BTM

The Hollywood Reporter mentioned Beyond the Mat in article about indie film financing.

F@$k Roller Coasters!!!

Things are so-so here, the last few months have been a roller coaster ride, both good and bad. My girlfriend of a year broke up with me a few months back, no reconciling but we're trying to stay friends. My car was stolen but I did get it back (in one piece), but I've been dealing with the aftermath of all of that, and then the worst thing ever - I found out my dad has cancer (terminal) a month ago. It's pretty far along, and it this point it really is about making him as comfortable as possible. I don't mean to make this a "woe is me" dump, but sometimes you just need to get it out.

But that's not to say things are all dire. I've had some great movement with all my film stuff. My first feature is almost done and should hopefully be out in Feb. I'm THIS close to selling a project to a cable channel. And I'm also in the midst of watching things come together for my human trafficking script, as we're going out to cast soon.

I haven't been writing much, I think, for obvious reasons. But I'm channeling all that frustration into a two part zombie comic with an artist I met at con this year.

So yeah, f@&k roller coasters...

“The heart's memory eliminates the bad and magnifies the good.”

Soneto XVII

"No te amo como si fueras rosa de sal, topacio
o flecha de claveles que propagan el fuego:
te amo como se aman ciertas cosas oscuras,
secretamente, entre la sombra y el alma.

Te amo como la planta que no florece y lleva
dentro de sí, escondida, la luz de aquellas flores,
y gracias a tu amor vive oscuro en mi cuerpo
el apretado aroma que ascendió de la tierra.

Te amo sin saber cómo, ni cuándo, ni de dónde,
te amo directamente sin problemas ni orgullo:
así te amo porque no sé amar de otra manera,

sino así de este modo en que no soy ni eres,
tan cerca que tu mano sobre mi pecho es mía,
tan cerca que se cierran tus ojos con mi sueño."

Here's to an amazing, wonderful, life changing year...

It feels like every other part of my body is broken too.

It's been far too long

Here's to a hundred more posts to come...

My oh my what a year it's been. So much has happened in the months since my last post that I wonder how I'm still even here. To sumarize I've experience some tragedy in the form of a murdered niece (yes you read that right) and my grandfather's passing, heart-break in the realization that my father's stroke has left him far from the man he use to be; my sister has gone through a divorce, my youngest nephew has lashed out in anger as a response and for that he must now live with my parents indefinetly, my older nephew continues to exhibit more and more tendencies towards living a "thug life" than I could ever be comfortable with, and I am ever burdened by the (untrue) thoughts that this could have all been avoided in some way had I stayed in Bakersfield and not moved away for school and life.

I'm coming to terms with it, all of it, slowly. The biggest struggle comes with the day to day of it, then trying to see the bigger picture. Plus it doesn't help that it's in my nature to soak it all in and ruminate on it for a while. Not healthy at all. Yes, there has been much to cry about, but there has also been much to celebrate, as well.

Beyond the Mat, has recieved a giant push, which started with an article that came out of AFM. We just had a rough cut test screening which went quite well. To say the least, everyone involved is super excited.

My now former manager is making a big effort to sell my script Destination Wedding, a romantic comedy I wrote, to the hallmark channel, which would be a nice boon for me. We have a director verbally attached to Los Coyotes and are waiting for him to wrap up work on a film so we can move forward. Kirk and I completed multiple drafts of a martial arts/sci-fi script we're hoping to get off the ground this year. A very talented actor just passed on the project which would have essentially gotten it made.

I'm still struggling to get my artist to finish our graphic novel, trying to find an artist for 7th Wonder, and starting work on a new feature.

I've made some great new friends these last few months as well, reconnected with some old ones and even lost a few along the way.

Hell, I even fell in love, which has been an amazing experience and truly gratifying part of my life. I never thought I could feel this way about another person. I finally understand what all the hype is about.

All of this has happened in what feels like no time at all. Life has a funny way of doing that, of moving you from point to point in what feels like record time - a blink of an eye and a year goes by.

It's been a very tough road, yet I still try and accomplish the goals which I set for myself some time ago - to be a better friend, a better son, brother and uncle, a better writer, a better human being. Everyday I inch closer and closer, but the hardest part is all the damn waiting.

Maybe its about time I take control.

Shifting gears here a bit...

Been invited to speak at my undergrad film school concerning the struggles encountered by up and coming writers. Should be interesting.

Got back from Comic Con '09 and had a blast, can't wait to do it again and can't wait to have myself a booth...

And I will probably start posting my musings about things they really don't teach you in film school when it comes to trying to break into the industry as a writer. More to come...

It's been a while...

So I figured I'd give all three of my readers an update. Things have been picking in terms of the projects I have out in the world, though I am still SLOWLY developing the treatment/outline for my new feature project. The script/pitch for my enw comic project is ready to go, now I just need a frakking artist.

But things are good, damn good actually, for various reasons. Here' some:

1. A director is interested in my human trafficking script, he's repped by Gersh, very enthusiastic, he's one of their up and coming clients, hitting the ground running on a polish of the script soon, then sending out to ANY talent we want (which includes Gael Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna, Eva Mendes, and tons of other people). Putting the positive vibes out in the world...

2. Kirk, the Chinese director I sometimes write for, called me two weeks ago to tell me that he has verbally secured financing for our first official film together, contracts are being drawn up and worked on, when all goes well (and it will) my next film will be fully funded and in pre-production by fall!

Again, let's put those positive vibes out there, this close to having one of my dreams come true here people.

3. Comic book stuff coming along slowly but nicely, may get a job as an assistant editor on an upcoming anthology, unpaid but sure to open a lot of doors. The 7th Wonder needs an artist then should be ready to go, Dave is cracking away at Solomon Wakes, and we'll hopefully have the book out by the end of the year!

4. My manager is pitching a variety show, which, if it goes through, they want me as a head writer for. Interesting...

5. Near Fall (aka Beyond the Mat) is being edited, the last cut I saw was pretty close to being finished (editing wise). The producer and director are looking for finishing funds to get it all wrapped up. In all honesty, the film looks good, we cut out a lot of unnecessary, self-hating commentary from the main character's arc, makes him more likable to be honest - and I never wanted that stuff in there in the first place. But so it goes... should be out by the end of the year.

6. New girlfriend thinks I could turn Coyotes into a young adult novel, it's a possibility, though I've never really thought about writing novels before. It piques my interest greatly. She's a librarian, she knows these things - she's awesome that way.

Live the dream.

And the adventure continues...

And...

A Happy New Year to all, may it be a great and prosperous 2009.

In 2009

Happy and healthy...

That's the goal.

'Nuff said.

Year end update

Hey all, it's been a while but with all that's going on I figured it was time. While I've been keeping busy with tutoring and teaching at Westwood college in LA, I managed to find the time to do the following:

On the feature film front...
I recently saw a rough/assembly cut of my first feature Near Fall (aka Beyond the Mat) and I have to say, it looks like a freakin' movie! Ha. Seriously, folks there is nothing quite like the experience of sitting down for the very first time and screening a film you wrote, the actors do their parts, the director's vision, the production all coming together. To say the least, it was quite the moment. So, with that said the director is trying get a finer cut done so he can screen it for people and get some feedback and then show it to the distributors who have expressed interest while sending it out to festivals. So be on the look out for mentions of Near Fall in 2009.

Also, my human trafficking script, Los Coyotes, is currently in the hands of a director who is seriously considering it as his next project. He has worked with some top name talent in TV and film, and is currently my management company's top pick for the project. So here's crossing our fingers that the film kicks into pre-production in 2009.

I also completed work on Bounce With Us, and Indian-American dance film being developed by fellow Chapman alum Sabina Shamdasani. She's currently rewriting the script and with any luck we'll be in pre-production by the latter half of '09.

In other film related news, I'm currently at work on a new spec, which both myself and my manager are extremely excited about - it's an action romantic dramedy with a Latin twist - more as this one develops. Also, I'm currently circling to work for hire jobs (and gasp, they're paying jobs!), one with long time associate Kirk Wong, who is planning on shooting a new film next year. Financing is nearly in place and cast is already in talks for the film, which is sort of a martial arts "superhero" film with a bit of a sci-fi twist.

On the digital/web horizon...
I'm currently developing a web series which I hope to put into production next year. The idea is still in its early stages but the great thing about it, is that I'll be running it like a TV show complete with a writing staff (who come in the guise of my ever talented writer's group). I'm also developing a web series/commercials with my management company in the style of the BMW films but with a very tongue in cheek tone.

In comic book news...
July saw the publication of my first comic book short, Everybody's Hero, in Image Comics' Popgun Vol. 2. In July of '09 you'll see me contribute another short story, titled The Proposal, to the Popgun series (Vol. 4). I've also completed a polish of my first full length book, Solomon Wakes. All were waiting on is some art revisions, then we can get to fine tuning the bad boy. The book is set to drop in Spring of '09. And if that weren't enough, I'm gearing up to pitch a new on-going comic book series, titled the 7th Wonder. Set in the not too distant future, it's the story of a 19 year old Latina named America who has been raised by six of the world's greatest hero's. When they are murdered during her first official mission with them she takes it upon herself to discover who killed them, while struggling with carrying on their mission and saving the world in the process.

Whew! Seems like a lot, and it is, but it's all part of my love of the craft of storytelling and writing.

More as it comes...

M.I.A.

Been away from the blog, but then I've never been a very good blogger. It's not my thing really but keeping a presence on the interwebs seems a bit mandatory these days,e specially in the writing game - establish a presence, get yourself known, get the work done and then hopefully spin that all into a dedicated following. Sounds easy enough.

The past few months have seen me trudging through the 50 mph hours gusts that are my graphic novel. Finally finished a fairly solid draft of the last half of the book. Editors are happy with the first 60 pages and are going to publish it in two chunks. It's done, it's finally done and I can finally move onto something else. I love the work I've done on it, very dark, atmospheric sci-fi, brooding horror it's kicked my ass in more ways than one. But it's done and I'm a better writer for it. David's art kicks major ass.

Coyotes is in development/pre-pre-production. I never thought finding a director interested in such a project would take so long. But the producers have a good handle on how they want to handle it all and are making excellent strides towards nailing someone down. But of course that could all change in a day, a week or a month.

My next comic book project (The 7th Wonder) is coming along nicely as I've finally finished the treatment which I'm in the process of polishing. I'm also rewriting the first issue and getting a workable pitch ready to take out soon.

Now I have time to sit down and tackle this new feature idea that my manager is really into, so am I. A good follow up to Los Coyotes and much more lighthearted (but with the same action/drama tinge).

Been reading tons of stuff as research; including loads of scripts, books and comics. Duane Swierczynski's Iron Fist one shot is an excellent read. And it would make an excellent series or mini. Iron Fist as a tough guy detective type in 1920'2/30's LA. I'd read that. Hell, I'd write it if I could.

POPGUN VOL. 2

Buy it here.

Featuring a story by yours truly.

Solomon Wakes cover

Beyond the Mat trailer

Still a little on the rough side but here it is...

TFF - Beyond the Mat interview

Interview with BTM producers - Moniqua, Kurt and John - at this year's Tribeca Film Festival.

The Race Card...

I never really considered the importance of being a Latino writer until a few years ago, especially in Hollywood. Many of my professors in grad school were quick to inform me that it would be an asset, many of the potential managers I met with said the same thing.

In my writer's group, we have a fairly diverse mixture of people, something I wanted specifically. There are about eight of us: 5 men, 3 women, 1 African American, 1 Asian, 2 Mexican-Americans, so on and so forth. I like the mix, and race rarely is ever an issue, but I can't help but notice the tendency for most writer's to write towards their own race.

This isn't necessarily a bad thing, write what you know and all. Still, I can't help but wonder how things might be a bit different if we put more of an effort into writing more (ethnically) diverse characters - if we made conscious decisions towards this end. The idea isn't to make an issue about it, just inclusion. I'm aware that Hollywood carries much of the blame for various reasons, but how much might that change if writer's made more of an effort to create universal stories.

My life is not an episode of 'Friends'. Hell it ain't even an episode of 'George Lopez', it's more of a mixture and I suppose thats a reflection of my world and the way I was raised. I don't think I've even written a full feature script with a white male as the lead. With the exception of a 'Smallvile' spec I wrote, every script I have written thus far is either Latino, Asian, female or something in between. Race is really only an issue in one (maybe two) of the scripts and done so for the sake of character development.

That's not to say I write 'ethnic' scripts - most of my stuff covers universal ground (the kind of stories I touched upon above), usually within some recognizable genre (sports, action, martial arts, sci-fi, comedy). I enjoy what I write and so do tons of other people and I'm sure the 'film world' will as well. It's just something thats been long kicking around upstairs and feel like I needed to get it down on the page (cyber or otherwise).

I'm stepping off of the soap box... for now.

That's a Wrap!

Beyond the Mat finished principal photography last night, and the occasion was both exhilarating and bitter sweet. Everyone on set busted their asses to get this puppy off the ground and there was nothing but great enthusiasm for what we have been collectively striving for over the last 6 weeks. While I was on set yesterday I even got to write a fill in scene that we shot at the end of the night. it's turned out to be one of my favorite scenes of the film. I LOVE this job.

And now the "easy" part is done.

The producers are flying out next week to Tribeca to present a trailer at the film festival for panel of executives, distributors and other industry types. We're hoping to make a little headway in terms of getting this thing out to an audience that doesn't consist of only our friends and family.

And shooting on the RED is amazing.



It's getting better every day...

More as things come.

Day One

"Beyond the Mat" (the high school wrestling drama I was hired to write many moons ago) finally goes into production today. I'm not on set as my damn day job and a couple of job interviews are getting in the way. I should be there on the weekend though. Am I excited? I don't know. I think once I see some dailies, some of the actors performing lines I know by heart, then my little corazon is going to be kicking up a beat. It's a down and dirty ultra low budget kind of thing but damn if it hasn't been a long time coming.

I signed a deal last week for my own 120 page graphic novel that I'll be writing with the wonderful art talents of David Murdoch. It's an exciting little project that is yet another dream come true. There seems to be a weird push-pull of emotion going on right now as on one end I'm broke as hell but on the other I'm seeing all sorts of success with this whole writing thing. I'm certain the former will change soon enough.

To say the least, it's a whirlwind. Hard work is finally starting to pay off, other opportunities are falling into my lap - lots and lots going on. My head is spinning, but in a good way.

And I turn 30 in 16 f'ing days.

...I feel infinite.