This weekend I participated in BNAT, but it was a near thing. A three week migraine nearly overwhelmed me. Only the facts that BNAT happens only once a year, I'd already paid for it, I might not get in again, and I was covering it got me out of bed. 

The first few movies were near torture; I had to block my ears. But I was bemused when one film, the new Scorcese thriller Shutter Island, features a migraineur, and even described migraines accurately.  To paraphrase, migraines were described as opening up one's skull, filling it with razors, closing it back up and shaking it. That's about right.  Around that time, my migraine was subsiding.

Surprisingly, by the time the 26+ hours of the festival ended, I was migraine free. Unfortunately last night's socializing gave me another migraine with all the trimmings.  But it was worth it.   

        

This is a lame kinda post. I finished up a 26+hr film festival, BNAT. I should be exhausted and crashed. But I'm just a bit tired. I'm going to hold off on sleeping until normal bed time if I can. 

I have a Thing about hygiene at film fests, and hearing so much feedback about BNAT funk I scrubbed extra hard going in, and used deodorant twice when there. I ended up not changing my socks there, despite advice to do so, and I'm glad I didn't, because when I took my sneakers off, I could've killed people in a hermetically sealed room. Normally I don't have heavy food odor but I guess 28hrs in the same sock will funk out any sock. 

I'm all minty fresh now, but I am a bit tired. It was a great festival. And my first BNAT. Hopefully, the first of many.  It was a fantastic lineup of vintage and upcoming films. 

        

I'm off to BNAT, also known as Buttnumbathon, a 24hr+ celebration of old and new film, as well as the birthday of Harry Knowles, founder of Aint it Cool News.  I wrote a little piece on it for Slackerwood.

BNAT doesn't allow phones or recording devices so I'll be offline for over a day.  But that's OK, sometimes it's good to be away from technology for a while.  I just hope I don't go into twitter withdrawal. 

        

This fall I attended a panel at the Austin Film Festival to support a friend who was speaking. Chris Holland, another contributor over at Slackerwood and a principal at B-Side, has extensive experience programming film festivals, and had some practical advice for filmmakers when submitting their films.

His advice included things like:

• Only submit to festivals that would be a good fit for your film
• Distracting gimmicks and packaging will not help your film get selected
• Don't take it personally if your film doesn't get selected
  • Selections are based on categories and matching the film festivals style
  • Failure to be selected does not automatically mean your film isn't good
  • Some years a category gets so many great submissions, even good films get rejected
• Make sure every disc has basic information on it, like the film name, and contact information
• Understand and follow the guidelines for submission

I kept thinking as I listened to Chris talk, that not only where these practical tips for filmmakers, but anyone submitting their work for selection, whether in a competition like a film festival, or a job search.

Same principals apply. 

        

I went to a film screening today, for a film everyone is talking about and was a hassle to get to see. The biggest hassle was getting in.

They had at least four security cards; two to secure mobile phones, one to bag search, and one to wand.  It's 2009, these phones are a fact of life, do they really think anyone in that theater was going to record anything? they are ways to monitor in the theater, right? 

So one stop to hand over my phone and to sign a form saying I wouldn't hold them culpable for what is my primary communication device with a lot of private data on it.  There's a whole table for that. But they want to search my bad, which I have to hold open.  I was already having a bad day, so I copped quite a bit of attitude. Not gracious, I know, but Austin doesn't have an issue with people being stupid with their cell phones.  And there was no table to set down my bag for the search. And for the record, I had about 6 different, places I could have stored electronic devices that they didn't check.  I could have easily kept my phone with me.  In fact, I could have easily kept it in the one compartment they searched.

Then there was the getting of the phone. In having to pull things out for the security guard to poorly search, I lost the ticket for my phone so I had to pull out my identification for that.  While I appreciate the fact they verified I matched my phone, the whole process wasn't necessary. The only time I've seen anyone use a camera phone in a theater was when a studio guest had to take pictures throughout a special screening.

All that hassle for a film that wasn't in focus, with unimpressive 3D.

        

Last year during Holidailies I focused on holiday stuff. This year, I'm going to focus on job related topics, even if tangentially.  Today's is a ramble down memory lane.

Two years ago, in November, I had A Really Bad Month.  I'd spent the entire year unemployed, despite being so good at knowing and (mostly) doing the right things to network and job search that I was an invited speaker on the subject no less than three times that year.  Unemployment hadn't been extended yet, so I was rapidly running out of money. Thank gods for the generosity of friends.

I was submitting my resume to as many jobs as I could that matched up to my skillset; I wasn't sending it out scattershot, but I was starting to applyto jobs that weren't necessarily a great match.  I'd customize my resume to each job, showing (accurately) how my skills and experience matched the job. But it was tough.  It gets more like a country song later, trust me.

I saw a job description requiring project management, training, and technical writing skills described in a way that seemed like they were looking for someone with my experience. It was a monster board job I found on a Sunday. On Monday I had two phone interviews.  On Tuesday I had the offer. On Wednesday I did the required drug test. On Thursday, I had to euthanize my cat.

She'd seemed ill that weekend, but it got worse. On thursday I took her to the vet, and by that time she'd gone blind. Apparently she had kidney disease.  I could have taken her home ofr a day or two more, but she was very stressed by trips.  So after 16 years together, I held her for the first time without her struggling, between sedation and euthanasia, and that was it.  What should have been a celebratory weekend was Very Tough Indeed. 

Starting the job was bittersweet; I'd come home and look up at the windows, and knowing there was no one there to greet me was rough.  Enter one of those generous friends, who'd offered to 'guarantee' payment with the vet who saw Keely.  She was fostering two feral rescue kittens.  It I met them on Black Friday, and now, two years later, it's about to be our second "anniversary" of living together. 


They are so unlike Keely it's funny; she was a persnickety bitch, not a lap cat, but a frequent 'lump in the bed' because she liked to cuddle under covers.  Plunkett and Macleane are very much cuddle cats, but they have as much Personality as Keely ever had, but they hate being under covers.  It's like living with two pubescent boys, inseperable, bickering, and all around the most obnoxious fun I've had in years. 

So knowing my job is likely ending in January, I'm even more aware that even unhappy changes can still bring Good Things. 

        

Today I got confirmation that my current job is lasting through the end of January. This is a big relief. A little over two years ago I was interviewed for what was intended to be a half time, two or three month temporary job, and I've been doing it for over two years now. 

I have to admit, I'm spoiled; my hours are very flexible,allowing me to take time off in the middle of the day for errands or the occasional daytime screening for my moonlighting gigs as a film critic. I have the best boss, who gives me support when I need it and the room to get work done with the flexibility that allows me to be most productive. 

I'm one of those people who doesn't need a lot of management. Just point me in the right direction with the required parameters, and I'm off and running.  I just finished a huge, cumbersome, board level project involving almost two dozen courses and a final evaluation, and all the required students finished in the most recent deadline.  Praised was heaped on, but honestly, to me, I was just doing my job. 

Learning that my job wasn not approved for the permanent headcount last month wasn't the happiest of days, but it's been a good run. But I have to admit, the idea of having to back to a daily 8-5 office job was depressing. I have a little reprieve. 

        

Dear Webgods, it's been 175 days since I last updated...

It's been months since I've last updated this blog, which is both good and bad. But things have been so crazy. And busy.  Beyond crazy-buys.  As an associate editor at Slackerwood, an Austin-centric film site.  It's been great, but time consuming. And last month I joined the Sci Fi Squad, a sister site to Cinematical (and Horror Squad, TV Squad, etc.). 

Reviewing films has been keeping me busy; I covered four festivals in two months, including aGLIFF, Fantastic Fest, AFF, and AAAFF. And this weekend, I have Buttnumbathon.  I'm also reviewing films for another film festival. And it's the holidaze brings "for your consideration" season, so there can be two screenings a day for films to review or mini-review for Movies this Week.  That's not even mentioning the Huge High Visibility Dayjob Project that finally ended last week.  So I've been very busy.



I was going to update here sooner, but then I remembered Holidailies, and decided to be lazy until today, when I kick off a daily update to get me back in the swing of things. 

So expect a number of random postings on all sorts of subjects for the next month. 

        

I'm a pedestrian by choice.  I walk to the gym, to the grocery store, and sometimes to the theater.  Lately I've noticed a lot more people not using the signals on their car. Sometimes the turns they'd make were obvious, but other times, they weren't. As a pedestrian, this always makes me nervous because I can't anticipate where they're going and avoid collisions.

What's equally annoying is people trying to be helpful to me as a pedestrian, and then getting frustrated at me because I can't see them trying to wave me on through the very strong Texas sun glare on their windshield. One woman even yelled at me when I had stopped before a crosswalk to let her continue through the intersection.  If I can't make eye contact, I don't assume they can see me.

I was walking home from the gym the other day, I thought of something else; not signaling is a problem a lot of people have when it comes to their career, in good times or bad.

Are you letting people know where you're planning on going or doing? If you aren't, how can people anticipate your needs?

People are often very willing to help you, but you need to speak up.  If you can't articulate it, how can you expect to get it?

        

I've been neglecting this blog. I apologize. I'm going vow to update at least once a week.  In the meantime, you can read some of what I've been up to at Slackerwood.com.

I would like to call your attention to a little story about Twitter for good.  Scott Nuemeyer, a friend of several of my friends and someone I follow on Twitter.  Most of us are somehow connected to film, from critics to makers, to enthusiastic fans of moving images.

Scott decided to try for 2,000 followers by Friday April 17th.  At one point he offered a DVD to one of his followers. It evolved into 100 DVDs to troops, then friends and followers got into the spirit, and operation #TroopFlix was born.  This campaign, done solely based on twitter connections, has resulted in pledges of nearly 1,000 DVDs in total. At some point over the weekend, it was over 850.  With so many film associations, even film companies have gotten involved, donating an undetermined number of DVDs. It's been hard to track down numbers.

The DVDs are not going out to the soldiers in the field, but to the Warrior Return Unit, which, according to the official US Navy website, has a mission to "maximize the quality of life for service members of coalition forces during the period of convalescence, expediting return to duty or transfer to definitive care." These are troops with time on their hands and in need of distraction.  It's also location based, with a high turnover of troops, so the DVDs are gifts that keep on giving.  Duplicate DVDs will be sent to other units at the discretion of Scott's contact at the WRU at Camp Arifjan.

If you would like to participate, let Scott know, and send your DVDs (gently used are OK) to:

c/o LCDR Tim Drill
Camp Arifjan, EMF Kuwait (Navy)
Warrior Return Unit
APO AE 09366

My package was under four pounds, but because it was going to an Army address, a special customs form had to be filled out (2976-A), and it had to go priority mail.  It's a bit more paperwork, but the good side is it will get there sooner.  Make sure to indicate on the customs form it's a DVD donation. 

No matter your political views, it shouldn't be hard to support such an effort.

        

Starting tomorrow, I'll be living SXSW nearly 24/7... well, more like 18/10.  If you're interested in news from there, check out Slackerwood.com, where I'm a contributor.  Slackerwood is Austin's answer to Hollywood, and focuses on local film related news. If you need help deciding which films to check out during SXSW, I recommend it.

If you're in Austin, do look around for the free and budget minded events if you don't have a badge.  There's Bar Camp Austin IV, which is free, and all day long, and into the evening on Saturday. If you're looking for more, just do some googling for free SXSW events for all three conferences (film, interactive, music), as well as for unofficial events.  Not having a badge is no excuse for not partaking.

        

I was nearly as hyped up as any fangirl, although I haven't read the graphic novel (I haven't read any, so no shock there).  I really enjoyed 300 despite the lame dialogue because it was visually luscious; it was gore ballet, but still ballet. 

The trailers, which no one with any sort of electronic media device could escape, looked gorgeous. It's not bad.  But not as great as I'd hoped. 

And I don't think the whole "unfilmable" rap was it. It was the 'music video' component that annoyed me. Yes it had a very complicate plot, but I have a brain, I could follow that.  It felt a bit dated, but I can live with that, too. 

Instead of integrating the music in to support the rest of the film, it became a focus several times.  Most notable was the sex scene supporting Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah". That and the incendiary money shot.  The music worked best when it was subtle, like the elevator muzak version of "Everybody Wants to Rule the World." I could tell there was a lot of story cut just from the possibilities of storylines. I found myself thinking about them during the music video portions.

Still, it's visually stunning, and worth watching.  Performance wise, Jackie Earle Haley steals the scenes he's in, especially his final scene.  If you thought his performance in Little Children was a fluke, this will change your mind. 

If you're in Austin or anywhere near it, you MUST see it at an Alamo. Get there extra early, as it will be sold out, but also for the pre-show, which has some great fangeek featurettes, and some useful ones for us on-graphic novel geek types. 

And for those who've seen it... is it me, or was Nixon's nose growing?

        

I did not have good customer service experiences throughout February, in different ways with different companies.

My saga of getting a replacement card with CapitalOne was finally resolved, but I'm even less impressed with their documentation system and procedures.  Apparently the original replacement card I requested went through some 'approval' process, and no one could tell me about it til three days before I got the card, with the 3rd request for priority mailing.  And when the account supervisor misheard "reporting" as "recording", well, I suspect that there's a reason for his paranoia.   

But I will say this; the last customer service rep I spoke to, Vik, was very nice, very helpful, and put me through to a supervisor almost immediately.  He actually cheered me up, and made me smile, reminding me it's a good day, and not to let the problems get in the way of enjoying it. 

I had trouble with my new HD TV, with the picture being zoomed bigger than the screen. No matter what picture mode I chose, I could not change it.  The problem was ultimately with the Time Warner remote, but neither Samsung nor Time Warner's sites were very helpful.  No information about functionality online.  The Samsung site was insanely unhelpful, and I kept going in circles.  I had to create a service request online to get phone support, which didn't have the support hours available, so it took a few calls.  They couldn't help me, but I was able to finally get a field support request. 

It should've been resolved online. If not that, the phone, by first tier support.  But it had to go to field support.  Where the situation completely changed.  I got a call two days before the "first available day" estimate from First Choice, the contracted field support company.  Then the assigned tech called me a few hours early to say he thought he knew the problem, and walked me through clicking on the # pound button, which is not lableled as Zoom, and I've never knowingly used.  The cats probably stepped on it.

It should have been resolved by looking at the website, either Samsung's or Time Warner's. Or both. But I'm glad Eric (?) of First Choice is getting paid for it, because he was doing his job and doing it well.  Good for him, since he had all the right stuff; good attitude, clear instructions, and repeatedly asked if I had any other questions. I feel better about this TV purchase because if I need further assistance, I'm confident in the field support. If not the web and phone support.

And lastly; convenience and initial cost savings aren't always worth it.  My old computer has been dying for a couple of years, So I figured it was time for a new one.  I'd built this thing the day after knee surgery, when I still had a pain pump and loaded up on Vicodin. It worked perfectly the first time. Unfortunately, it had been dying the last couple of years, and finally I couldn't take it any more.  I opted to go to NewEgg.com and buy a pre-built system, as it was cheaper than what I was planning on building, and could be modified as needed, and I didn't need all the bells and whistles I was considering just yet.

Stupid me.  It was an Acer system.  It died literally 30 days after it was delivered.  Very loudly.  I noticed the day before it died the HD was spinning a bit loudly, and since I got it, the mouse was not very responsive after being in sleep mode. But that last night, 30 days after I got it, it spun up loud enough to compete with a lawnmower engine, and died. And revives just long enough to get to a boot screen before dying again. 

My confidence was already waning when they sent me an email telling me to back up before I tried their fix. Yeah, I can backup a computer that stays on for less than a minute.  I am not a fan of generic responses that aren't tailored to the actual situation.  Let alone it took me a half hour to gather the information required to get help.

Their online support is slow, with more than 24 hours to respond to follow ups. And their phone support is worse; the guy actually talked over me and didn't seem able to provide any information without me specifically asking for it.   They did eventually send me a URL to request service. But they want me to provide my password with no privacy policy statement. And I have to pay for shipping. Or, very generous of them, I can give them my credit card number to ship a new hard drive, and send my old one back.  Uh, no, I'll just fix it myself. And not buy Acer products ever again.


And lastly, I did my first, and probably last Zappos order.  I wanted sassy new shoes to wear to a conference on the 27th.  With the free shipping both ways is great, but the shoes, shoes aren't one size fits all, and despite lots of reviews saying true to size, were too snug on the toes.  It was very easy to get the shipping label and send them back.  But therein lies the problem.

I shipped them back on 2/18.  It took until 2/24 to actually get the credit code to use for replacements, two days after I saw the credit showing on my account. There seemed to be a real disconnect with processing the return and issuing the credit. And the replacement shoes I wanted were sold out by the time I got the credit. I ended up getting a pair of sandals I wasn't going to buy for another few weeks, and never got the shoes I'd wanted for the conference. And the sandals aren't that comfortable, and make that evil "flickeh flickeh" noise when I walk. I'd return them, but it's not worth the hassle.

Zappos deserves a whole post in itself, because in some ways they have fantastic features, which are diminished by the really frustrating ones.  I could see I had the $75 credit days before I could actually use it, and when the return status was still showing "return in progress".  It never showed "received" but went straight to "completed" (and before I got the credit code). I had to make a customer service request to get the credit code sent again, 

I had to get the credit code in email, instead of having it post to my account.  The original email arrived several hours after the followup email. Ands speaking of email, they're great with finding ways for you to get email alerts, but you can't readily manage them. After trying five times to get unsubscribed from their daily digest, I had to resort to yet another customer service request to actually getting unsubscribed.  Having email management options on the account page seems pretty basic to me, but that's apparently not a priority for them.  Although after all this, I got two emails about being part of their new VIP club. Thanks, but I don't think so.  I'm not sure how much saying if this wasn't resolved that day, I wanted a refund.  All lthe cheery "customer loyalty team" verbiage doesn't work on me.

Their CEO and social media guru are following me on Twitter because I mentioned Zappos. Well and good, but could you all spend more time in making your site  work a bit more like, say Newegg? 

I'm not completely soured on online ordering, as I've had really good experiences with NewEgg.com and Amazon.com, and Reuseablebags.com, but this has all been a reminder to not be so open minded.

        

I've been a badge holder for SXSW film for the last several years, with the exception of last year, when I had a film pass.  If you're going to really do a film festival, and get 4-6 screenings in a day, with all that line standing, you can make it easier on yourself with: 

A Big Bag/BackPack
If you're a badge holder, you get a great big bag full of swag and ads.  You can carry your stuff in there, or use a backpack. Either works. But you need one to carry the necessaries to make your festival experience more enjoyable, and survivable.

Re-usable Water Bottle
In the past, I've re-used plastic bottles, but I've been looking for a good, non-plastic one.  Another attendee at the Austin Film Festival last year had one of these, and it looked the perfect size for stuffing into a bag.  And apparently, it keeps water cool for a long time, which is great in Texas.  I'm not a fan of ice water, but I'd prefer my water to be at least a bit cooler than body temperature.  It's also got a wide mouth, making it easy to clean. 

You definitely want to stay hydrated, and this can help you save money and the environment. Good all around.  I just ordered two of them in different sizes on reusablebags.com, which is a great site with genuinely green bags, and bottles, and related products. 

Just make sure your bottle is not visible when entering venues, especially the Paramount. The water Nazis'll getcha.

Sweater/Jacket
It may be Texas, and it may be Spring by the end of SXSW, but there's no guarantee the weather will cooperate, and some venues have turbo AC.  If you want to get double duty out of it, you can use it to hold your seat on restroom trips before the show.  Best if it's not black, though, so people can see it. 

Umbrella
Just because we're back in full drought mode doesn't mean there's no possible chance for rain.  Get one bright enough to find if you put it on the floor in a dark theatre, and the more unique the better. But make it compact, so you can stuff it into a waterproof bag and easily store it your big bag. 

UPDATE:  Despite the drought, the weatherman is suggesting possible rain this week, so there may be rain next week.  Stuff one of those 5,434,006 plastic bags you pick up during the week for storing your umbrella in your bag/pack so you aren't stuck searching for it, or lose it. You will want the umbrella, because Texas rain is by deluge most of the time.


Nutrition Bars
You only need a couple of them, but they're very handy when hungry and waiting in line, or when you're at a venue without food. Or, if you oversleep from the late screenings and partying, and have to dash to your first screening of the day.

 I'm not a big fan of Luna or Cliff bars, but I rather enjoy Pria and ZonePerfect.  ZonePerfect bars also come in snack size, perfect to take the edge off hunger until you can make it to an Alamo screening. The ZonePerfect fudge grahams are better than some candy bars. The Pria Complete chocolate mint bars are pretty good, too.

Trail Size Pain Reliever
Personally, I prefer Aleve. You may have another. Most drug stores will carry trial size of the more popular brands. You might also want to get some travel packs of tissues, and face wipes, too, for when you're not feeling as fresh as you'd like.   I'm pretty retentive about this stuff, so I also have bandaids, and change and a couple small bills for emergency.  And nail clippers.  Yeah, you want to know me when you have those little emergencies.


Sun Block
This is Texas, after all. Even the locals will use sunblock this time of year, and you will be standing in line for hours over the course of the festival, if you do the full festival.  While it's currently cool for us, we've already flirted with 90F this year. 

Vitamins
These don't have to go with you, but I do recommend taking them even if you don't normally. You're likely going to stay up longer, partying harder, and eating worse than you normally do.  It doesn't mean you can't take care of yourself a little bit.

Comfortable Shoes
I'm always surprised to see some women in heels at screenings, then I remember they're the ones who're usually just attending that one. Unless it's your film screening, stick to comfortable shoes. If you're an Austinite or frequent visitor, you know that sandals are acceptable just about anywhere, anytime in Austin.  After your first 45 minute line, you'll thank me. 

Keychain Flashlight
You're gonna be in a lot of dark theatres. It makes it a helluvalot easier to check for fallen items, umbrellas, etc.  And for those of us not using hotels, a lot easier to find -and use- keys.  At Fantastic Fest, I helped someone find something that would have been irreplaceable.  You can probably even pick one up at the trade show.

Go Local Austin, Water, and Tips
You can save quite a bit of money on your soft drinks by purchasing a Go Local Austin card. For just $10, you get discounts and other offers at local businesses, several of which are near the Alamo locations.  Mekong River has great Vietnamese food, and is just a block or so away from the Alamo Ritz. If you have hat envy, Hatbox is a block down the other way.  If you buy two large softdrinks at an Alamo, it's paid for itself. There are so many local businesses participating, you need to check out their website to see them all. 

Just remember to tip, please, based on the full price of your order (15-20%).  Please, please, please, make sure to tip your staff, even if it's for the water they bring you. They take care of you, you should take care of them. They do everything any other waitstaffer will do, but they do in the dark and with stairs.  Fifty cents for a water is fair, if you ask them to bring it to you. 

Not tipping just makes you look cheap, and the wait staff is working extended hours with packed houses every screening, and for some of them, it's their spring break. So give them a break and appreciate them the best possible way.  And if you can't afford the tip, you can't afford the meal.


These are just the highlights I can think of; what suggestions do you have?

        

With the uncertain economy, companies are just not as willing to invest in the indirect ROI to sponsored events like conferences, seminars, job fairs, etc., I was sure the annual conference AWT Austin puts on would be a success.  And it was.

It was definitely scaled back. No vendor bingo, as there were very few vendors.  The door prizes weren't as extravagant as past years.  But it still was a hard choice between the three different tracks for the three different breakout sessions. 

The biggest problem for me was the fact I was in the midst of a multi-day migraine, so I was not as focused on prep work, or at the sessions.  I forgot to bring business cards with me.  I didn't network as much as I could have. I sat like a stone a few times, dealing with the migraine.  But I did meet a few new people, and catch up with some old friends I haven't seen in a while.

I love the fact that AWT does a good job of networking, and it's looking like they're partnering up with other professional associations.  I'm really looking forward to seeing what events are coming in the coming year.  And hopefully I won't have a migraine during those.