball comedies were all the rage and movies cost a nickel.

So, as I wandered through the streets, I found myself stumbling upon several buildings that were erected for the sole purpose of entertaining. Maybe they showed movies (or still do), comedy shows, magic shows, or theater, but they were there to lure people in with twinkling neon lights and exotic decor. Anyway, as I walked through town, I snapped some pictures of the ones I saw, and imagined what they looked like when they were all lit up.

Although I have to say, transforming The State into a church is brilliant. Seriously.

After my jaunt through yesteryear, I trekked on over to the Fashion District, which is an amazing wonderland of possibilities that  is both inspiring and intimidating. Within a two block radius (and I'm sure there's more if you go further), you can find any fabric, any trimming, any rhinestone your little heart could ever desire. It's like a trip to Willy Wonka for people who sew. Or even own a glue gun. 

I was actually looking for some specific things (some of which I forgot to get, because I was so distracted by all the STUFF), one of which was some fake fur for a coat I'm planning to make (another art project, I'll tell you about it another time). Anyway, I found a tiny store that primarily sells fake fur. As in, there is barely enough room to even walk through the store because there are giant rolls of fur everywhere. Anyway, I got what I was looking for, but while I was there, I couldn't help but feel like I was about to be eaten by an army of Sesame Street monsters. Even if I had been, it would have been worth it.

So today will be another installment of the “My Awesomely Talented Friends”. My producer is a firecracker of a woman named Sybil Wendler. And there is one word that perfectly describes her: tenacious. She never gives up, never lets go, and is always ready for anything.

On top of that, she’s also a filmmaker on her own, and recently finished a film titled Once Upon a Rooftop, which is visually stunning short documentary about people who live on the rooftops of Hong Kong in dwellings they basically construct themselves. It’s fascinating, beautiful, and very human. She took her film to the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (one of the largest Asian Film Festivals in the US), and won an award for best short documentary. So yes, she’s the real deal. 

If you’re interested in seeing her film, go here:   http://caamedia.org/interactive/featured-online-content/

So now I'm moving on to scouting some possible locations for my film. Since our magicians need somewhere to perform, I've been looking for theaters where we can film. Thankfully, San Diego is a great place for theater, and there are a number of companies ranging from quite large and established to small and experimental. This is a great thing. The downside is that because San Diego is such a diverse theater town, many of the theaters are black box theaters, rather than proscenium theaters, which is what I need. 

Most of the proscenium theaters here are actually very beautiful historic theaters, with all the architectural details we love, down to the red velvet curtain. This gives me some options as to where I can shoot, but the end result is most likely going to boil down to what we can afford. Historic places generally have tight restrictions (as well they should), and since they are all still working theaters, we also have to work around their production schedules, which is a little tricky. Still, I have a couple of candidates, and even toured one the other day with my producer, who I'll introduce to you another day.

We visited a place in Encinitas (very cute surfer town) called La Paloma Theater. I love that Paloma is Spanish for ''dove", which is very much a part of the magic world. Here are a few pictures.

There is another theater I plan to visit call the Birch North Park Theater, which is also beautiful. I'll post pictures when I visit.

The last location I'm looking for is a house. Nothing special, just a house. Ideally, I'm looking for something small. A simple house that looks a bit unkempt. And then my locations will be set. How exciting is that?

After soaking in what the arts community has to say about pretty much everything, I took a trip up to LA for the LA Film Festival. Part of this involves scouting films for the film festival I work with, part involves mingling and networking, and part involves just having fun. After all, while film festivals are meant to bring us film we wouldn't normally get to see, they're also supposed to be fun.

I was actually invited to the festival by a friend of mine who is a programmer, because they have a showcase of films made by high school kids. So there's a couple of screenings of all the films, then a luncheon where the kids get to hang out with "luminaries", and even get to have advising sessions with them. All in all, it's pretty great. 

Watching the films, I couldn't help but be amazed with the work the kids did. Quite a bit of the work was really quite extraordinary, as if these kids are calling the rest of us out for being cowards for thinking small. This is what I love about young filmmakers: they haven't learned what's impossible yet. There's such sincerity in their work, it's almost overwhelming. They're not trying to get signed by a studio, make a calling card, network, or work the system. They just want to express something that is important to them; to say something about the world. After the arts conference, it was difficult to contain an odd sense of pride I had to be working at what I do. I work for a program that helps kids to exactly this kind of work (even though that's not my  department), and on some level I feel like I'm doing something to make it easier for kids to do what I saw. I'm proud of them without even knowing them. I know that's a pretty self-centered way of thinking about it, like I'm taking credit for their work, but I can't help it. I feel like I'm a pseudo-parent, encouraging kids to be creative long after it is "practical".

Anyway, the luncheon afterwards was nice, and Mark Levine and his wife Jen (producers of such films as Nim's Island) were on hand to talk to the kids and so forth. If I were 16, I would feel like a rock star. And the kids deserve it. They earned it. Plus, it's good to get a taste of what your creativity can achieve for you. More kids need it.

Anyway, here's a couple of pictures. One from the luncheon, and one from the Anaheim train stop, where U2 was performing on my way home. How's that for a career in the arts?

So the last few days have been fairly eventful. The Americans for the Arts held their annual conference in San Diego, so I decided to trot on down to see what was up. It's something that I'm really on the fringe of, because I work in film, and they are working in visual art, theater, music, dance, etc. But still, film is very much an art form. Just because it is popular doesn't preclude it from being artful. I could get on a big soapbox at this point, but I won't.

Anyway, one of the things I took away from the conference is the idea that we as a culture really need to support ALL the arts, not just one. They all work in conjunction with one another, and they are all equally important. The other thing is that we need to do whatever we can to make sure our children get an education in the arts. In some sense, it's what makes them human and connects them with their community. When they participate in the arts, they gain skills in critical thinking, problem solving, and self-esteem, and it connects them to their community and gives them a sense of culture and compassion for their world. What kid doesn't need that? We also as a culture need to put a premium value on creativity and give people the freedom to experiment with expression. It is valuable, and we need it to stick around for a long long time. Whoops, I think I just got on the soapbox.

Anyway, even Mayor Jerry Sanders stopped by to give everyone a pep talk, as well as remind everyone that June is Craft Beer Month in San Diego, so they were expected to do their part. I had no problem complying with his request. Anyway, here's a picture of ol' Jerry, as well as some dancers that gave a very fun performance.

What would a film be without great visuals? Nada, that's what. So it should come as no surprise that having a great cinematographer shooting my film is something I take very seriously. Luckily, I know some pretty great cinematographers. I was going to have Vittorio Storaro shoot the film, but he's busy with a project in Iran, so that wouldn't work. Just kidding. But maybe next time. 

So anyway, I went to someone else who shoots very beautiful pictures, my good friend Christina Cervantes. She's not that easy to get (Vittorio might have actually been a little easier!) because these days her schedule fills up very quickly because everyone wants her. She does everything. She does headshots, weddings, portrait photography, shoots for television, and even manages to slide in some films here and there. She's probably one of the busiest shooters I can think of. Check out some of her photographic work here: http://www.christinacervantesphotography.com/lifesyle.html

It's no secret: a movie can't be made by one person. Sure, there is the auteur school of thought that holds the director as the visionary, the one who attends to every little detail. But the thing is, there is not a person alive who can do all things well. Making films requires meticulous attention to details in a variety of areas. Costumes, sets, props, acting, camera work, sound, special effects, and so on. 

I am lucky enough to know some very talented people who are willing to help me make my film. I don't know how I managed to surround myself with so many accomplished people, but there it is. So, I'd like to introduce them, so everyone can know how much talent is going into the making of this movie. I wish I could do everything myself, but I rest easy knowing that there are a number of people surrounding me that will do everything in their power to make the film as good as it can be.

So let's start with the music. For my film, I envision music that is a simple blend of electronic sound with one or two acoustic instruments, such as a piano or flute. Imagine Radiohead with no singing and a little flute melody. Something atmospheric. So I called someone who I know specializes in that sort of music. His name is Chad Mossholder, and he's been composing music and doing sound design in the video game industry for quite some time now. He's also worked on several other film projects and art projects, so he's really a great asset to the team. If you want to check out his music go here: www.cwmossholder.com

So yesterday I met with my cinematographer and we went over all sorts of fun stuff for the film. Locations, dates, fundraising (care to donate?), production design, costuming; all that good stuff. She happened to mention to me that there is a magic shop in Kearny Mesa, so I'm sure that place will be included in an adventure in my near future. I tried to find a website for it, but all I could find was this: http://www.themagicplace.com/ . Apparently, revolution is coming this summer. I, for one, am excited about it.