Another Pic Test - please stand by

Rian Johson directing:

 

 

Rian Johnson in action

Testing to see if an image will work.

Another Brick to Lay

Another Rian Johnson podcast interview:

http://media.libsyn.com/media/btbm/BTBM_2006_08_15.mp3

Sam

Hard to Boil

Trying to get back into the habit of posting regularly. It’s a shame to set a forum up and not use it. Anywho, I’ve been getting into Podcasts lately – it started with Jim Cramer’s Real Money on the radio but his podcast became a more convenient way to catch his show at my leisure. Now I have a list of programs lined up for listening while I work on my 3D animations. Very cool, very informative, very convenient. I came across this interview with “Brick” Director Rian Johnson. “Brick” is very much the film I’ve always wanted to write and direct; a film that pays homage to the greatest of hard boiled fiction writers, Dashiell Hammett. I wouldn’t say this film is for everyone but if you’ve ever read and appreciated Hammett, then “Brick” and the Cohen Bros. “Millers Crossing,” “Blood Simple,” or even “The Big Lebowski” are films to catch (although “The Big Lebowski” is more of a Raymond Chandler inspired film.

Click here to hear the Podcast interview with director Rian Johnson:

http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3?http://media.libsyn.com/media/cinecast/rjinterview.mp3

 

Sam

Tune into my Feed

The "Site Feed" link is now working proper. Just click it and copy the resulting URL into your Feed Reader and you should see my latest headlines!

Sam

Ste Feed Link

Now I’ve placed a link to the right of the page that says “Site Feed.” I’ve been testing it with spotty results but I’ll get it right eventually.

Sam

Site Feed

A cool thing that has been around that I’ve never caught on to until recently is the whole Site Feed phenom. For my site, all you have to do is copy the url of the blog and paste into your Feed Reader (you may have to add “atom.xml” to the url) and you should get the headlines of my latest blogs. It sounds complicated but it’s really simple – I use Google’s homepage Feed Reader. I can read a bunch of headline from all my favorite sites without having to actually go to those pages and web surf. Very convenient, very 21^st century. Of coarse I’m one turn behind the trends but I like to take on tech that has proven itself before I integrate it into my lifestyle. Although I’m still not a MySpace guy, yet. Blogging feels more like a Journal than MaySpace and the pages on MySpace are cluttered and clunky. But it’s so dang popular for whatever reason.

 

Sam

Technical Difficulties

My array of sites are experiencing some extreme technical difficulties as a result of some server problems. Some parts of the sites are back up but others are still lingering in obscurity. Stay tuned for updates as I tackle this challenge. I may just end up revamping the whole site. We’ll see.

Sam

Crash and Burn

Looks like my website went down for the count. It's going to take awhile for me to get things up and running again but I imagine this is a good opportunity to revamp the content. Check back again - you might be surprised by some new changes!

 

Cheers!

 

Sam

Sam Bam's Back

I’m officially back on the grid after getting hitched at the Wayfarer’s Chapel in Palos Verdes and spending a relaxing honeymoon on the tranquil beaches of Santa Barbara. We decided to travel locally instead of flying to Cancun or Costa Rica because as soon as we returned we made the big move to our new place in downtown Long Beach - a metropolitan high-rise condo with an ocean view (ba-da bing!). So this is my official notice of my address change:

 

Sam K. Yano

488 E. Ocean Blvd. #315

Long Beach, CA  90802

Cell: 949-246-5051

E-mail: sky@skysyndicate.com

 

Keep in touch. And if you’re partying downtown, give me a ring and I’ll walk on over to join you (that’s if I can dodge the wifey’s radar : )

 

 

Sam

 

Freakin Cockaroachas!

Ok this morning I freaked like a little school girl when a freakin inch and a half cockroach creeped along my counter and into my dish washer. After a moment collecting what dignity I had left, I grabbed the vacuum and hunted down the bugger. I sucked him up with a "thawump" and took every precaution to make sure I bagged the intruder. But when I removed the vacuum bag, that slick backed little shit was too big to fit through the bag opening and escaped! After another freak session I tracked him down again and sucked him up once more. Now I'm sitting here and typing this memo while the vacuum remains on to make sure that vile vermin doesn't get a way a 3rd time. I FREAKIN HATE COCKROACHES is that hasn't been established yet.

 

Sam

FW: In Effect

Sorry by “this coming Saturday,” I meant Saturday May 20^th (not this coming Saturday but the following Saturday).

 

Sam

 

---

From: Sam K. Yano [mailto:sky@skysyndicate.com]
Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 11:44 AM
Subject: In Effect

 

My short film “The Richter Effect” will be the opening act of the Spring Student Showcase at 7:30PM this coming Saturday (May 20^th) in the University Theater (near the 7^th street entrance of CSULB). It will be the 1^st film showing, so don’t be late! $6 for students, $8 adults (at the door) - $5 for advanced sale of tickets (CPAC Ticket Office 562-985-7000). Archie Arena’s film “The Life of Stanley Davis” (for which I did the cinematography) will also be playing on Saturday. Hiram Chan’s film “A and B” (for which I did the cinematography and edited) will be showing Friday night at 7:30PM.

 

Note: The showcase will premiere films with language and themes that might not be appropriate for younger audience members.

 

You can check out the trailer for the film at:

http://skysyndicate.com/samdemo/media.htm

 

A big-big “Thank You” to all that contributed to the film and I hope to C-U-@ the movies!

 

Sam K. Yano

 

 

Leader Line

So how'yall doin these days? I just finished color correcting Archie Arena's
film (which I DP'd) and put the finishing touches on Hiram Chan's film
(which I also DP'd and edited - I really like how it turned out). "The
Richter Effect" benefited from some additional effects and sound design, but
surprisingly I kept the edit similar to what I showed in class (the 1st cut
seemed to work for me without getting too fancy). I did add a small segment
after the earthquake where we hear the father calling for help. My film will
open the Saturday night showcase.

Other than that, I'll probably be heading to Cancun for my honeymoon - check
out the Chichen-Mayan ruins (I read that from January of this year you can't
climb the steps of the pyramid - big bummer). When I get back from fun in
the sun, I'm gonna try and put a horror short film together - helming a
horror film has been an obsession of mine for quite sometime.

Anywho, hope yall are doing well - drop a line on how things are going.

Ad Infintum,

Sam Bam

Unanswered Dreams

Dreams. The 1st being my fiancéEhaving a new artist friend that I didn't like (there's a deeper truth to this). Anyway, she introduces me and from the get-go I don't like the guy. There were also some strange occurrences that included a sleep over at a classmates place while playing X-Box 360 games but I don't remember details. The dream ended with me in a restaurant. My fiancé ends up leaving early and the artist friend is sitting at a table behind me. I order poached eggs and in the middle of sucking down the yolks the artist friend guy says something that annoys me so I get up and threaten to kick his ass. He asks if I know karate or something and I agree (I didn't want to take the time to explain that I actually know Judo instead). So I send a quick jab to his face and it turns out he can't fight worth a lick so we both sit back down, breathing heavily from all the adrenaline pumping. At any moments notice I was ready to get up and chase down that guy but he just sat there breathing and staring a hole into my back.

The 2nd dream was more of a post-apocalyptic themed dream. I vaguely remember it starting in a garage somewhere with a rumbling and strange noises - a general sense that something bad is going to happen. At another point the bad had already happened and I was searching, with another classmate from CSULB, for weapons or a phone or a car but we end up in this underground tunnel where a battalion of military forces are being deployed. Thinking that in all the chaos that I could sneak in and take some weapons, the alarm goes off and the two of us have to run to a terminal and enter our pin numbers to confirm that we were citizens. After that one of us is riding a bike and we follow some pipes and resurface to the street level at a abandoned restaurant. We grab a bite to eat and I don't remember what happened to the other guy after that. The next thing I remember is talking to my mom on the phone. She tells me everything is ok and that the rest of my family are hiking their way to Artesia (I assume it is the street in LA) and I tell her I'd meet all of them there - in the back of my mind I realize that such a meeting would not be so easy. So I pack a backpack up with bread and other dry foods - I think I grab a few empty bottles and fill them up with water. Somehow at night I end up in a classroom where everyone is filing paperwork for who knows what and I end up filing a form myself. I fill in the blanks and for some parts there were stickers I would peel from a sheet and adhere to the form. It takes me too long to fill the form out and so the invaders are just outside the window blasting people (I guess they were robot aliens of some sort, a bit bigger in size than the average person). They see us in the builder and charge for us. We run for the back exit and I contemplate going back to get my backpack of food but the front window explodes and these massively clunky aliens pour in. I think I was pushing a wheel chair and abandoned it to make a dash for safety. While running for my life I kept thinking make as many left and right turns as you can so that those invaders wouldn't get a clean shot at my back. After a few turns I jump up a ladder and decide to roof hop - That's when I woke up and couldn't help but imagine if my mom had to go through the same hell to get to Artesia.

Sam

A Better Link

http://www.skysyndicate.com/samdemo/media.htm

A better link to my webpage – it opens to a new window.

Sam

 

A few updates

Made some changes to my director’s website, including the addition of some stills from my latest film “The Richter Effect.” I showed a rough cut about a week ago and got a very enthusiastic response – a good sign that things are on the right track. Up next for the film will be sound design and visual effects! I also posted a trailer for a film that I did the cinematography for, “The Life of Stanley Davis.” I’ll be editing this film as well. Much to do!

http://www.skysyndicate.com/samdemo/media.htm

Sam

For the Effect

“The Richter Effect” short film teaser is now showing on my web as a Quicktime movie! Along with clips from other short films and various production stills. Have fun.

 

http://skysyndicate.com/samdemo/media.htm

 

Ad Infinitum,

 

Sam Bam Yano

Films in the works that I’ve put my heart and soul into:

“The Richter Effect”

Director

A huge undertaking to produce, direct and then camera op for a film, but thanks to a dedicated crew and cast we packed a 4 day shooting schedule into 2.5 days.

“A & B”

Director of Photography

I’m particularly proud of the imagery shot for this film. Using the Mini35 adaptor for the DVX100A to fit 35mm lenses, it’s hard to even imagine shooting with anything less.

“The Life of Stanley Davis”

Director of Photography

Thanks in part to an easy-going director and trusting producer; I had a chance to try many experimental techniques with lighting and camera that will hopefully come through in the final cut.

“Old Friend”

Art Director

An invisible art but there are certain nuances that most people might not consciously notice but I am most definitely excited about (look for red!).

“Mixed Signals”

Assistant Camera

This was actually a fun experience more than anything – I took pride in efficiently and effectively

“The Tutor”

Key Grip

An ambitious production of action and drama that benefited from an amalgamation of guerilla innovation and technical know-how.

“The Hitchhiker”

Gaffer

From the hard hitting heat of the desert to the smoky shadows of an urban bar, this production pushed the limits on time and space.

Just a Dream

Just had this strange dream that started farther back than I can remember but I do remember being in this slummy neighborhood where everything is dirty and grimy and surrounded by tall brick buildings in every which direction. I guess the place was similar to the Brazilian slums in the movie City of God only the building were much taller. Everyone wore tattered rags for clothes: shirt, shorts, no shoes. Anywho, I’m walking around and I’m sure there are a bunch of other things I did but I remember having this friend and we would sneak out to this corn field. Cutting through the corn we would end up in this room of someone’s house that they no longer used, so it would be our little getaway from the craziness of the slums. After some time, I almost forget about this secret getaway and the people in the slums are pulling down a tree to burn for warmth – I offer them a saw (I don’t know where I go t the saw). Once the tree has been successfully torn down, I feel charitable and go around letting people borrow my saw to cut their tree pieces into manageable logs. Then comes along this slum gangster like kid (I think I’m a small boy in this dream) and this gangster kid and his crew wants to kill my friend that I mentioned earlier and who I haven’t seen in awhile. Things get tight for me as the gangster kid slowly finds out that I’m his friend and so the only place I can think of escaping (and finding my friend) is back at the cornfield. Fearing for my life, thinking the gangster kid is around every corner, I hustle to the outskirts of town and into the cornfield.

 

When I reach the room I notice it is the room of a little girl and when I peek through the adjacent door I can see the lonely figure of an older girl in a rocking chair. Not really knowing the circumstances I didn’t want to stay very long and I also had the creeping sense that the gangster kid would break through the cornfield and find me. So I decide to exit through the window of the room where it was actually snowing on a back country road. I fall out the window but then hear noises so I quickly hide behind a large rock. Peeking from behind the rock I see a whole procession of policemen on foot, motorbikes, and cars, sirens blaring, lights flashing – they lined up as if they were in a parade. The officers were raiding a gas station but once in awhile one of them would turn around and throw a rock at the boulder I was hiding behind to say as if they knew I was there. Suddenly all the policemen froze in formation, not making a sound – I just sat there for the longest time not knowing what to do. Finally I decided to just run off, so I race up the abandoned snow covered road (remember I’m still dressed in rags with no shoes). Eventually I end up at this trailer park decorated in Christmas colors and textures. To my amazement, many of the trailers were partially set ablaze by a fire that was spreading through a line of trees. I wandered around the lot to find a home that seemed abandoned and then entered through a door. Up stairs (yes a 2 story mobile home) I dig into a kids room and steal a jacket and a pair of shoes. Coming back down, I locate the kitchen and grab for cereal and juice to take with me. That’s when I notice someone staring into the house from a window (the mobile home is a bit elevated so the guy standing next to the window just look liked a head floating at the bottom of the window). In a panic, not really knowing if I’ve been spotted, I stuff all my booty into a bag and sprint out the door.

 

I don’t even take the time to go through my catch and run as fast as I can to gate that took me to a grassy area. I realize that I’m now in a very affluent community of mansion size houses. In the distance I notice an open beach so I try to cut through the backyards of the enormous houses but soon find myself lost. That’s when I woke up.

Casting Call

I’m casting for my next film, “The Richter Effect.” It’s based on a short story I wrote. Check it out:

http://www.skysyndicate.com/casting/

 

Sam