Happy Holidays from Blatantly Subtle!

Happy Holidays! It's 80 in Burbank today!

We have just produced special edition copies of the movies featured in "Love, Lost & Sold," the screening held recently in New York. There is also talk of having a screening Los Angeles this spring!

First things first -- the special edition DVD of "How I Got Lost" includes special features like a commentary with me and Dominic (the sound designer), behind the scenes footage and outtakes, a slide show, and the trailer to the movie... All of which is overwhelming I'm sure. In any case a select few have been sent out to cast and crew. Enjoy them with eggnog or hard alcohol.

Also, we are mass producing these things, so let us know if you'd like a copy -- or a bunch of copies. The more copies that are out there the
better, as far as we're concerned.

In terms of the future for "How I Got Lost": I have sent it out to several festivals, including Tribeca, Firstglance Philadelphia, Sedona and South by Southwest. And I will continue to send it out for festivals through the season. We will hear from many of these festivals in February and March. I
am optimistic about the chances of having a modest festival run, and should it get in to a few, cast and crew are certainly encouraged to attend!

Finally, some breaking news: I recently got a job out here in LA as the Post-Production Supervisor for "The Great New Wonderful," an independent feature that was shot in New York, starring Maggie Gyllenhaal, Tony Shalhoub, Judy Greer and a few others -- so I'm going to be out here through most of Christmas and New Years, with a couple days in St. Louis. Then in January I'm going to Sundance, where I'll be directing traffic, watching movies and trying to talk to people about our movie.

If I don't get a chance to talk with you -- have a wonderful Christmas/Hannukah/Kwanzaa season and don't get too hammered on New Year's Eve, or you'll have to do that whole "resolution" thing with a hangover, which is annoying enough on its own. On second thought, try to overdo it SO much that you will miss the ball dropping entirely. That's my technique.

Screening our movies - "how did it go?"

I will do my best to remember, but honestly my memory feels spotty, and I feel like I'm trying to remember a dream now that I've woken up. Here, to the best of my memory, is an accounting of how the screening went...

I got in town a few days early. The first few days back in New York I slept on couches, stayed out late and got up early, and fought off a cold; I spent my first night in New York looking in vain for a cellphone charger. I went to see Jace in "Heartbeat of Baghdad" at the Flea. It thought it was great. I ran into my friend Kaki on the street. New York is still everything I always thought it was. At one point, on accident, I ran into Sam and Bryan on one block. Bryan came to town from Toronto with his girlfriend Janice, and showed his movie "A Quarter-Life Love." This was a very good weekend even before it got started.

The days before the screening Sam and I cold-called agencies and production companies. It was a good thing to do, since everything else was ready to go. But still, it's a terrible way to spend a day... We sent out emails and faxes of our press release and our press kit. All of this led to exactly one person showing up -- who we already knew. But then, maybe we are out of touch thinking that the film industry types would be interested in our work. Or maybe someone else is out of touch...

Regardless, we stuck to our plan and sent out our emails (and our spam emails) and called everyone we knew for the fifth time.

And then... we didn't know what to do. Honestly, every other screening we have done we have been struggling up to the last minute to finish the films. This time we had our shit together. We had made the best movies we knew how. We put months into it, and we didn't lose focus for a moment. Before the screening even happened, I was proud of us. I was proud of Sam and Jill and Justina and Jace and Bryan, and Dom and Pete and everyone else who followed through and helped finish these movies.

My big job the day before was to get red carpet. This I found in Chinatown.

Before the screening we had friends and family helping us set up. Lexi and Kate were our hot ushers, handing out programs, making signs and in general being wonderful. Sam, Bryan and Dom did the sound and picture check. Jill and I set up a table with handouts and things. And we practiced our speech, which was a very difficult thing. Jill was on fire by the way. She looked great and couldn't have been happier. Before people started walking in we took some pictures on the red carpet.

I was so happy to see the people who came: like Ian Cohen, Ishai Setton, Mark Arywitz, Barbara Malmet, Riley Gallagher, and far too many more to mention. Lily's mom, aunt, uncle and cousin Beth came. My parents were there. Remnants of the NYU hockey team showed. People I didn't know at all, reached through NYU or some other mysterious means, came out of the woodwork. The actors and their friends piled in, and before we knew it we had a completely full 300 seat theatre, and it was time to give our speech.

After that it's a little bit of a blur.

And then after the movies we hung around a little and talked to people from the cast of The Wire, who came to check out what we were up to. Then we went to a bar around the corner and stayed there until it closed down on a Sunday night. Then, I think the few people left (Sam, Jace, Kate, other people, me I suppose) went to the Blind TIger, which amazingly was still open. And then we stayed there for awhile. I just didn't want the night to end at all.

The next morning I woke up early in my parents hotel in midtown, and stayed up all day, continuing my new philosophy in New York of waking up early to beat my hangover. It was a beautiful, cold, New York day. The kind that makes you realize where you stand, what matters to you.

Today's it's raining in Burbank. My life has not changed drastically, as I imagined it might on occasion. But things are looking good. I recently got a job out here working as a Post-Production Coordinator for "The Great New Wonderful." So I'm working on that through Christmas. And I'm sending "How I Got Lost" off to festivals...

And that is how I got lost and where it left me.

Review of "Love, Lost & Sold"

Check out the link above for a review by a fan who attended our screening.

Thank you everyone for attending!!!

Attention: Cast & Crew of "How I Got Lost"

I doubt you've forgotten how cold it was in February when we shot this thing.

Well, it's finally time to see it. In the last month or so, Dom and I have been working on the sound design and it's been way too much fun. Most of what we did involved making noises and doing foley work (re-creating sound effects, essentially) in the sound booth, and of course drinking beer. Kevin and Graham also came in to record some stuff, and it was great to get back to working on the movie with them. I guess I've more or less lived with this movie over the summer, and I know it will be hard for me to admit that it's all done now that it's over with.

Which is why this premiere is going to be great. Everyone's going to be there.

I'm sure by now you know the details of when and where, and I hope you've gotten postcards and enough emails to clog your mailbox already. And most of all I hope you're looking forward to seeing the end result of all of that hard work -- and of course there are also two other movies to look forward to that will be shown with "How I Got Lost." Basically, there's going to be a lot of good stuff to see. Let everyone you know... know, or something. (Also, check the back of next weeks Village Voice!)

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns, or if you just feel like saying hello. It'd be great to hear from you. Otherwise, I will be in town next Wednesday, November 10, and I'm free for drinks or coffee anytime. I'm more than happy to show you the movie ahead of time if you wanna check it out. And I think it'd be great to have BRUNCH the Sunday of the screening! So I'm going to be looking into that. Did I mention that we will have DVDs for you at the screening? And of course I will be able to give you whatever footage you would like in raw or finished form for your reel. Just let me know. Now that the movie's done I don't know what to do with myself.

So over the next week while we're calling production companies and agents and sending emails, keep in mind the following picture: a theatre filled with 200 or so screaming fans, a red carpet, and myself wearing a dress that is also a swan. Ok, maybe not.

But it's going to be almost that good, so bring your friends.

The Premiere

Blatantly Subtle invites you to an exclusive gala premiere...
LOVE, LOST & SOLD: three shorts filmed in new york
Sunday, November 14TH, 7:30 pm
Cantor Film Center –36 East 8th Street NY,NY   FREE

A Quarter-life Love
Dir. Bryan Friedman
Starring Jill Frutkin & Jace Mclean

How I Got Lost
Dir. Joe Leonard
Starring Kevin Kane & Graham Hamilton

Sell Out
Dir. Sam Mestman
Starring Peter Karinen & Kate Dulcich

Show up in jeans, a ball gown, or cabana wear. Come early for a good
seat and stay late to have drinks with us!


a blatantly subtle screening
backing up our good ideas with debt

The Cardinals Lose the Pennant

It was still the best season I remember.

LA screening of "Personal Soundtrack"

A short film I directed called "Personal Soundtrack" (starring Jill Frutkin) is playing tonight at the IFP event at the Temple Bar, on 1026 Wilshire Blvd at 7:30 PM. It's a free event, and I don't really know the details other than that the program is called the "Cinema Lounge," and apparently there's going to be a Q&A, which ought to be interesting... It'll be my first LA screening since moving here.

I apologize for the late notice. If you can make it I look forward to seeing you there. Otherwise, hope to catch up with you soon.

A month to go

Things to do before the screening:

1. Distribute and mail postcards
2. Send out presskits
3. Make a list of production companies, agents, producers, etc.
4. Make cold calls
5. Turn 25
6. Write a program
7. finish final touches on the movies
8. Get cast and crew of movies excited
9. Write emails and opening speeches...
10. Make dvds
11. Spend an hour a day on it.

What I missed

For the last two weeks I have been working on the sound design for How I Got Lost and living in New York. And there isn't any place like New York. People ask me, "oh, no shit, Los Angeles? How's the working out?" It's great, but yknow it's not New York. And they nod. They know it isn't. But I don't really think you appreciate New York living here. Or at least I stopped, in the crucial part of my imagination where I imagined New York was a romantic place.

And that's what my movie's about. The romantic part of New York. But in the movie the character Jake ends up still back in New York, having conquered something. But I'm not Jake. I'm not a sportswriter, or an actor, or an idea, the way the character of Jake is. I am just who I am.

I have been drinking a lot in New York and enjoying it with the people I love. It has been a very, very good trip.

I mentioned in my last post that I sent out a VHS of the movie to dozens of people. I received a lot of replies, and in the last three weeks I made big changes that I wouldn't have been able to make if I hadn't had at least one person call who hated it, one person who was confused, and one person who loved a few little things in it. Part of the process of every movie being finished should include and absorb the responses you get, positive and negative, to your project. That's my theory. It's funny getting feedback because you really have to consider: is this person right, or wrong? And of course, am I right or wrong? It's always a toss-up and once again you have to make these crucial decisions. I decided on a catch phrase for the movie. "It doesn't matter where you're going." This is partially because there was some feedback that the movie didn't know where it was going.

Most feedback is 100% right, but it's always from a perspective, and always pretty personal. That's how all the feedback I give is anyway.

For the last two weeks I have been pretending I live in New York still. It has been wonderful. But now tomorrow morning I have to leave and get back to work in LA. I don't mind so much. But it's hard packing up an apartment.

For the last two weeks I have been finishing my movie with Dom, one of my best friends and one of the people I value working with most. It has been great.

I will miss New York until I'm back in November.

Finishing the movie

It only takes one or two bad screenings to fix a movie that you know is close. In this case my mom, Mary Bonner (an actress in the movie), Lily (my girlfriend), and Dom Bartolini (the future sound designer) all had the misfortune to see the work-in-progress. Immediately I knew there was something wrong. The moving parts were all there, but it lurched. The scenes moved and looked right to me, but there was still something unclear about it, and I could see it as my viewers watched with blank faces. It was clear there was still work to do.

So back to the drawing table. There were problems with the beginning, just getting the movie off the ground, and with the end, pulling it all to a close. I focused on the basketball scene, at fives minutes the most challenging film editing I've ever done. I spent more time on it than any of my previous movies, and quite clearly, it didn't work. It was too long, too much basketball. The two hours plus of footage with two cameras yielded choppy results, a movie in of itself. I decided to table the second half of the scene and see if I could put it back in later, as a flashback. I did the same with the other scene at the beginning of the movie, a scene in a cafe, pausing only to introduce the characters and what they faced.

No movie can be too good out in the real world when you lock yourself in a room and stare it for a long time. But you gotta do that to know your movie, to find it, I think...

I set up a camera with a shotgun microphone and forced myself to read voice-over for an afternoon. I wrote and re-wrote, I made stuff up. It is amazing what a rolling camera does for your creativity. It forces the issue. I watched the movie, I drank beer and wine, I watched it more, and drank coffee. It started to come together. I started to see it.

When you get to the point where you can add credits, it's actually pretty fun. You are there.

It feels good, like there's a weight off my back. Today I made 40 VHS copies of the cut and sent them out to friends for some final feedback. We'll go from there... Anybody up for a drink?

"Personal Soundtrack" Screening in NY and LA

"Personal Soundtrack" will be screening as part of IFP/NY's Buzz Cuts program on Tuesday, September 14 at the Pioneer Movie Theatre in the East Village, and at the IFP/LA’s Cinema Lounge shorts program on Monday, October 25th at 7:30pm at the Temple Bar in Santa Monica (Wilshire & 11th St)!

Buzz Cuts (in New York) costs $5 but you get free pizza and beer if you come to the reception beforehand. Cinema Lounge (in LA) is free and open to the public, so we encourage you to spread the word to get people to check out the program.  It is a fun, relaxed atmosphere that serves drinks and food and a band usually plays right after the program ends at 9pm.

IFP is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting independent filmmakers and films, and both branches seem to have their own spirit, which is why this is pretty cool.  Some of their efforts include publishing Filmmaker: The Magazine of Independent Film and presenting the annual Independent Spirit Awards and Los Angeles Film Festival.  With over 10,000 members, IFP is among the leading non-profit film organizations worldwide.

Press Release: "Blatantly Subtle Holds Screening, Demands Recognition"

Like somebody's immortal words, to an outsider, things might seem to appear "All quiet on the Northeastern front" in the world of Blatantly Subtle. But off in the distance, this reporter, at least, can hear the sound of an upcoming offensive in the world of cinema. The troops have been organized, the plans have been set into motion, and on Nov. 14th 2004, at the Cantor Film Center, Blatantly Subtle plans to unleash its own version of the D-day offensive against the American cinematic landscape (editor's note: the opinions expressed in the official Blatantly Subtle Screening Press release in no way reflect the opinions of Blatantly Subtle. Blatantly Subtle is a nonviolent organization, but thoroughly enjoys using war analogies to heighten drama and tension within paragraphs).

Blatantly Subtle plans to unleash three new short films upon the American psyche, films so incredible that they aren't films at all, but videos that look like films. "How I Got Lost", " A Love Thing", and "Sell Out" will premiere, and put the world on notice, because there is a new sheriff in town, and it's name is Blatantly Subtle. "For once, I think we'll actually have all the movies done before the screening starts, which I think is a good sign" claims BS Co-Founder Sam Mestman (and director of the movie "Sell Out"). "I'm not thrilled about having to buy an extra plane ticket for this, but I'm a team player," admits Joe Leonard (BS co-founder, director of "How I Got Lost" and the man in charge of the ever-expanding BS-LA studio, "but whatever, I'm going to make the fuckers fly out for the LA screening." Well, Joe, word around town is that it'll be worth the inconvenience, as sources have confirmed that BS plans to have at least one, and potentially several (hundred?) industry representatives, producers, and celebrities at the premiere, not to mention the fact that the future stars of the film world (the cast and crew of the new movies), will also be in attendance. "Seriously, I'm going to tell practically everyone I know about this, and I think they're planning, like, a mailing and stuff too," says actor Jace McLean, "I mean... I know, like, a LOT of people." "If they manage to pull it off, I'll be there right behind them," claims director Brian Friedman ("A Love Thing"), and spoken like the true Canadian that he is.

The reality is that BS is ready to go legit, and the snowball is now finally starting to roll down the hill. From this reporters perspective, it's about time. "Yeah.... we're awesome," Jill Frutkin, actress/co-chairman of BS casually explains, "and it's time the rest of the world realized it." Truer words have never been spoken, Jill.

How to edit

First of all, it is impossible to edit for more than five or six hours a day.

You need to find a routine. For example, find one or two other things to do a day. Recently I have been going to job interviews to pass the time. I also rent three movies a week. (There is a three for the price of two deal at 20/20 video in Burbank.) I also go out of my way to make friends with people I don’t know.

In the morning, I make coffee. Sometimes I buy it, so I have somewhere to go. When I come back I check my mail. I am like a kid at camp with mail. In the late afternoon I go running. In between there are nearly five hours of productive time to be had.

If you don’t have patience you don’t have anything.

What you have to do is make friends with your movie, with the characters, the settings, the scenes. You will need these friends to finish the damn thing. If you don’t have anyone to hang out with it will be easier to make friends with your movie. If possible, move to a place where you know no one and will live alone.

You will have to confront yourself. Now. How to edit a life. First, look back. Second, remember the sensations. Finally, rewrite.

Rewriting as you edit your movie is the only way to learn something from your movie. Let your new friend, your movie, tell you where it will go. It knows best. If you trust it, maybe it will lead you somewhere.

A note of warning: you may be inclined to worry about what you originally intended. I originally intended for my life to be different from what it is. But that is no way to live. Not when you are alive each day and able to know who you are.

Rewrite rewrite rewrite. You have to own the movie of your life, if that’s the direction you are going to go.

The other trick I know is, edit the sound first. The stuff that sounds right will make anything look good. Or, to put it another way, do whatever works.

The Burbank Diet

Every time you see a 7-11, stop and get a slurpee. (Note: Cherry and Coke are better than any of the new colorful flavors.)

Make your own plans. Don't wait for the phone to ring, ever.

Whenever you are waiting for the phone to ring, go hit tennis balls.

Do not turn on the TV unless you are going to watch a movie. Watch movies only at night.

Write for an hour every day.

Do not check you email every 10 minutes.

Do the dishes, take out the trash, go to the grocery -- at least once a week.

Spend one morning a week faxing resumes.

Spend one afternoon a week making phone calls.

Exercise once a day.

Never leave the TV on all day.

Listen to Audiobooks like "The Art of War" -- and think of yourself as a ninja in training.

Shave every day.

Do not let yourself lie down on your bed in the middle of the day.

Understand that it is time to train like Rocky for a fight which you are destined to lose, against the Apollo Creeds of the world.

Look at yourself and your life honestly, but look forward purposefully.

Do not drink alone or drive after drinking.

Try out those Atkin's beers. Maybe they aren't horrible. Or maybe just drink less real beer.

Make new friends when you can, look around yourself when you go somewhere new, act naturally, and try not to feel awkward or shy. That is bullshit and you know it.

Organize thy life into one hour increments, into files and file folders, into piles and to do lists. And then bother to learn the systems you set up, and try to follow through.

Never flake out on someone. This is what everyone does and it is expected, so if you don't, you will be unexpected.

Write letters. Buy postcards. Make phone calls.

Sit down and write. Sit down and edit.

Drink less coffee. Drink more water.

Look at things from inside yourself, asking questions. And bother to answer them.

Where are you? What are you doing? What do you want to do? What do you want to be?

Drop modesty. Tell people why they should listen to you. (Except don't mention Arnold unless you can tell by the golf shirt, by the watch, by the haircut, that you are speaking to a Republican.)

Do not judge people. Just form strong opinions.

Do not judge your city. It is sunny here. It is a time warp, a black hole. And it is great! Do not resent the happiness people feel out here. Just because they are not in New York does not mean they are worthless human beings. They are, surprisingly, just like you.

Get a dog. Name it after something important to you. Make friends with it.

Don't be pretentious. And don't be unpretentious. Drop the idea of being cooler than you are.

Eat well. Cook.

Wash your car.

Miss your girlfriend.

Look for new things you haven't seen before. Take notes. Never decline an invitation.

Read a very big book. Tolstoy is good. Oprah's book club is reading "Anna Karenina."

Follow your sports teams.

Eat plenty of Mexican food.

Go to movies alone once in awhile.

Listen to good music. Go to shows with friends.

Never forget that you are hungry, that you are after things. This place makes you a very happy failure.

They WON!

Andrew Volpe's band Ludo won the contest and will be
playing live August 2 on fuse TV, and making a $25,000
video made in NYC on August 13th! Thank you for voting!

Travels with Sam

Sam arrived in LA a day or two before I expected him to.

"Hey man, I'm flying into Long Beach tomorrow morning, ok?" He also flew into a different airport than I thought. But when I picked him up I was the one who was late.

Sam Mestman -- the genius behind "Golf on Film," "Project: Redlight," and now "Sell Out," -- like most geniuses, is mostly misunderstood. An extremely creative person, he often makes simple mistakes with the details. For example, two weeks ago he called me and asked me to help him with a project. Here is a re-creation of the exchange:

SAM: I'm coming out to California to do a camp video, at this place between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
JOE: When?
SAM: It's going to be on a weekend.

Sure enough, it is not actually on a weekend but right in the middle of the week. Fast forward two weeks later, picking Sam up at the airport. Having just received the details on our "camp trip" I realize that the camp is actually east of Yosemite -- equidistant but not between San Francisco and Los Angeles. Begins an epic journey into a nostalgic past of camp-going, of bullshiting and pretending to know what we're doing -- of filming ropes coarses, horses and water sports.

Sam and I each day look at each other and laugh. We have to ask: how the hell did we get here, in the Sierra National Forest? People ask us at the camp and it's literally hard not to laugh as Sam answers the inevitable question, "You flew out here from New York for this, really?"

But don't let me say the wrong thing here. Sam is a misunderstood genius, and worth understanding. He is sincere, even if he seems sarcastic. All the time he tells these camp people how he's going to make a sick montage of the watersports, and he means it, he really does. He also, for reasons unknown, decides not to mention when I pick him up at the airport that it is his birthday. When I ask him about it later he says, "I don't even think about it, honestly." Sam is a master of misdirection. He is, often, blatantly subtle.

We drive to Berkeley after completing our three days of camp at the Gold Arrow Camp (GAC). There we meet up with Gabriella, whose parents and house seem somehow lifted from a children's tale or a Roald Dahl book. Sam and I are like drunks waking up to real life. We are unhappily finding that the real world is not like camp, that we have to worry about things like how to pay rent, where to eat, and not where is the good tinder for the campfire? This trip to Gabriella's gives us a chance to hunker down and adjust. Gabriella's dog Charley (recently neutered) runs around with a collar on his head, running into furniture with stunning effect. Gabriella and her mother speak Spanish to each other, entire side-conversations. The coffee is wonderful. I can picture it sitting there.

Later that day Sam, Gabriella and I visit San Francisco. We check out City Lights, the book store the beats built, and buy a book each. We drive around, up and down hills, and Gabriella and I laugh and laugh as Sam reads in the back. "When I get started, I have to finish," Sam says as I exhort him, playing Dad, to look up from his book and out the window at the hills, the trams, the bridges, the cute hippy girls.

That night we have dinner with Lisa, a former roommate of mine. When I lived with Lisa, I had just moved to the city after graduating, going home, finding my girlfriend seeing someone else and spending one of loneliest summers ever getting up in the morning and writing. Lisa was a banker-in-training, coming home and drinking wine, not sure at all that she wanted to be in that world. Lily moved to New York that fall, and we started seeing each other. After we lived together Lisa took her bonus and ran to the West Coast, where she works for the Gap and is dating a guy from St. Louis. Strangely enough, Sam met Lisa when he crashed at my place. The first thing he said to Lisa was "I'm not Joe." They then went to breakfast, a movie, and spent the day wandering around. Sam is full of surprises.

Sam, Lisa, myself and Lisa's friend Caitlin went to Napa Valley the next day and went wine tasting and played bocce ball. The sun was bright.

On the drive back to Los Angeles, and with plenty of amazement at the events of past week, Sam said: "Well, nothing disastrous happened." I like that Sam approaches the things that happen to him like he might a script he is writing -- able to smile at not knowing what comes next.

LUDO's big break

Andrew Volpe and the band LUDO will be on Fuse TV tomorrow, Tuesday, July 13 , competing with two other bands to win a music video contract! The band won a contest to get to New York, where they are being flown and put up for the show. The show, called "Daily Download," airs at 6PM Eastern Time, 5PM Central Time, and 3PM Pacific Time. Fuse TV is channel 132 in New York, channel 139 in St. Louis, and channel 158 in Los Angeles.

The website for the channel -- "MTV without the crappy shows" -- is www.fuse.tv. Voting for the competition starts this Friday (7/16) and continues till next Friday! Make sure to check them out, tell your friends, and vote as much as possible starting this Friday for LUDO! For more info on the band check out their website at www.ludorock.com. This is their big break, and we can all do something to help them out.

"How I Got Lost" & where it left me

Welcome to the new Blatantly Subtle blog! Screw the message board! This blog is for the detailed nuance of life in Los Angeles and New York trying to make movies without losing your mind. It will dwell on personal details, small logistics, attacks, ironic stories that never mention the word "irony," and questions that stick.

I hope it isn't too self-indulgent.

My name is Joe Leonard. I am one of the founders of Blatantly Subtle Productions, a small production company that has produced short films and held screenings in New York over the last two years. I recently moved to Los Angeles, where I am living alone in a house in Burbank, struggling to finish a movie, rewrite a script, look for a job, meet people and make friends, and in general figure out what the hell I am going to do with the next five years of my life.

Right now my goal is to get a dog. But that's far off, honestly.

My last movie, "How I Got Lost," has been used for the web address for this blog. That's because it is as good a haiku as any for the last few years of my life. I am still looking for ways to find things new, and wandering off is one way to do that. That's part of how I ended up in LA.

"How I Got Lost" is my current project, which will be finished this summer and screened in New York this fall -- along with "Sell Out," Sam Mestman's film, "A Love Thing," Bryan Friedman's film, and hopefully even "Homo Erectus Erectus," Gabriella Dentamaro's film. Many of the entries will relate to these projects and this screening, and the progress getting there.

There will also be some stories from LA about looking for work in the film industry, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and other unrelated items.

Burbank

Los Angeles is like summer camp, but I am the only camper. My first night here I went to the grocery and bought some bread and I'm not kidding, Juliette Lewis let me jump in front of her in line because she had so many (strange) things in her cart: cantaloupe, Corona, brownie mix... And she said "see you round" as I left which Lily think means she was hitting on me. I think that's cool but not likely. (By the way, Lily is coming out tomorrow!) Only people in movies and me shop on a Saturday night is what I take from the experience.

Yesterday Gabriella and I went to the beach and bought flip-flops. Gabriella is visiting town. It was great-fun.

What else? Oh, my job is on hold -- they are putting together a "budget." What they don't know is, my price is going up. Because let me tell you, guys, I am in demand out here. No, that's a lie. On the other hand, this ain't a bad place to be and I'm not sweating it yet.

I am also my own counselor here at summer camp.

I have started writing and editing my movie again. I've also been getting up very early and trying to run, although I don't actually make it very far. There is a mountain I can run towards, up a hill. Like most people who are out of shape, all I can hear as I run is Eye of the Tiger. Sometimes though I hear Nightswimming and that's when I know my cellphone is
ringing.

It's weird living alone but I like my place. I have my own kitchen, my own living room and my own bathroom. I am Suzy Homemaker all of the sudden. Yesterday I bought potpourri spray.

Here is my address and the land line at my place, although the best way for you to reach me is still my cellphone. But if you see an 818 number, don't screen the call.

Joe Leonard
707 S. Glenoaks Blvd.
Burbank, CA 91502

(818)842-5931
(646)526-8689 cell

Hope all is well and be in touch!

Adventures in LA

Last week I was in LA. This is my, um, journal.

LA – day 1

It is nice weather out here, I have to admit. 80 degrees and sunny through the haze. I got a ride from the airport to the car rental place from a friendly shuttle driver, and then promptly drove my rental car out into an hour and a half of traffic to get to Jared's place in Hollywood... Jared is attending AFI.

Jared's place is nice, the room small. There is a pool but Jared doesn't know any of the other people who live there. Jared was very upset about the Nets beating the Pistons when I got there.

My first meal in LA with Jared was at a Taco stand/Car Wash. Very good burritos.

My first drink in LA was at the Dresden. You remember Marty and Elaine, the terrible lounge singers in "Swingers"? They were there.

People are friendly enough. Life here seems pleasant enough. It feels good to be here but I am willing to admit I haven't decided this is a good idea yet. Tonight I'm meeting up with some friends for drinks. We are going to a place called Cat & Fiddle. It is supposed to be like a beer garden. I have called everyone I think I know out here. We'll see what happens. Tonight I know Johnny is having a bachelor party in New York...

So far it feels lonely out here -- not enough people around, not enough people I know, too many cars and everyone in their own space. Maybe tonight will wear down that idea. We'll see.

More to come...


LA – day 2

Today I went swimming with my cellphone -- again. (I did the same thing last time I was in LA) My new phone seems to be working very well...

Today was, as promised, more promising.

Jared and I met up with Deanna and Leslie, two of our friends from our Italy trip. Leslie told me "everyone's moving out here, Joe." Deanna told me she was getting married.

Then we went to a Thai place called The Palms, where we saw an Asian Elvis impersonator, who was very good and who was not wearing a wig but really had an impressive pompodour.

Then we walked from Jared's place to a Hollywood bar, called the Beauty Bar -- that's right, it was just like the Beauty Bar in New York, except not a dive, which at least I thought was the point. Several people met us there, including Ryan Case, a girl I knew from NYU who is now in charge of Post-Production for The Simple Life 2.

It was a fun night. We went to a few different places and I woke up feeling good actually. Then we went to a strange dark place called Ye Rustic Inn for brunch and a bloody mary. Very good.

I have been out by the pool for part of today. I am about to leave Jared's to return my rental car and check into a hotel.


LA – day 4

I am sitting in a room at a hotel by the airport watching planes land. The runway is a couple of blocks away. It isn't as terrifying to watch them from this angle as it is to be inside a plane as it descends. From where I am sitting here it looks graceful.

They have these purple trees here that don't look real. No one seems to know what they are called, and they are in bloom and everywhere. They are something out of Dr. Seuss, and they line the streets. LA is on crack.

I had my big interview this morning. I was in an office with big windows, and you could see the Hollywood sign on the hill outside. I was offered a freelance project working on an old Arnold documentary. As in Arnold Schwarzenegger. Kind of a Pumping Iron 2. It's a test. The owner said I couldn't be hired as a trailer editor (what I thought I might be offered) because ultimately I am interested in film production and not advertising (true). So much for that idea. It was interesting. I was initially disappointed but as the day went on it seemed more and more like good fortune, the way adversity sometimes makes you feel like a hero.

The day was beautiful. I went to AFI (the American Film Institute) and got a tour. AFI is a 2 year graduate film program, divided by discipline. For example, Jared is there in the Screenwriting program. It was a relief to hear about something that I understood -- this other job stuff I may as well put on a suit every day. The odd thing is that that is exactly how the film industry is run, by MBAs. Not a surprise, but surprising the extent to which business has co-opted every aspect of the filmmaking fantasy. But AFI was nice. To tell you the truth, the stuff they do there is exactly what Blatantly Subtle does. They make movies and learn from them.

I must admit there is a calm, numbing overtone to everything in LA... People carry a look like someone just punched their dog. Last night I went to a comedy show. The comedy club was in a strip mall, but was surprisingly good and fun. I do like being out here. And I have to admit that I cannot imagine what I will be doing in New York five years from now, and I can out here. And I feel like it's worth checking out more. This is where the money is, where the jobs are, and where the stinking filthy film industry is. And while there is no major job offer on the table, at least for the summer I have nothing to lose by being out here -- it's summer camp. That said, I won't like having to leave New York or being away from Lily or from the rest of you guys.

I have another day or so to make the decision. I miss you guys and I'll be back in town on Saturday.