k-town

first thing: it's freaking cold in kelowna.

second thing: i'm having a blast filming the good ladyhawk dudes. they are sincerely nice guys who like to fart infront of each other and ban the use of the phrase "it's all good"

also, it doesn't feel like work at all. it's about a 15 hour day for us since we gotta get up early to download tapes onto our computer in the morning and then get to the recording space by 11am, leave around 10:30pm, then stay up until about midnight to transfer more tape, and debrief.

we ended up using two Canon XL1s instead of the A1s because the rental place didn't get their A1s in time. at first we thought it would be cool because the XL1s are twice the price of the A1s but they're also twice the weight and bulk. they are waaay too heavy for doc filming.

but i gotta run, i'm stealing some wifi from a computer store (i'm parked directly infront of the store).

off to kelowna

okay kids, we're off to kelowna this morning-ish for the ladyhawk doc. here's a list of the more interesting items we're bringing:
/our computer (so we can download footage)
/our own blankets and pillows
/lots of fleece (it's 4 degrees there, brrrrrr)
/two rented HD cameras with tripods, fig rig
/energy bars and red bull-type drinks
/70 minidv tapes
/patience for 6 and 4 year olds (we're staying with rob's sister and her kids have historically made me mental)

time to go pickup the HD cameras. take care of vancouver while we're gone.

lunar new year party

the dumplings were eaten as fast as i could make them. thank goodness i made some backup. we had filmmaker friends, friends from my work and other good friends. there were 3 kids total that came. one 4 year old brought me a homemade red lantern that i taped to the buzzer intercom to let people know which buzzer to press.

the biggest compliment was when ken said our place looked like a chinese brothel. nice, ken. nice.

the first guest arrived at 3:10pm and the last guest left at 10:20pm.
200 dumplings were consumed.

thank you to everyone who showed up. it was a blast. well, it certainly looked like a blast from my perch in the kitchen.

twas the night before the party

well, just yesterday. here's the scoop:

1/ the second large burner on the stove doesn't work AND the switch for the right side of the stove top burnt out. freak out time. i decide to put on my DIY home fix-it hat and go to the appliance place and pickup a new element socket and switch. see first picture above. i get behind the stove, unscrew the entire back plate, unhook all the connectors and put in the new switch.

2/ busy working on the audio post-production on ken's latest PSA. at one point both rob and ken are on their respective laptops in the livingroom. see second picture. somehow i convince ken that my sound work doesn't need a lot of tweaking. luckily, he hadn't slept in like 2 days and couldn't tell.

preparations

sunday afternoon was spent making some pork dumplings. here they are in neat little rows right before i put them into the freezer. these will be 'backup' dumplings in case i run out on saturday.

i hope you all can make it. it'll be swell.

:::: __ ...

in other news, we found out at work that one of our coworker's son (24yr old) passed away after a vehicle accident. it was pretty quiet around the proverbial office cooler after that.

i'm gonna visit my dad and my brother and his family tonight. i'll give my nephew a big hug since my family isn't a huggy bunch.

oh my fuck

let me set this up:
due to a restructuring of the bedroom, my head now lies 3 inches away from the shared wall with my neighbour's livingroom wall. i'd like to fire the architect that dreamed up this little arrangement.

for the past 2 nights, at precisely 2:30am, i've been awakened by the sound of my neighbour's low-based music/video game.

on saturday night, he was definitely listening to some first nations drumming special on the tube. i've heard/seen him in his car listening to the drumming at full blast.

then, last night, it sounded more like a car that was revving then pausing, then revving up again.

the sound (aka noise) would go on for an hour.

as i was half awake and half asleep, i envisioned myself writing a little note to the neighbour saying:

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
hi there.
i live next door to you. unfortunately, we live in a crappy building where the architect decided to put my bedroom wall against your livingroom wall. poor planning, i say.

you've been a great neighbour since you moved in last year. your kids are sweet and your wife seems lovely.

however, for the past 2 nights, i've been awakened at 2:30am by the sound of someone watching tv or listening to music. now, i can tell that the sound is turned down and i'm appreciative. thank you. but because the building was cheaply built, i was still able to hear the noise.

would i be able to kindly ask you to turn it down just a bit more?

appreciatively yours,
#111
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

we've all been there, haven't we?

holy shite, i'm done with the wedding video

it is finished.

just borrowing a little quote from everyone's favourite personal saviour to announce that: hell, yes, the wedding video is complete.
finito.
over, and out.

in fact, i can't even go back and touch anything up because rob just trashed all the files (except for a few that we need for samples).

here's a smattering of factoids on this project:
300 GB of memory
80 hours of editing for me
40 hours of editing for rob
18 miniDV tapes
18 hours (7am-11:30pm) of coverage on the wedding day
4 months of editing
4 hours of a "long" version of the wedding
several aspect ratio problems
2 cameras
1 one hour highlights video edit
1 dead pixel on 1 camera
1 tear-filled evening for me

YES, i am celebrating with a glass of gewurztraminer given to us from ken t.

time to bring on the other projects.

PS - we've got our fav graphic/web designer working on a wedding video website for us. it should be done in a month's time.

holy shit, i'm in love

i was innocently walking past the sally ann on my way to purchasing groceries at donald's market (nanaimo and hastings) when i noticed this pair of yellow chairs.

i automatically walked to them. i sat on them. then, i had to buy them.

we have no room for them but i decided i didn't care. they're too cute to pass up. i got them snuggled between the couch and the tv cabinet in this photo.

and, they were $20 each. total steal.

progress

we're very close to finishing our first wedding video.

we're now doing some QA on all the footage. it feels good. very good. but so good i feel that i deserve a reward. which is bad. bad for the credit card. especially since we're gonna spend a good chunk for the ladyhawk doc.

places i absolutely must stay away from include: smoking lily (clothing store) and the cross (home furnishings store).

which means i'll put all that spoil-myself-energy into buying extravagant groceries at capers. $5 muffins anyone?

the cool kids like us

rob and i just (as in just 30 mins ago) came back from a meeting with one of our favourite local indie bands: ladyhawk. in said meeting, the kids gave us permission to film the recording of their second album in kelowna.

here's the production schedule:
Feb 20-28: film recording sessions in Kelowna
Mar 1-2: film mix session at The Hive
Mar 3: film first concert on tour at Vancouver's Plaza
Mar 5: begin editing
Apr 14: film last concert on tour at the Legion Hall in Tofino

to say i'm excited is to understate my feelings. i love this band. the songs off their first album made me love rock. no joke.

i can't wait to go into work and ask for time off.

kin

i just noticed that i have all these photos of babies right infront of my monitor which is quite the irony due to my decision to be child-free.

in other baby news, my brother is taking my cute 18 month old nephew to calgary for work. i'm in serious mourning over this. first my mom gallops off to taiwan and now my brother.

which brings me to the LATEST BREAKING NEWS.....
last night, as i'm driving my dad home from my brother's house, i ask him
me: what have you been doing dad? renovations, walking, exercising?
dad: i've been healing people
me: uh, what?
dad: i can heal people with qi gong.
me: really? when did you start this?
dad: a couple of weeks ago.

of freaking course i gotta let him do his qi gong hand motioning stuff on me. he declares that i have a sore back and am tired but am generally very fit. this is all true.

let me sum up:
mom - chinese christian radio broadcaster in taiwan
dad - qi gong healer in vancouver
bro - making lots of dough in calgary
me - pleased that my family can still amaze me

interesting conversations

5 filmmakers standing in the kitchen talking about films they love and hate. 3 women and 2 men. they've been trying to leave the house for the past hour but the conversation is too good to make their legs move towards the door.

it becomes a free association of films and expressions of likes and dislikes as each one is pronounced. films mentioned include: dogville, the fountain, children of men, code 46, farewell my concubine, and even talladega nights.

suddenly and without any yellow alert to help the wayward prepare, somebody says: "can you imagine a world without the beatles? it's going to happen. and it'll be sad when it does." there's mention of how we aren't killing the earth and that we're only kiling ourselves. and also that humans won't be here in a million years.

we are now into geopolitics and the quiet one in the corner speaks up: "no one knows what's going to happen when you mess with dna."

but i'm still 'in pause' over the beatles comment. thing is... i am not a beatles fan. but the verocity of the statement somehow has made raw and bright the idea of our existential existence. that our lives are so short. that human existence is short.

bummer.

french cooking and horror shorts

this week just flew by and i can't even blame it on non-stop wedding video editing in the evenings. there just seemed to be something urgent and important to do every night.

for instance, on tuesday night, rob and i had over H who can never make it our parties because she works every weekend evening. but she's been such a positive light in our lives that we wanted to do something extra special for her.

so i cooked up 3 recipes from the cookbook she gave us for christmas. the cookbook is a tome of actual dishes you can order from the premier french bistro restaurant in vancouver. well, actually the restaurant is located in west vancouver.

here's what i made in 2 hours:
1/ french onion soup
2/ lemon confit with chicken
3/ lamb ragout with dried apricots and pistachios
4/ couscous

it's no wonder that our little condo smelled delicious that night. i was pretty happy with the outcome considering i had never before cooked french cuisine or lamb.

THEN, on thursday night, we were summoned by special request by terry m (of yumi) to attend his cast & crew screening of his first horror short shot a mere 6 days prior. i was really impressed by the cinematography, the acting and the direction.

terry made a 3 min version for a website. you can check it out here:
http://www.filmaka.com/watchvideo.asp?id=241

SO, i've made it to another weekend and i'm back at the wedding video editing. i'm gonna get it 90% done this weekend. so help me god.

.... .... ....
here's the recipe for the french onion soup. i was suprised by how easy it was to make. use the best ingredients and you can't go wrong. also, i accidently bought smoked gouda but it tasted awesome anyways.

AKED FRENCH ONION SOUP (GRATINEE A L'OIGNON)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
4 large yellow onions, minced
8 cups chicken stock
1 stale baguette
24 fine slices Gruyere cheese
Makes 6 servings

In a wide, heavy-bottomed pot, melt the butter at medium-low heat and saute the onions for 15 minutes or until they're lightly coloured. Pour the stock over the onions, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
Slice the baguette into 1/4-inch slices and grill on both sides under the broiler until golden.
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Place the croutons in individual ovenproof soup crocks and cover with 2 slices of cheese. Ladle the soup on top and add the remaining croutons and 2 slices of cheese on top. Place the crocks on a baking sheet and bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese on top is crispy.