India

For Freshi Films, I've just created a video summarizing our "Freshi Planet" worldwide filmmaking program.  You can see it on my "other" blog, freshifilms.blogspot.com.

Between Freshi's international program, and my own Indian project, I expect to be returning sometime in the near future.   Visiting India isn't for everyone - some Americans might find the overall environment overwhelming.  Poverty and desperation exist side-by-side with incredible beauty.  By comparison, we tend to live an antiseptic life here in America.  But for those who can adjust to the difficulties of living and traveling in India (at least between Delhi and Agra, the two cities I visited), the rewards are unforgettable.  

I did jump in!

In response to yesterday's comment, here are two pictures: The first is from the same event yesteray, and the second features Lynette Privatsky, Dave Guerrero, and myself following a shoot at a "Holi" event the same weekend as the other photo.

New Photo from "Indian / American" Project

My good friend Dave Guerrero just supplied me with his latest collection of photos from my current documentary.  Here's one taken during "Holi," an Hindu holiday that some have described to me as a rite of spring  (there are quite a number of descriptions I've been given, but we'll leave it at that for now).

A Shameless, Shameless Plug

(Photo courtesy Lidskin Creative)

If you like album rock, you will love Twirl, a Sacramento-based radio program hosted by an old college friend of mine, Mike Lidskin.  Put simply in the show's slogan:  "The finest music from the rock era."  You can listen live every Saturday, 4-6 pm (western time).  Go to the website:  www.twirlradio.com, for more information.   While you're there, check out the "Twirlcasts" for highlights from past episodes.  I highly recommend a Twirlcast "comedy nugget" entitled "2006 write-in gubernatorial candidate Greg Baldwin's plan for a better California.'  It's a classic moment in comedy history, if you ask me.  And not just because my best buddy from college and my nephew are involved.  Really. I swear.

Opening Weekend

I read last week that the opening weekend for the latest installment of the "Grand Theft Auto" video game franchise brought in half a billion dollars. Even taking into account the greater cost of a game, it's another dramatic example of the splintering of the entertainment industry.  I don't think video games are the future, but they are just one of a huge selection of choices we have.  

Once, we had movies, television, radio, books, newspapers and records.  Today, add IPODS and other MP3 players, video game consules, video-on-demand services, and other video delivery systems (I rarely watch scheduled programming these days), the Internet...I'm sure you could name another half-dozen new-technology services. For the entrepreneur who can create content that crosses between these services, the opportunities are exciting.   More exciting?  This is all in it's infancy.  Ten years from the now, the entertainment industry as we know it will unrecognizeable. 

Indian / American

Here's a photo from "Indian  / American," the documentary I mentioned a couple of posts back.  This weekend, we'll be shooting the kids' year-end recital. It will also mark the end of principal photography on the documentary, which I've been shooting since last November.

Current Audiobook

I'm currently listening to:  Red Land Black Land: Daily Life in Ancient Egypt by Barbara Mertz, a look at routine life in ancient Egypt - at least that of the privileged classes (lower classes simply didn't have the literacy or luxury of recording their lives for posterity).  The single most interesting aspect of a book like this is as a reminder of how, across time and cultures,human beings are closely related. Its one of the great pleasures of documentary filmmaking in particular - to see a real kinship with people anywhere in the world.

It's Been a While (Again!)

It's been a while since I've posted here - but for good reason!

First, I've launched a blog for Freshi Films, the company for which I serve as Director of Production.  Check freshifilms.blogspot.com to learn about everything that's going on at Freshi, and to see some of the programming we've been creating over the past two years.  The company is really gearing up, and we're approaching a very exciting period in the company's history.

I'm also about to conclude photography on my documentary, "Indian/American" which profiles a group of American-born Indian kids who are learning about their heritage through "Bollywood" style dance.  Look for excerpts here as I move into the editing stage.

VICTORY

My search for Yoohoo has ended where it began - at my local Yoohoo dealer.  According to them, Yoohoo was having a bottling issue.  As you can see, I am now well-stocked, and so I can report success in my ongoing battle to solve important social issues.

Currently Reading / Listening

At home, I'm reading "Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness," a biography the legendary reclusive billionaire. My interest in rediscovering Hughes developed after watching the movie, "Hoax," the true story of how author Clifford Irving tried to fool the publishing world in 1971 with a fake "autobiography" of Howard Hughes.  In reality, he had absolutely no connection with Hughes, a fact which was made clear through a telephone press conference with Hughes himself, the last time he made any sort of public "appearance" (he died in 1976).  After seeing "Hoax," I took another look at the Hughes biopic, "Aviator," and then decided to see out more information.  I also happen to know someone who was a contract actress with Hughes in the 1950's, and has a memories of Hughes that are quite in contrast with the generally accepted image of a severely disturbed man - an image, we sometimes forget, that was forged in the last few years of his life.

This book, published a few years after his death, explores Hughes' life from his family background to his bizarre ending.  I'll be curious to follow this book up with a more recent biography that might include further insights  and research gathered over the last thirty years.

In my car, I'm listening to an audio book, "Andrew Carnegie," a portrait of the 19th and early 20th Century industrialist and philanthropist that had a major impact in those two areas that is still felt today.  He began life in a small Scottish industrial town and ultimately became one of the wealthiest men of his time.  He was also as far as you can get from the emotionally crippled Howard Hughes.  It's an interesting exercise to read/listen to both biographies simultaneously. I ordered the Carnegie book as a direct reaction to reading about Hughes - I find these massively successful people fascinating in their individuality.

Yoo-Hoo!

On February 20th, I received a response from the folks at Yoo-Hoo.

I have been given a list of ten stores within a dozen miles of here that might carry the Yoo-Hoo I desire - the closest only minutes away.  

I shall report back on my quest. Perhaps with multi-media accompaniment.

I implore you to stay calm during this critical time.

Yoo-Hoo: The Conspiracy

Yoo-Hoo is a chocolate drink from my childhood. It's not chocolate milk or soda - it's in it's own special category.  It's mainly popular Back East - but you could find bottles of it at supermarkets or deli's, if you searched a bit. I don't think there's any food or drink I associate so closely with my New York childhood.  I remember drinking it on the beach on many a hot, humid summer. To some people, it's an acquired taste, but to me, it's an elixir.

I'm not sure why, but Yoo-Hoo seems to disappearing from Western shelves - it's now available only in those little drink boxes.  Bad marketing, I guess.  OR, maybe there's a run on the California inventory. Perhaps a California multi-millionaire with New York roots is buying up the stock, hoarding it for his own use.  I'll begin an investigation into some possible candidates.

I've been checking supermarket store shelves - but I've only found those boxes, in the local Ralphs.  There's something going on here - something sinister.

I've just sent an email to Yoo-Hoo.  

I'll report back with the results.

Parallel Worlds and Alternative Universes?

I was at a gathering a few weeks back hosted by one of my sometime collaborators. We've known each other for seven years or so, and have worked together in various ways - writing, editing, or co-directing projects.  As it turned out, one of his friends, by pure chance, has a connection with me that goes back decades.

At one of my friend's larger gatherings, one of his friends came up to me and asked me if I'd grown up in New Hyde Park, on Long Island, and went to Wickshire School.   I answered yes to every one of his questions, but strange as it may seem, it wasn't anyone I knew directly - but very likely, someone who lived a life parallel to mine as we were growing up.  A year younger, he lived probably 20 houses down the block and around the corner in my old neighborhood in New York.  We knew some of the same people - he even remembered Julie, our legendary ice cream man - and the nice guy who polished floors all over the neighborhood - we all knew when we were very young.  

We went to the same elementary school - but when you're a young kid, sometimes kids that are even a year younger than you are kids with whom you generally wouldn't waste time.  So, we lived lives that were very close - we probably sat near each other on the school bus, and we apparently shared some of the same teachers - but we never knew each other.  Nevertheless - we shared an experience - we shared a place, and we shared a time. We just operated in slightly different dimensions.

Social Networking II

Once you start with several sites, it becomes a challenge - there are people who look at my website, others who look at MySpace, others at Facebook, and now a growing list on Linkedin.com. 

Linkedin.com seems to be the flavor of the day for professional networking - a friend turned me on to that site a few days ago, and numerous other colleagues from other sources have also sent me invitations since then.  I have to admit some curiousity about this site - I'll be curious to see what it provides (and, like any other network - what I can use it for) as time goes on.   

Of course, the danger is that we'll spend more time managing our networks...then actually using them!

Branding

I read an article in the New York Times the other day entitled, "Creating Brand You."  It, in turn, discussed an article in the current issue of Psychology Today in which Psychologist Judith Sills suggests "becoming your own brand," explaining that "it is the professional identity that you create in the minds of others."

Your image - or, as the CIA dubs it, your "legend," is the first impression most people will have about you.  Taking control of that image is crucial if you're serious about achieving goals.  Taking control of your image, in turn, directly reflects how focused you are on your goals. 

Sills writes of three approaches that will work will if you want to be come a brand - I believe they come hand in hand with achieving goals:

-Speaking Professionally (conferences, events that provide visibility)

-Make your presence known at meetings (our industry thrives on creative input)

-Be consistent (a universal need across all forms of employment!)

All of these approaches reflect your public face - and your ability to reach the goals you set for yourself.  

If you don't know who you are, how will anyone else know?

Social Networking to Infinity and Beyond!

Join MySpace, they said. 

No, go to Facebook. Everyone's moving over there, now.

Hey, did you hear about LinkedIn?  Like Facebook, but designed for professionals.

Each has profile.

A blog. You can see how often THIS has been updated!  

Requires Maintenance.

THEN I have my website.

And now, my new Mac Front-End for my website (web.mac.com/richsamuels).

I have my profile on Kiva.org - check it out, it's cool.  But I have to keep an eye on that little profile, too.

I have my corporate profile with Freshi Films, LLC.

Soon, I'll be working full time just maintaining my Brand!

Indian Connections

I just looked at the visitor log for my blog, and noticed that I had a visitor a few weeks back from "Gurgaon, Haryana, India" That happens to be an area I'm familiar with - it's the area I visited back in the summer of 2006 with my Freshi group.  It was a fantastic experience - I even hear occassionally from some of the young filmmakers we taught (one of which is apparently checking up on me!).    I found that the teens we worked with in India were excited, curious and optimistic about their country's progress.   They have a pride in their own country that kids in America would recognize.

My interest in India continues. The documentary I'm currently shooting is the story of a group of Indian boys, born in America, who are being taught "Bollywood-style" dancing as part of their parent's efforts to maintain their connection to Indian culture.  It's not so much a story of Indians, but of what it means to be an American in the 21st Century.  

Information Age: Part Two

I recently heard about a website called Kiva.org - it's a site through which individuals can loan small amounts of money to small start up ventures in third world countries.  By small, I mean VERY small - people selling coal in a small village in Uganda - or a scooter taxi service.  You don't make money - you simply make a small (about $25) loan, applied toward a specific amount, which is likely to be paid back  - and so change lives in a very real way.  Kiva's has had so much publicity lately that all of the current businesses have already been fully funded.  "Investors" can also correspond with the entrepreneurs if they wish.  It's one of the few opportunities for individuals in the western world to make a real, meaningful connection to individuals in the "third world."  It's worth a look.

The Dorkiness Factor

When I was a kid, I had a favorite jacket - I knew it was spring when I could transition from my winter coat to my bright blue New York Mets jacket.  I probably wore it longer then necessary into summer just just to make sure I got the most out of it.   I don't think I ever had as much of an attachment to a jacket as I did when I was ten years old.   In fact, I can't remember any other jacket throughout my childhood.  I think I've always had the idea in the back of my mind that I'll get another jacket like that one day....

I also remember wanting what I called a "Lost In Space" shirt - mainly, a shirt with a V-neck.  Judging from some photos, I appear to have succeeded in fulfilling my desire.

I did have some ill-fated flirtations with various items - like a notorious month or so in junior high school with a pair of brown boots.  I consider that one of my "what was I thinking?" moments.  I don't even think it was possible to walk normally, but I insisted on my precious boots - until I woke up one morning and discovered the dorkiness factor.  I never put them on again - to the great relief of my friends, I suspect.   The middle school mind works in mysterious ways.

Information Age: Part One

There was an editorial in the New York Times this morning that called attention to the fact that 2008 is the 40th anniversary of the notorious year, 1968, which was filled with political upheaval, a collapse of US efforts in Vietnam, assassinations, and, well, some pretty good music in spite of it all.

Of course, celebrating the anniversary of a year in general is a bit odd.  After all, we might as well celebrate the first anniversary of 2007, the tenth anniversary of 1998, and so on. Of course, the journalist's point was that 1968, and in particular the meteoric rise and violent fall of Bobby Kennedy, was a tragic turning point in the fortunes of this country. Still, mourning over a now-distant moment in history overshadows the opportunities that our own age - or perhaps the near future - provide.

As wired as we are in the western world, the rest of the world is still in the infancy of the information age - a large majority of the world's population still lives shrouded in a nearly medieval control over information.  It's still possible in 2007 to keep a population isolated through ignorance.  The reasons are sometimes political (North Korea being a prime example) and sometimes economic (a newly high-tech India nevertheless struggles to educate and connect its huge population).

Of course, the temptation is to look at our own country and wonder why the wired world hasn't helped our political system - as we sit mired in crisis after crisis. We have wider access to information than ever before - but perhaps we as a people need to learn to employ the power of information more effectively.   The process continues and evolves as individuals and organizations learn to use technology to educate, inform and change the world.