It's Maddening How Little Time I Have To Function (In The Real World)

I've been absent, but I'm very much still here.  I'm currently working on a TV show and have been for the last several months.  The thing about working in TV (and film) is that it leaves little time for much else.  Luckily, I don't have children.  If I did, I don't have any idea of when I'd see them.  Hell, my cats barely recognize me.  Sometimes when I leave in the morning, I wish I could just tell the cats to help themselves to the leftovers in the fridge.  But I know that's absurd.  There are no leftovers in the fridge. Oh, and they're cats.  That poses a problem.

It's maddening how little time I have.  I don't even have the time to scroll through my Netflix queue.  Because that's what we all do, isn't it?  Just scroll, add shit to the list, scroll some more, watch a few minutes of something, delete it.  Add five more movies to the queue.  Scroll some more.  Check Facebook.  Re-tweet something that somebody else said.  All of that takes time.  That I do not have right now.

I barely saw any of the Oscar nominated films this year.  It's sad how detached I felt from the whole thing.  The last movie I saw in the theater was Chris Rock's Top Five.  I really want to see Still Alice, but I haven't gotten around to it.  I've seen thirty minutes  of Birdman and then I realized I'd rather be sleeping in a quiet room with no one shouting at me.  Because sleep is a precious thing and I get so little of it as it is.  And I just... I'll be honest.  I didn't like Birdman.

Every year, I've religiously watched the Academy Awards from start to finish.  I skip all the pre-shows and the red carpet and all of that.  I tune in for the show and the show alone to get inspired by creative professionals at the top of their game.  Even though I know it's political.  And most of the Academy members are old white men.  So they say.   But working in the entertainment business is what I've chosen for my career path.  It's what I'm passionate about, what I've loved since before I can remember.  But for the first time ever, I was only mildly interested in the Academy Awards.  Part of my apathy was due to the host, Neil Patrick Harris, whom I found to be trying way too hard to be funny.  Which means I found him to be completely unfunny in a painfully awkward way.  The other reason I felt so detached was because I wasn't nearly as informed about this year's nominees as I usually am and that made me feel a slight twinge of guilt.  Because if there's anyone who should be informed about film and television, it's somebody like me who works in the business.

The complete irony is that working in this business has left me with little time to indulge in the entertainment that inspired me to choose this career path in the first place, especially lately.  But I still love films and I love TV and that will never change.  But for now, my life is the TV show I'm currently working on.  I have very little personal time.  And it's funny how certain things that have become part of my job seem ridiculous to anyone else.  If there's one thing that demonstrates this more than anything else, it's this:  On my laptop right now is a Post-It note to remind me to pay a fictional character's monthly rent for her real apartment.  The apartment exists, the girl does not.  Not in real life.   And now, not only do I have to remember to pay my own rent, but I have to make sure that we pay the apartment rent for someone who does not actually exist, except in a writer's mind.

Copyright © 2015 by KLiedle

Filmmaking-- Rising To The Occasion...

In the aftermath of last night's 80th Academy Awards, many filmmakers, stars, and fashions will be showered with attention. Others who woke up with a golden statuette on their pillow this morning are not necessarily stars or A-listers ~ in fact, you may not even recognize them. For the good or the bad, most documentary filmmakers fall into this group...

This past week, I had the privilege to attend the IDA (International Documentary Association) Academy Award Documentary Nominee Program and reception as well as Docuday. Seeing the programs, meeting some of the filmmakers, and hearing them speak so passionately about their films gave me newfound appreciation for documentary filmmaking. At the reception, filmmakers were allowed to speak about the stories behind their films—the struggles and dangers they faced in getting their films made as well as the indelible impact the experience had on them personally. These are the stories we don’t get to hear in 40-second Oscar acceptance speeches.

Sometimes in creative ventures, we wonder how (and if ) we’re making a difference. How does art contribute to humanity? Can a film open our eyes to worlds we’ve never seen? Can it be both thought-provoking and powerful enough to instigate social change? The answers to all of these questions is a resounding “Yes.” And no one knows that more intimately than the documentary filmmaker.

I urge everyone to give documentaries a second look-- a viewing chance. The nominated documentaries are each educational, thought-provoking, and extraordinary in their own way. They certainly deserve more recognition, as do documentary films, in general.

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

No End In Sight --The first film of its kind to chronicle the reasons behind Iraq’s descent into guerrilla war, warlord rule, criminality, and anarchy. (Charles Ferguson / Audrey Mars)

Operation Homecoming: Writing The Wartime Experience—Explores the first-hand accounts of American soldiers through their own words. (Richard E. Robbins / The Documentary Group)

Sicko – Profiles ordinary Americans whose lives have been disrupted, shattered, or in some cases, ended by health care catastrophe. (Michael Moore / Meghan O’Hara)

Taxi To The Dark Side* -- begins with the death of an Afghan taxi driver from injuries inflicted by US soldiers. From there, the film is an unflinching look at the Bush administration’s policy on torture. (Alex Gibney / Eva Orner)

War/Dance – tells the story of three Ugandan children whose family have been torn apart by civil war. When they are invited to compete in a music and dance festival, it gives them an opportunity to regain part of their childhood. (Amanda Nix Fine / Sean Fine)

DOCUMENTARY SHORT

Freeheld* -- follows the battle of Laurel Hester, a dying police officer who fights to transfer her pension to her domestic partner. (Cynthia Wade / Vanessa Roth)

La Corona (The Crown) – follows four inmates competing for the crown in an annual beauty pageant of the Women’s penitentiary in Bogota, Colombia. (Amanda Micheli / Isabel Vega)
Salim Baba –tells the story of Salim Muhammed, a father who lives in North Kolkata, India with his wife and five children. Since the age of ten, he has made a living screening discarded film scraps for the kids in his surrounding neighborhood using a hand-cranked projector that he inherited from his father. ( Tim Sternberg / Francisco Bello)

Sari’s Mother – follows the struggle of an Iraqui mother who is trying to help her 10-year-old son, Sari, who is dying of AIDS. ( James Longley)

Filmmakers of all genres must rise to the occasion and produce films that contribute to our culture, force us to question our own humanity, and challenge us and our established beliefs. Documentary filmmakers know this. Through getting to know IDA, I’ve learned that documentary filmmakers are family-- supportive of each other and passionate about making films that truly matter.

If others in the entertainment industry could follow their lead, we’d be all better off.

* - denotes Academy Award winner

Copyright © 2008 KLiedle
This post also appears as a full-length article in the Los Angeles Edition of Broowaha

Film Poster: Taxi To The Dark Side (X-Ray Productions)

The Final Draft is in... La Dolce Vita!!! The Strike Is OVER!

Sweet!!!

After a 100-days (and many overdraft checks written by unemployed writers and crew members,) the WGA WRITER'S STRIKE IS OFFICIALLY OVER!!!!!

I'm gonna do a cartwheel now... after I'm done blogging. YEAH!!

Plus, YES...Virginia, there will be an Academy Awards ~ an 80th celebration at that!

(Yo, Grammys... the WGA gave you a waiver and all, but at 50, the Academy Awards have still got you waaaay beat!)

New York Times Feed~ The Writer's Strike:
Hollywood's writers made it official, ending their bitterly
fought strike at the 100-day mark by an overwhelming margin.
Of 3,775 writers who cast ballots, 92.5 percent voted in
favor of ending the strike.

Read More:
http://www.nytimes.com/?emc=na