just give me one thing that i can hold on to.

There's something great about two people connecting on screen. It can be at it's most powerful when it's done without words - or sometimes even more so when it's done through music, in some way.

This moment in 'Into The Wild' is my favourite part of the film, if not any film. Chris McCandless has been on his journey into the wild, full of these ideas and ideals of his place in the world-- and then he meets this girl. And he's passing through, and she's falling for him.. and as it turns out, they're not meant to be together. But for this one minute, as they sing this song -- they have more of a connection than most of us have in a lifetime. And it's moment like this that really leave me in awe at the true power of the cinema.

"Just give me one thing, that I can hold on to

To believe in this living is just a hard way to go"

-Written By John Prine

Care to share?

Tweet

Are Dreams Like Movies?

My dreams are a lot like movies. Badly written and often with terrible endings. Frustratingly, I am cast in most of them but have yet to receive a paycheck. I often feel like one of those over-worked silent film stars, made to shoot three films a day with actors who are vastly inferior to me.

One of the disappointing things in recent years has been how my imagination has often done remakes of old favourites. One of my best dreams was from 1999, the one where I fly to the shops to kiss Meg Ryan but get stuck in one place, unable to finish the journey. Annoyingly, it was remade in 2008, with me in the lead role again but this time with Hilary Clinton as the woman. This was bad enough, but two nights later I had the same dream again but Hilary was replaced by Albert Frickley, my local priest.

I feel as if maybe the funding for script development was cut in recent years, as my recent dreams have not been up to the standard of the previous classics. For example, last night I dreamt I was just waiting in line for ice cream. It lasted two hours. When I finally got to the front of the line, an elephant asked me why I dress like a cowboy. I told him I don't so he stole my money and made me wear a dress. I felt this was vastly unrealistic but I feel my complaints were not received well as the next night, as if by punishment, I had a dream that lasted for three hours. And it was a musical. And it was in Russian with no subtitles. This wouldn't have been so bad if they had not been out of popcorn.

My dreams are often stressful as, even though I broke up with Kate Nosefall two years ago, she still turns up in my dreams almost nightly. The plus side you may say is that at least these dreams are X-rated; but unfortunately I have no joy in watching my ex-girlfriend in bed with my local Priest.

Are your dreams like movies?

Care to share?

Tweet

An In Depth Analysis Of The Golden Globe Awards 2010.

Avatar. Really?

Care to share?

Tweet

Film Industry Interviews

The good thing about working in film is that anything you want to do - has probably been done by someone else before. And that's why I love interviewing people in the industry. If there's something you want to achieve, there are people you can learn from who've been there and done it.

I try to mix technical questions, like "What camera did you use?" with more personal questions, like "What made you want to do this for a living?" --- and most importantly, I like to try and delve into that mysterious thing that makes some people succeed, and some people not. I think it was most clear in the recent interview with David Schneider. I asked him what people need to make it as a writer; and within a beat of me finishing the question he said "self belief." And it's true - ask someone who is struggling to make it and they'll probably have a tale of a lack of confidence or a feeling of 'not being ready.'

These are the interviews so far - and a lot more are lined up for the coming months. I hope you like them.

Jake Pushinsky

FILM EDITOR

"A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints"

"Fighting"

"Howl"

My first interview was one of my favourites - Jake Pushinsky, whose editing style in 'A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints" (my favourite film of the last decade) was original, raw and exciting. He's Dito Montiel's editor - as well as doing some fascinating projects like the Jazz documentary "Chops" and the film "Howl" which is premiering this year at Sundance.

READ JAKE PUSHINSKY INTERVIEW HERE

Aaron Sorkin

SCREENWRITER

"A Few Good Men"
"The American President"

"The West Wing" (TV)

"Charlie Wilson's War"

Okay, I don't really know Aaron and it wasn't an interview, as such - but I got to ask him one question, and his answer was pretty amazing.

READ AARON SORKIN INTERVIEW HERE

Noah Timan

SOUND MIXER

"Capote"

"Awake"

"Fantastic Mr. Fox"

Noah is amazing - his knowledge of sound and passion for what he does is incredible, it's no wonder he's one of the most prolific sound guys in the industry.

READ NOAH TIMAN INTERVIEW HERE

David Schneider

WRITER

"All The Queen's Men"

"Uncle Max" (TV)

ACTOR

"28 Days Later"

"I'm Alan Partridge" (TV)

One of my favourite comedic actors from Britain -- and someone with whom I share a lot of the same interests (namely, an obsession over Woody Allen films.) The interview is great because we spoke the same language and had many of the same ideas.

READ DAVID SCHNEIDER INTERVIEW HERE

Joe Leonard

WRITER/DIRECTOR

"How I Got Lost"

EDITOR

"Glee"

Joe's debut feature film is exactly the type of film I love. A small story with a lot of heart, shot in New York. What could be better than that? I got to meet Joe at the Big Apple Film Festival when 'How I Got Lost' closed the festival - but this interview was done a few months before that. A fascinating insight into what it is to direct a low-budget indie.

READ JOE LEONARD INTERVIEW HERE

Care to share?

Tweet

Reclaiming Life.

I'm gonna slow down on the posting front for a bit. My thirteen year old cousin recently said to me, having seen my DVD's, posters, and lifestyle -- he said, "you're just one big film really, aren't you." That says it all really.

The good thing about being a Director is that, when you complete a film, you have the opportunity to let it do your work for you for a few months. As your film gets accepted at a few festivals - exhibited in various places, and you push it around online, too - things tick over, you appear productive. This, if you're wise, is an opportunity to experience some other things in this wonderful opportunity known as life. If you're dumb, like me, you get straight back to writing and planning your next shoot.

I'm returning to the living, for a while. But I'll be around.

Meanwhile, I'd love to have some guest bloggers - particularly if they have some fun stories about being a Kid In The Front Row, something about the innocent joy of the cinema. So if you write anything, please email me.

Care to share?

Tweet