So I got it - all my film equipment is here. I managed to send everything in one go which is quite an achievement. If there are any filmmakers reading this please check out my website and under equipment section you will see what I'm talking about.
I've also designed a new business cards which are due to arrive in the next couple of days. I think it will be the best business cards ever. I had quite a few in the past - some of them really poorly designed, some of them ok. But this time they will be glossy, double sided and as posh as possible. I can't wait to see them.
I've nearly finished preparing a massive list of film companies I'm interested to visit with my offer soon. So keep the fingers crossed for me. The only thing which bothers me a lot though is my inability to speak the language. So I'm aiming in international production houses or companies that find no problems with an English speaker in their team. I just don't wanna fool anybody that my level of Spanish is even close to good enough. Not really. This doubts bring me to the next section I have to write about: homesickness. After coming back from Scotland I have been ill and then I began to feel a bit down about the whole situation. I just feel a bit lost here sometimes, even homesick you might say, but where the hell is my home? None of the places I've been to so far felt like home in any way. None.
So either is the lack of some feeling of security or at least feeling that I know what I'm doing, or I am from another planet. It's hard to say, maybe both are true.
Anyway from another news - I've been to Birthday Party of Festival of African Cinema in Tarifa and I have apparently seen some Spanish celebrities but I didn't know who they were. Good party and a free bar. I've seen a weird Spanish horror film [REC] about firefighters fighting zombies. Weird shit, but actually quite good for this genre. I was also in El Rastro, which is a giant street market every Sunday in La Latina district of Madrid. It's a bit weird because some people are just trying to sell stuff that you usually throw to the bin or give out to charity. Well in Spain there are no charity shops, instead people are selling broken Barbie dolls at el Rastro. Good luck. Some of the stuff you can buy there looks like it has just fallen out of the time machine.
My plans for the week apart from working on the language, and trying to get my brain to work will be watching entire series of Cowboy Bebop en catellano. Wish me luck.
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wtorek, 31 marca 2009
sobota, 21 marca 2009
Official complain day
Hola
Every month I have a one day, when I need a proper dosage of moaning about the whole reality that surrounds me. For a lot of people in Poland, where I'm from, complaining is a way of life. You ask them "How are you?" and their answer will be an endless stream of : "oh it's terrible man, have no job, no money, my kitten died " and so on.
I don't do it very often, because I am just so positive about my life. I moved to a sunny place, which was something I really needed, I know exactly what I want to do in life and it's very important to have this feeling of knowing your place. Many people don't have this. They feel lost. I won't ever feel like this with all those stories and motion images I have in my head waiting to be filmed one day.
So I consider complaining more as a sport, or a brief entertainment. Like a scene from Spike Lee's best movie "25th hour", when Edward Norton curses the whole city in front of the mirror. Of course not as extreme as that. But anyway here's a little bit of something from my personal complain day:
1) Dodgy film companies: interested in making fast money, not paying the crew, telling lies, diving in bullshit every day. People like you destroy the beauty of my art. I have a flaming passion for cinema in my heart and I like to work with people like me. If you don't have the same love for it, don't waste my time. Go back to counting how much paper did you earn.
2) Spanish language : the more I learn the harder it seems. I like simple things. English is simple, polish is not - and I hope no of you will ever have to go through hell of learning it. So spanish is not very user-friendly either. It's something like windows vista. Anyway a simple example: "Tengan cuidado para no introducir el pie entre coche y anden" means in english: "Mind the gap" What the hell is wrong with you people? Couldn't you speak less spooky language ? Or at least open your mouth when you speak. However this is a pointless rant just for my own pleasure, I'm not trying to offend anybody. Polish people speak even worse.
So there it is... only 2 points - not a lot. But as I said before I don't do this very often.
From other news: I made risotto with chorizo in red wine and it turned out pretty well. I'm better in kitchen every day here. I watched some new Alex Jones conspiracy theory documentaries about Obama lies. Pretty entertaining, I'm looking forward to New World Order now. You have to remember that best movies and the most beautiful pieces of art always are made in the time of oppression and tyranny, when humanity as we know it is lost.
Nothing new on a job-front but my equipment is due to arrive from Whiskey-Land any day now. After that the world will be mine. I will be on a pig's back riding through a velvet field. Until then - take it easy, my friends.
Hasta luego
Every month I have a one day, when I need a proper dosage of moaning about the whole reality that surrounds me. For a lot of people in Poland, where I'm from, complaining is a way of life. You ask them "How are you?" and their answer will be an endless stream of : "oh it's terrible man, have no job, no money, my kitten died " and so on.
I don't do it very often, because I am just so positive about my life. I moved to a sunny place, which was something I really needed, I know exactly what I want to do in life and it's very important to have this feeling of knowing your place. Many people don't have this. They feel lost. I won't ever feel like this with all those stories and motion images I have in my head waiting to be filmed one day.
So I consider complaining more as a sport, or a brief entertainment. Like a scene from Spike Lee's best movie "25th hour", when Edward Norton curses the whole city in front of the mirror. Of course not as extreme as that. But anyway here's a little bit of something from my personal complain day:
1) Dodgy film companies: interested in making fast money, not paying the crew, telling lies, diving in bullshit every day. People like you destroy the beauty of my art. I have a flaming passion for cinema in my heart and I like to work with people like me. If you don't have the same love for it, don't waste my time. Go back to counting how much paper did you earn.
2) Spanish language : the more I learn the harder it seems. I like simple things. English is simple, polish is not - and I hope no of you will ever have to go through hell of learning it. So spanish is not very user-friendly either. It's something like windows vista. Anyway a simple example: "Tengan cuidado para no introducir el pie entre coche y anden" means in english: "Mind the gap" What the hell is wrong with you people? Couldn't you speak less spooky language ? Or at least open your mouth when you speak. However this is a pointless rant just for my own pleasure, I'm not trying to offend anybody. Polish people speak even worse.
So there it is... only 2 points - not a lot. But as I said before I don't do this very often.
From other news: I made risotto with chorizo in red wine and it turned out pretty well. I'm better in kitchen every day here. I watched some new Alex Jones conspiracy theory documentaries about Obama lies. Pretty entertaining, I'm looking forward to New World Order now. You have to remember that best movies and the most beautiful pieces of art always are made in the time of oppression and tyranny, when humanity as we know it is lost.
Nothing new on a job-front but my equipment is due to arrive from Whiskey-Land any day now. After that the world will be mine. I will be on a pig's back riding through a velvet field. Until then - take it easy, my friends.
Hasta luego
wtorek, 17 marca 2009
Trip to the north
Hola,
I took a short trip to the north of Europe, my old country - Scotland. I spend there about 4 years of my life and I enjoyed that a lot. Lots of good memories, lots of great people and I filmed my feature there as well. The purpose of the trip was to get all my film equipment back to Spain. I decided to do it in one run, but it was impossible just to take it with me to the plane. 20 kg easyjet limit is nothing for a camera crane with motorized head and a lens adapter...
So I posted it all through dhl - It took me ages to gather all the stuff in boxes and book the couriers, I visited my all work place - the EICC, it was so nice to see all the people there. I really miss this place sometimes.
I end my visit with a great party, bad hangover and lost voice on the road to the airport. I had problems with communicating since then. Now I feel like I'm moving backwards. When I came here a month ago (times passes extremely fast) I didn't know the language. Today I know a little more of the language, but I cannot speak because my voice is gone. I don't know what is worse... I really wish it will come back soon, because now, once my equipment arrives, very busy times ahead. I have to update my website and start getting to know more film people in Madrid. So far I don't know anyone, but after another month I should be able to know more less who is who in Madrid. Keep the fingers crossed folks, hasta luego.
I took a short trip to the north of Europe, my old country - Scotland. I spend there about 4 years of my life and I enjoyed that a lot. Lots of good memories, lots of great people and I filmed my feature there as well. The purpose of the trip was to get all my film equipment back to Spain. I decided to do it in one run, but it was impossible just to take it with me to the plane. 20 kg easyjet limit is nothing for a camera crane with motorized head and a lens adapter...
So I posted it all through dhl - It took me ages to gather all the stuff in boxes and book the couriers, I visited my all work place - the EICC, it was so nice to see all the people there. I really miss this place sometimes.
I end my visit with a great party, bad hangover and lost voice on the road to the airport. I had problems with communicating since then. Now I feel like I'm moving backwards. When I came here a month ago (times passes extremely fast) I didn't know the language. Today I know a little more of the language, but I cannot speak because my voice is gone. I don't know what is worse... I really wish it will come back soon, because now, once my equipment arrives, very busy times ahead. I have to update my website and start getting to know more film people in Madrid. So far I don't know anyone, but after another month I should be able to know more less who is who in Madrid. Keep the fingers crossed folks, hasta luego.
poniedziałek, 9 marca 2009
Breakfast Tacos
Ok World,
Title of this post is more Mexican, but from it can't be closer to Latin America from any country in Europe than Spain. But first things first, let's talk a little bit of Spanish lifestyle.
I feel that my biological inner clock or whatever you wanna call it, has been reset. I find really hard to get up from the bed early in the morning, but it's not a problem to stay up all night till 5-6am. And the best thing to do in Madrid city center at 5am is to have chocolate con churros. Really tasty!
On the struggling-with-language front new improvements - friend of mine did an exercise with me which was a job interview, asked me all sorts of questions what any employer would ask me in Spanish and I had to talk back and answer. It went not so bad, considering I started learning this language 3 months ago. I also watched a hell of a lot more movies en castellano and I got myself about 100 old classic DOS games also translated. Now I have a perfect excuse of not doing anything all day than playing and watching films - I'm just learning the language that way. Yeah - I can keep saying that to take away my guilt.
But seriously more work for me is coming soon, I have to come back to Scotland and pick up tons (well kilograms ) of film equipment that I left there. After that I have to update my website, do a proper offer in Spanish, get some more contacts with the film community here, cause at the moment I have none, finally do these damn subtitles for "All Secrets", cause that have to be done asap and I haven't even touched it yet.
And as I mentioned before I found something amazing - a recipe by Robert Rodriguez for breakfast tacos. I feel this is kind of a food I want to eat for the rest of my life. I need to do them. Tomorrow I will run to the supermarket to get all necessary ingredients.
Title of this post is more Mexican, but from it can't be closer to Latin America from any country in Europe than Spain. But first things first, let's talk a little bit of Spanish lifestyle.
I feel that my biological inner clock or whatever you wanna call it, has been reset. I find really hard to get up from the bed early in the morning, but it's not a problem to stay up all night till 5-6am. And the best thing to do in Madrid city center at 5am is to have chocolate con churros. Really tasty!
On the struggling-with-language front new improvements - friend of mine did an exercise with me which was a job interview, asked me all sorts of questions what any employer would ask me in Spanish and I had to talk back and answer. It went not so bad, considering I started learning this language 3 months ago. I also watched a hell of a lot more movies en castellano and I got myself about 100 old classic DOS games also translated. Now I have a perfect excuse of not doing anything all day than playing and watching films - I'm just learning the language that way. Yeah - I can keep saying that to take away my guilt.
But seriously more work for me is coming soon, I have to come back to Scotland and pick up tons (well kilograms ) of film equipment that I left there. After that I have to update my website, do a proper offer in Spanish, get some more contacts with the film community here, cause at the moment I have none, finally do these damn subtitles for "All Secrets", cause that have to be done asap and I haven't even touched it yet.
And as I mentioned before I found something amazing - a recipe by Robert Rodriguez for breakfast tacos. I feel this is kind of a food I want to eat for the rest of my life. I need to do them. Tomorrow I will run to the supermarket to get all necessary ingredients.
poniedziałek, 2 marca 2009
If you're no longer a child, you are dead
Hello World,
As you may have already noticed, I decided to put all of my energy on learning the language first and then when I get more confident I will find a nice production company and film lots of good stuff here. But to be honest I began to think of another script more and more, and the ideas are appearing on every corner of the street.
It is official then, "All Secrets" had been finished ages ago, so now it's time to move on. Do a next one. Ten times better and 100 times more difficult to make. I can share with you my main inspiration (but not the plot, the construction) it's a movie I've mentioned before "The Saragossa Manuscript", which is polish epic by Wojciech Jerzy Has, forgotten long time ago. It is truly amazing that people who know polish cinema, know names like Kieślowski, Polański, Wajda, but have never heard of Has. This guy didn't make a lot of movies but he's amazing, he is like polish Bunuel. Not many people follow this road so it's good enough reason for me to do so. I will tell you more when the time is right.
Apart from that I watched Frost-Nixon, pretty amazing acting and I must say I was expecting something worse. Still a bit too much talking in that movie, but it has it's brilliant moments. Meanwhile I continue to watch movies for kids - mainly japanese with spanish dubbing. I also have a book for kids about pirates, which is pretty enjoyable. If I keep going like this I think I'm going to turn into 9-year old soon. I've also met so far really nice people here in Spain. They are very open and helpful, which is important when you're an outsider and you're completely on your own.
As you may have already noticed, I decided to put all of my energy on learning the language first and then when I get more confident I will find a nice production company and film lots of good stuff here. But to be honest I began to think of another script more and more, and the ideas are appearing on every corner of the street.
It is official then, "All Secrets" had been finished ages ago, so now it's time to move on. Do a next one. Ten times better and 100 times more difficult to make. I can share with you my main inspiration (but not the plot, the construction) it's a movie I've mentioned before "The Saragossa Manuscript", which is polish epic by Wojciech Jerzy Has, forgotten long time ago. It is truly amazing that people who know polish cinema, know names like Kieślowski, Polański, Wajda, but have never heard of Has. This guy didn't make a lot of movies but he's amazing, he is like polish Bunuel. Not many people follow this road so it's good enough reason for me to do so. I will tell you more when the time is right.
Apart from that I watched Frost-Nixon, pretty amazing acting and I must say I was expecting something worse. Still a bit too much talking in that movie, but it has it's brilliant moments. Meanwhile I continue to watch movies for kids - mainly japanese with spanish dubbing. I also have a book for kids about pirates, which is pretty enjoyable. If I keep going like this I think I'm going to turn into 9-year old soon. I've also met so far really nice people here in Spain. They are very open and helpful, which is important when you're an outsider and you're completely on your own.
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