The three segments in this video chronicle the tumultuous journey of three difference Oscar-nominated films that would not have seen the light of day had it not been for their mountain-moving creators and supporters.   

Making “GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK,” “CRASH,” “BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN”

I’ve rocked designer Melody Ehsani’s King Tut earrings at a couple of different events now. Whenever I wear them, people on the arrival lines seem magically drawn to their shine. I interviewed Adrian Grenier at the Global Green Millenium Awards for Causecast on Saturday (5/30). I was trying to blurt our an environmental question for him to answer, while we talked on the green carpet, but he couldn’t take his eyes off my larger than life Melody Ehsani accessories:) Like the gentleman he is, he quickly picked the right one up from the ground after it fell from my ear. I think the tiny incident gained me a few extra minutes with him before he moved on to the next reporter:)

Check out my write-up on the event at Causecast.

The first annual Streamy Awards launched into the stratosphere last night from the Wadsworth Theater in Los Angeles.  A huge thank you must go out to Tilzy.TV, Tubefilter, and NewTeeVee for producing the premiere event, honoring outstanding shows made originally for broadband distribution.

What did I learn on the red carpet while capturing facial pore, nostril hair, and eyeball shots with my minoHD?  (Sorry, interviewees.  Had to hold the camera close, due to all the noise.)   Video content creators of the world wide web work hard and play hard.  Actually, I learned the “play hard” part at the after party.

The recent ceremony was more than a celebration of the overwhelming amount of talent online and off the studio lots.  As multiple-Streamy winner Felicia Day said, the Streamys signify the start of a “revolution” in the entertainment industry.  Two by two inch media players and 30 minutes of video buffering are things of the past.  High definition streams, emerging technologies, visionaries, and risk-takers are ushering in the tricks and treats of an ever-evolving multi-faceted new media presence.

I covered the Independent Spirit Awards this past sweet Saturday afternoon (2/21) seaside in Santa Monica.  It was by far the most laid back and embracing award show I’ve ever seen. As an aspiring filmmaker, I’m always on the lookout for tremendous stories of triumph in the independent film arena.  Suffice to say, I hit the jackpot when I was given the opportunity to speak with the honorees.  After observing the camaraderie and determination among this talented pool of individuals, I couldn’t help but feel excited about the prospect of joining them one day.  The highlight of  this Oscars-Eve occasion was seeing the incomparable Mickey Rourke win the Best Actor award for his performance in “The Wrestler.”   The famous F-bomber fought the good fight in more ways than one, and I’m sure his lady love Loki was there with him in spirit.  (He wears his little darlin’ around his neck.)

This video above is the first piece I’ve ever cut on iMovie.  Unfortunately, I didn’t discover  the video stabilizer until after I had already finished editing.  So please excuse the shakiness of the my flip cam.  Footage will be smoother and steadier next time:)

Seeing BB King perform at the Grammys last Sunday was the highlight of my night.  I was on my couch, mind you, not in the audience at the Staples Center.  I marveled at the way he glowed on stage.  The man is in his early 80s.  His early 80s!  I guess as long as he has his love, Lucille, he’ll never stop being a shredder.  While gnawing away at my seventh Subway sandwich that week, I recalled the first time I met BB back in August. (Damn, that feels like a long time ago.)  He left the kind of impression only a true hero and legend could.  

Old Blog Post  from August 28, 2008

I met an icon yesterday. My heart was broken and mended back together yesterday. I cried on the inside during an interview yesterday. I praised the world and all its greatness yesterday. I met BB King yesterday.

After driving all over Los Angeles, while fighting off fits of road rage, I went to the Sheraton Universal to interview the great BB King for the Associated Press. I had never met him, and to be honest I don’t listen to his music regularly. But he has always been a man and musician, whom I have admired and respected for his tenacity and his legacy.

We talked for 45 minutes. I’m usually lucky if I get a good solid 10 minutes with a celebrity, especially one as beloved as BB. But there was something special about our conversation. Under the hot lights in the stuffy hotel room filled with photographers and publicists, an alchemy materialized.

Of course, we met to talk about his latest CD “One Kind Favor” and the museum opening in his honor in Indionola, Mississippi. But the conversation was so much more than a promotional piece for his latest projects. The time I spent with BB was one of the sweetest and more profound gifts I’ve received in my career.

He shared the lessons he’s learned over the decades with regard to his music, his shortcomings and his ambition. (The man will be 83 on 9/16/08.) He said he’s always known how underestimated he was by the public for being a blues singer.  He said that now, after all this time, he’s finally OK with not everyone respecting the blues (because they don’t understand the blues.)  He lamented on the pain of a blues singer. He expressed how happy he is that he’s lived long enough to see a black man and a white woman come to so far in the White House.  And he said that when the time comes, his death should be a celebration because of how full his life was. His new song “See that My Grave is Kept Clean,” is an ode to that sentiment. 

What I appreciated the most about BB was his wisdom.  He said, “the world owes us nothing.” After 83 years of living, BB has come to the conclusion that life is not about what people do for us and what the universe grants us. Life is beautiful because we have the ability to give to others. In the end, this is what we are measured by.  

I really wish I had brought a digital recorder so that I could write out the transcription of the interview and save it for all time.

He told me my smile is prettier than Muhammad Ali’s.

Thank you, BB.  You’ll be in my heart forever.