Friday, June 29, 2012

A Different Kind of Midnight Premiere

I'm not ashamed - I went to the midnight premiere of Magic Mike last night. Since Pedro and I are leaving Little Rock next week, it was our "last midnight adventure" even though Kris couldn't come due to early obligations this morning, and Liz is out of town until Sunday. Nevertheless, Pedro and I decided to go anyway, because, well, it was "The Expendables, except with eye candy instead of action stars". And the movie did not disappoint - plenty of bare chests, man-thongs, a d**k pump, and even the literal shadow of full frontal nudity.
We went with the assumption that there would not be very many people at the theater. Obviously there would be a few, but this wasn't a nerd movie, nor a known franchise; it didn't have any pull for a traditional midnight premiere audience. That part, at least, was right. The auditorium was surprisingly packed (our row was full except for the chairs on our immediate sides) but not with the traditional midnight premiere audience. It was full of...how to put this kindly...preppy girls, most of whom probably played some sort of sport, like softball or lacrosse. Of course, there were exceptions, but the majority of girls I saw had sweatpants, a messy bun, and a headband - you know the type I'm talking about. There was also an awesome number of housewife/soccer mom groups clearly having a Lady's Night Out - that was kind of fantastic. Pedro and I played a game called "Gay or Amazing Boyfriend?" where we labeled the fifteen guys who walked into the auditorium; we had a lot of fun with that one, because there was never a "Neither".
As if all of that wasn't bad enough, we really realized this was a different type of audience when the previews started. House At The End of the Street was featured and, having seen that preview twice already, I suddenly became extremely interested in my popcorn. Unfortunately, I could still tell when there was going to be a startling moment, because I could hear the changes in the music...no matter how innovative horror movies try to be, the music will always tell you if you're about to jump. But apparently this audience didn't know that, because they screamed. Twice. And that was only HATES - there was a preview for The Apparition in which they screamed at least once. Now, I'm not a fan of real-world horror movies (like HATES, in which a little girl kills her parents and then hunts Jennifer Lawrence) but it's only a preview; even if I jump, it's not scream-worthy.

Last night confirmed what I already knew - I am damn proud to be a Nerd, and I have absolutely no desire to be a prep. Ever.

Here I Go Again...

I am twenty-two years old, and I have no idea what I want to be when I grow up. But I'm getting closer! I want to write for tv, but only because I feel it will legitimize me. Because I think what I really want to do is make the brand new network I'm launching later this summer a success. I would be happy if I could just run the network , but the problem is that I don't get paid for it. At least, not yet; I'm hoping that somewhere down the road we will be.
But for now, I'm happy to make whatever money I can, and focus on making Nerdy FanGirl the best I can make it.

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Three Weeks Left!!

I have three weeks left in Arkansas, and it is incredibly bittersweet. As much as I have enjoyed Little Rock, and have connected with some seriously awesome people, I am beyond ready to move on to the next step in my life. I'm still not exactly sure what I'm going to do to pay my bills, but my passion projects are gearing up to be FANTASTIC. I am really really excited about what we have planned for the YouTube channel. I don't want to give too much away yet, because we will be making a public announcement in August, but just know that if you are a nerd who enjoys lively discussion and debate, you should stay tuned for details!!

But on a realistic note, I am sort of panicking about going back to Georgia. I don't have a job officially lined up, I'm trying to completely switch careers, it seems to be impossible for me to save money, and I have hundreds of dollars in bills every month (and I don't even pay rent/utilities yet). Every time I think of the reality of what I'm about to do - as opposed to the romanticized passion project dream I cling to - I very nearly have a panic attack. Logically, I know what my steps should be, and I recite them to concerned family members every time I am asked. Step one is to find a P.A. job on a TV show, which will lead to a writer's assistant job, which will lead to a writer job. That's the ultimate goal.
But even though I know intellectually that those are the steps to take, I freeze because I have no idea how to even take that first step. I listen to the Nerdist Writer's Panel podcast in the hopes that I will find inspiration or encouragement, or just a bloody idea of what the hell I'm doing, and sometimes it works.
I think I just need to stop, take a deep breath, and move back to Georgia. I have to believe it will be easier to find a job once I'm actually in Atlanta and able to go on interviews. Until then, I am going to work on my passion projects and make sure they are worth watching.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Top 10 Buffy Episodes

A few weeks ago, Logo ran "Joss Whedon's Top 10 Buffy episodes" all day. Their lineup was as follows:
10. Prophecy Girl (1x12)
9. Conversations With Dead People (7x07)
8. Restless (4x22)
7. Becoming Pt. 2 (2x22)
6. The Wish (3x9)
5. Doppelgangland (3x16)
4. The Body (5x16)
3. Hush (4x10)
2. Once More, With Feeling (6x07)
1. Innocence (2x14)

While I agree with a lot of the episodes on this list, I have to admit that I would change it a little. I don't know that I would put Innocence as the #1 Buffy episode. Don't get me wrong, it's an excellent episode and deserves the top 5, but I don't think it's the all-time best one. Also, where is Earshot?? That episode deserves to be in the top ten episodes. And while I understand they couldn't combine two-parter episodes for scheduling reasons, I am not inhibited by such constraints and believe that they should be together. So, I would like to list my Top Ten Episodes.

[I would like to specify that I don't actually believe that this list is Joss Whedon's personal top ten. First off, how would Logo get a hold of that list? And from what I have heard in interviews and the like, I feel like his personal list would be a little different. By believing that, I am free to create a better top ten without feeling as though I am desecrating something or some such.]

My list is below:

10. Surprise/Innocence (2x13/2x14)
9. Once More, With Feeling (6x7)
8. The Wish (3x9)
7. Hush (4x10)
6. Earshot (3x18)
5. The Body (5x16)
4. Chosen (7x22)
3. Becoming (2x21/2x22)
2. Graduation Day (3x21/3x22)
1. The Gift (5x22)

It was actually quite difficult to come up with this list...an episode I thought was my favorite (Something Blue) had to be cut, because although it is my favorite in terms of entertainment, I had to admit it did not belong here. If you have questions, comments or arguments regarding my list, please comment or tweet and I will happily discuss it with you!

Oops! Let me catch you up on my May...

Holy crap, as it really been nearly a month since I posted?? I am so sorry about that! I am going to try to get better, I swear. Work has gotten significantly less crazy, and is not looking to pick up any time soon, so I should be able to maintain pretty consistent updates.

Since I last updated, I have decided that I am going to write for TV. I am not giving up on becoming a creator of online content, but in addition to that I want to be a writer on a show.

In terms of nerdy consumption, I watched some of Logo's Joss Whedon's Top Ten Buffy Episodes marathon (more on that later), saw Avengers for the third time, went to the dollar theatre for 21 Jump Street (surprisingly HILARIOUS but I'm glad I only paid 75 cents) and saw MIB 3 (more later!). And I've become obsessed with the Nerdist Writer's Panel audio podcast on the Nerdist network (available for free from iTunes. If you have any interest at all in writing for tv, you need to check this out!! And if you're in the LA area, I'm not sure when they happen, but they are held at Meltdown Comics and I'm sure you can go there for details on how to attend the live panels).

I've also begun seriously working on content for the YouTube channel so that can get up and running shortly after I return to Georgia. I'm getting excited for this project and I really want to do it well for you guys, so it may take longer than any of us want, but I promise it's so that I can do it to the quality that I want and think you guys deserve.