UPDATES: Work, life, film & fun!

Funny that. Everything in life is leading me down this “filmy” path, project after project, work after work, initiative after the next, all related to film. Interesting enough, everything comes in very good timing. The topic for the past few days were communication. Something I learnt from seeing other people deal with issues, in particular to paranoia and also what the repercussions can happen when one fails to speak up out of fear and uncertainty.

I learnt this: When you don't keep people informed, you can get one of three things: rumor, apathy, or revolution." - Thomas. Jefferson.

Life on the “Once Upon A Time in Cabramatta”: Its been a huge learning curve. Understanding how film and television in Australia operates, what protocols are in place and pushing my human nature ESP (intuition) a bit further to understand and detect dynamics that go beyond the tip of the iceberg. 

I’m assigned to it till October this year and this has open doors for me in connecting this the Vietnamese community on a different scale; with people whom I would naturally not meet and to cross paths with some fascinating insights to how my community has come to be.

Day in, day out, there’s lots of reading, emailing, researching, discussions, planning, and at times, bugging the execs and production team with fleeting info that somehow assists with something. 

Another thing, its not your average 9-5 kind of gig. Not the kind where you’re praying for the clock to tick faster; more like grappling with the time brakes just to do just one more task. I discovered a knack I have; researching. I seem to love connecting the dots, finding the synergies and looking for connections to fill the question void.

Life on the “Quest”: If I had any more steam, it would go into here and on the existing weekends. The whole project is trickling along and I’m taking my sweet as time in creating that ideal film environment that my film crew can be a part of. Its more than the product, it’s the experience and I’m enjoying the juggling process of matching new crew with the existing old members.

Life on Film Club/ Digital Series: What started out as another small idea has snowballed in weekly get togethers at the local youth space, watching and critiquing movies and now in full throttle to run a year long series of digital media and arts workshop training sessions.

I’m glad that it has gone down this path, one reason is that the skills learnt by the steering committee can be transferred onto newcomers and the cycle of inspired filmmakers, content makers and activists continues beyond me. Personally, I have an inkling feeling that in 12 months I’m heading to build bridges internationally and don’t want to leave an empty void. There’s got to a band of go getters, can-do thinkers who have a deep connection to their roots and their community. 

People who are empowered to charge on to be the future creative leaders of this country. With time, then they will join me by walking over the international gateway.

I leave on this note that Anna Chen commented on my facebook the other day: MADE MY DAY: Visionaries are important. They subvert the paradigm and prove alternative worlds can be possible, not only possible but GREAT! - Anna Chen

Life for fun: Still related to filmmaking or photography. Especially when describing my last FILM CLUB excursion (yes....cringe people....I make everything a "learning curve"). Myself and a bandwagon of Western Sydney Ethnic goons headed up to the 2011 Imaging and Entertainment Expo @ Sydney Convention Centre. In the midst of eyeballing camera gear that we can never afford and that are too heavy to steal, we entered the Nikon competition with our artistic deadpan "planking" photo. 

Its like something from a scary movie

Wise cracks: David Minh Tam Nguyen captures a moment of truth

Finally, a normal photo

UPDATES: "Quest"

Loads of work whirring at lightning speed and its been quite a funky challenge. I spent the last 10 days renovating my new little Quest for Jackie Chan! office (back of mum's bakery) with loads of painting, cleaning, moving and building things to accommodate the ever growing film project paper work, props, and large wardrobe and collection of wigs.

The next few days I'll be decking it our with white boards, pin ups, signage and of course, doing the final cast call outs for one major acrobatic fight display that I've written into the film.

There's definitely growing interest amongst the film community and once I've locked down who's who, then I can start pairing them up working in different scenes of the movie project.

To add to the transmedia experience, those who are in on the bandwagon are encouraged to develop their own voice through blogging, photologging, vlogging and other social media components. Just simply being an actor or a camera operator is not enough. For those who think I need them and my call out for talent is exploitation, well, I guess they are not visionary enough to see the bigger picture; and so I won't be able to accommodate them.

My priority isn't meeting Jackie Chan (even though he is one of the most awesome person in the world), but to test my own will, push the boundaries and most importantly, seeking likeminded individuals and groups, that I will want to work with in future. So far, in my journeys, its been full of friggin' rocks, but I believe without them, I would of still been in my little snail shell, twiddling my thumbs and just doing whatever.

But at this moment in my life, juggling 3 jobs at once, waking up 8am and finishing at 3am (I feel like I'm going to die sometimes), I feel the drive, I feel the inner venture, I crave to watch, to be inspired by every little thing in life and bit by bit, discover other hidden talents that will join me on my journey of making as EPIC a no-budget production can ever be.

I must admit, I have been very short fused though. Less waffly, but yet less tolerant of waffly people. I've had a string of people who articulate on wanting to be an actor and/or filmmaker who keep saying they don't have the time. Or the classic, "I just want to make it" scenario. That is simply way too vague and does not amount to anything. Hence, I've been spending heaps of alone time and of course, there's work at ICE.

In the last two months, I've been so privileged to have worked with Yassin Alsalman (Aka "The Narcicyst") and multimedia visual arts extraordinare Sundus Abd Hadi. These two are such such great people with a powerful influence in what they think, say and do. There's this element of clarity and universality in the way they see the world and the transmedia ways their activist works have inspired others to see change in their very own life.

No its not a cult, I'm just describing these two. Its hard to explain when you meet people who have an extraordinary energy in them. Yassin's mindset is solid as concrete, and he embraces his own changes, whilst Sundus has a geniune lovely vibe about her; even to the point that I get a bit of worried that I can't reciprocate.

They are both leaving tomorrow. I'm sure going to miss them both. Which takes me to the end of my contract at ICE as an Urban Cultures Program Coordinator, into an Mobile Expressions Workshop Trainer, and then the week after, into my new role on board SBS's 1.7 mil TV series as a full-time associate producer attachment. Everything come in oddly good timing. I was beginning to wish to gain more experience on understanding how big legit budgets and funding works and wanted to set myself right straight after the "Quest" film project. At the end of the day, I can't live off no-budget productions and eventually want to get to a level that I can co-direct and act in my own TV series or feature film.

So when I do start my contract, weekdays will be working at the office on TV series while weekends will be scheduled for the "Quest" shoots. There's still much more to do. Initially I was going to cut up the feature with the footage that I've got, which would have worked out anyways. After an injection of ambition and boundary pushing, the "Quest" will be a wacko of a movie. If I'm haunted every night on it, it means something.

In the meantime, I'm still looking for people to join in to help the "Quest" out. My first shoot is the 4th of June, 2011 and shoots will be scheduled every weekend till August. I'm looking for 10 male martial arts/parkour/ acrobatics for a blast to the past 80s HK fight scene 16th/ 17th July, 2011 (TBC), shooting in Fairfield.

Signing out,

Maria Tran