Madison Burge and I executive produced The Substitute, a short film staring Lorelei Linklater based upon a story of the same name by David Lubar, five years ago this April.  While I managed to secure locations, cast and crew, nothing would have occurred if Kat Candler had not skillfully guided the pre-production of the film so we were actually prepared when filming started.  Looking back, I remember the production was filled with countless educational moments since it was my first film set to manage; however, perhaps because we were so young and enthusiastic about filmmaking, the set was filled positive energy and general excitement.  Bootler, the film's director, also helped matters by making certain everyone achieved his particular artistic vision.

Our film was never submitted to film festivals due to copyright laws, but it was uploaded to YouTube; during the last five years it has reached nearly 17,000 views.  I am still impressed with the overall quality of the film, because the average age on the set was 14 or 15-years-old.  Although I could continue my praise, I hope you will discern your own opinion by watching the movie below.

-M

        I enjoyed visiting with my friends and family in Austin over the past few weeks, and I regret there wasn't time enough for me to see all of them.  It seems like no matter how long I spend in Austin, I always want more time spent here.  As usual, I love the abundance of delicious local restaurants within a few miles of my parent's house; new to this winter was my appreciation of the warmer weather and Austin's array of movie theaters.  I had a fantastic time celebrating both Christmas and Hanukkah in December, and I loved being able to supervise the completion of TIM after a lengthy editing process.  I also enjoyed the time off from school that allowed me to catch up on some of my favorite television shows.
       As I sat writing this post, I looked around at the bedroom I used to consider home.  Since I am leaving early tomorrow morning to return to a room I have lived in for the past few months, I have difficulty knowing which room is really my home.  I guess they are both my home in their own way; one to house memories and one to house the present.  (The really weird part is that one day they will both house memories.  Spooky.)
        At times it seems like I just left home to attend TCU, but in all reality I am preparing for my second semester at Mizzou.  As such, I find it hard to believe half a year has passed since I started my education there.  This isn't to say that I haven't enjoyed my time there, which I most certainly have, but rather commentary about how my life is always stuck in lightspeed.
        However, time has been moving slow enough for my family to adjust to having two adult offspring in college.  Perhaps the most significant sign is that my parents and I are getting better at making college road trips, because my car is already packed for tomorrow's drive.  (For reference, I remember throwing everything into my dad's car a few hours before I was supposed to check into my residence hall at TCU.)  We even have enough room to transport some items for my next door neighbor Will, who also attends Mizzou.  This was worth mentioning because I excel at packing unnecessary items, like 10 pairs of shoes or all of my writing materials.  (Okay, my parents are fine at packing a car with all of my college items; I am the one who needs some improvement.)        
        Fortunately, this is only my second year of college, so I have more time to enjoy my stay in the Midwest.  While Mizzou recognizes my academic standing as that of a "Junior," I prefer to use the Canadian term "Second Year" since I will spend four years working on my undergraduate degree.  Hypothetically this differentiation could alleviate confusion that I will graduate next spring.        
        My goal for this semester is furthering the relationships I made last semester and to join more organizations on campus, which will conceivably help with the formation of other friendships.  I also plan to submit TIM to numerous film festivals over the next few months, so I will keep everyone updated on whether it is accepted anywhere. (While I have made numerous short films, I have yet to submit my own work to a film festival.) Yes, I realize this post could seem boring in comparison to other entries of mine, but I felt like starting the year off on an honest note.
         -M

Today's Image from the Set, which features the majority of TIM's cast and crew, was taken by my wonderful producer Katya, who runs Ekaterina Photography.  Please check out my Facebook page to view the remainder of her pictures.

-M

Filming for The Innocent Maleficent, referred to as TIM on set, ended yesterday afternoon.  I am very thankful for the amazing performances given, and all of the hard work my crew put into making this film look spectacular.  I had the best cast and crew on set these past few days, and hopefully I will have the opportunity to work with all of them again.  Since we are now entering post-production, and I feel that this step should be marked by something special, below is the second official image from the set.

-M

Production for The Innocent Maleficent began this afternoon.  Below is the first of many images I will release in conjunction with filming.

-M

I started pre-production for my latest film, The Innocent Maleficent, last Monday.  While there is not much to reveal at this point, I can happily boast that an awesome team is being assembled.  We plan to shoot in July, so I will be posting updates about script rewrites, technical rehearsals and casting the actors, in the upcoming weeks.  However, if you really want to feel like a part of the production, make sure to check my Twitter page.  

-M

Within the last few days, the number of people looking at this website has dramatically increased.  While I am not complaining about the increase in online traffic, I am not sure why this is happening.  I just wish people would feel comfortable commenting on my blog posts.  (Ahem.)

Anyways, I know I have been sharing a lot of YouTube videos lately, but this next one is from The Mason Show!  

Yes, this episode is goofy, but I am too.  I am proud of its length, because as anyone who watched Decorating with Mason could state, I've had difficulty fitting information into short, digestible videos.  

Not to place any pressure on the gentle and innocent reader, but if the view count goes up for this video, or any others of mine, I might consider creating new videos... 

-M

The first trailer for "X-Men: First Class" was released through the new X-Men Movies Facebook page this afternoon.  Besides being a clever way to promote their social networking advertisement campaign, the trailer showed the first glimpse of the upcoming film.  Below is the trailer.

Having enjoyed reading the early comics from the 1960s, I think the film has a lot of potential.  The storylines from that era focused more on the group of mutants, as opposed to Wolverine (who is noticeably absent from this film).  If that hasn't sold you, consider that the director behind "First Class," Matthew Vaughn, wrote and directed "Stardust" and "Kick-Ass."  Also, check out the film's IMDB page to see the list of talented individuals who will grace the screen at some point during the film. 

Yet, why was none of this addressed in the trailer?  Granted it is just under two minutes, yet the trailer is relying upon the already established X-Men cinematic universe.  The studio must be worried audiences won't recognize the franchise they fell in love with, but isn't the entire point of setting the film in the past with new actors to start the franchise over?  Perhaps the studio executives are forgetting that X-Men was a comic book and television show before a film series. While I am still excited to see the finished result, it might be time for a new marketing campaign. 

-M

Pixar Studios has posted an "It Gets Better" video.  While it joins the growing list of "celebrity" videos expressing the same message, this one seems to have genuine heart.   Those interviewed are average people who happen to work for a large company, and are using this to reach out to their audience in a time of need.  None of them are separated by their status within the company, and they appear to have no alternative motives for speaking.  Overall, I think Pixar did a good job of putting this morality issue in perspective.  Plus, it was nice to see Pixar's message of hope coming from real life lips for once.       

-M