Happy New Year

A very eventful year has come to a close. I learned a lot this year and end the year a better man than I started it.
This past week has been a real joy. Christmas morning with the family, of course. Had the week off. Went to see some films (Volver +++++ Little Children ++++ Eragon phtwww) and out for meals with friends and family. Sold some more equipment and bought a new HD camera. Wrote the final twenty-five pages on a new script in the past three days. Had two very illuminating and encouraging meetings about an upcoming project. Even made it to the gym.
It's been a great week to close out a tough, but wonderful year.

I'm feeling rested and ready for all that 2007 has in store for us.

¡viva!
signore direttore

The Master Says 107

I run on the road, long before I dance under the lights.

Muhammad Ali

The Master Says 106

The revolution is not an apple that falls when it is ripe. You have to make it fall.

Che Guevara

A New Year's Resolution

This is who I want to be:

Me: I'm trying something new.
World: Aren't you scared?
Me: Yeah, ain't it great!

I want to fall on my ass and my face and learn to laugh about it.

I'm starting now by admitting that I'm scared.

Okay. The cat's out of the bag: I'm afraid.

Besitos,
Signore Direttore

The Master Says 105

I've been terrified every day of my life but that's never stopped me from doing everything I wanted to do.

Georgia O'Keefe

The Master Says 104

I also wanted to express the strength of cinema to hide reality, while being entertaining. Cinema can fill in the empty spaces of your life and your loneliness.

Pedro Almodovar

The Master Says103

Where have I come from? What am I doing here? What is it that I mean to achieve?

Konstantin Stanislavsky

Not Letting It Pass Me By

I have been a little anxious today as I always am around the holidays. I know I am not uniquely affected by the chaos, excitement, expectations and memories that come with Christmas. Each year I try to keep it more and more simple.

We had no last minute shopping to do. No party obligations. No extended family commitments.

I did some organizing - cleaned off my dresser, emptied some boxes of papers, put a piece of gear up for auction on eBay, cleaned up the spaghetti of cables and wires under the edit suite, wrapped a few gifts, watched football and took a nap.

I also put together the cutest little red tricycle. I did it this morning so as not to put it off until after the kids were in bed. I try to avoid that dad putting toys together until late on Christmas Eve cliche as much as possible. I realized that this little trike might be around for a while and that I'd only get to put it together once. I told myself not to let the moment pass me by. Everything shifted quite a bit after that. I was really doing what I was doing. It brought a moment of joy and peace to my day.

Merry Christmas,

nc

The Master Says 102

Here I am trying to live, or rather, I am trying to teach the death within me how to live.

Jean Cocteau

The Master Says 101

It must be the colors
And the kids
That keep me alive
'Cause the music is boring me to death

Cat Power

The Master Says 100

Filmmakers should think less and use their imaginations more.

Alexander Mackendrick

The Master Says 099

Watch and listen.

Robert Altman

The Master Says 098

To grasp the full significance of life is the actor's duty, to interpret it is his problem, and to express it his dedication.

Marlon Brando

The Master Says 097

When I grow up, I still want to be a director.

Steven Spielberg

The Master Says 096

I like to write when I feel spiteful; it's like having a good sneeze.

D.H. Lawrence

The Master Says 095

The job is to ask questions - it always was - and to ask them as inexorably as I can. And to face the absence of precise answers with a certain humility.

Arthur Miller

The Master Says 094

Every man is born as many men and dies as a single one.

Martin Hiedegger

Five and Out

The time has come for me to end my five year career as an acting coach. Last night was the final class at the studio. I've decided to quit teaching in order to have more time and energy for other areas of my life. We went out with a month of very solid on-camera scene study. The past weeks have been very satisfying, allowing me to leave something which I've labored over and loved on a high note. The disappointment and surprise of the actor-students was humbling.
I thought of all the faces and personalities that have drifted through my studios over the past years as I cleaned out the storage closet and scrubbed the floor last night. I remembered the challenges and the laughs as well as the struggles and triumphs I witnessed and experienced over the years. I've grown as a person and as an artist as a result. I've gained some small measure of humility if only in the realization that I don't have to be all things to all people. Letting go of another hyphen in my occupation bio is a big step toward getting right-sized.
They say to teach is to learn a thing twice. My goal was never to be a better actor, but I do believe that all the things that make an actor better at his craft make him a better human being. I can say with confidence that I've done my best to show many the way toward making that a possiblilty in their lives. For everything that came to pass, both good and bad, it was my sincere effort at being present and truthful and that's always good enough. For that I am grateful.

Sincerely,
nc

Folk Wisdom 023

Don´t cry because it´s over, smile because it happened.

The Master Says 093

I write scripts to serve as skeletons awaiting the flesh and sinew of images.

Ingmar Bergman

The Master Says 092

There is no art in confusion.

Isaac Bashevis Singer

The Master Says 091

The hardest thing to learn is how to correct what's wrong without harming what's good.

Dede Allen