Friday, 19 December 2008

• Lost in Routine

  While watching SNL clips on hulu.com, I realized something.
  
  I miss college.  I remember in between computer sciences classes we would have pretty fun communication classes (for a multimedia minor).  We would write our own scripts, operate high end studio cameras, and act in a real studio setting with backdrops and props.  Cutting and transitioning to different cameras, and being able to talk to your camera crew and directing the whole thing.  Really awesome experience.
  
  My team ended up doing an ESPN-isque Battleship Tournament with outrageous characters; ranging from pirates to some foreign exchange student.  We did commentary as if it were a real sport and made it as stupidly exciting as possible.  It felt like something straight out of SNL except way lower production quality.  I will see if I can dig up the script.
  
  There was also another class where we had to make a movie trailer.  The premise is something way beyond classic murder, suspense, heists, etc.  It was about student parking on campus.  We were sending a message with this assignment.  It seems that even though you pay top dollar for a parking pass for that term, it is still nearly impossible to find a parking spot on campus.  So, what's the point??  Anyway, that was a very fun project for me.  My friends and I worked together to brainstorm the dumbest possible ideas and put them in.  I think it came out pretty well.  I think it was the best in our class if I may say so myself.  Unfortunately, we had a teammember that was a loud mouth and critiqued the professor's favorite movie trailer from last quarter and wouldn't shut up.  She showed it just as an example of what she was looking for, and he insisted that he could do better.  In our brainstorming sessions, it was clear that none of that guy's ideas were any good.  They were crap.  We mostly let him do as little as possible.  I think our grade was knocked down a notch because of that argument with the professor though.  Unfortunate.
  
  
  One of my favorite projects in school was creating a 3D animated short using Maya.  This one was very very fun.  It was a team effort putting it together, spending long hours in the computer lab modeling and animating the characters and set.  Guess who did the model for the throne?  Thankfully, my pal Barry uploaded it to youtube years ago, so here it is for your enjoyment:
  
  
  Not bad for 2003 eh?
  
  After 4 years of working in the real world of software engineering, I realized that I've lost my way.  I'm missing out on the fun stuff I could be doing.  The pay is good, the people I work with are great, but it's just not exciting and fun anymore.  After each project it's a sigh of relief, not, "dude check out this awesome thing I made!"  I miss having a "coolness" factor to show at the end of each project.
  
  To an extent, I envy the people in Hollywood.  They get to push the envelope, use their imagination and make movies.  Their budgets are also pretty awesome/ridiculous.  At the end of the day, they get to show their awesome (or not so awesome) project to everyone, for a fee.  And they get to do this for a living.  Make movies.  How fun is that.
  
  I also made a high school movie loosely based on King Lear, but more on the Matrix.  I forget how they relate, but at the time I thought it was the awesomest thing ever.  Now that I try to rewatch it, it is the most unawesome thing ever.  Word to the wise, do NOT watch old high school videos.  They will likely to be terrible.  If you are in high school now, and you think your video is awesome, wait a few years.  Like 8 years.  Your awesomeness will fade, trust me.  Hang on to whatever awesome memories you have left, and don't ruin it.
  
  Anyway, I guess my point to this post is, don't get too comfortable.  When you get comfortable doing something every day or every year, it means it's time to switch it up.  Do something fun that you used to enjoy, personal projects, group projects with your friends, etc.  It's a great way to get closer to your friends as well.
  
  When I have some free time again and when the weather clears up, I want to make another movie.  Stupid or not, here I come!
  

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