Women Of Great Vitality: Hollywood

Every year I look forward to ELLE Magazine's 'Women In Hollywood' issue. I was pleased that, although they devoted attention to A-lister actresses in Hollywood, attention was also drawn to womens' contributions in acting, writing and directing. Women and womens' stories are a vital part of the Hollywood fabric, but through the years, we've missed a few stitches.

ELLE's coverage of currently successful women in Hollywood, as well as female up-and-comers on the writing/directing front inspired me to watch Searching For Debra Winger, a film by Rosanna Arquette. Although, it was released in 2002, this film is no less important today. If you haven't seen it, it's a surprisingly informal, yet moving portrait of the pressure and frustrations that women face in the entertainment industry-- especially women over the age of 40.

A wide array of actresses make appearances including, but not limited to, Jane Fonda, Laura Dern, Teri Garr, Martha Plimpton, Whoopi Goldberg, Sharon Stone, and Meg Ryan. Some of the interviews are one-on-one with Rosanna Arquette and others are staged as informal round table discussions amongst these Hollywood actresses that have survived the meat-grinder of the industry or nearly abandoned it-- like Debra Winger. These women become united in their desire to clear the pathway for themselves and other women to further their successes in Hollywood.

So much of Hollywood is cutthroat and competitive, petty and fickle, hot and cold. You're young, you're old. There is no middle age. For women in the general population, aging is difficult, yet unavoidable unless you die; for women in the entertainment industry, aging is death. You're the girlfriend, then the mom, then you...disappear...FADE OUT. Next, please.

If you're a female director, you better have a damn good reel [and even then, there's no guarantee that a studio will foot the bill so you can tell your story.] If you have a script with a female protagonist, she better be hot, dressed like Wonderwoman, or a badass that can hold her own with the men that audiences really care about. Men as the subject. Women as the object. Is that really how it is-- or is that how Hollywood thinks it is? Women can, and should, have their voices heard and their stories told.

Things are changing slowly, but well-rounded female characters and/or female oriented stories are still hard to come by. Regarding the lack of three-dimensionality in written female characters and the sexism that still exists in Hollywood, this is what Martha Plimpton had to say in Searching For Debra Winger:

Martha Plimpton: Humor. Intelligence. Talent. Imagination. Bravery. Skill. When you eliminate all those things, what have you got?
Ally Sheedy: Fuckability.
Martha Plimpton: That's it. So you can't blame these people for resorting to that kind of standard when they've annihilated all their other options. At least for men, there are options, character roles, you know what I'm saying?

People often forget that women were at the forefront of Hollywood in its early days-- until it was discovered that serious money could be made. We've been trying to catch up ever since, but we're making bigger strides all the time. I'm glad that ELLE was able to highlight some of them.

© 2010 by KLiedle
Photo: In the director's chair, Helen Twelvetrees--circa 1936, considered to be one of the top screen stars in Hollywood in the early days of sound.

"The Beautiful Truth" : I Am Not The Juiceman

There are certain moments in movies that you never forget. For instance, remember that scene in Steel Magnolias when Shelby (Julia Roberts) has a hypoglycemic attack and is forced to drink a glass of orange juice to up her blood sugar? Of course you do. It's a poignant moment in a classic film that reminds everyone of Shelby's health situation... But when I see her choking down that orange juice and I watch it dribble down her chin, I just think "Ewwww, bleck..."

See, I'm not a fan of juice-- orange juice in particular. It's so super-tart sweet and there's something about the way it feels thick and hairy as it clings its way down my throat. It's as though it's trying to escape the digestive process. Not only do I not like juices, but it's the idea of juice. Such a waste, it seems. A drink, a gulp... it's GONE. No fiber, no chewing, no real sense that you did much of anything, really.

Recently, I saw this film called Beautiful Truth which was a semi-investigation of what's called Gerson Therapy-- touted as a naturalistic alternative therapy to curing cancer. There are some truths to it. The levels of environmental toxins that we unknowingly ingest every day has to have some effect on our systems. The rise of cancer across the board is not just a coincidence. Coffee enemas aside, the main thrust (no pun intended) of Gerson therapy is daily juicing.

According to the film, consuming large (and I mean large) quantities of fruit and vegetable juices can prevent and, in some instances, reverse cancer. This is not exactly revolutionary; most of us are aware that fresh fruits and vegetables are full of nutrients: vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and the like. There is, however, a certainly a level of conspiracy to the film. Garrett, the 15-year-old kid from Alaska that is the main character, yet not its narrator, also kind of creeps me out in a Haley Joel Osment sort of way. The filmmakers, along with Charlotte Gerson, say that Gerson Therapy has been suppressed by governments and the medical community alike. As it's suggested, the cure for cancer does exist, but big business doesn't want that information to get out there. I'm not saying that is or is not true, BUT...

CANCER is a scary word and there is certainly money to be made by anyone who claims to have a cure--whether it's the Gerson Institute's alternative therapy, the pharmaceutical companies, the insurance companies, colonic centers and liver cleanse places, or the medical community charging up for radiation, chemo, and traditional medical cancer treatments (that only work temporarily for the most part.)

I came away from the film thinking: "OK, I see some of their point, but it's a little extreme. I'm gonna eat more fruits and vegetables in whole form and buy organic on a case-by-case basis when I can (afford to.)"

I'm no juice convert-- still not a fan. I like to chew. I like to crunch my way into an apple and use my fork to spear asparagus. I like to pop frozen grapes into my mouth and slice up bananas.

In response, however, a friend of mine bought a juicer-- not the nearly $3000 Norwalk Juicer that Gerson recommends, but a juicer nonetheless. Now, it seems like more than half of all our produce gets juiced into a foamy mess of stuff I don't want to drink. We have more trash in the way of vegetable after-products (the fiber "pulp" leftover from juicing) that we can't very well compost since we live in a townhouse with very, very little garden space. (Last time we tried to compost, we got a nasty case of roaches wandering around our patio--- not exactly the friendly earthworms and good soil bacteria I was hoping for.) I'll also mention that there is nothing more rank than the stench of juiced broccoli mixed with beets. Will it kill the cancer lurking somewhere in our cells? Who knows. I may know the 'beautiful truth,' but I think I'm just as safe eating whole, unprocessed foods that I can actually chew and enjoy. And no matter how healthy beets claim to be, I just can't hack 'em. I'd rather drink a glass of orange juice.

For a good critical assessment of The Beautiful Truth and the idea of Gerson Therapy, go to Science Based Medicine. More information about Gerson Therapy, as detailed in the documentary, The Beautiful Truth, can be found at The Gerson Institute. If you want to try your hand at juicing, check out Total Juicing by Elaine LaLanne. Even though it's still not my thing, I will say that juicing is an excellent way to get your nutrients and making your own fresh juice is way better than the sugar and corn syrup-laden juices you'd get at the grocery store.

A good selection of Juicer Recipes can be found here

© 2010 by KLiedle
Photo credit: Arlo Bates/flickr.com

Spin The Sun: Evolution Of A Painting

Not too long ago, I read about a film called The Mystery Of Picasso. In 1955, filmmaker Henri-Georges Clouzot got together with Pablo Picasso to capture the artistry and evolution of several of his paintings. Clouzot brilliantly placed the camera in front of Picasso as he worked. This produced a "mirror image" of each brush stroke and splash of color as the artist created.

In what is said to be one of the great art documentaries ever made-- the screen became Picasso's canvas.

I was fascinated by the idea-- I love Picasso and Clouzet also directed the original Diabolique, one of my favorite films. The Mystery Of Picasso, I haven't had a chance to see yet. Whenever I've searched for it, it's been unavailable. Today, on a lark, I tried again and (Voila!) Netflix has it! Soon, I shall finally be able to explore my curiosity of this film.

With my longstanding fascination of flip books and stop-motion animation, I leave you with a stop-motion animation experimental film that I created. It captures the evolution of a painting a friend of mine recently completed. I'm sure it's nowhere near what the Picasso film will be, but it was fun to create something with a camera while someone else was creating something with a brush on a canvas.

To see more art samples or to inquire about purchase, see Scott's Art Samples

"SUN STOP"
Short Film © 2010 by KLiedle

Pop-Up, Pop Art, and breathing new life into old headshots.

WHEN I'm not working a bazillion hours [like that 19-hour day this past Friday] I'm usually working on some sort of creative project.

One thing I particularly enjoy is making personal greeting cards. It's fun, it's relaxing, and the results make more of a statement than any commercial card ever could. I love manipulating paper and random images-- collage, making cut-outs, folding origami style.



HERE in L.A., people ask-- "Are you an actor?" all the time. I'm not. I've done some acting, I've taken classes, and at one point I thought it was something I wanted to do. I even got headshots-- a big ol' stack of 'em. Then, I quietly changed my mind. Not for me.

The big question remained: What to do with all those headshots sitting in a box in the garage? Made of quality cardstock, I discovered that those old headshots provided a perfect base for some of my best greeting cards. Here are some of my favorites:


All of the cards highlighted on this page were made from my former headshots.

















In that regard, I can honestly say that there's a little piece of me in every card I make.

© 2010 by KLiedle
Images/cards ©2010 by KLiedle

Hollywood Food Porn and a little tribute to a blogger.

Movies likes Julie & Julia and Eat, Pray, Love are being lovingly referred to by critics as food porn. Gooey, Sumptuous, hot and heavy, melt-in-your-mouth... It's become a hybrid of the usual made-for-women movie. In fact, one thing it's proven is that there are a whole lot of foodies out there-- more than Hollywood even knew existed.

I did see Julie & Julia, but no, I have NOT seen Eat, Pray, Love. I immensely enjoyed the book by Elizabeth Gilbert, but the nearly 2 hour 1/2 hour running time of the film and the increasingly tiresome Julia Roberts have turned me off from seeing it. Of course, Javier Bardem may change my mind eventually, but I'll play hard-to-get for now.

[Roberts is in danger of becoming a caricature of herself-- too big a star to believably immerse herself in character. I feel the same about Tom Cruise, but I think it's too late for him. Julia can still save herself...]

Today, though I pay tribute to a blogger I've followed for awhile: Heidi Swanson. Like most women, I have my share of cookbooks. Not all women cook, but most of us dabble, and nearly everyone likes to eat.

I catalog and organize recipes I intend to make someday. Heidi's blog, 101 Cookbooks g0t me inspired to cook again. The recipes she features are generally healthy and mostly vegetarian. She accompanies all of them with scrumptious-looking photos and sometimes an anecdote or two about the recipe.

Long ago, I scribbled down her featured recipe Nikki's Healthy Cookies. It originally appeared on September 14, 2008 which just shows you how long it's taken me to actually make them. Today was THE DAY.

I was originally intrigued because the cookies looked so good, yet they had no flour, no butter, and no egg. What??!!! In fact, double-checking the recipe, I discovered there's really no sugar either-- save for the natural sugar from the bananas, coconut, and chocolate.

Slightly skeptical, I was amazed by how good these cookies actually are! I enjoyed rolling the little bits of dough into bite-sized morsels. It's makes me sad that it took so long for me to try the recipe. It's easy, they're really good, and no guilt here... So, if you'd like to check into some food porn that actually satisfies, check out Heidi's recipe blog.

**Above are my photos of the cookies I made today, but they don't even do justice in comparison to Heidi's photography of the same. However, I did a pretty darn good job... and I think I'll be making these cookies more often now.**

© 2010 by KLiedle
Photo credits: Coconut-Chocolate cookies by KLiedle

Directing: More Than Meets The Eye

Recently, I've been reading quite a few interviews with screenwriters and directors, many of them from My First Movie: Twenty Celebrated Directors Talk About Their First Film with interviews edited by Stephen Lowenstein. Those interviews gave me quite a bit of insight. No matter what anyone says: Filmmaking is difficult--at any, and every level. Always.

Directors don't always know everything: lots of times they're sleep-deprived, tortured by uncertainty and just downright unsure of themselves. But they have to fake it-- all eyes are on them.
Just a few short months ago, I finished The Straight Line, the short film I directed as an episode of It's Always Smoggy In L.A. Clocking in at just under 10 minutes, it's easy for one to think that it was a snappy little piece to put together. I wish I could say so-- it consumed months worth of my time, but I wanted to do it right. Next time, I'll know how to do some things better. I'll be more confident and better able to focus on the task at hand. Sure, I'll still make mistakes, but filmmaking is a constant learning process.

Someone asked me what made it so much work? Directing is more than meets the eye. I didn't even understand this until I attempted it for myself. Directing means that you're in charge of everything and you have to answer tons of questions for yourself, the story, and from other crew members. It's exhausting and anxiety-ridden because there's never enough time. It also involves lots of lists, especially at the guerrilla filmmaking level. Here's a rundown from my first directing project:

Pre-production:
*Envision, write, and finalize shooting script.
*Post casting notices in trades and online.
*Go through casting submissions. ( Of which there were many-- including rather scary 'Drag Queens.')
*Call actors to schedule auditions.
* Casting session (1 day)
*Finalize casting and call back actors.
*Set date for rehearsal (difficult when coordinating multiple actors' schedules)
*Set shoot date.
*Go wardrobe shopping with actors; Make purchases.
*Replace/re-cast a role due to actor's scheduling conflicts.
*Rehearsal: Go over blocking/script, wardrobe approval, get signed actor release forms for usage of likeness, etc.), camera/lighting test, photo shoot with principal actors.
*Line up crew (which is NEVER easy it seems.)
* Purchase props/set decoration.
*Purchase prop food.
*Purchase craft service (on-set snacks, drinks, goodies for cast/crew)
*Purchase/coordinate hot lunch for cast/crew during shoot.
*Pre-visualization: Prepare shot-list, do a few storyboards. Make notes for actors, etc.

Day Before Shoot:
*Prepare prop food.
*Check daylight: sunrise/sunset times.
*Call actors/crew to confirm call times for shoot day.
*Charge camera
*Purchase supplies, tapes, etc.
* Tame nerves with a couple shots of whiskey which sorta helped. But not enough.
* Sleep poorly.

Shoot: (2 days)
*One crew member cancels. Off to a good start.
*Begin losing the light (daylight)... stuff I shot in earlier takes no longer matches. Exasperated...
*Day #2 goes smoother. Have to re-shoot Scene 4 due to audio problem. Sets us back about an hour.

Post-production
*Upload footage.
*Edit first assembly cut of film (this takes a huge amount of time due to my own scheduling conflicts.)
*Editing sessions to re-cut final version.
*Find music for film (takes about a 1/2 day worth of scavenger-hunting)
*Convert raw file to Quicktime and appropriate codecs for web.
*Upload to various web platforms.
*Publicize on social media, with friends, etc.

*Start planning to do it all over again. Obviously, it's a little sadomasochist and a lot crazy, but it's also enjoyable, invigorating, and I will say, worth it in the end.

© 2010 by KLiedle
Photo credit: Sepia Camera ©2010/KLiedle

Answering To A Higher Power: Enlightenment

A few months ago, I worked a few weeks on a CBS pilot about the CIA, entitled "Chaos." It was an extravagant, multi-million dollar pilot-- infamous, notorious, and... dead upon arrival. Regardless of the money spent, the A-list director/executive producer and the well-received footage, Chaos collapsed like a house of cards.

In this exact moment in time, as the world economy digs itself deeper, there is a need for consciousness, a need for awakening, a need for enlightenment.
HBO, the pay cable network known for its top-notch original series and entertainment, understood this and was willing to take a chance on "Enlightened," an upcoming show starring Laura Dern as a self-destructive woman who has a spiritual awakening and hones in on living a more conscious, enlightened life.

A series about conscious living gets the greenlight. What a welcome surprise! With Mike White and Laura Dern as executive producers, I have a feeling it's a show that is near and dear to their hearts. I recently spent some time working with and observing the crew--now shooting its second and third episodes. Worth noting, this is a production that practices what it preaches.

With Mike White sporting a "Vegan Mafia" tee, and lots of gluten-free and vegan snacks on the craft service table, I knew something was different. Half-drunk and abandoned bottles of water? None to be found--not on this set. There was a filtered water station and BPA-free, completely biodegradable bottles available to refill and reuse. I picked one up, and ended up using and reusing my bottle on-set for the next three days. Not only was it biodegradable, recyclable, reusable, and BPA free, but it was also made from post-consumer recycled material right here in California.

Craft Service made sure that recycling bins were located conveniently on-set. A few real flowers and plants adorned the set, sticking out amongst the requisite fake plants. From a purely production standpoint, this was as green and as clean as a TV series could get.

Consciously observing my little biodegradable bottle, I learned about GLASS [giveaglass.org,] a nonprofit organization with high hopes to eliminate all single-use plastic bottles from "the advertising, commercial, film and post-production industries." It's a great idea and something I think every production should at least consider.

There is enormous waste in the world, especially in the entertainment industry where, according to GLASS, U.S. commercial productions use 700 plastic water bottles every single hour. So, if you're in charge of a photo shoot, a TV series, an upcoming feature film-- Think green, Give a glass, and in doing so, you'll be making the Earth smile.

Knowing other is wisdom, knowing yourself is enlightenment. — Lao Tzu (c.604-531 B.C.).

"The real meaning of enlightenment is to gaze with undimmed eyes on all darkness." - Nikos Kazantzakis

For more:
http://www.deadline.com/2010/07/shocker-drama-chaos-left-to-die-after-cbs-and-20th-tv-cant-agree-on-order/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i82908c6716f89cd135e2df3b6bb2ce00

http://www.giveaglass.org

© 2010 by KLiedle