Interview Today

So yesterday I was supposed to have an interview with a local production/post house in the Towson area, however it got postponed until today. So today at 2pm I have my interview which I am happy to have the opportunity for and also excited to see what happens. So wish me luck on that today.

Yesterday melted down into a full on basketball kind of day. It was so nice outside so things just seemed right to play some pick up games with a friend of mine. My skills are improving and I am feeling a whole lot better with the level at which I am playing at (compared to just 5 years ago). I hope to keep getting better and maybe one day I will even be able to play in a little adult league or something.

So my car has been leaking engine coolant for a little bit now and I have been dreading getting it fixed since I know it is going to cost some money, and with no available income it is a bit of a dive. However, yesterday my dad comes up to me and is like I will fix it but you have to cut the grass the entire rest of the summer. So I am like score, not only will be cutting the grass again which is good exercise but I will get my skills back up since I haven't cut the grass in like 2 years. Now I am not dropping any cash and my car will be running like new, chalk one up for the barter system!

Still catching up on sleep....still keeping busy over here, I hope life is treating you as good as it is treating me right now.

Thanks for the support,
Daniel Hess

Selling Everything

Today turned into a huge sell sell sell day. I went through all of my stuff and made a huge pile of things I want to sell to get rid of. It is almost all old video game stuff that I just don't want anymore and at this point it is looking like I couldn't give this stuff away. A few years ago I did the flea market once and made out like a bandit but that was before the economy got "bad." Now it seems like no one is buying but everyone is selling. When I wasn't selling junk it seemed like the exact opposite and it is funny how that works. Otherwise it was a day to get ready to go back to school tomorrow...after an extended spring break (since I didn't go to school on the Thursday before) I am not ready to go back. I want to just keep having way more free time then I know what to do with and being able to work insane hours (even though it kills me). This break wasn't fun really it was more like a time to face the issues I don't tackle during school because it would drive me insane if I did. So unfortunately I did a lot of working, fighting, getting ready for my film, and not enough basketball playing.

Once this semester is over it is a year off of school for me and then going back to get my masters...then the plan is to become a professor and then at the same time make films.

P.S. I am selling a lot of Sega stuff (Sega Saturn, Genesis, 32X, Game Gear, Nomad, Dreamcast and a whole ton of games). If there are any items you would like to see if I have or just wanna talk about film feel free to email me at mind_confided@yahoo.com

Thanks for the support,
Daniel Hess

Love and Sherlock Holmes

So yesterday I spent the majority of the day hanging out with a good friend of mine Joe just running around going to a few places. I got to shoot my first handgun which I sucked at from the start and then after that owned. We went to the Science Center which was awesome when I was a kid but kinda sucked now that I am older (should of expected that). Finally we saw Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows which I felt was better than the original in some regards and in others not so much.

This new film goes much further into the psyche of Holmes and decides to point out more of his quirky methods at time to the extreme for instance when he is drinking embalming fluid but other hits it right on the nose when he hates riding on the horse. I felt like the use of slow motion like in the first to show his thought process was again a very smart trick but when it was used on things such as a gun about to fire a huge explosive device it became a bit overused. The scene in the woods of them running away from the Germans was amazing and this by far was the best use of the slow motion effect in the whole film. The introduction of Moriarty was not overdone at all (as it can be in the Holmes universe) and his character was written in very well to fit the way the books had described him (he is a man who never gets his hands dirty). The ending is nothing short of a very Hollywood style but it still fits within all the workings of a Conan Doyle story. I would recommend a watch either in theaters or at home when it is on DVD. Not worth a rush to the theater really but it is still an enjoyable Sherlock Holmes film.

The other film I watched yesterday was entitled Love which is a very intensely slow drama piece about a man up in space who slowly learns he is going to be up there for a while. It can be assumed that back on Earth man is slowly killing themselves through war. At the same time there are flashbacks to a civil war soldier who is on the quest for a mysterious ship that is near the Mississippi river. Throughout the film we watch this lone mans decent into madness as he has no human interaction aboard the space station. There is no real villain in this film or not secret he really finds. It is just a slow paced strange film which is not terrible but a bit too philosophical for its own good at parts. Sometimes shots get repeated but from different angles which is excusable but the fact that these shots are shown in slow motion several times make it very apparent that we have seen them before. It comes to an end in a less than satisfactory ending and the only real way to have it make sense is if you use the excuse that he must have died. I really love the concept and the majority of the execution considering how indie this film is. I'd say if you can get past the slow pacing and the almost cheesy soundtrack from Angels and Airwaves at times it makes for a very good film. If not though stay away it is not going to pick up the pace at any point really.

Thanks for the support,
Daniel Hess

Fresh Week Fresh Jobs

So as another week sets in upon me I have already begun booking gigs for the weekend, which seems to be the time when everything goes down. Right now I am talking to the people over at IBN sports to see if they want me to film both championship games this Friday or just one. For those who don't know the High School football season ends this Friday 11/18/11 with a bunch of championship games. At 2pm I found out that Good Counsel is playing its game at Navy Stadium, then at 8pm Gilman has its game at Johnny Unitas Stadium here at Towson University. I am hoping to do both but since I couldn't do both this past Friday I don't know if they will have as much faith in me. I got it worked out though so I should be good on both.

Not only that but this Thursday as long as I can work out a ride situation I am going to try to go to the Get Down to film my DJ buddy Sean since it a sort of birthday bash/dj gig for him. If I can make it should be the last piece of footage I need to do his promo video which I have been working on since last year only because working with him is a little sporatic and my schedule is hard to work out on short notice. We will see.

Finally this Sunday is another day for sound recording on set of The Cat which has been nothing but wonderful. I am very much looking forward to it!

Thanks for the love,
Daniel Hess

Editing

Well unfortunately yesterday I was only able to go to the football game and film. The game went a lot longer than expected and I didn't even get home until close to 7pm which was a lot later than I thought. I was hoping to be home at 5:30 giving me enough time to get ready for the Brass Monkey show I had at 8 but the turnaround was too short so I couldn't make it.

So today is kind of a miserable day outside so I am editing pictures finally from the trip to the Statue of Liberty I took a few weeks back which is fun, and I have so far found some pretty unique ones. Other than that it is a slow day with work at 2.

If people out there are still interested in the cinematographer position I am open to it but since I discovered the open directory on the Maryland Film Office I now know where to go for future film projects. Another reason to feel a lot better.

Pictures soon,
Dan Hess