Crunch Time

It's that time of the year when I'm expected to have ideas for my thesis left and right. It's a lot of pressure because this idea I'm supposed to have will determine the next year of my life. It's that big of a deal. It's exciting, but it scares the hell out of me because I need to come back in a couple of ideas showing my concepts.

But that's all I need. I need a seed. Over the next few months I'll water that seed until it becomes a fully realized script.

I've spent the last couple of weeks really trying not to think about thesis, but my mind can't help but dwell on it. It consumes me in a lot of ways. What path do I want to take? What kind of film do I want to make? Will this film style determine the style I work on for the rest of my career? What will my classmates think and will they want to work with me?

Here's some seeds:

A 10 minute play I wrote last year titled "Red White and Blue: or Kraut-Killer". It received big laughs when I had a stage reading of it last year. It's something I really enjoy and I still think it's one of the best things I've written. It's a WWII film that follows two US soldiers who are lost in France in 1944. It's completely absurd and over the top, but to me it's still poignant, showing two different views on war. And that's why I love it because some people will think its mocking patriotism, while others will think it's encouraging exaggerated patriotism. It's definitely a story that I think I could make very well and get a good reaction from. It's risky though. Some undertones connect our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to our war with Germany/Japan/Axis powers. Also it has a ton of cussing. But that's where a lot of the humor comes from. It's not realistic. It's language for comedic effect. Also I have to think about the ultimate cost of making a film like this would be. But for now I have to throw those thoughts out the window because if I sit here and dwell on logistics it hinders the creative process.

Other seeds I have aren't as developed but still sink into my heart. I would love to make a romantic move. Aqualung's "Pressure Suit" comes to mind. A true romance is something that's incredibly hard to pull off in a short film format. But I would love to tackle maybe not the who development of a relationship, but maybe just a segment. A specific struggle, then forgiveness, and reconciliation. I don't know.

Another idea that comes to mind is a psychological thriller type of film. Some of my favorite filmmakers are masters of this and I'm drawn to this style very much. I've never done a thriller film myself nor attempted to write anything like that. But I'm willing to explore all opportunities.

To be honest a lot of my inspiration comes back to the prairie and small town living. It's always been a passion of mine to someday make a film in Nebraska. I think simply living there and driving on its open roads gives me a lot of inspiration. It seems silly but it's true. I think it's because when I'm there, there's little to no distraction. I can be in silence and think. Time to think is a very underrated activity in our culture nowadays. My brain needs time to process events. Sometimes just sitting in my room doing nothing can be the best remedy. Emily can probably confirm this. She'll walk in and I'll just be sitting there. I probably am just a creep.

Oh well, so that's where my mind is right now. If you have any ideas or story suggestions, please feel free to shoot me a message. We aren't require to write these on our own.