Alternate Writes

Getting Over

A late night. A packed auditorium full of raucous UCLA students. And front and center: my short film plays. Thirty seconds of silence. A few cat calls, and then the projector stops. The emcees appear again onstage. They ask whether the film should continue or if it should be gonged off. After a chorus of boos, the decision is made. The audience has spoken. The film is over. Meanwhile, I’m having one of those out of body experiences–every emotion, every gesture I record in my…

The Short Film: What Works?

Last week I was lucky enough to attend another Open Projector Night at the Hammer at UCLA. In case you haven’t heard how this event works, directors submit videos and they are played on the big screen for two minutes. At any time, the audience can shout down those videos and at the two minute mark, they get to choose (based on applause) whether to keep the tape rolling. I won’t talk about how my film did, suffice it to say I was unfairly judged….