Thursday, September 20, 2012

ACTION


We're in Athens, Ohio doing an MFA Film Program at Ohio University and most days it seems like it was the right decision even though I'm so far out of my comfort zone I need a map. 

Test today.  He called it a quiz.  Cinematography.  I knew more than I didn't, but not much more.  Seemed like a lot of trick questions.  No multiple choice. 

Tomorrow I'm shooting my first 16mm short (that's film like in the old days before video).  Vince is my actor.  I'm going to have him eat steak and dress up as a football player which is better than last weekend when he had to grill meat and smoke a cigarette in our classmate Jorge's film.  I'm shooting on the football field and no one can believe it.  "You mean the real football field?" 

The hardest part about my film has been finding a football uniform.  I made a special trip to 'Halloween City' (Halloween is big here).  Seeing a baseball uniform in the window got my hopes up for nothing.  Goodwill?...all out.  Figuring that the worst thing the athletic office could do was say 'no', I called them.  "We'd be happy to help you out."   These Ohio people are nice.  Wandering around the football stadium looking for the equipment room I opened a door, sort of hoping it wasn't the men's locker room, and found myself in a candy store of green football gear most of which I couldn't identify.  Asking for my guy 'Matt', the intern guarding the place told me he was the the one in the green and pointed to the back where everyone was of course wearing green (by choice....support the team).  I told Matt Vince's height, weight and shoe size.  When he asked me if Vince had a big head I said I didn't know how to answer that.

Knees.
The left knee is pretty good.  I'm guessing the right knee will take the allotted full year they talk about to heal but I don't blame it. 

Other.
We've had classes everyday since we started (really) but today after the quiz/test we had an extra hour and enough time to get the haircut I'd put off when I was in Vermont.  Up until tonight I thought that all shampoo bowls were comfortable and all salons used hot water for a shampoo but for 7.99 I can let it go.  The new haircut looks good if it's wet.

I can go a week here without seeing a Prius.

The next time someone calls me "ma'am".....



MORE later.