I had the opportunity to work as an electrician on Scorned last week as a one day fill in. I am hoping to get the call to drive out for another shift or two before the end of the shoot. However, due to the contract I signed, I am not able to take any pictures of the set to share. Even though I cannot show you any of the awesomeness from set, I will be excited to see the finished project. This will also be my last post on the subject, as I do not want to let any secrets loose now that I know more about the story than Google could tell me!
Scorned was both my first paid gig and my first feature length movie set. I saw many lighting designs that I have only ever read about, such as bounce cloths, 12K lights, and a DM 512 control board working in action. Despite the bulk of some of the equipment, the results are really awesome. Even with my basic knowledge, I definitely enjoyed the learning opportunity. After all, kindergarden taught us that we need to learn something new every day!
And speaking of lessons, another lesson I learned, is that it is not a good idea to drive two hours to a job, work almost 12 hours of labor intensive work in the summer heat, drive two hours home, and go to your day job with 4 Monster energy drinks in hand. When the opportunity presents itself again, I hope that I will have a little more notice so that I can plan more for a crazy work schedule.
Nothing bad happened during my extended day, but I was very very tired by the time I went home. After being up for nearly 32 hours (19.75 hours of paid time between both jobs) I most definitely deserved the solid 11 hours of sleep I slept that night.
Monday, June 25, 2012
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Scorned: My first Paid Gig!
As you may remember, I was hired for a small two day project for the UC Health Cardiovascular institute a few weeks ago. I worked the gig, knowing I was an unpaid volunteer, simply so I could get my name out and meet other Cincinnati area freelance media professionals.
I think that effort and hard work has gotten me my first paid gig!
Yesterday I was called to see if I was available for a three week shoot that started today. Since my regular part time job is entering the busiest season of the year, I obviously cannot take that much time off with such short notice. I offered my availability as is without inconveniencing my current employer and got a good news phone call today!
Tomorrow I will be working on Scorned in Portsmouth, Ohio as a Production Assistant Intern. If all goes well, I will also have the opportunity to assist the grip and electric with the lighting set ups for a few days at a time until the end of the shoot! I imagine there will be a lot I can learn--apparently part of the filming will take place in the woods at night which means I will get to learn about generaters first hand as well as controlling shadows when you can't move the source (a tree)!
I do not have much info about the project, but based on what Google told me, Scorned is an independent movie. The thriller involves the girlfriend seeking revenge on the best friend after learning that the boyfriend cheated with the girlfriend's best friend.
I think that effort and hard work has gotten me my first paid gig!
Yesterday I was called to see if I was available for a three week shoot that started today. Since my regular part time job is entering the busiest season of the year, I obviously cannot take that much time off with such short notice. I offered my availability as is without inconveniencing my current employer and got a good news phone call today!
Tomorrow I will be working on Scorned in Portsmouth, Ohio as a Production Assistant Intern. If all goes well, I will also have the opportunity to assist the grip and electric with the lighting set ups for a few days at a time until the end of the shoot! I imagine there will be a lot I can learn--apparently part of the filming will take place in the woods at night which means I will get to learn about generaters first hand as well as controlling shadows when you can't move the source (a tree)!
I do not have much info about the project, but based on what Google told me, Scorned is an independent movie. The thriller involves the girlfriend seeking revenge on the best friend after learning that the boyfriend cheated with the girlfriend's best friend.
Monday, June 11, 2012
(: Monday :)
It happened again. The weekend has left the building.
But if you are like me, you made the most of your time off the past few days! This past weekend, I picked up an online order at the store (free shipping), I went out to dinner to help a recent graduate and his family celebrate, I saw MIB3 at the theater (which is an awesome suggestion if you need something fun to do) and I did several weeks worth of laundry.
With everything all said and done, the start to the new week is among us. I will be staying on the outskirts of Cincinnati for the next few days catsitting two very different, but very adorable cats. What this means to me is that I will have a morning commute.
As per my manager's recommendation regarding traffic, I followed her instructions and left for work at 7:00 am. Considering I don't need to be at work until 8:30 am I thought it might be a little bit early to leave, but I didn't want to be late. I got to Clifton at 7:32 am ... so I went to my apartment, hung around for a little bit, and then walked to work as I would have any other day. Although there was a little bit an overestimate for my drive, I was definantly not late!
The cats however are well worth the trip! Have a great Monday!
But if you are like me, you made the most of your time off the past few days! This past weekend, I picked up an online order at the store (free shipping), I went out to dinner to help a recent graduate and his family celebrate, I saw MIB3 at the theater (which is an awesome suggestion if you need something fun to do) and I did several weeks worth of laundry.
With everything all said and done, the start to the new week is among us. I will be staying on the outskirts of Cincinnati for the next few days catsitting two very different, but very adorable cats. What this means to me is that I will have a morning commute.
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| Lightning: The lovable, purring, attention seeking cat. This may be understating the qualities of Lightning... |
As per my manager's recommendation regarding traffic, I followed her instructions and left for work at 7:00 am. Considering I don't need to be at work until 8:30 am I thought it might be a little bit early to leave, but I didn't want to be late. I got to Clifton at 7:32 am ... so I went to my apartment, hung around for a little bit, and then walked to work as I would have any other day. Although there was a little bit an overestimate for my drive, I was definantly not late!
The cats however are well worth the trip! Have a great Monday!
Thursday, June 7, 2012
BTD5...
... is awesome!!!
As much as I loved playing BTD4 (Bloons Tower Defense 4), the upgrades, new tracks, new towers, and new features of Ninja Kiwi's BTD5 blow BTD4 out of the water!
In this epic rendition of bloon popping game, I leveled up from rank 50 to rank 64. I literally popped millions of bloons in that time.
For anyone unfamiliar with BTD, the lowest level bloon is red. A blue will be popped and turn into a red. A green turns into a blue. Then there are yellow, pink, black, white, zebra, ceramic, and three classes of MOAB Class bloons--each harder to pop than the predecessor. To make it even harder, the MOAB Class bloons award fewer monkey dollars in consideration to the firepower it takes to pop one! Re-growing heart shaped bloons in every color are a new way the game tests your firepower.
From the pictures to the right, you can see that one of my favorite towers is the Super Monkey. The Yellow Sphinx like tower is the Sun God. This used to be my favorite Super Monkey Upgrade. But the Technological Terror upgrade in BTD5 is even better. By the end of my game play, I had built:
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| Level 102, Rank 55, RBE 1,002,500 |
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My favorite new feature is the Daily Challenge. During one such challenge, I needed to pass levels 85-95 on difficulty medium starting with $200,000 monkey money. Not only did I pass the mere ten levels filled with MOAB Class bloons, I managed to make it past level 124.
I have read rumors online that a level 200 exists, but I cannot imagine that my circa 2007 model computer would ever be able to handle such strain. Anyone that has ever played any of the BTD games can attest to the sever degree of lag that begins past the 50th or 60th levels. During the 110's and 120's that I played, I estimate my computer was only able to process 3-6 frames per second.
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| Level 121, Rank 62 |
I know that taking 20+ minutes to play a single round of the game is a huge waste of time, but I had sooooo much firepower on my board that I was honestly wondering whether or not I would be able to loose the game. I don't believe I have ever played so many rounds without loosing a single life!
In this epic rendition of bloon popping game, I leveled up from rank 50 to rank 64. I literally popped millions of bloons in that time.
For anyone unfamiliar with BTD, the lowest level bloon is red. A blue will be popped and turn into a red. A green turns into a blue. Then there are yellow, pink, black, white, zebra, ceramic, and three classes of MOAB Class bloons--each harder to pop than the predecessor. To make it even harder, the MOAB Class bloons award fewer monkey dollars in consideration to the firepower it takes to pop one! Re-growing heart shaped bloons in every color are a new way the game tests your firepower.
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| Level 120, Rank 62, RBE 1,152,760 So much firepower :) |
The game gives you time to prep your board for more hoards of incoming bloons as, with most games, the upcoming level is going to be a little bit harder than the level before it. Special agents are a new feature that work with your towers. I'll let you try those out yourself.
- Thirteen Technological Terror Super Monkeys
- Three Monkey Town Monkey Villages
- Three Viral Frost Ice Towers
- Two Banana Investments Advisory Banana Farms
- Two Sun God Super Monkeys
- One Bloon Liquifier Glue Gunner
- One Absolute Zero Ice Tower
- One Aircraft Carrier Monkey Buccaneer
- One Monkey Pirate Monkey Buccaneer
- One Tempest Tornado Monkey Apprentice
- One Summon Phoenix Monkey Apprentice
- One Bloon Impact Bomb Tower
- One Spike Storm Spike Factory
This was an epic game for me. Sure, it may have been a waste of time, but I killed the game. If you haven't tried BTD5 (or any other Ninja Kiwi BTD game) I am highly recommending you give it a chance!
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| This is what I saw after the game had a freak out during Level 125. It was a very disappointing end to such an epic game, but it was probably for the best. |
Monday, June 4, 2012
Do you have Goals or Dreams?
This morning the regional manager came to our Monday Morning meeting so my work team can prepare for our summer goals. This is a person that, like my dad, always has some kind of good advice to share. As a part of our team discussions, our regional manager told us something that has helped him achieve his goals during the past few years:
Basically, until you take the time to write something down, your are only dreaming about what you can do. Once you actually write it down, you have a goal you are working toward.
I would argue that you can have mental goals, but on the other hand, if you won't take the few minutes to write down what you actually want to accomplish, are they really things you want to accomplish by a deadline? Or are you just dreaming about things you think you can do when you have some time?
As a work team, we will be taking time to write down both work and personal goals before our mid-year review session. I look forward to seeing on paper what I have planned for myself!
Take a minute and think about the quote. Let me know what you think in the comment box below and have a Marvelous Monday!!
"A dream is not a goal until you commit it to paper"
Basically, until you take the time to write something down, your are only dreaming about what you can do. Once you actually write it down, you have a goal you are working toward.
I would argue that you can have mental goals, but on the other hand, if you won't take the few minutes to write down what you actually want to accomplish, are they really things you want to accomplish by a deadline? Or are you just dreaming about things you think you can do when you have some time?
As a work team, we will be taking time to write down both work and personal goals before our mid-year review session. I look forward to seeing on paper what I have planned for myself!
Take a minute and think about the quote. Let me know what you think in the comment box below and have a Marvelous Monday!!
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