Updates on my film projects: All I Do Is Dream

ALL I DO IS DREAM

AIDID Logo

Pitch: A glitzy new short dance film. Recreating glamorous Hollywood films of a bygone age. A new short film set in Broadway New York about a young woman’s dream to dance.

My role: Production Manager, First Assistant Director.

I’m working with the Producer, Kira, and the Writer/Director, Andrew, of This Big Productions (https://twitter.com/ThisBigFilms)

Shooting: Late July in Ireland

Progress: We will soon be releasing a Kickstarter Campaign to raise funds for the film. Expect lots of promotion for it.

Behind the scenes
Director Andrew Montague shooting our Kickstarter Video

 

We recently confirmed our Make-up Artist. We’re still looking for a Costumier.  

Online: You can check out the website (http://allidoisdream.wordpress.com) and the twitter (allidreammovie.twitter.com) and the Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/allidoisdreamfilm)

Interesting tidbit: Our Production Assistant, Luis, is a student at the Business School where I work. He has been helping us with our social media presence.

 

London Bellydance Debut: photos

Nasmat London Debut

Thanks to Maani Photography for these photos.

This event The Arab Quarterly show on Sunday 17 February 2013 in the Hoxton Hall.

My costume was from Zara’s Zouk.

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Editing: Reasons for a cut

Multiple Oscar winning editor extraordinaire Walter Murch (who literally wrote THE book on editing) famously said…

 

An ideal cut (for me) is the one that satisfies all the following six criteria at once:
It is true to the emotion of the moment
It advances the story
It occurs at a moment that is rhythmically interesting and “right”
It acknowledges what you might call “eye-trace” – the concern with the location and movement of the audience’s focus of interest within the frame
It respects “planarity” – the grammar of three dimensions transposed by photography to two (the questions of stage-line, etc.)
It respects the three-dimensional continuity of the actual space (where people are in the room and in relation to one another).
Or…
Emotion (51%)
Story (23%)
Rhythm (10%)
Eye-trace (7%)
Two-dimensional plane of screen (5%)
Three-dimensional space of action (4%)
Emotion, at the top of the list, is the thing that you should try to preserve at all costs. If you find you have to sacrifice certain of those six things to make a cut, sacrifice your way up, item by item, from the bottom.

WALTER MURCH, In The Blink of an Eye

Nasmat London Debut

Sunday 17 February 2013 sees the London debut of bellydancer Nasmat (aka ME!)

Tickets are on sale now for the Arab Quarterly event at the Hoxton Hall. Tickets are £18 each, and are available for purchase from the Hoxton Hall website

The Arab Quarter at Hoxton Hall

The Arab Quarter

Sunday 17 February 2013 at 7.30pm, Hoxton Hall,
130 Hoxton Street, London N1 6SH

Doors open at 7.00pm

The Arab Quarter at Hoxton Hall is set to move hearts and send minds racing with its punchy, dramatic and eloquent narration taken from Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz. Palace Walk is part of The Cairo Trilogy, and the epic master piece of the Nobel Prize-winning writer. As yet Naguib Mahfouz is the only Arab writer to win this prestigious literary award. Scenes rich in atmosphere and cultural significance will fill Hoxton Hall and create a special magic. Around these passages will be enthralling and highly authentic Arabian musical and dance entertainment provided by members of The Arab Quarter Band and a host of fine oriental dancers, colourfully costumed and interpreting Arabian music of immense soul and beauty.

 

Pirates Of The South auditions

I recently got to shoot the auditions for a new feature film, ‘Pirates Of The South’. Here are a few of the behind-the-scenes photos…

The casting desk, with me behind.
The casting desk, with me behind.
Camera and sound simultaneously

From the director, Djonny Chen:

Behind the scene photos from the casting session of our upcoming feature film “PIRATES OF THE SOUTH” on Saturday, 22nd December 2012 at The Phoenix Artist Club (Phoenix Theatre, London).

“PIRATES OF THE SOUTH” Feature Film
————————————-
Director: Djonny Chen
Producers: Jason Cook, Mark Straker, Djonny Chen, Lisa Cachia
Executive Producer: Eileen Hutchinson
Screenwriter: Lisa Cachia

More details at:
– Film website: http://www.southpirates.com/
– Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/PiratesOfTheSouth

Acknowledgments:
– A huge thanks to Noel Wilson for arranging the location and helping out the casting session on the day.
– Special thanks to Kurt Dimineux, Patricia Hetherington, Chantelle Lavel and Edward Ferrysienanda for helping out on the day.
– Many thanks to Chantelle Lavel and Edward Ferrysienanda for taking the behind the scene photos.

By the way, the Phoenix Artist Club is quite nice.

Phoenix Artist Club

8 tips for coping with work and art

How do you do it?

A friend recently asked me how I manage working full-time and doing film stuff in my spare time. He got his first full-time office job recently, and has been struggling with having the energy to do anything else.

Hard workIt’s hard.

It. is. hard.

Continue reading “8 tips for coping with work and art”

Interview with Adelaide Screenwriter

Hi all,

You should head over to Adelaide Screenwriter. One, to read the interview that I did there. Two, to read the other posts and pages that Henry has written.

Oh, and if you’ve come across my blog from Henry’s … welcome 🙂

Did I mention I was busy?

 

Oh, the joys of double booking…

Friday

  • The last day of the busiest week of the year at work; then
  • Standing in the Globe Theatre and watching Taming Of The Shrew with some of my lovely friends, and
  • Trying to get over this cold, in preparation for…

Saturday

Sunday

  • Sound editing for this competition.
  • Sleep?

Continue reading “Did I mention I was busy?”

Meeting deadlines and editing

 

Apologies if you haven’t heard from me lately. I’ve been working on finishing two projects and getting them out. All of my spare time is going into these projects. I think that’s a good thing. Nothing clears the head like clearing what has been stressing you out.

Continue reading “Meeting deadlines and editing”

The Arab Quarter

I went to two Bellydance workshops in Shoreditch today. The first was a Hat and Cane choreography; the second, a choreography for veil. The classes were from The Arab Quarter: Bellydancer Melanie Norman taught the classes, with support from live musicians: Hassan on tableh, Georgie on synth, and Emile on violin.

The workshops were great. I can highly recommend them. Melanie is a wonderful teacher. It was really great having live music there; not only for the experience of dancing with musicians (which every dancer should experience), but because one can avoid the issue of having to go from the start of the CD track every time you want to go over a part of the dance. But, I digress.

Continue reading “The Arab Quarter”