Los Angeles, or at least the film industry, talks about its past more than any other place that I’ve been before. For example, the class went to a noir film festival the past two nights to see Blue Dahlia (1946) and L.A. Confidential (1997). This festival has been going on for 20 years now and many attend. However, this isn’t the only event that our class attended that honors film history. We’ve been to many screenings of old films that were nearly sold out.

It seems as though there’s a screening of an old film that has a panel discussion attached to it every weekend. Now, I know that we are taking a class that covers the history of LA and the film industry, but what about the other people? Each screening is well attended and some were even sold out. In most places, the history of something is only celebrated once a year at most or on major anniversaries.

I realized that movies are integral to the history of the 20^th century. They are a product of the collective American culture. Everyone has some movie that connects them or their memories. It’s a history that is greater than one single event.

In this class, we’ve gotten a taste of Los Angeles in what has essentially been a three-week food tour of the city with Dylan and Clay. Since we’re constantly commuting to-and-from studios, landmarks, and evening screenings, our fearless professors have had to twist our arms into agreeing to lots of pit stops for food between activities. Rough.

If you ask me, the most beautiful thing about Los Angeles isn’t the palm trees or the beach: it’s the endless array of foods from all corners of the world represented in this city. You can find top-notch cooking in the dingiest looking strip malls, and I can assure you the cuisine here goes far beyond the hipster-fusion monstrosities that clog my Facebook feed. In a town that launched an industry built on tricks and illusion, there is an underlying food culture that needs no frills. Here in Los Angeles we’ve visited establishments ranging from dirt-cheap and ubiquitous (In-N-Out) to tastefully trendy (ramen). I’ll spare you from describing every single thing I’ve eaten on this trip, but there are a few hits that are worth ruminating on.

On one particularly busy day in which we had to commute from Fox Animation Studios all the way to San Fernando Valley, the class stopped at an unassuming taco shop to grab a meal before our lighting workshop. The tacos couldn’t have been more than two dollars a piece, yet they blew everyone out of the water. In a town with a population that’s more than 50% Latinx, there are at least as many nondescript taco and quesadilla carts as there are Starbucks, an urban trait we should all be thankful for.

Another winner – at least in my book – was at Sun Cafe in Studio City. This vegan establishment has been blessed by critics and health-nuts alike. While I can’t speak for the entire class on this one, I found the food there to be innovative and divine. The entire menu was vegan, with a number of dishes being raw as well. I had a raw zucchini lasagna dish that was more like a stack of cold vegetables doused in some inexplicably delicious cashew pesto sauce. Some of the other kids in the class left the establishment with their noses to the sky so they could sniff out the nearest In-N-Out, but to each their own.

Finally, my personal favorite spot is the Original Farmer’s Market, a food court meets market stand complex featuring dozens of restaurants and vendors. The choices are certainly overwhelming – Seafood? Crepes? doughnuts? Malaysian food? I landed on a Brazilian churrascaria that serves up skewered meats by the pound, along with an amazing array of traditional sides and the most amazing cheesy bites, pão de quejio. After filling my plate a little too high, I sat and people-watched as locals and tourists browsed for artisan hot sauces and acai bowls.

As the sun begins to set on 7th block, I find myself reminiscing on all of the delicious bites I’ve had the pleasure of eating during this class. Though my pants are a little tighter, my view of Los Angeles has been pleasantly sculpted.

Salutations!

This trip has been really flying by! Tomorrow is fourth Monday. Can you believe it? Anyways, enough about the mind blowing passage of time. Throughout our trip, we’ve watched a fair amount of dramas. Ranging from Sunrise to L.A. Confidential, majority of our films have been quite serious. This week we saw Preston Sturgess’ Sullivan’s Travels— a screwball comedy. The film focuses on the popular comedy director, John Sullivan, as he aims to make a serious film, O Brother, Where Art Thou?  In order to do this, he decides he needs to know what it is like to struggle. The concept of just removing oneself from a comfortable life and essentially moving into a Hooverville for research is inherently privileged.  The film does, however,  directly acknowledge this fact. Yes, the film had a few flaws yet it presented an entertaining story while acknowledging social issues. Considering the time (1941), this is quite impressive. The screwball comedies that predated this film tended to focus on the affairs of the upper class. Ultimately, John Sullivan decides that the greatest gift he can give to society is laughter. I whole heartedly agree with this. Life is scary enough.

Today after I successfully convinced my Uber driver I was not 15 years old, he asked me what I did. I told him I was a comedy writer. He looked at me with an incredibly curious look and asked, “How do you know what’s funny?” I honestly could not think of an answer. After a few moments, I responded, “I think its funny when normal situations are skewed  somehow.” He agreed but added that the twist should have a purpose. I think he’s completely right and this idea is exemplified in Sullivan’s Travels. Throughout the film, Sullivan repeatedly ends up back in Hollywood no matter how hard he tries to leave. This twist seems to suggest that no matter how hard Sullivan tries to understand the experience of the lower class, he will always be privileged. Additionally once Sullivan finds himself in labor camp, he realizes that he actually wants to write comedy. He realizes that during that time (The Great Depression) people went to the movies to escape. They had no desire to see their experiences on screen because they were living them. Similarly, they didn’t want people with extreme amounts of privilege to write their experience. Comedy seems to have the ability to comment. Dramas seem to try make a point. This film was not necessarily about those disenfranchised by the Depression. Rather, it utilized the social and political climate of the time and commented on it by means of comedy. It’s a comedy film about a director trying to make the next great drama. I feel like that’s quite absurd. I should’ve suggested it to Savi. He was my Uber driver. Oh well, hindsight is always 20/20.

-Olivia

Hey y’all,

(Yes, “y’all” is a real word… it’s the most useful word in the English language and you just need to accept it already! ^.^)

I can’t believe we’re already at the end of third week! Our time in Los Angeles has been an incredible experience that’s both felt like we’ve been in this city forever and at the same time as though we’ve only just arrived. While our time here may be coming to an end, looking back on this block and considering all we’ve seen/learnt I can’t help but feel motivated by how much less daunting moving out to L.A. seems to be.

What makes me say that? Well if you read my last post, you know that this class helped me realize that my classmates have the potential to go on and do amazing things within the film and media industry. However, one thing that I was still overwhelmed by was thinking about the sheer amount of competition that exists within the business. I found myself feeling miniscule in the swarm of competition that exists within the industry, with each of us floundering our ways forward in our careers and vying for the same opportunities that we hope will propel us forward into our careers.

While that may be true to some degree, after meeting the with the CC Hollywood: On Location alumni, I felt reassured that getting a job and not only surviving in this massive city, but thriving isn’t as impossible or terrifying as some make it out to be. I particularly enjoyed my conversations with indie feature film editor Meredith Mantik and documentary editor Ryan Loeffler who both gave me insight into what working in Los Angeles as a video editor looks like – a world they made out to be of immense opportunity for those who are willing to work for it.

As our class stood there on the night of the reunion, scattered among the many new, friendly film and media studies alumni we’d just met, bonding over our mutual love for our art, it felt comforting to be surrounded by people who’d taken this same class that I’m currently in now; people who were in the same boat as I am and have each had success in advancing in their respective career paths. Thanks to them,  I’m now more excited than ever to dive in, trust the process, and get to work on paving my way forward in this incredible industry.

Writing to you again from my apartment’s balcony and looking out onto the sprawling city before me with a positive state of mind,

Angel 🙂

It’s our last couple of days in Los Angeles!  My “area of interest” for this class was all about memory, how Hollywood recalls and profits on the nostalgic.  During the last three weeks, I’ve been studying and remembering the past so it’s only fitting, in my last blog post, that I do the same. Excuse me as I get fairly sentimental, which honestly isn’t too out of character for me.

What I’ve realized in the last three weeks is that we’re all striving, in one way or another, for the “I made it” moment. I was taking an Uber this morning and the driver asked me what I was doing in Los Angeles. After a fairly long conversation about Colorado College’s alternative schedule and my general indecision on my post-graduate plans, he concluded with “Well, I hope you make it big!”

I’d never really thought about my life that way, as a story told through the milestones, the “I made it” moments. But life is defined by the turning points, especially in Hollywood. In Los Angeles, a person’s success is often defined by the “before” and “after” moment. But I’d like to think it’s more gradual than that. Life doesn’t need to be compartmentalized into an arbitrary designation of “the moment when.”  Los Angeles is full of success stories, but it is also full of people struggling to perfect their art. In my mind, the latter isn’t any less valid than the former.

We went out to lunch earlier this week with voice actor Dee Bradley Baker. Browsing through Baker’s prolific career, there is no doubt that he’s been successful. I asked him when he felt like “he made it,” the ultimate search for the struggling actor. His response: “When I could pay the bills.” And maybe the “I made it” moment is as simple as that.  Not all success is as visible as walking across a stage and receiving a diploma or even hearing your voice on television for the first time. Maybe to live truly successfully is not only to relish in the big but also celebrate in the little.

Friday night, we went to see the 1946 film noir, The Blue Dahlia. The  founders of the festival spoke prior to the screening. They emphasized feeling just as proud of the festival now, with sold out crowds, as they did on their very first night, 20 years ago. Those two men were fortunate enough to experience their “I made it” moment every year. As they stood in front of the crowd, you could feel the camaraderie they had established through their mutual love of film. This is the “I made it.” This is success.

And I think that’s what Dylan and Clay have been trying to emphasize to us all along. Although it’s helpful to network up, be introduced to the CC alumni with the professional titles and the prolific careers, it is also helpful to network across. Because although we may reach the big “I made it,” it’s now that we can start perfecting the art that will get us there. And to have this opportunity, this privilege, is “I made it” enough for me.

After taking part as an audience member for my first live-taping of a television program, I believe I can definitively say that it’s an absolutely bizarre experience.

Attending Thursday night’s taping of TBS’s “Conan” was unlike any experience I could have imagined, and not necessarily in an enjoyable way, but certainly in an interesting one. We arrived at the Warner Brothers’ facilities around 2:30 P.M., where we were ushered onto the second level of a parking garage. At this point, we went through three security/check-in stations, from the boiler-plate metal detector, to a station where we were given “invisible” stamps that had to be specifically on the underside of our left wrists for some unknown reason, and finally, we presented our tickets and were given a plastic, numbered card. From that point, we spent roughly a half hour on some metal benches in the middle of an enclosed portion of the parking garage, simply waiting.

Around 3:00, maybe 3:15, they started calling numbers out and lining us up like we were boarding an airplane, at which point we walked out of the parking garage and across the street to the actual Warner Brothers lot. After standing underneath awnings with twisting barriers that caused some serious flashbacks to amusement park lines, we were finally cleared to walk from the edge of the lot into the heart of the various studios, being ushered along by countless security members, until we finally got to Conan’s studio and were led to our seats.

Once in our seats, the truly surreal aspect of the experience began. Around 4:00, an individual who could only be described as Conan’s hype-man began manufacturing applause from the audience members, calling out the over and under-enthusiastic in attendance, and explaining the “rules” of being in the audience. This man was like a wacky flight attendant, the way he wove stand-up comedy, audience participation, and instructions in such a rapid-fire manner. Soon, the Basic Cable Band came onto the stage and began performing, and the audience, as instructed previously, stood up and clapped along. Then, finally, Conan came onto the stage to raucous applause.

And then, the show’s star basically said, “Sike, we’re not ready to start yet, please keep waiting and clapping and cheering,” before leaving the stage again. After another couple of songs from the band, Conan reappeared and the actual taping of the show finally began.

All told, the taping of the show was basically no different than watching on television, save for the replacement of commercial breaks with a few minutes where we’d watch producers and camera operators rearrange the stage, while the talent milled about and talked amongst one another. Finally, after the show’s second guest segment was over, Conan promptly announced that the comedian scheduled to perform on Thursday’s show had already taped his segment, so our experience was over.

While watching all of this unfold was a bit strange, the most intriguing part of a live-taping definitely revolves around watching how the audience is trained to interact with the show. Throughout the taping, much of the audience clearly laughed a bit too loud and responded with more applause and cheers than Conan’s jokes probably really deserved. And yet, when a couple of the jokes really fell flat, it was fascinating to watch the audience genuinely not give the anticipated reaction. So much of a live-taping comes across as forced, manufactured, and ultimately, I don’t think I’ll be able to watch a show live-taped without thinking about how the process of taping exists to manufacture laughs and applause in real-time and subsequently hope that the response of the pre-taped audience might influence how the night’s television audience feels compelled to react themselves.

The whole thing was absurd and fake and bizarre. But I guess that could be said of most everything in Hollywood, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

What comes to mind when we think of the golden age of Hollywood? I can’t speak for everyone, but at least for me (before I studied any film history), all I can think of are the classical films from the list of 100 films you need to watch – The Wizard of Oz, Gone with the Wind, Casablanca, Citizen Kane, It’s a Wonderful Life, and many more. And following this extensive list are some of the big names- Clark Gable, Audrey Hepburn, Vivien Leigh, and Orson Welles (apparently there’s another list for this on IMDb if anyone’s interested). The golden age of Hollywood is characterized not only by the advancement of sound and camera technology, but also the rise of the star system. Because of the enforcement of the Production Code in 1934, studios could not use explicit imagery or language to lure audience into the theatre and audience was also reluctant to spend their hard-earned money on a movie ticket during the Great Depression. Studios were trying to find another stimulus to lead people to movie theaters downtown. The studio heads knew audiences would pay to see Clarke Gable’s charming face on big screens over and over again no matter what the content. So they started to exploit star power and eventually built a massive star system.

Almost 60 years have passed and though many things have collapsed in Hollywood history, star power is still thriving and stronger than ever. Because of the efficiency of internet and media- facebook, twitter, and instagram- stars receive unprecedented attention from all over the world everyday. And every day, hundreds of people come to Hollywood to become the next star.

Dylan and Clay’s film The Hollywood Complex follows a group of young kids in the Oakwood apartment complex (also where we’re staying now) who hope to break into the acting business during pilot season and become the next young star. It is extremely competitive in Hollywood, even in the kids’ world — for example, there could be hundreds of 12-year-old girl competing for one role. So some of them make it, and some don’t. While watching this film, I keep questioning whether it’s worth it to sacrifice literally everything in life (family, friends, school, and money) just to pursue a slim chance of a dream-come-true Hollywood-style fairytale.

I don’t want to be arbitrary and say that our life has become very media-oriented and the star power has become too influential in our life that sometimes we pay too much attention to their shinny glittering world. But I do remember a time when smartphones were not a thing and I had to use landline to talk to my friends, when I went to the park over the weekend instead of binge-watching TV shows on Netflix, and when our lunch conversation was not about celebrity drama.

We have finally made it to Week 3 here in California. Today we met with John Cook, the Emmy-winning sound mixer for shows such as Mr. Robot, Parks and Recreation, The Office, and Veep and Ted Miller, head of television and a top agent at Creative Artists Agency. Sound mixers are incredibly underappreciated. Sound is a background player, affecting the viewers and their emotions without calling attention to itself (unless that’s the goal, of course). The mixers can build up an unnatural soundscape that sounds so natural in an obscenely short amount of time. It’s definitely a skill that I wish that I had.

Agents are in a totally different ballpark. Instead of melding into the background, an agent’s job is to be everywhere and know everyone and everything. They are on top of their game at all times in order to figure out what is best and negotiate deals for their numerous clients. CAA covers all types of entertainment creatives, whether it be writers, directors, talent, sports, e-sports, producers, etc. If you can create something meaningful and special, they will consider representing you.

A main topic of discussion during our time with Ted was where television was headed. And the thing is, no one knows. In 1997, the DVD-distributing company Netflix was founded. No one could have imagined that years later, it would become one of the world’s most dominant streaming services. In 2016, Netflix was present in 75% of streaming households in the U.S. Other streaming companies such as Hulu, AmazonVideo, HBO, YouTube, etc. are following close behind.

The world has become less and less patient with the advent of the internet and streaming. People no longer have the patience to sit through commercials. They will fast-forward or simply record the show to watch at a later time. They are in a now, now, now mindset. Streaming services have streamlined this need by, for the most part, cutting out commercials all together. Shows are often uploaded onto streaming services a season at a time. You no longer have to wait a week for the next episode. This has created ‘binge-watching’, where the viewers watches multiple episodes (or even seasons if they really commit) in one sitting. The shows play automatically in chronological order so the viewers does not even have to get up before indulging in the next episode.

The age of television is not going to end anytime soon. The means of consumption are just going to continue being modified until we land on something that can’t be beat. The question we are struggling to answer is which means is best right now. Every streaming site offers a mix of both acquired and original material. But the viewer must buy a subscription to each one individually. Cable television offers streamlined content through hundreds of channels all for one price. However, people don’t necessarily want to pay for the extra 200 channels they don’t watch, so which one does the viewer choose? The answer varies for each household.

There is one question, however, that streaming services ask that we do know the answer to.

“Are you still watching ____?”

Of course.

-Addie

Greetings Everyone!

Our time in L.A. has been flying by. From getting a tour of the Young Sheldon set from the one and only young Sheldon to sitting in on an American Dad table read, this past week we got some incredible opportunities. Most of our agenda last week was very television centric. Now, a show’s production environment varies but there is one general sentiment that these industry members shared– film is a directors’ medium and television is a writers’ medium.

One thing that seems to dominate television writing is the writers’ room. Whether the script is collaborative or members take turns on each episode, the writers’ room seems to be king. When we were visiting the Young Sheldon set,  we ran into the director as he was planning his shots for the day. If this were a film, I feel as though the director would spend much more time on this step of production. Now, I know this varies from filmmaker to filmmaker but in terms of television, the framing and look of the picture seems to be less important considering the focus is placed on the writing.

Let’s back track a bit. Did you notice how I said writers were king? Believe it or not, I did that on purpose. One thing that really stood on these visits was the lack of female voices in the writer’s room. To make sure I wasn’t jumping to conclusions, I did some research.

So after perusing IMDB, I noticed that I was indeed on to something. In 2016, the Writers Guild reported that 29% of employed writers identified as female. Now, I’m not saying I’m presenting any ground breaking news here. The fact of the matter is that writer’s rooms are overwhelmingly male. Some may argue that this is because of certain shows’ content. I, however, call bullshit on that (sorry if I can’t say that). The content argument pigeonholes women in not only their writing abilities but also their identities. Take me for example, I’m disgusting and forget that the f word is taboo. Many would say this isn’t feminine. Bridesmaids is an amazing example of women being gross and doing things that would typically be considered masculine–female fight club and soiling one’s self in the street.  This film also explores female friendship and it was written by women! It seems silly to expect well rounded, unique femme characters if they’re written by men.

Okay men who are reading this, calm down. I know some of you can write good femme characters but too many of you don’t. Just take a little break, and let some femmes write their own stories. Also, this notion doesn’t just apply to gender. People of color, LBTQIA, disabled people, among others who’s voices aren’t typically heard deserve to control their own narratives.

And with that, I bid you adieu!

-Olivia

Last Friday we had the privilege of attending a screening of an Ida Lupino film, “The Hard Way,” courtesy of the UCLA film archive. If you’re lucky enough to have learned about Ms. Lupino in film school, or perhaps stumbled upon her vast body of work on your own accord, you’ll know that she is responsible for writing, directing, and playing an astoundingly wide array of badass, complicated, oftentimes ruthless female characters. In the course of more than 50 films, she was a spiteful Cockney in “The Light That Failed” (1939), a crazed wife in “They Drive by Night” (1940), a loyal girlfriend in “High Sierra” (1941), an escaped convict in “The Sea Wolf” (1941), a steely murderer in “Ladies in Retirement” (1941), a depraved warden in “Women’s Prison” (1955), a sob-sister columnist in “While the City Sleeps” (1956), a world-weary mother of a rodeo star in “Junior Bonner” (1972), and so, so much more. In short, she transcended her breakout role as a Hollywood star. She was an ambitious writer, fierce performer, pioneering director, and, dare I say…feminist icon!

She is also celebrated for directing a handful of provocative, socially relevant films, which entertained themes such as illegitimacy, rape culture, prostitution, teen sex, women’s health issues, bigamy, and pathological murder. In order to do so, she and Collier Young, an executive producer who was her husband at the time, founded The Filmakers [sic]— an independent production company for which she directed candid films with feminist themes. Let me ask you this: WHO else was doing this kind of thing in Hollywood in the 50s? Perhaps no one has a legacy quite like hers. So why does it feel like this amazing woman, one of the first truly prolific female directors in American cinema, still exists in the shadow of her male counterparts? This question could not be more apt, given the fact that the 100th anniversary of her birth coincides with an extraordinary shift in Hollywood gender dynamics. As if to say, now is a PERFECT time to celebrate her achievements, and honor the path she blazed for women directors. Which is exactly what the UCLA film archive aimed to do by screening “The Hard Way,” a film that follows a complex relationship between a pair of talented and driven sisters as they navigate stardom and excess.

As I sign off today I cannot help but feel lucky. Lucky that I am entering the entertainment industry when I am, during such a seismic shift in Hollywood. Lucky that I’ve already had the opportunity to work with inspiring female mentors, professors, and peers (here’s looking at you, my 99% female thesis class!!!) And of course, lucky that people like Ida Lupino came before me, fearlessly yet humbly, with rich talent and amazing stories to tell.

-Mari