Robotic Fisticuffs

If you're like me, you stopped paying attention years ago about how quickly robot technology has been developing. And then one day you wake up and see something like this:



Then you think, if these little guys can combat each other, is the premise of The Terminator really that far off in the future?

And then you crap your pants and have two thirds a case of beer before you can surf porn again like everyone else.

Electric Cargo

Ya gotta love it:

This power strip, shaped like the container ship that brought it from China, is terribly handsome, the kind of thing you'd want on your desk, rather than under it. I like that it seems designed to look best when covered in giant, strip-hogging transformer bricks that resemble containers.

Arousal, Draft #1: 67% complete

After a small break due to The Chosen 1's revision time requirements, I knocked off another 7 pages of Arousal today. Took me 2 hours to re-read the first 66 pages and get a feel for the script and how the tone has changed so dramatically in this second half.

Watch this space.

Standing Still

Improv Everywhere is a flash mob group which recently did a mission at Home Depot with 225 people that's just too cool not to talk about—

Wait, wait... what you say? What's a flash mob?

A flash mob is:

...a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, do something unusual for a brief period of time, and then quickly disperse. They are usually organized with the help of the Internet or other digital communications networks.

I first heard about Improv Everywhere from this fascinating NPR interview on This American Life (Act 2), where they did an improv at Starbuck's consisting of "seven undercover agents meticulously repeating a five-minute slice of time for twelve consecutive repetitions. Starbucks employees and patrons were frightened, confused, and ultimately entertained as they found themselves stuck, without escape, in the middle of a time loop."

What makes Improv Everywhere so special is that they perform something magical and mysterious in an age devoid of magic and mystery in commonplace living. Of course, there are risks that the pranks—intended to be purely benevolent—can backfire horribly, but their usual result is to give their audience something to talk about for the rest of their lives (which is a reward worth the risk, in my opinion). What might only happen in a fantasy story suddenly comes to life, unexpectedly and without explanation. As with their Starbuck's mission, the customers (and staff) felt by the final repeating loops that they could actually predict the future! What childlike feelings that must invoke... and imagine how it would feel to shake your head when it's all over and wonder, "I just witnessed something truly magnificent, and perhaps might never see anything like it again."

Anyway, Improv Everywhere's latest mission was to enter a Home Depot store one Saturday with 225 people. Their goal was to have everyone in the flash mob—at precisely the same moment—act in slow motion for 5 minutes. Then go back to being normal for 5 minutes. Then stay completely frozen for 5 minutes. Then go back to being normal, and eventually leave the store.

See the results:

A Series To Die For

The West Wing, Farscape, Firefly, Deadwood, and Six Feet Under. The first season and half of Ally MacBeal, Chicago Hope, Alias, and the first five seasons of ER. Nearly every episode in that magnum rocks.

Right now, my latest additions to that magnum are are Lost and Battlestar Galactica. If you've missed either if these shows, you're missing the cream of the crop of network TV. Here's why Lost is worth watching and here are 13 reasons why Battlestar Galactica rules.

So let's go shopping on Amazon:


Haven't seen Season 2 of Lost? Now you only have to wait until September 2nd until they'll be out on DVD. (Season 3 starts on October 4th.)



If you've been waiting as patiently as I for the next 10 episodes of Battlestar Galactica Season 2, get ready to be happy—they'll finally be on sale September 19th!

My Birthday Evite Answer Key

Please find below the answer key to my 38th birthday party Evite. All boldface text is a correct answer. Some of you did better than others. And some of you will have trouble getting your calls returned this production cycle.

I'll be bringing...

Correct answers included:

7 layer dip (always a favorite)
Hagen Daaz Macademia Nut Brittle (mmmmmmmm)
Caffrey's, from the tap (tough to come by, as you would have to import it from England)
Natalie Portman (because she is stupendously talented, easy on the eye, and is probably cool to hang with)
Matt Damon (also because he is stupendously talented, easy on the eye, and is probably cool to hang with)
John Mayer (also because he is stupendously talented, easy on the eye, and is probably cool to hang with) (plus he might break out into spontaneous guitar playing)
Hootie (with a voice like that, how can you not want to spend time with the guy?)
Money to fund my first feature film

Preferred party game?

Vollyball (correct!)
Bocce Ball (correct!)
Rock-Paper-Scissors (fast, fun, interactive—correct!)
Croquet (correct, but only as a discussion starter)
Badminton (way fun to play and to watch)
Chess (fun, but not a party game)
Tiddlywinks (um... no)
Table Quarters (maybe)
Slaps (yeah!)

What is Ross' favorite film of all time?

The only correct answer was:
It's a Wonderful Life

Which film could Ross watch over and over?

Trick question—there were numerous correct answers:

The Usual Suspects
The Matrix
The Fifth Element
Serenity
Armageddon
Ocean's Eleven
The Red Violin

How often does Ross blog per week?

Also, a trick question:

Not on a film shoot: 4-5 per week
On a film shoot: 1 per week

What... is Ross' favorite color?

Red
Green
Blue
White
Black
Chartreuse
Taupe ("They say taupe is very soothing." Which movie?)
Plaid
Polka Dot
Paisley
Red—NO BLUE! AAAAAAAaaaaaaa (This is, of course, the correct answer.)

Quick, word association—Ross' head?

Balding...oh no you DIHn't! (please remove yourself from the guest list)
Huuuuuuge Martian head (acceptable, but only because my wife has mercilessly teased me about this for years)
That tuft is excellent (Correct! Coined by David Roy, Esq.)
My God... my God... (technically incorrect, but we will accept your answer because you are cute)

BONUS POINTS FOR ORIGINALITY: Dance Floor (Coined by Lucas Ihrig; not included among the answers)

Screenplays have...

1 brad
2 brads (correct)
3 brads

Every stalwart screenwriter knows scripts with 3 brads won't even be used to light a producer's fireplace. The fact that feature film director Curtis Lim answered 3 brads can only be explained by his ironic wit. Nice try, Curty—tou're still getting a SWAG bag at the awards in March.

Number of titles currently on Ross' Netflix queue?

1-50
51-100
101-150
151-200
201-250
251-300
301-350
351-400
401-450 (The exact number is 445)
451-500
OCD (Come on, guys—I'm not that bad, am I???)

Star Wars or Star Trek?

Yes (correct)
Yes (correct)

No more movie theatres?

Finally, someone is saying it out loud: movie theatres, as a viable and reliable income stream, are doomed. Not completely doomed, of course—TV did not kill radio, it simply forced it to restructure itself more efficiently alongside new media outlets—but the day of the movie theatres as a social gathering place will soon be coming to a close.

The increasing popularity of iTunes and Netflix, the relative costliness of movie tickets ($10 is too much—why not $5?), and the proliferation of commercials before movie previews... each of these elements is nailing the coffin shut for movie theatres. The frequency of commercials at movie theatres is the dealbreaker for me: if I've already paid money to watch a film, why THE FUCK am I watching a commercial? In fact, if I have to watch commercials at home, then why wouldn't I just stay home instead? At least at home, the commercials are free.

So can they really be surprised when fewer people pay money to go to the cinema? Even stalwart filmmakers who love to go to movie theatres?

What also concerns me is the long-term social impact of the demise of movie theatres. No longer interacting in large social groups is bound to somehow change our society, though we might not see its effects for many years. Whatever becomes lacking in our social interactions, though, will likely sprout out somewhere else. The rise of "urban tribes", for instance, is a direct result of no longer having a strong (and nearby) extended family.

A WORLD WITHOUT MOVIE THEATERS
by Chris Gore
(2006-08-15)

Imagine a world without movie theaters.

No multiplexes. No arthouses. No way to communally experience a film.

That day may be coming sooner than you think. Each year theatrical box office receipts decline as the DVD becomes the preferred method for audiences to watch movies. And coming up just on the horizon is movies available for download — which may eventually become the way we all watch films. (”Eventually” meaning once the major studios choose a piracy prevention method that they can all agree upon as well as a cost per download structure acceptable to consumers.)

If the music industry is any indicator, the film industry will soon follow into the download zone. CD sales dropped 7% last year as downloads on iTunes increased. (Itunes passed the one billion music download mark a while back.) Tower Records recently announced that they are closing all of their stores and filing for bankruptcy. This shouldn’t surprise anyone as their entire business is built primarily on sales of CDs, which are declining far more rapidly than many are willing to admit.

Where did all the people go... they’re busy downloading.

In response to these trends, a recent LA Times story has stirred up a bit of controversy. The piece entitled “Far Removed From the Multiplex” by John Horn, asserts that teenagers would rather watch films on their computers than go to the movies. And who can blame them? Going to the movies is expensive (you can buy about two DVDs for the price of one evening at the movies) and the experience is more often miserable due to the increasing number of bad movies, endless commercials and annoying patrons. The piece brings up some interesting facts from a recent survey including:

Nearly half (47%) of respondents ages 12 to 17 say they would watch a movie on a PC, well above the interest in doing the same on a cellphone (11%) or video iPod and similar devices (18%). A similar share of those 21 to 24 said they would watch movies on a computer, although they are much less willing to do the same on a cellphone (6%) or video iPod (7%).

The distaste for the multiplex accelerates as children become young adults; 44% of those ages 21 to 24 are seeing fewer films. The Times/Bloomberg poll findings mirror a recent study by the Motion Picture Assn. of America, which found an even sharper drop-off over a five-year span.

It’s a fascinating read and the industry will have to pay attention or suffer the fate of Tower Records. Read the entire piece on the LA Times site or, if you have trouble getting to the site, I’ve included the entire piece in Film Threat's Blog section.