Friday, March 25, 2005
Visiting Lady Liberty
Thought i'd continue the Statue of Liberty theme, by telling you a little about my visit to the Statue, which was the last 'touristy' thing I did in New York.
It's quite surprising we managed to get to Liberty island at all. The security checks you had to go through just to get on the ferry were harsh, to put it mildly. Far worse than what I went through getting into the US in the first place, in fact. As I pointed out to andy at the time, it seemed a bit ironic that such a worldwide symbol of freedom and of course Liberty was guarded by so much restriction and suspicion.
Still, it has to be said that the scars of the World Trade centre are still there in people's minds, especially in New York where the gap in the Manhattan skyline still stands out to anyone who remembers the way it used to be. So I suppose I can understand them being a bit over-protective of the rest of their landmarks.
I was still fed up that the security people made me take off my shoes for no apparent reason, though, especially as they didn't give them back for ages.
Anyway, the Statue was well worth the hassle. It's really impressive close-to. But rather than try to describe it myself, i'll give you the words of Emma Lazarus, in her poem "The New Colossus" which is inscribed on a tablet in the Statue's pedestal:
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame,
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
Emma Lazarus (1883)
Inspiring stuff.
So inspiring, in fact, that a local seagull who had presumably read the poem had decided to pay it's own tribute to Lady Liberty. Given the resources the seagull had to work with, i.e. a rock and itself, I think it did a pretty good job...
The Statue of Liberty
The Seagull of Liberty
It's quite surprising we managed to get to Liberty island at all. The security checks you had to go through just to get on the ferry were harsh, to put it mildly. Far worse than what I went through getting into the US in the first place, in fact. As I pointed out to andy at the time, it seemed a bit ironic that such a worldwide symbol of freedom and of course Liberty was guarded by so much restriction and suspicion.
Still, it has to be said that the scars of the World Trade centre are still there in people's minds, especially in New York where the gap in the Manhattan skyline still stands out to anyone who remembers the way it used to be. So I suppose I can understand them being a bit over-protective of the rest of their landmarks.
I was still fed up that the security people made me take off my shoes for no apparent reason, though, especially as they didn't give them back for ages.
Anyway, the Statue was well worth the hassle. It's really impressive close-to. But rather than try to describe it myself, i'll give you the words of Emma Lazarus, in her poem "The New Colossus" which is inscribed on a tablet in the Statue's pedestal:
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame,
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
Emma Lazarus (1883)
Inspiring stuff.
So inspiring, in fact, that a local seagull who had presumably read the poem had decided to pay it's own tribute to Lady Liberty. Given the resources the seagull had to work with, i.e. a rock and itself, I think it did a pretty good job...
The Statue of Liberty
The Seagull of Liberty
Thursday, March 24, 2005
how to make a movie in New York
Question: What are the three most important things to bring with you when making a movie in New York?
Answer: Loads of giant lights that look like something out of 'War of the Worlds', a big air-fan and lots of fake snow (regardless of whether it's actually snowing for real anyway).
This is based on an my experience of watching a movie being filmed about two blocks (5 minutes walk) away from Andy's apartment in the East Village (NY). The movie was 'Rent' which is apparently a modern update of 'La Boheme' set in the East Village in the 90's, about a group of friends dealing with life, love and AIDs. Sounds quite good, potentially. Anyway the bit they were filming was just a few seconds of outside scene showing the main characters meeting outside the Life Cafe (a famous(ish) bar in the East Village which just happens to be Andy's local - it's not called the Life Cafe any more though.
So they'd done up the building to look like it used to, and replaced the pedestrian crossing lights with the classic old DON'T WALK sign. That much made perfect sense. What bothered me a bit was the following:
1) Despite the fact that it had been snowing on and off all week, and was still doing so, they'd shipped in a giant fan and a big sack of fake snow (little bits of cotton-wool, basically), and had employed two people entirely for this purpose, one to throw handfuls of fake snow in front of the fan, and another to turn the fan on. Pretty High-tech, eh! And what was even bettter was the fact that they'd obviously swept up all the real snow lying about, and replaced it with an identical-looking covering of fake snow, the only difference being that the fake snow didn't stay put and had to keep being replaced. Great.
Check out the amazing fake-snow machine!
2) The whole street for a block or so, plus the nearby park was floodlit by loads of spotlights, from smallish ones to the aforementioned giant alien space lights. The lights were fed by a cunning system of cables which were carefully paced to trip up as many gawping passers-by as possible. Now it might seem reasonable to have some lights if filming at night, even if you're filming a night-time scene. Fair enough. But where they were actually filming there were only a few lights. About 90 percent of the ground they were lighting up was not even vaguely within camera-shot, and they weren't going to be filming any other bits in the same area
3) Seeing as they were doing only a few seconds of exterior scene, it was surprising that they needed 50 takes and about 4 hours filming (let alone set-up time). Basically the shot involved a group of people meeting outside a bar, greeting each other (no dialogue required; that was being put in later) and going in. Now i'm no actor, but it seems to me I could probably get that right first time. To be fair, from what we saw the actors did get it right, every time, and it looked identical from one take to the next. So why 50 takes?
By the way the above figures come from our conservations with the movie-type people who were stopping all the passer's-by walking through the set, and this being New York, getting all sorts of abuse (one guy who was clearly a drug-dealer claimed he had to bring medicine to his 'sick grandmother'; one wonders what kind of medicine he was talking about and in exactly what way his grandmother was sick). We got stopped, were very polite and English about it, and chatted to them until we felt too sorry for them and had to leave them alone. Apparently they were off to LA next to film another scene (even though the movie is set entirely in the East Village, which they were standing right in the middle of - hmm).
So anyway, I now understand why movies are so bloody expensive to make. End of rant, and apologies.
Answer: Loads of giant lights that look like something out of 'War of the Worlds', a big air-fan and lots of fake snow (regardless of whether it's actually snowing for real anyway).
This is based on an my experience of watching a movie being filmed about two blocks (5 minutes walk) away from Andy's apartment in the East Village (NY). The movie was 'Rent' which is apparently a modern update of 'La Boheme' set in the East Village in the 90's, about a group of friends dealing with life, love and AIDs. Sounds quite good, potentially. Anyway the bit they were filming was just a few seconds of outside scene showing the main characters meeting outside the Life Cafe (a famous(ish) bar in the East Village which just happens to be Andy's local - it's not called the Life Cafe any more though.
So they'd done up the building to look like it used to, and replaced the pedestrian crossing lights with the classic old DON'T WALK sign. That much made perfect sense. What bothered me a bit was the following:
1) Despite the fact that it had been snowing on and off all week, and was still doing so, they'd shipped in a giant fan and a big sack of fake snow (little bits of cotton-wool, basically), and had employed two people entirely for this purpose, one to throw handfuls of fake snow in front of the fan, and another to turn the fan on. Pretty High-tech, eh! And what was even bettter was the fact that they'd obviously swept up all the real snow lying about, and replaced it with an identical-looking covering of fake snow, the only difference being that the fake snow didn't stay put and had to keep being replaced. Great.
Check out the amazing fake-snow machine!
2) The whole street for a block or so, plus the nearby park was floodlit by loads of spotlights, from smallish ones to the aforementioned giant alien space lights. The lights were fed by a cunning system of cables which were carefully paced to trip up as many gawping passers-by as possible. Now it might seem reasonable to have some lights if filming at night, even if you're filming a night-time scene. Fair enough. But where they were actually filming there were only a few lights. About 90 percent of the ground they were lighting up was not even vaguely within camera-shot, and they weren't going to be filming any other bits in the same area
3) Seeing as they were doing only a few seconds of exterior scene, it was surprising that they needed 50 takes and about 4 hours filming (let alone set-up time). Basically the shot involved a group of people meeting outside a bar, greeting each other (no dialogue required; that was being put in later) and going in. Now i'm no actor, but it seems to me I could probably get that right first time. To be fair, from what we saw the actors did get it right, every time, and it looked identical from one take to the next. So why 50 takes?
By the way the above figures come from our conservations with the movie-type people who were stopping all the passer's-by walking through the set, and this being New York, getting all sorts of abuse (one guy who was clearly a drug-dealer claimed he had to bring medicine to his 'sick grandmother'; one wonders what kind of medicine he was talking about and in exactly what way his grandmother was sick). We got stopped, were very polite and English about it, and chatted to them until we felt too sorry for them and had to leave them alone. Apparently they were off to LA next to film another scene (even though the movie is set entirely in the East Village, which they were standing right in the middle of - hmm).
So anyway, I now understand why movies are so bloody expensive to make. End of rant, and apologies.
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
balancing the statue of liberty
It's taking me a while to organise all the photos I took in New York, plus all of andy's photos, but hopefully some will be appearing on this site over the next few weeks. In the meantime, i'll leave you with these pictures of andy and myself balancing the statue of liberty on our heads. Though this my look like nothing more than a pathetic attempt at trick photography by someone who's a bit too excited about the flashy new digital camera he's just bought, I can assure you that the pictures are in fact entirely genuine.
Me supporting the Statue of Liberty, very symbolically
Andy trying the same thing, but looking more confident about it
Me supporting the Statue of Liberty, very symbolically
Andy trying the same thing, but looking more confident about it
Monday, March 21, 2005
i'm back
Well, i'm back, in at least a couple of senses. First of all, i'm back from New York, after three weeks of 'working holiday' (in the loosest sense (well, in fact, forget the whole 'working' bit of that phrase (I was too busy experiencing things to write about them (or to learn how to use brackets properly in sentences)))).
Anyway the above also means i'm now back in front of my own computer, which increases the chances that this blog site will actually get some postings on a regular basis.
Also it means i'm back into my everyday routine and mindset, insofar as i've got one anyway. That's the thing about travelling - it's never just a journey in a geographical sense, but a trip to a different side of yourself (however cliched that sounds). I think in some ways that's the best part of the whole experience. Not only so you get the chance to explore what it's like to be a different person, but you remain changed in smaller ways when you return. It's perhaps about expanding your mental horizons. I, along with most people, have a tendency to make my everyday world as small as possible, because it seems easier to cope with that way. I suppose to an extent this is a necessary survival tactic, because the world is just too big and complicated for us to deal with, especially these days. But too often we limit ourselves much more than we need to, and remove variety and freedom from our lives. Some people counter this by taking drugs - I seem to use travel and other out-of-the-ordinary experiences to achieve the same thing.
I still haven't decided whether taking a trip in the literal or the figurative senses is more effective, but i've gone mainly with the first option up till now as it seems safer (or at least it's easier to get insurance for).
This whole drug thing seems to be on my mind at the moment, probably because on saturday night I went to a warehouse party where more-or-less everyone was on something. I toyed with the idea of taking some pills with my friends but after discussing it in some depth decided not to. I still don't know whether this was sensible caution or simply a lack of courage. They had mostly done it before, but there was no peer pressure really - just honest explanations of the good and bad sides. The bad sides really didn't sound that bad at all, and they were certainly not what stopped me. What did, I think, were two things; the idea of losing control, and the possibility of long term effects. Perhaps the fear of losing control is a common enough one, although everything else i've done recently (including writing this right now in fact), has been an effort to let go of such a need for concious control. Maybe I want to be in control of letting my control go. Hmm.
Anyway the second point seems more important to me. For someone whose only real resource is my mind (then again, that describes a lot of people), i'm a bit threatened by even the possibility of damaging it. Not that it's at all likely, but then again i've often felt I have a less firm grip on sanity than most, and it's probably best not to take chances.
In the event, I took no drugs (apart from the socially acceptable alcohol, which is probably a lot more damaging than anything else) but managed to lose myself in the crowd and the music anyway, as I usually do. Whether what I experienced was anywhere near as good as what my friends felt, I'll never know, but it's possible that I got into the same mindstate as them without chemical assistance. Then again, maybe not.
Anyway the above also means i'm now back in front of my own computer, which increases the chances that this blog site will actually get some postings on a regular basis.
Also it means i'm back into my everyday routine and mindset, insofar as i've got one anyway. That's the thing about travelling - it's never just a journey in a geographical sense, but a trip to a different side of yourself (however cliched that sounds). I think in some ways that's the best part of the whole experience. Not only so you get the chance to explore what it's like to be a different person, but you remain changed in smaller ways when you return. It's perhaps about expanding your mental horizons. I, along with most people, have a tendency to make my everyday world as small as possible, because it seems easier to cope with that way. I suppose to an extent this is a necessary survival tactic, because the world is just too big and complicated for us to deal with, especially these days. But too often we limit ourselves much more than we need to, and remove variety and freedom from our lives. Some people counter this by taking drugs - I seem to use travel and other out-of-the-ordinary experiences to achieve the same thing.
I still haven't decided whether taking a trip in the literal or the figurative senses is more effective, but i've gone mainly with the first option up till now as it seems safer (or at least it's easier to get insurance for).
This whole drug thing seems to be on my mind at the moment, probably because on saturday night I went to a warehouse party where more-or-less everyone was on something. I toyed with the idea of taking some pills with my friends but after discussing it in some depth decided not to. I still don't know whether this was sensible caution or simply a lack of courage. They had mostly done it before, but there was no peer pressure really - just honest explanations of the good and bad sides. The bad sides really didn't sound that bad at all, and they were certainly not what stopped me. What did, I think, were two things; the idea of losing control, and the possibility of long term effects. Perhaps the fear of losing control is a common enough one, although everything else i've done recently (including writing this right now in fact), has been an effort to let go of such a need for concious control. Maybe I want to be in control of letting my control go. Hmm.
Anyway the second point seems more important to me. For someone whose only real resource is my mind (then again, that describes a lot of people), i'm a bit threatened by even the possibility of damaging it. Not that it's at all likely, but then again i've often felt I have a less firm grip on sanity than most, and it's probably best not to take chances.
In the event, I took no drugs (apart from the socially acceptable alcohol, which is probably a lot more damaging than anything else) but managed to lose myself in the crowd and the music anyway, as I usually do. Whether what I experienced was anywhere near as good as what my friends felt, I'll never know, but it's possible that I got into the same mindstate as them without chemical assistance. Then again, maybe not.
Saturday, March 05, 2005
Hi World
Well, this is my first post, so i'm really not sure how to fill the big blank space i've just created.
Well, here goes anyway. I was inspired to do this by my good friend Andy (check out his blog at http://andys-amazing.blogspot.com (andy if you're reading this, that one was free, any more advertising will be at reasonable rates ;-) ). I'm staying with him in New York at the moment, and managing to have more than a few eye-opening experiences. Some posts and photos of my exploits (those which I dare expose to the public) should be coming soon. Andy's blog will give you his take on what i've got up to and the sort of person he thinks I am!
In case you don't yourself don't know who I am, I suppose I should describe myself. I originally did this in the About Myself section but it takes up too much space as i've suddenly turned into an ego-maniac when given the oppurtunity to describe myself to a (probably mostly indifferent) world. Anyway, it's moved to here:
Where to start?
Hmm, well - this is a sample of what other people have said to/about me recently (with any replies I would make in brackets):
-A bit of a nutter (thanks Andy, same to you)
-You should get out more (see below)
-You should go out less (see above)
-When can I read your new book? (soon, honest :-) )
-You look like Spiderman i.e. Tobey Maguire (well, maybe, but it's only because I tend to climb up walls and leave cobwebs on the ceiling)
That's really the best summary I can give, but a few more exact details might not hurt. I'm currently pursuing my dream of being a full-time writer (of speculative fiction), having quit my job in Electronic Engineering. It was a surprising choice for me to make, especially to myself, but there you go.
Hopefully i'm going to be writing some short stories inspired by thoughts i've had, and things i've seen and read while over here, so look out for those too. You can let me know what you think too. I'm very new to this whole writing lark, so any comments would be helpful.
Other than that, I'm a bit of an Aikido nut. For those of you who don't know this is a Japanese martial art. The best description of Aikido i've heard is "like Origami, only with people". It's quite gentle though, teaches you a lot about life apart from the self-defense aspect, and takes about 100 years to get any good at. I've only been going about 8 years so there's a way to go yet.
Well, here goes anyway. I was inspired to do this by my good friend Andy (check out his blog at http://andys-amazing.blogspot.com (andy if you're reading this, that one was free, any more advertising will be at reasonable rates ;-) ). I'm staying with him in New York at the moment, and managing to have more than a few eye-opening experiences. Some posts and photos of my exploits (those which I dare expose to the public) should be coming soon. Andy's blog will give you his take on what i've got up to and the sort of person he thinks I am!
In case you don't yourself don't know who I am, I suppose I should describe myself. I originally did this in the About Myself section but it takes up too much space as i've suddenly turned into an ego-maniac when given the oppurtunity to describe myself to a (probably mostly indifferent) world. Anyway, it's moved to here:
Where to start?
Hmm, well - this is a sample of what other people have said to/about me recently (with any replies I would make in brackets):
-A bit of a nutter (thanks Andy, same to you)
-You should get out more (see below)
-You should go out less (see above)
-When can I read your new book? (soon, honest :-) )
-You look like Spiderman i.e. Tobey Maguire (well, maybe, but it's only because I tend to climb up walls and leave cobwebs on the ceiling)
That's really the best summary I can give, but a few more exact details might not hurt. I'm currently pursuing my dream of being a full-time writer (of speculative fiction), having quit my job in Electronic Engineering. It was a surprising choice for me to make, especially to myself, but there you go.
Hopefully i'm going to be writing some short stories inspired by thoughts i've had, and things i've seen and read while over here, so look out for those too. You can let me know what you think too. I'm very new to this whole writing lark, so any comments would be helpful.
Other than that, I'm a bit of an Aikido nut. For those of you who don't know this is a Japanese martial art. The best description of Aikido i've heard is "like Origami, only with people". It's quite gentle though, teaches you a lot about life apart from the self-defense aspect, and takes about 100 years to get any good at. I've only been going about 8 years so there's a way to go yet.
