Erin: Not For Sale

How was my Thanksgiving? Well, I travelled with my family down to Bucks County, PA, where we met up with my brother-in-law's family and had dinner. I took the following two days off from work, and was really upset when I had to go back. It was almost like returning from New York--"I've had this sweet vacation, and now I have to go back to this???

During my vacation, I read a book, How to Form a Nonprofit Corporation. I'm seriously thinking of incorporating myself as a not-for-profit organization. Nonprofit organizations are the ones who get the huge grants, and having a lot of money is what I need right now. Part of the organization's salary would cover my salary and benefits, so I wouldn't have to work or go looking for a job.

This morning, I called Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, and asked to see how I can get a free lawyer. Once everything was incorporated, that lawyer would be on my board of directors, offering legal advice.

As it turns out, they actually offer a seminar that can help you put a nonprofit together. The next one is December 10th, but I can't go, because a.) It's in New York and b.) I have a driving lesson that day. The seminar also costs $425. $425 might sound like a lot, but considering all the profits I could incur at a later point, doesn't really sound too bad. The only problem is, $425 can put a serious dent in my bank account. While I have more than that in there, I've already paid some serious credit card bills this month. Maybe I can get some web design jobs to cover that expense. Hopefully, I'll have the money for it by the next time they offer a seminar.

In other news, I just got a MySpace message from BlueCat that Gordy Hoffman is offering another seminar next weekend in Rochester. I'd go to that too, if there was only more time to write some material.

The Seminar Weekend, Part Two: Sunday

I got to the seminar at 10 of 8, and Gordy Hoffman showed up about 10 or 15 minutes later. Gordy has longish hair, and sort of looks like a burlier version of the guy who played the guidance counselor on Freaks and Geeks.

Basically, the day was spent reading and critiquing each others' scripts. When it came time to critique mine, I admit It was a little hard for me to articulate what it was about. It didn't occur to me to tell them that I brought it because I didn't have anything else to present. He asked me where I wanted to go with it. I hardly remember what I said. I'm not sure if I really want to continue with it, because as Gordy pointed out, the script was written as a means to express myself. Someone said it reminded them of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, another said Dr. Strangelove, Gordy said The Graduate.

During lunch break, someone asked Gordy what it was like to have a famous brother.

"I don't really look at him that way," He replied.

One thing about Gordy that I find an asset is that
he critiques from the point of view of a writer. I find that most script coaches/analysts write and work from the point of view of a story editor, and I find that many of these people berate the aspiring writer, whether they intend to or not. Rather than say, "Don't put that in there because the cinematographer wouldn't like that," he would say, "That detail isn't necessary. Delete it, and then you have more room for your movie." (Okay, he didn't say that exactly, but that's the crux of what he said.) As a writer, that makes more sense to me.

All in all, it was time well spent. Perhaps I'll sign up for another course when I actually do have new material.

I think the one thing I took away from the seminar is that I want to write screenplays, but I need to take things one step at a time. If I do write another spec, I'll pick a subject or story that I won't mind still working on in a couple of years.

The Seminar Weekend, Part One: Saturday

Saturday, I went up to my sister's house, since the seminar started at 8 O'Clock in the morning. I stopped off at the Apple Store in Victor, and saw this:

Slick is a software program that provides add-ons for IMovie. Some of the effects include psychedelic solarization, fake ratings screens, and documentary pans & zooms.

My mom, sister, and I met up with my brother for lunch, who recently got a job in Rochester, and was looking for an apartment. On our way to my sister's house, we stopped by at the apartment complex where my brother eventually put a down payment on an apartment. My brother's car was parked at the front office, and we thought that was funny.

Bill, my brother-in-law, my sister, and myself went out to dinner, then I watched the season premiere of SNL with LeBron James. The Mahmoud Ahmadinejad song with Andy Samberg and Jake Gyllenhaal was pretty funny, as was the High School Musical 3 sketch. Also, nice to see they brought back The Ambiguously Gay Duo for the sake of making fun of Senator Craig.