34.

I'm on page 34.

About to get to the next big set piece.

Still gonna take a little break once this is done, though. I did buy Stage Fright with my birthday money, however.  It was only $8.

I'm feeling better about this script.  I've always loved the story, but I'm just so immersed in it that I can't wait to purge it out of my system.

If somebody would send me a bottle of J&B, I wouldn't mind.  Or maybe make me a Jack Daniels milkshake.

Okay.  Less blogging, more school work.  Off to Acting class to work on Commedia Dell'Arte.  Then revising my Short Script assignment (a 5-6 page script about a freakin' bowl).

I might stay late and work on Orchid until traffic dies down.  Get this mega-bloody death scene on paper (well, Final Draft).

Later.
-Justin

Before I hit the stage...

My first comedy performance in two months.  Wish me luck.

I'm burnt out.  Totally burnt out.  And I still have another six weeks or so for this semester.

Two more performances for Acting class.  Plus I gotta watch two more plays.  And write a 3-4 page paper on one of them.

Filming a PSA tomorrow for my Video Project class.  Then I have to edit it.  And work on my big project: a five minute short that "plays with the conventional narrative structure."

And Orchid is due on April 15.  And I'm on page 30.

And I still have another class to worry about.

Plus work.

Right now Orchid is my biggest worry.  I am so immersed in it that I'm sick of it.  I just wanna type it out, put a big pretty yellow bow on it, and move on.  I assume any big project eventually brings these feelings out in its creator at one point or another.

It's to the point where outside of Orchid, I don't even want anything to do with gialli right now.

Yes.  I said it.

I'm kind of over it right now.  Every time I close my eyes I see my characters.  Whenever I wake up, I worry about how to work the set pieces out.  The killer's look.  The setting.  Dialogue.  How to make everything tie in together.

Writing a giallo is actually harder than watching one every day for a month.

Once I finish Orchid, I may have to do the opposite of my Thirty Days of Giallo.  I may have to take 30 days AWAY from the genre I love so much.

Not because I hate gialli, but because I love the genre so much that I don't want to become permanently sick of it.

I might need to completely cleanse my palette.  Watch comedies and superhero movies.  Finally see The Dark Knight and The Social Network.  Catch up with the rest of the world.

Change my laptop background from Edwige Fenech to Julianna Guill.

Go back to the gym.  Eat more fiber.  Drink more water.

I dunno.  I'm sure every writer goes through this at some point.  Maybe talking to some of my comedian friends (who also write) will make me feel better.

I do want to say this, though.  If I do take a sabbatical, it won't be too long.  I will come back to you.  I promise.

Okay.  I'm gonna go now.  Showtime in 40 minutes.

Later.
-Justin

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today's my birthday!

27...crap, I feel old.  Though I don't officially turn 27 until 1:14.

My copy of Perfume of the Lady in Black should be shipping today.  And I think I have a couple more gialli waiting for me at the post office.  Yes, more.  And I already preordered Death Will Have Your Eyes.  I need another bookcase.  And I need to quit buying movies I can't watch until Orchid is finished.  I seriously feel a marathon coming on.

So what's on the docket for today?  Picking up my car, grabbing free fro-yo at Skinny Dip, and writing.  Gonna have birthday dinner/presents this upcoming Sunday (PIZZA SUBS!).  Because that's when my whole family can get together.

Okay.  I'm off to do stuff.

Later.
-Justin

Orchid Meeting #2

What a day.

Maybe I should have worn green for St. Patty's.  But I didn't.  And if you try to pinch me, I'll shank you.

Where do I start?

First, I had a monologue in my Acting class.  Still feeling rusty after not having acted in nine years.  Yes, I have done stand up, but that is a whole different animal.  Stand up requires you to pull the audience in and interact with them.  Acting forces you to pretend they're not there.

First run through was OK.  Not my shining moment, but OK.  Then I was asked to adjust it.  And I blanked halfway through.  I got another adjustment and did it again.  This one was good.  But I'm totally beating myself up.  Because that's what I do best.

Then on the way to my meeting with my screenwriting professor, I decided to make a pit stop.  Because, well, my golden rule is "Never Pass Up An Opportunity To Use The Bathroom."  That and I had that kinda gas that felt like more than gas.

So at some point while I sit down in the stall, my arm rubs up against something.  I look down and there's...poopie on my arm.  ::gag::

I just peed and decided to run straight to the sink.  Used practically half a container of soap.  The whole rest of the day I kept checking myself for phantom poopie.

Then came the meeting.

I sit down and he pulls out my Genre Assignment.  And out of nowhere, he suggests a bunch of changes.

First off, I should change the setting from a legal brothel to a strip club.

Then Gia, the protagonist, should be a stripper.  And not just a stripper, but a wannabe dancer who strips because she doesn't get into a prestigious dance company.  And she doesn't prostitute, but she's considering it...

Huh?

So he says I should change Gia's intro.  I should have her audition for the prestigious dance company and not make it because some producer overhears of her stripper history.

I immediately thought of this:

I smiled and nodded during that part of the discussion.  I didn't wanna make waves.  But anyhow, I honestly think I'm gonna disregard that suggestion.  I honestly like my idea of the whole legal prostitute thing.  I dunno if I'm stuck on my idea and being stubborn or what.  What's y'all's thoughts on that?

Onto other aspects:

He thinks the set pieces are key to the script.  In other words, the murders.  They need to be big and bold and spectacular.  I totally agree with that.  But he did mention Red Dragon and Manhunter.  Mainly how the murders work on building something bigger.  Made sense.

He did say I need to elevate things a bit.  Said at one point I have a good, average, "crappy" giallo and that I needed to raise everything.  I dunno exactly what he meant by that.

And he did say most everything is really in place.  Just a matter of typing.

So I am taking one bit of advice: sitting down and figuring everything out regarding the killer's M.O. and everything surrounding the killer.

I think I still have my copy of Manhunter lying around...lemme check...

Later.

-Justin

ONE HUNDREDTH POST!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen.

I have made it to 100 posts.

Thank you all for reading this blog.  Without you, I would've stopped after the month-long giallothon.

Recently bought some gialli:

Erotic Games of a Respectable Family
Skin Under the Claws
Qui?
The Killer is One of Thirteen
Eyeball
Phantom of Death
Death Will Have Your Eyes

Plus I still have (yet haven't watched):
Human Cobras
Puzzle
Spirits of Death
Love Me Strangely
Private Crimes
Iguana with the Tongue of Fire

Gotta feeling a mini-marathon will be in order after the semester is over.  Though after finishing my own little giallo script, The Orchid with the Petals of Velvet, I might actually be giallo'd out by then (Huh?  That's IMPOSSIBLE!).  Only time will tell on that.

Speaking of Orchid, I made it to page 22 yesterday.  Gonna see how much I can write between classes and during slow times this week.

Okay.  I'm gonna let y'all go.

Thanks again for all of your support.

Later.
-Justin

My brain is fried...

Halfway through page seventeen.

Seven pages in one day.

My head hurts.

And it's hot in here.

And I don't wanna stop...yet I'm creatively drained for the day.  To the point where I don't even wanna finish watching Amer...

Why oh why did I procrastinate?

Can someone send positive vibes, pep talks, and the like my way?  I'd appreciate it.

Later.
-Justin

More writing...

This ADD is bothering me.

Anyhow, I'm writing.  I plan on writing until at least 8:00.  With the exception of dinner.

Bought a few more gialli.  When this semester is over I anticipate either a week of one giallo a day or a two-day marathon.  Dunno if I can pull off another month.

Well, back to the grind...Um...dunno if I oughta say that or not.  I'm writing a sexy scene right now.  Grind might not be appropriate...

Later.
-Justin

Ten pages...

That's all I've got so far.

Ten.

Ah, well.

I do have the first murder scene/set piece down, though.

Spent today at work then visiting my sis in the hospital.  She had surgery.  Seemed to be doing all right, with the exception of the nausea from the anesthesia.

Of course I'll visit Sissy tomorrow, but I'm also gonna work on the script.  If y'all could send some love/prayers/good vibes her way, I'd appreciate it.

Gonna relax a bit before calling it a night and finishing Amer.

Good night.
-Justin

Writing...

The thing I hate about writing on the computer is that there are so many freakin' distractions.

Facebook, Italian Lemonade, etc.

I just finished re-typing my first seven pages and now I am onto the setup for the first death scene.  Blood and gore and violence and all that good stuff.

Let's see what I get done by the end of the day.

Hope it's a lot.

Later.
-Justin

Before I head to class...

Today's my last class day before Spring Break.  Woo-hoo!

And I finally got my copy of Final Draft.  It took two weeks to tell me there were problems with the order, when they knew the whole time.  Ah, well.

Transferring Celtx to Final Draft is impossible.  So I'm gonna retype the first seven pages in Final Draft, because I don't wanna rip my hair out trying to reformat.  I just got my hair to a manageable length.  Don't wanna ruin it.

BTW, I just noticed that ZDD (www.zddvisualmedia.com) added a whole bunch of gialli.  Including some I'd never heard of.  And one I'd always wanted to see.  So guess what I'm gonna buy when my taxes come back...(I'll at least be getting Erotic Games of a Respectable Family and Skin Under the Claws).

Also, on the subject of ZDD, they rule.  There was a problem with one of my orders, and they gladly sent it again.  Then the first one arrived.  They are letting me keep both orders.  Now I can give some away to friends and introduce them to my obsession.  Thanks, ZDD!

I find it kind of ironic that people tell me to write what I know...and I write about murder and fucking.  I've done neither.  LOL.

Well, I guess I oughta head to class.  Acting, then Video Project.  Gotta watch a play tonight.  Maybe I'll sit down with Killer Reserved Nine Seats when I get home.

SPRING BREAK!

Later.
-Justin

Spring Break!

Thursday is my last class before Spring Break!

Unlike other college kids, I'm not gonna be spending it in drunken debauchery.  Partially because I can't afford it, but mainly because I have work to do.

I'm still only on page 7 of The Orchid with the Petals of Velvet.

And I have to have 100 pages turned in by April 15th.

Luckily, I have the whole storyline written out in treatment form.  I just have to expand it.

So I have it all planned out:

Friday: Watch some more of the gialli that arrived from ZDD.

Saturday: Morning meeting and work.  Because apparently once you become an adult, nap taking is not allowed.

Sunday: Gym, finish the first death set piece.

Monday: Work, then visit sis in the hospital.  She's having surgery that day.  Please send all sorts of good vibes in her general direction.

Tuesday-Friday: Work like crazy.  Stopping only for meals, sleep, and internet porn.

Sounds like a plan.  Huh?

So...how is it gonna turn out?

Why, it's gonna be awesome, dammit.

Wish me writing ability.  And smarts.  And sanity.

Later.

-Justin

It has arrived...

My package from ZDD Visual Media has arrived!

Boy am I happy!

Let's see...

A Dragonfly For Each Corpse
Killer Reserved Nine Seats
Love Me Strangely
Spirits of Death
Private Crimes (Edwige Fenech/Sergio Martino miniseries from the early 90's)

All is well in the world.

Later.
-Justin


Creep on Creepin' on-Already pre-ordered this bad boy.  I suggest checking out their other work.  Especially the self-titled CD.  Pure brilliance.

I can relax a bit...

Unpacked and alphabetized.  All is well in the world.

Back from the meeting...

So...had my meeting with my Screenwriting professor.

Still somewhat processing everything that went down.

I totally jacked up the first seven pages.  Conversion from Celtx to PDF didn't go smoothly.  Remind me to get Final Draft when my tax return comes in.  I can get it half price since I'm a student.  Ended up with 107/125 because of that.

When he went into the story, the first thing he said was, "Are you familiar with a filmmaker named...Dario Argento?"

My brain totally ejaculated.  I perked up and showed him my Suspiria tattoo.  He said "So I'm sure you're familiar with the giallo film..."

Why didn't I have this guy last semester?  He knew Deep Red and Suspiria and referenced individual scenes, too.

We talked about different angles the story could take.  Could it be an outright giallo or something more of a mystery where the giallo elements don't pop up until the end?

Though he did bring up the police procedural thing like last semester.  He feels I should make the script more about the investigation.  I've never wanted to go in that direction.  Maybe my attachment to Gia has been blinding me to the fact that leaning toward the investigation would make better sense.  Gia was never even mentioned in the meeting.

He did also think I should change the location.  I understand his reasoning (moving it to a rainier city, like Seattle, would force everyone to wear a raincoat, upping the giallo ante), but last I remember, prostitution isn't legal there.

That's another thing...the prostitution angle.  I had to set it in Nevada because of the brothel element.  I've done some research (and boy are my wrists tired) about the subject.  I might need to do more, but there was a bit of a disagreement involving how the working girls get paid.  I'm used to watching Cathouse, where she takes the guy to the back room and they negotiate services/prices/etc.  He said that doesn't happen...That one I might have to be stubborn with.  Worse comes to worse, I could tell him to Netflix the show.

He did mention how gialli are often known for their set pieces, and how I need to put an emphasis on these.  I agree on that.  The death scenes are elaborate.  If it were already a movie, the first and last two death scenes would certainly be talked about on Dark Dreams.

He did enjoy my love of the genre, and was looking for a book about gialli he had lying around, but couldn't find it.

Anyhow, I did get some good feedback.  And he did say I was on the right track but that the detective story wasn't quite there yet.

He said he looked forward to reading more.

All in all, quite informative.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm freakin' starving.

Later.
-Justin


P.S.-Amazon.com has Deep Red available to pre-order on Blu Ray for only $14.99!  GET IT NOW!

TOMORROW!

I don't think I've been this excited about anything giallo related since the launch of the 30 Days of Giallo.

Tomorrow I have a meeting with my Screenwriting professor regarding Orchid with the Petals of Velvet.

This will be the first time I've really spoken with anyone at length about this project.  I did get to discuss it for a few minutes last semester, but this is an hour long meeting.

I did get 100% on my treatment reworking.  Hopefully that's a good sign.  I'll have more insight when we also discuss the first seven pages.

Totally jazzed, yet totally freakin' nervous.  Reading way too much into it.

Wish me luck, gimme pep talks, and say a little prayer for me at 2:00 Eastern Time tomorrow afternoon. :)

Later.
-Justin

Progress...?

So...

Tonight the first five pages of our screenplays were due.

Guess what I did all night last night.

Partially because I didn't have much time to do it other than last night.

Partially because I hate sports and wanted some Super Bowl counter-programming.


I ended up changing the opening.  Same character, similar scenario, but I think the move made it more dynamic.  I'm personally not interested in movies that start with radio interviews.  However, I do tend to enjoy films that start with stripteases.

I'm a perv.  I know.  I've been corrupted by the best of them.

Managed to squeeze out seven pages.  And realized tonight that I really need to upgrade to Final Draft when my tax return kicks in...if I have anything leftover after fixing my car and getting new glasses (praying for a 2-for-1 special).  Celtx is great and free, but I think paying to fix things like page breaks will greatly help.  Plus all the school computers use it, too.

Okay.  Off to rest.  Acting and Short Script tomorrow.

Later.
-Justin

A sporadic update...

Thanks whoever voted in the poll.

Moving sucks.  But I'm trying not to complain because I got out of a lot of it.

Pre-ordered Death Will Have Your Eyes.  And the Blu Ray of Amer is on its way.

And do yourself a favor by seeking out a film called Bajo la Sal.  Not quite a giallo in the 70's fashion, but it shares a lot with Occhi di Cristallo.  Very good film.  Worth checking out.

Okay.  Off to bed.  Good night.

Later.
-Justin

Just thought I'd let you know...

Updates are gonna be sporadic over the next couple weeks.

Just got word on Wednesday that we're moving on Monday.

Most everything's packed.  Except for my shirts.

Anyhow, our TV/internet service isn't gonna be brought to our new house until the 10th.

Yeah.  The 10th.

So the only internet access I'll have is at school.  Looking up porn is gonna be hard.  There's only so much room in the bathroom stalls.

Good side to this, however: I can use my no-TV time by either going to the gym or catching up on gialli.


Later.
-Justin

Superstar

Working on a scene for my Short Script class.

Then I have to truncate my 10-page treatment to four pages for my new instructor.  It's not due until next week, but I wanna have it done soon.

Because I'm moving in, like, a week.  FML.

I dunno why, but part of me wants to do make Orchid the way Todd Haynes did with Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story.

Google it.  Then tell me I'm fucking nuts.  But I think it would be strangely brilliant.

OK.  Back to my short script.

Later.
-Justin.

Some feedback on Orchid!

Decided to email my old Screenwriting professor regarding my treatment of Orchid with the Petals of Velvet.  I knew my grade, but never did receive any feedback on what worked/what didn't.  And since I was gonna expand this little thriller to 100 pages (give or take), I wanted to hear what he had to say.

Well, I got my response tonight.

He told me to fuck off.

Not really, but that would have been funny.

I'll start with the constructive criticism.


One thing he pointed out was that the treatment had the same main problem as the synopsis: The protagonist.  I've always envisioned the protagonist to be the female lead, Gia.  Her role is a bit more passive, however.  Because the script is a mystery, he feels the protagonist should be the detective investigating the case.  I understand the reasoning, but I would rather try to figure out how to make Gia more active.

The red herring doesn't seen sophisticated enough.  He's a bit underdeveloped, too.  I understand that.  The red herring was a bit of an afterthought when I did the synopsis.

The romantic subplot was also not fleshed out enough.  OK.

One death scene included a slight twist that I enjoyed.  But he pointed something out and I realized I need to tweak it to make it work right.

There isn't a clear moment of "crisis," the moment where the protagonist has to make an important decision that shows their true character.

The ending is a bit weak in his eyes.  Both the killer's explanation of motive and the killer's death.  I like the final moment, but I see his argument.


And the positive:

He's always liked the setting.  It's fresh and intriguing.  I always feel strange when I really sit down and think about how much I know about brothels.

The beginning grabbed his attention.

He refers to one death scene as "grisly, good."  I LOVE that!  I mean, come on.  The dude said GRISLY!  I'd only ever heard that word when I've read descriptions of those 80's slasher movies I loved so much as a kid.

There is an interesting side plot, which I won't divulge because it later fits into the finale.

He loves the identity of the killer, saying he didn't see it coming.


He told me to keep working on it, and that it has promise.

Woo-hoo!

Makes me look forward to expanding this to 100 pages.

Okay.  I gotta go to bed.  I open tomorrow.

Later.
-Justin