The first two days of shooting went incredibly well considering that several mishaps and setbacks occurred, but as Karie put it, "Okay lang 'yan. Natural lang 'yan sa productions. Relax, don't be stressed." The entire shoot was fun. I'm happy because we really did a great job in casting. I couldn't have asked for a better cast. They were all professional, perfect for the roles and really fun being around with. They're focused, enthusiastic, talented and best of all, they click well on and off screen.

     Karie is a fireball. She lit up the room with her stories and quirkiness. She actually set the good mood for the entire shoot. Abner is a brilliant actor. He has intensity and focus, is very professional and pleasant to hang around with. JJ is probably the most enthusiastic of all. He's very reserved but you can see in his eyes that he's got his mind set to the perfection of his craft. He's really helpful around set and is willing to go the extra mile. I find Ric as the funny guy on set. He has this aura of seriousness in him but at the same time he brings out the fun either during breaks or during the shoot. Of course, there's also Reggie. I have to say, he's the best actor in the cast. He's a natural on screen. Off screen, he's a goof ball, very fun to talk to. He and Ric make a good tandem. Aside from a great cast, I really like the location. All the work, time and money we put in it paid off. It felt really homey so work didn't feel like work at all. We had a TV, a DVD player, bed, a working ref and a surplus of food and Kitkat. As Abner put it, "para tayong nagpipicnic." What more could we ask for right?

     I think the stress came in when we realized that our plans didn't go the way we wanted them to but hey, it's production, something's always going to come up. After watching that that murder scene unfold, I think we did really well. This weekend was tiring but I really look forward to next week's shoot.

     Malungkot ako. Why the glum face? Because I didn't win the ticket! Waaah! Damn you Jamaica! You didn't let me win those invites! Huhuhu! But it's okay. It's just fair. I mean who could remember what ingredient Harry forgot to put in the peace potion? Sayang lang talaga. I'm a big Harry Potter fan. Ever since my mom gave the first book as a birthday present I've been hooked. Call me a freak. Call me a geek. I don't care. Some of the people I know, like my lola, for example, really want to nail me on the cross because I'm reading a book on "witchcraft". Ooooh! Witchcraft! Scary! Really? Harry Potter's dark and a spawn of the devil to corrupt the minds of the people who read it? Hmmmm... then I've read worse. Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia have strong themes of witchcraft in them but they're both considered strong Christian novels. Ironic isn't it?

     Anyhoo. Aside from killing myself with thesis, I was able to make some time to read books and watch movies. I've written my critiques on them but had no time to post them... and so I'm doing it now. But instead of ranting and raving about them in long paragraphs. I'll make them short and sweet.

Sunshine (2007)

     I'm a big Danny Boyle and Cillian Murphy fan so, naturally, I love this movie. It's definitely not your normal end-of-the-world movie. I love the fact that the movie presents two levels of horror and suspense. One is the mission going wrong and two there's a psycho on board. I think the actors gave great performances. They are easily differentiated and their characters are fleshed out really well given the time and space they're given on screen. I love Boyle's storytelling in this one. It's definitely different from all his other films I've seen before. He made excellent use of positioning, framing and lighting; he was able to capture the terror that is deep space and the psyches of the different characters. All in all, brilliant movie.

Kids In America (2005)

     I caught this movie on HBO. a couple of times. I found it rather enjoyable especially when Nicole Richie's playing the dumb blonde cheerleader. Anyway, It's basically about a group of students trying to fight a overbearing and uncaring school system that continuously cuts off their rights. The film played with stereotypes a lot. It was able to represent every part of American society namely the white-collar, the blue-collar, the gay, the straight, the white, the colored, the men, the women, the young, the old, the obese and the bulimic. It's actually quite empowering to know that the story was based on a collection of events wherein students fought for their rights. It's actually a good and cute study of democracy and society. By cute, I mean tame. It's cool but it's not really revolutionary... it's a start.

Transformers (2007)

     I was all giddy when I heard that one of my favorite cartoon shows that I watched as a kid was going to be on the big screen. But then I frowned when I heard that Shia LaBeouf was going to be in it - he irritates me. But man, I was wrong. He's actually pretty cool and hilarious in the movie. I also liked Megan Fox. Oh yeah, she can ass act. I'm a little peeved why the doctor looked like a supermodel and the cheerleader was supergirl. But what can I say? It's Hollywood. Michael Bay did an excellent job of bringing Optimus Prime and the rest of Autobots and Decepticons alive. The actions sequences were really cool and really exciting. Even though there were time I felt like I was drowning in too much action, I still enjoyed it. The CG effects were awesome. I kept repeating how excellent they were in the movie house. Okay. I don't want to give out to much since this is current so I'll end it here.

Eleven Minutes by Paulo Coelho

     I love this book. Not so much for it's subject matter but for the way it was written. It was gritty and yet hopeful. It basically follows the story of Maria, a young Brazilian prostitute, searching for her fortune in Switzerland where she meets this painter and falls in love. Sounds typical? Not really. This book delves into subjects like fate, love, sex, sadomasochism, prostitution, eroticism, masturbation, orgasm - name it. Coelho is able to explain these subjects in such a way that they are mysterious, beautiful and sacred and at the same time, not taboo. I actually find the book very spiritual. Although the characters may seem unbelievable, they are actually more real than us in the sense that they mirror our innermost and unspoken desires and pleasures. What really got me was the ending which you'll need to read for yourselves. It's what made it cheesy in some sense but at the same time not stereotypical. If you get to follow what kind of person Maria is, the ending will appear ambiguously perfect.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

     Since I started this entry with Harry Potter why not end with it right? Finally, I know who the heck the half-blood prince is! Wohoo! This isn't my favorite of all the books but it's definitely a gem to the series because it's the only book I found which was able to tie up all the events, even the small details, from all the previous books, together. I found that brilliant. I found it exciting; as a proof, it took me two sittings in one day to finish it. Ms. Rowling kept promises by adding romance to the mix. Sadly, I found it distracting. It took away focus from the main events but hey, this is pulp fiction so she needs to please all her readers in one way or another. I liked the pacing. It was okay. The pensieve parts bugged me a lot though. I felt these scenes were forced but I have to admit, it's a great device to tie all the events up. I liked the way the characters were fleshed out even more. There were some dimensions of them, which came out, that I never really expected from them. I must have missed the foreshadowing (then I backtracked to a couple of parts and realized that everything made sense). This is definitely a good read. I can't wait for the last installment, the movie and the videogame. Damn it. I'm an addict.

     Yay! Ledgelife's back after a long hiatus. I've been totally neglecting this site for quite sometime; I've been really busy so instant blogging has been a great help. How many instant blog accounts do I have now? Hmmmm... one in wordpress, one in LJ, another in blogdrive and blogspot. Did I forget any?

     Thesis has been crazy lately. It's caused me to be more aggressive than usual, which is a bad thing for my thesis mates. (I'm sorry guys) I've been this guy who's always telling them to chill but every time I do so, I actually end up causing them to panic more. I really have to learn how to control that. I'm excited and terrified at the same time. This is my baby. I don't want to mess this up for my thesis mates and myself. I want it to be the best damn thing I ever did so far.

     I've been thinking a lot again since the letter arrived this morning. I didn't get the scholarship grant for my further studies. It didn't surprise me. I prayed for God to let it pass me this time. I know, it's stupid, but I don't feel like I'm ready for it. I really want to make it right. I'm still sorting out my options and that's why I've been checking the web for schools abroad. I want to continue my studies outside the country because I feel like I can learn so much more in a new environment where I can discover myself more and immerse myself in cultures I am totally alien to. So right now, I'm setting myself a goal: to save up, fly out, sight-see, observe, learn, experience and study. Wohoo!

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