Friday, August 26, 2005

It's been CHAOS around here...


8/25/05
Holy schnikies.

Toooo long since I last wrote...honestly, I've been so busy as of late. My apologies. For the most part, its been a wild and crazy ride with some cool shit on the horizon. With the help of my ical, I'll recap...IN REVERSE!!!

Aug 22-26 - This past week...pretty low profile I guess...handed in a treatment for a video I really hope to get...shot with the Ying Yang Twins (?!?) but the major highlight was seeing CHAOS on the big screen with some friends and it was truly an "experience". There aren't too many films anymore that elicit a visceral response out of people like the good ole days of Grindhouse and William Castle-inspired antics (Shock-O-Rama!!! Barf bags handed out!!) but this film is a true successor to exploitation from the 70's heyday of LAST HOUSE (which it obviously ripped off) and I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE....as Aaron quipped, it's the true "Feel good film of the summer!"; it makes a great double bill with MUST LOVE DOGS....

Oh, and "Grizzly Adams Joe" that you see there?....the beard was cool but just getting too "high maintenence"...when I found that half-eaten cookie in the bush, it was time to go. Enjoy the above picture though...

Friday, Aug 19th - Im on myspace now...took me long enough but I finally got to filling it in and rocking out in cyberspace among the lookie-loos and Rupert Murdoch...enjoy me at the link here (I'll be putting these blogs on there too...sorry but gotta share the wealth)

Thursday Aug 17th- Made my "mission statement" to the producer of a beloved film's remake in the works...hope he likes my spin on things...and I gotta get the feature script done. My buddy Luke, a real mate and fellow filmmaker, is pushing me hard to get it done so we can make it low, fast, dirty and awesome. I couldn't agree more....

-Sunday, Aug 14th...Saw ARISTOCRATS with AP Murray, my sound gy at G4 and a fucking hell of a musician...we had a fucking blast of a time and I really want to film my own interpretation of the joke for the DVD (watch the credits for details)...it was great

-Friday, Aug 12th- Cool article/Interview on the videos i did for DevilDriver was posted on Mvwire.com...check it out here.

Kinda crazy reading an abridged version of a conversation...dunno if it sounds like me but fuck if I aint grateful for the experience and I LOVE MVwire so its pretty badass. Thanks Will...
http://mvwire.com/dynamic/article_view.asp?AID=11288

-Thursday, Aug 11th...saw one of my favorite bands play out again...BOY HITS CAR...if you dont know them, you should...and you will more, if i dont have something to say about that. Well they broke up a few years back much to my dismay, but now are reformed and from what I witnessed at the Key Club (my first time there, natch), they were stronger and more musically tuned than ever. I first saw them with The ORIGINAL line up for drowning pool at the now defunct Wetlands in NYC and was blown away; I got their album and it quickly became my morning queens-to-Manhattan commute soundtrack for months. Now, I've been talking to Scott, the bassist (who is also a veteran in the voice over industry) about doing a video (when they were on Wind Up Records I tried valiantly to do a video with them but got upstaged...again...story of my life it seemed)and I think its gonna happen. Cross yer pubes, matey, because when I get to work with a band I truly love (which luckily, has been many of the bands I've been working with recently) dark & beautiful magic is conjured. Anyway, they were amazing live and I couldn't recommend a live band more...their music is called "Lovecore" and is like an uplifting blend of angst and positive rage, and watching them play out is like the opening moments of SAVING PRIVATE RYAN in its intensity....they rock cocks...

Do I love or loathe The Andy Milonakis show? Let me ask my self further while i try to pry that infectiously stupid theme song out of my head...

-Monday, Aug 8th -Got to work with Yukko The Clown in front of Grauman's Chinese among the Spider-Mans, the Elvises and Michael Jackson devotees...that fucking clown was hilarious!


Aug 7-3 - My trip to St. Loius & Chicago....pretty fucking awesome. We shot some dude's car getting trik'd out on G4's dime and at night had a blast with A.P. & Big C, the host of Street Fury...one night we went to this underground club with the Kim, th PR rep for G4 and got smashed (rare for me)...good times. Then Chicago...first started out pretty shitty as we arrived late in town and didn't have enough rooms for all the crew. So, AP and I shacked up together with memories of PLANES, TAINS & AUTOMOBILES ("those arent pillows!") danced in our heads...dont worry there were two beds. The next day we shot at the Formula D drifting show and it was long, hot, but fun as hell. The boss from G4 was there, as well as Josh one of my good buddies from back in the Pseudo days in NY who oversees the Formula D show on G4, so it was all in all a fun day. day.BackThe boos was nice enough to take us to dinner, which was high end and delicious, and then we went out further...and further...and further...till Big C and I stumbled back in the hotel, backlit heavily from the dawn's sunrise rays from off the lake. Back up 2 hours late to pack and catch a flight home...G4 work shoots are great (Tokyo here I come) but exhausting...

Man I gotta update more...this is taking forever...

Monday, Aug 1st - Holy shit. Bri and I went to the Drive in for a double feature of CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY & WAR OF THE WORLDS...it was such a blast of nostalgia; even Banzai got to come and watch! I wish we had a bigger car but overall it really took me back to the days of seeing THE BEASTMASTER, INDIANA JONES & THE TEMPLE OF DOOM, GREMLINS, THE BLACK HOLE, NEVERENDING STORY, KARATE KID, SUPERMAN 4 & many more...I love the Drive In and cant wait to make THE OZONERS someday (hopefully) soon.

July 25th- Got to program the CRAZIEST double feature ever...I had to catch up on a few dvd's that people lent me out. First, CHAOS...second, HUSTLE AND FLOW. This was the first time i saw CHAOS and it was "effective" if there was praise to be given the film at all. It made me sick. Twice. That's no small feat, I'm telling you. HUSTLE was great, and a decent decompression from the nipple ripping and anal rape from the previous film. Check out more about CHAOS here:
IMDB: http://imdb.com/title/tt0405977
The best review I read for it:
Ebert vs. Chaos:
film's website: www.onlyamovie.com

NOTE: Im not endorsing this movie...its pretty horrible in the acting and script department, although the lead character played by Kevin Gage (who was also disturbing as Waingro in HEAT) was really fucking scary. If you like your horror really horrible, I recommend you check it out...sick fucker.

July 20-23: Off to Baltimore for the first of the Street Fury shoots...was pretty cool and I got to really give my PSP a whirl, kicking the other gamers ass royally in RIDGE RACER. God damn Im good. Baltimore was good but because we were out there I was going to miss SOUNDS OF THE UNDERGROUND coming to LA that friday and I had to meet up with both STRAPPING YOUNG LAD's guys and DEVILDRIVER...so i get into LAX at 1am and then Bri, Banzai & I drive 6 hours to Mountain View (a few miles from santa Cruz) to see the show...which was AMAZING. DevilDriver put on a killer tight set, Strapping solidified themselves as one of my favorite bands live (Devin Townsend is Metal's Court Jester/Dr. Dre) and seeing GWAR douse an entire crowd in fake blood in 100 degree weather was a sight to behold. Seeing all the guys again was great too, then we spent the night in Santa Cruz which rocked...for not sleeping for 2 days, it was a memorable weekend.

July 13th: Went to the Playboy Mansion and shook Hef's hand (soft...); nuff said. Check out the picture of me in the Grotto on my myspace photos...

OK I can't think anymore its killing my brain. I hope I was detailed enough and Im sorry it's been so long so now that Im "myspacing"...I promise to keep things up to date more soon...yeah right.

Staying Scary,
Joe