Long time, no update...

It's been almost a month.  Hasn't it?

No excuses.  I've been lazy.  Not writing anything.  Just working, watching movies, and napping.  Probably subconsciously resting up for the busy Christmas season ahead at work.

I have been mapping out my upcoming writing projects, however, and scheduling them.  Some interesting developments.

My current project is my romantic comedy.  Working on it with a friend.  I need to ask him to light a fire under my ass.  Because I'm lazy.  Deadlines imposed by others make me actually work.

Then my next project will most likely be my next giallo, "She Has Rebecca's Eyes."  Think Body Puzzle meets Blink meets 70's giallo depravity.  Good gory fun.

Also retooling another horror idea I have called "Butterfly Collector."  I've written and re-written the opening scene at least four times over the past ten years.  Probably the most emotional piece I've done.  I think I keep putting this one off because I know it would never get produced.  Too dark, too bleak, no happy ending for anyone.

And I've been thinking about "Proxy," my sci-fi giallo.  After a thorough dissection, I've determined I accidentally wrote the second installment of a trilogy.  But three screenplays won't cut it.  This story needs novels.

Lately I've been thinking about writing a book about gialli.  I've been teetering back and forth on the subject, trying to figure out what style to do it in, what exactly to write about, etc.  Still debating on it.  My professor has been a great help, though.  Maybe I'll expand one of my film series and see how it goes.

And, yes, I've watched a lot of gialli lately.  I don't even know if I can name them all.  I'll go through them later and let you know.

Okay.  Gonna watch some TV and go to bed early.  Morning shift tomorrow.

Later.
-Justin

Starter Gialli

Sorry about the absence.  Lots of stuff going on.  Working more hours, getting my graduation figured out, etc.  And finally catching up with Breaking Bad on Netflix (halfway through season 3).

My grandfather died a few weeks ago, so last week I flew up to Toledo to attend the service.  Spent quite a lot of time with my cousin, who follows Italian Lemonade (shout out to Zach!).  At one point over beer, he asked me for some good gialli to introduce himself to the genre.

And I blanked.

You see, there's a difference between the top gialli and the ones that you should use to introduce one to the genre.  As brilliant as films like Perfume of the Lady in Black and So Sweet So Dead are, going into them blindly without any previous giallo experience would throw you for a loop.

So now I've searched my library, as well as other sources, and think I've found a few that would make great starts to the genre.

Criteria: They must be good films, of course.  They must also fit the most basic requirements of a giallo (namely black trenchcoats, beautiful women in peril, a central mystery).  And they must be available on Netflix, because I'm not gonna send anyone on a wild goose chase to introduce themselves to a genre.  I've left out a few, even though they are indeed classics, because I feel you need to see other films in the genre first to understand how they transcend what else was out at the time.

Feel free to add a few in the comments as well.

So...here goes...

The Bird with the Crystal Plumage-Even though gialli existed before this film, this one really started the boom.  This one established the formula and for the next four years gialli tried to replicate this film most of all.

Don't Torture a Duckling-Because Fulci needs to be seen, and I feel of his gialli, this is his most accessible (despite the hard-to-defend title).  I've been trying to get my giallo-curious friends into it, and for a while it was even STREAMING on Netflix.

Black Belly of the Tarantula-A truly great giallo.  Three Bond girls (I count Casino Royale, so bite me), an ingenious murder method, and a good mystery at the same time.  Why isn't this on Blu Ray?

The Case of the Bloody Iris-This one does everything right, IMHO.  It has Edwige Fenech, queen of the giallo.  It also has that fantastic score by Bruno Nicolai.  And the film itself is such a breeze that I find myself rewatching it at least once a year (and I'm not much of a repeat viewer).

Blood and Black Lace-Sure, this one is a bit slow moving, but it's one of the best uses of color in a horror film.  That plus a salacious score (which later got re-used for A Dragonfly for Each Corpse).

Stagefright-80's giallo supreme!  Pure fun.  I hear Michele Soavi's back in the directors chair...can someone send him a copy of Orchid?

So, there's my list.  I'm sure I'll come up with more later, but these are worthy intros.  Put them on your Netflix queue.  And thank me later.

Later.

-Justin

Back to watching...and buying...

So.

I'm not writing my giallo anymore.  And school's officially out.  So I'm pretty much just working.  And getting started on finding a job outside of retail.

In the next few days I will be able to relax and watch some gialli again.

Also bought a few more: Bad Inclination, Body Puzzle, and Sotto il Vestito Niente-L'ultima Sfilata (Nothing Underneath: The Final Show).  Bringing the total to 105.

Sotto...and my previous purchase of Love and Death in the Garden of the Gods are both special purchases because they are not English friendly in any way.  Sotto bombed at the box office so of course they were just gonna dump it on disk.  And Love and Death is from Cinekult, who has been releasing a shitload of gialli without any subtitles (even when subs are available on bootlegs from such sites as www.zddvisualmedia.com and www.cinema-de-bizarre.com ).  I might pick up another non-English friendly movie and make a mini-marathon of it, seeing if I can appreciate them without knowing what on earth they're saying (I only speak an Italian dialect known as Pasta).

Let's see what else is out there for me...

Later.
-Justin

Back from the professor...

Boy am I tired.

Long day.  Long long long day.

I had my meeting with my professor regarding my script.  I still have a way to go before this bad boy would be ready to send out.  Which I completely understand and freely admit.  During the discussion, I think I dawned on why this script was so hard.  This one feels like a sequel to an unwritten original.  It has all sorts of concepts that are in place in my mind, but there is no room to establish them.  I need to write a first story that plants these concepts.

While we talked, I figured out the basic storyline and how I could establish these ideas.  And I already thought of how a Proxy 2 would have worked out.  Do I smell a trilogy?  Maybe...

Anyhow, I got a B for the course.  Not bad, considering how I struggled with this script.

On another note, I just released my first line of fabrics for sale on www.spoonflower.com.  If you have any sewing needs, check these out.

http://www.spoonflower.com/collections/22047

Okay.  I'm gonna relax.

Later.
-Justin

Coming Down...

Still going through the myriad of emotions of this screenplay.  Feeling it's the worst thing I've ever written. Wishing I'd gone with my other giallo concept instead.  That one had none of the sci-fi trappings, so I could've used the whole script writing what I do best--murder pieces (it's actually quite disturbing how good my set pieces are).

I spoke with another professor tonight, and he said he goes through the same emotions with every project he does.  Which makes me feel a lot better.  Now that it's turned in for good, he told me to stay away from it for 4-6 months.

So in the meantime, I'm trying to get more time at work, since I graduate in two weeks.  More time = more $$$ = less debt.

And on the side I'm actually releasing my stress through a strange endeavor.  I'm designing fabric.  On Spoonflower.com you can design your own fabric and have it made for whatever kind of project you want to do.  I can't sew (yet), but I've been making my own designs and I'm about to make my first collection available for sale.  Not giallo related, but still eye-catching and pretty, IMHO.  When this collection becomes available for sale, I'll let y'all know.

Of course I couldn't do that project and completely abandon gialli/Italian horror.  I made up a few prints for my own personal use using giallo poster art.  I plan on someday learning how to sew so I can make myself a shirt with the skull/butterfly image from the Bloodstained Butterfly poster.  And another with the poster art for AAA Massagiatrice Bella...you know the rest of that title.

And now that my second draft is turned in, I've managed to find the time to watch more movies.  Watched Open Coffin Empty Tomb on Saturday.  Really enjoyed it.  It's a slow burner, but it paid off at the end.  And I watched Death Steps in the Dark last night.  That one didn't really do anything for me.  I might just have been tired, though.

Okay.  I'm going to bed.  It's 1:12 and I've been up since 6 or so.  I'm tired.

Later.
-Justin

He merely abandons it...

No, I'm not quitting Italian Lemonade.  Just finishing a quote.  "No artist finishes his work, he merely abandons it..."

I finished my second draft of my screenplay for my independent study.

And...I...kinda...hate it.

Maybe it's just from having been involved in it all summer.  I dunno.

I rearranged a lot of it and changed the flow.  Took out some of the scenes, added new scenes.  The giallo elements are more consistent throughout.  In the previous draft, the giallo moments don't start until around page 50.  Now it starts in the 20's.  Added another death scene, too.

But I ended up cutting some of the more emotional scenes at the same time.  And where I had some scenes juxtaposed together for a specific reason, I had to separate them this time.

Maybe it's a better draft.  Maybe it isn't.  I don't know.  I think I'm just still on overload.

Downloading a couple movies I rented off iTunes.  It was storming really bad.  Now it's gotten better, but I'll have something to watch should the power go out.

Giallo tonight?

Later.
-Justin

Instead of doing what I'm SUPPOSED to be doing...

By the time I got off of work tonight, between the rain and the fatigue, I didn't get to editing Proxy/A Flash of White/Whatever it's gonna end up being called.

Instead I farted around.  And now I'm on the computer while listening to the love theme from Dracula 3D and watching Law and Order SVU.

This draft is due Friday.  Whatever am I gonna do?

Anyhow, I'm taking a mental break from that script and thinking about Orchid again.  I love the set pieces of that script.  I've been thinking about my idea to film it with Barbie dolls again.  Kind of a "if Todd Haynes did a giallo instead of Karen Carpenter's life story." thing.  Maybe a trailer.  Then maybe use that to expand to a 20 minute short (Indie Go Go?).

I've discussed it with my equally twisted sister, who has an extensive Barbie collection.  She's willing to make slutty Barbie clothes (and a trenchcoat?) for the cause.  I'd have to build a simple 1:6 scale set that could be easily redressed.  And I'd need a camera.  Which I need anyway.  And I'd have to learn how to do stop-motion.  Which was available at one point at school but now isn't (and I'm graduating anyway).

But I really kinda wanna do this.  It'd be fun.  Well, at least the end result would be fun.  I dunno.

Maybe it's just my mind wandering to avoid editing this other script.

What do you think?

Seriously, responses would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Later.
-Justin

What did I get myself into?

Trying to rearrange things in this screenplay.  It's a mess.  Why did I choose to do this script?  I could've done my romantic comedy and had it so easy.

"I know!  I'll challenge myself!  It'll be fun!"

Bugh.

Please send good vibes my way.  I need all of them.

BTW, What Have They Done To Your Daughters was great.  More dynamic than Solange, IMHO.  Solange had a better score, though.

Back to the grind.

Later.
-Justin

My brain is overheated. I think I smell bacon.

So.

Had my meeting with my professor regarding my first draft.

Still absorbing.

He said I have some good ideas with the sci-fi thing, but that I jump from one to another without a common thread or arc to unify them.  Which I totally get.  I feel the need to put in all these ideas for this expansive world in so few pages.  To put all these ideas in at once would require a novel.  Or a trilogy.

Told me to lose or completely retool the main story, which revolved around the murder of a little girl.  While I used this to initially blow up into a bigger thing, it didn't really fit.  Understandable.  But that part of the story was the emotional center for me.  I'll have to contemplate this.

Simplify the story.  Killer's motive is too complicated.  Keep it simple.

There wasn't nearly enough giallo for his liking.  It came in too late, too.  Make it more of a straight up giallo.  Said that's where I was in my element.  I totally agree with this.  I only have two giallo moments in the whole thing, and if I am to make it a sci-fi/giallo hybrid, I need more giallo.  It's like cowbell with leather gloves.

He also kind of suggested upping the sleaze factor.  Which I might do.  Though sometimes I already feel like Joe Eszterhas with nicer tits.

How am I gonna be able to do all this in two weeks?

I already came up with an idea for some of it.  I just need to sit down and think it through.

Where's my insulin pump that dispenses caffeine?

Later.
-Justin

Digesting, Decompressing, DONE...

I finished my second screenplay today.  Turned it into the professor.  Should hear back from him in the next few days.

This is the fabled sci-fi/giallo hybrid.

And my brain hurts.

This one ends on a completely different tangent than the original synopsis.  And ended up being less of a giallo than originally planned.  Really only two giallo-esque murders (both of which would turn me into the New King Of The Eyeball Gag.  FULCI LIVES!).  That said, I think it's enough of a giallo for fellow enthusiasts to catch.

A lot more dramatic than I expected.  Some really sad moments.  It's also the darkest thing I've ever written.  Like, really dark.  Who Saw Her Die looks like a comedy compared to this.

Well, now that I've turned everything in, I can now lift my "No Movie Watching" rule.  And guess what arrived yesterday...

My FREAKING AWESOME HAUL from www.cinema-de-bizarre.com

I also ordered Love and Death in the Garden of the Gods, raising my total to 102.  The Cinekult DVD was on eBay, and I HAD to have it.  Sure, it isn't English friendly, but I've wanted this movie so badly since I read about it in Blood and Black Lace.

Hmm...which one should I watch?

Anyhow, I'm gonna decompress now.  Celebrated finishing my script with a big honkin' meal at East Side Pizza.  Now I need to rest a bit before an early bedtime.  Morning meeting tomorrow, then I have the rest of the day off...and trust me, I'm relaxing all day tomorrow.

Later.
-Justin

Writer's Block...

Bugh.  Establishing everything is the hardest part of screenwriting.  Settings, characters, concepts.  I'm never writing sci-fi again.  Unless I get hired to work on a big budget movie and get some M. Night Shyamalan bucks.

Script due in less than two weeks.  Updates here will be sporadic.  Especially considering how little I've written so far.

Find a way to see Squillo.  Great little thriller that slipped through the cracks.  Carlo Vanzina gets no love in giallo circles.  Duder made this and Nothing Underneath.  And Mystere, which I'm getting in a few weeks.

Speaking of which, Go to www.cinema-de-bizarre.com!  Tell them Justin Kosch sent you!  Take advantage of the BLOWOUT sale!  And buy 2 get 1 free always!

Okay.  Decompressing before work.  Maybe I'll try to write tonight.

Later.
-Justin

Milestone

So.

I wish I could say I'm working on my script.  But I've been slacking.  So now I have three weeks to write the rest of it.  BLAH.

But once I get it turned in, I have a lot more gialli coming in to decompress with.

I just made a couple of orders, and soon I will be the proud owner of...

101 gialli!

Let's see what all I've ordered...

Blind Date (Scandal In Black)
Strip Nude For Your Killer (Blu Ray)
Squillo
Mystere
Bloodstained Butterfly
Open Tomb, Empty Coffin
Amuck
Death Haunts Monica
Orgasmo
Pensione Paura
What Have They Done To Your Daughters?
Tropic of Cancer
Death Steps In The Dark
A Quiet Place To Kill
Murder Mansion

I've seen Bloodstained Butterfly (and owned it for a while, but it got mixed up with Dad's VHS tapes so it's a re-buy) and Strip Nude For Your Killer.  Everything else is brand new for me.  I also ordered a documentary about gialli, Dear Dead Delilah, and The Prey.  I dunno what The Prey is even about, but it's uncut.  And free.

Oh how I have fallen in love with www.cinema-de-bizarre.com  They're having a 20% off blowout sale.  Just type in BLOWOUT at checkout.  And for every 2 movies you buy, you get one FREE.  Do yourself a favor and check them out.

Ah, happy day...

Later.
-Justin

Early night

I'm only on page nine of this script.  My brain hurts.  But I think I'll try to wait until I get feedback on the first few pages before starting again.

Changed the look of the site.  My eyes hurt when I would go from the yellow-on-black to other websites.  This probably ain't much better.

Got my tax check.  Probably gonna spend a super small portion of it on Cinema De Bizarre.  Any recommendations?

Later.
-Justin

Quickie, because I need rest

I'm on page 8.

It's not just perfect.  It's divine.

Well, it's horrible, but I wanna stay positive.

All this bath salt crap in the news is making me want to make a short film.  Pretty much making a zombie movie about bath salts the way only Fulci could have.  But alas, I have too much on my plate at the moment.  Class, working on two scripts at once, working in retail...

Maybe when the summer's over.  Because there'll be more incidents in the news by then.

And if it happens, who's with me?

Later.
-Justin

Had my meeting...

Holy shit my foot hurts.

Stupid gout.  Stupid me for going back to a shitty diet when I vowed to never do it again.  Fuuuuuucccccckkkkk...I'm all hobbly.  And probably gonna have a Vicodin before the end of the night.

Anyhow, I managed to hobble my way over to my meeting today regarding "Proxy."

Went well, I guess.

He said I had too many ideas for one screenplay, and that a lot of things are mentioned and then untouched for the rest of the story.  Which makes a lot of sense.  I did stockpile a lot of ideas into the treatment.  But at the same time, I think it just looks like a lot when crammed into a 10 page summary, but when woven into a 100-135 page narrative could fit perfectly.  I could just be in love with my ideas and refusing to let them go.  I'm an Aries and I have my mother's "winner complex."

He did make a good point that the goal of the protagonist is muddled.  What starts off as a straight-ahead detective case becomes a mess.  I need to clarify a lot of it.  And by the end it relies on too many coincidences.  That happens when you write 8 pages in 4 hours.

He told me to ditch the religious-group angle that I put in it because it disappears by the end of the script.  But I want to keep it in.  Maybe expand upon it.  It's the most emotional part of my fictional world, in my opinion.

He did think I did a good job establishing the more sci-fi aspects, including the "Proxy" that the film revolves around.  I need to build them, though, and make the finale more intense.

All in all, a productive meeting.

Okay.  I gotta put my feet up.  Stupid gout.

Later.
-Justin

Before I clock in to work...

A few random thoughts.

Did I ever tell y'all about a sequel to Phenomena that I wrote when I was 16?  I'll have to elaborate on it at some point.  Had one of my favorite scenes I've ever written.  Unfortunately I never got to finish it because we had a house fire that took the computer.

Once I get this film series finished for my independent study, I am SO watching a giallo or two.  Partially for inspiration, partially because it's just been too damn long.

Speaking of independent study, my professor and I are meeting to discuss my synopsis/treatment on Thursday.  I'm excited and nervous all at the same time.  I don't know what he thinks about it at all.  He loves my giallo-lust, though, so I know he'll probably appreciate those aspects.

Especially excited because he's the only person who knows my whole story.  I've told some people bits and pieces of my concept, and they say they dug it, but this is the first time someone's seen the whole thing.

Okay.  I gotta take a shower and get ready for work.  BLAH.

Later.

-Justin

THUD!

Have I already called myself a dumbass yet?  I'm too tired to roam through my archives.

My synopsis was due today.  A 2-4 page condensed edition of the story I want to tell over the summer.

And I kept putting it off.

And putting it off.

Until Wednesday, when I realized I needed to do something.  I got a page and a half done, then pretty much put it off again until today.

Wouldn't have been so bad if it had stayed a 2-4 page assignment.

But because I'm mixing sci-fi with giallo, I had to stop every couple paragraphs to explain what every new term meant.  This stretched it out.

And then I had to completely figure out the third act while I wrote it.  I knew who the killer was, and his motive, but I had to plant the seeds and everything.

So 2-4 pages eventually turned into 10.  And probably 8 of those were written in a four hour period.

I turned it in at 6 this evening.  I'm mentally exhausted, like I did three finals at once.

And to think I probably have to churn out 15 pages a week to make my first deadline of July 6.  I'm aiming for July 4, so I can spend July 5 with a bottle of wine and Italian food of some kind.

Still have no official title.  I'm calling it "Proxy" for now.  But last night I came up with the title Acid Rain and it's been floating around ever since.  I need to sleep and think about it some more...Maybe I'll post a logline and see if anyone can help me come up with a title.

Watching Machete now.  It's brainless entertainment.  I need brainless entertainment.

This is the part where I fish for support.  So...support? :)

Later.
-Justin

Decompression complete...I think

The only thinking I've been doing lately is work related.  And even that's been pretty sporadic.  But I needed some time to NOT think until summer classes started.

Spent a lot of time watching sci-fi movies for inspiration, however:  Strange Days, Robocop, Hardware, Enter The Void (not really a sci-fi per se, but a total mindfuck if there ever was one).  Now I think I'm about ready to start working on this script.  I have the main trajectory of the story in my head.  I have the killer's identity, too.  And tomorrow, I plan on having something down on paper regarding the concept/the invention it revolves around/how Detroit ended up the way I envision it in the script.

Well, not down on PAPER.  It'll be on my laptop.  Same difference.

I have a 2-4 page synopsis due next Friday.  And the first ten pages due two weeks after that.  And the first draft is due July 6th.  Because I'm a dumbass who likes to punish myself.

I guess I oughta get some sleep.  Work in the morning.  Maybe I'll fall asleep trying to conjure up a title that blends giallo and sci-fi.  Butterfly With Copper Wings?

Later.
-Justin

Commencement

Commencement is in, like, 4 1/2 hours.

And, of course, I have pulled everything off at the last minute.  Clothes shopping, shoe shopping, haircut...About to shave and shower.

Still have summer classes.  But I'm sure I'll ace them.  Because I'm just brilliant that way.

Watched My Dear Killer the other night.  I can't believe I hated this movie so much when I first saw it.  See what a good night's sleep can do?

Okay.  I still gotta get some stuff together.  Commencement at 7.  3 hour ceremony.

Later.
-Justin

And he landed on the mattress with a sigh of relief...

The semester is officially over.

And I have not had any responsibility since Monday night.

And it feels GREAT.

Got my grades back.  Got an A in Directing, an A in 70's Film Genres, an A- in Acting for the Camera, and a B+in Production Design.  3.75 average.  Pretty damn good, if I may say so myself.

Of course, now I am mentally drained.  But not as drained as I was on Monday night.  I was barely able to string words together into a coherent sentence at work by the end of the night.

I'm caught up for the most part now, sleepwise.  But I still feel a nap coming on today.

So.  Onto the new giallo.  I've decided to compile some movies together and watch them for research.  Mainly darker gialli and cyberpunk/higher-concept sci-fi.  Hence wanting to revisit My Dear Killer.  Watched Strange Days last night.  Some great ideas, but muddled, IMHO.

Also sent for Enter The Void.  And might break down and watch The Matrix (even though it's White Rabbit stretched out to two hours or so).

I'm not well versed at all in sci-fi movies.  Can anyone recommend anything?

Also, can anybody recommend some good music for sci-fi writing?

Gonna start a couple brainstorm/sketch sessions this week.  This giallo is gonna rock.

Later.
-Justin