Wednesday, December 17, 2014

What's New in Kev's World

If you're reading this, you either know me or you like reading about some dude who blows most of his money on movies and comic books. Whatever the reason I'll try not to bore you. Since we live in an age where people's thoughts all wind up on the Internet, I thought I'd take some time to ramble.

I just completed my fifth semester at NC State. That said, the next 3 1/2 weeks will consist of hibernating in my man cave, Christmas festivities, visits to bookstores and movie theaters, and an unspecified number of drinks on New Year's Eve (I did turn 21 in October). I'm also finishing up a script which I wrote a rough draft of this past summer. Right now it's a teleplay, but I'm considering turning it into a self-published webcomic, as long as I find an artist. Given that it's a comedy about a group of Cosplayers who become amateur superheroes, it could certainly work as a comic book series. 

I also made a movie this semester which you can view here: http://www.campusmoviefest.com/movies/36780-show-business

Like last year, I made this short for CampusMovieFest. Only this time I wrote and directed my own film, which was a great experience. My good friend Lucas did the cinematography and editing, and I got a bunch of friends from work to be in it. 

Some people feel that 5-10 minute shorts are too restricting because of the time limit, but I myself find them much more liberating than writing feature lengths. Having taken a screenwriting course and read several books on the subject, I can tell you that feature length scripts are hard to put together and they require you to adhere to a beat by beat formula. Unless you're the next Edgar Wright or Quentin Tarantino, it's unlikely you'll be able to reject this formula and make a good living. I'm still very much an amateur, but having been a college journalist for several years now and being in and around film culture, the best advice I can give to beginners is to lower your expectations and write. There are so many resources available for writers and filmmakers today that there's just no excuse to not do it. If you're an aspiring screenwriter, download Celtx or some other software and get started now. Try adapting a piece of fiction you've written. Write shorts before you tackle a feature length. Start a blog or look for something in film journalism (writing reviews has helped me tremendously as a storyteller). If you want to make films but have limited resources, you can shoot and edit a movie on your iPhone. Look at the world around you and just tell stories that speak to you. Forget about big budgets and making a profit, and just enjoy the freedom found in indie filmmaking. 

Well, I didn't expect to give an advice rant. Then again I just logged in and started rambling. So aside from CMF, I also went to NC Comic Con, celebrated my 21st, continued working for the paper and doing campus ministry, plus that whole going to class thing. Needless to say I definitely needed a break and am enjoying it so far. I will be posting more on here in the next few weeks than I do during the semester, so keep an eye out for my reviews on various comics, shows and movies. Until then, stay nerdy my friends.

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