Sunday, April 29, 2012

work update.


I suppose its only fair that I should post an update on this here blog, especially considering that I am the reason it exists. After all, I am the one who moved our beloved Ali across the country to the God-forsaken city of New Orleans. I wanted to take a minute to give you a quick update about what I’ve been working on the last few months.

Back in late February and early March I worked on a big feature film called “Now You See Me”. It stars Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Morgan Freeman, and Isla Fisher, among others. Here's a little behind the scenes video.



On the Set: Jesse Eisenberg's Magic Thriller

Sorry Isla, I'm taken.
It's always fun and interesting being around well known movie stars. Most of the time you quickly realize that, for the most part, they really are just normal, everyday people who happen to be good at pretending to be someone else. Other times you kind of notice that constantly pretending to be someone else requires a certain amount of crazy. The best part about working around actors is when one says she thinks your cute... just don't tell Ali....



The best thing about working on Now You See Me was that it provided me with the opportunity to get my next and most recent job, The Last Exorcism Part 2. We finished shooting the film about a week ago. It was interesting going from a very large budget movie like Now You See Me, to a not so large budget movie like The Last Exorcism 2. Big budget movies carry a certain amount of weight and pressure, but they look great on the resume and can be a lot of fun. Lower budget movies can sometimes maintain a better sense of family or community within the crew, but often times drag the crew through the mud in attempts to pinch every penny. But it truly comes down to the leaders of the film, i.e. the producers and directors. If they're good, smart, and knowledgable people, than theres a good chance it will be a good production, regardless of budget size. 
Working on movies is an experience that is equal parts “exciting movie magic” and “ok wow maybe that will be cool after music and editing”. In some ways it is similar to seeing how a magician does all his tricks. Sometimes seeing the secret is really neat and exciting, and other times it sort of ruins the “awe” and “splendor” of it all. Watching a stuntman jump out of a second story window, for example, still carries a fair amount of excitement in person as compared to the energy and impact portrayed on screen. On the other hand, watching an actor pantomime in front of a green screen for days on end doesn't exactly make your toes tingle with excitement. Whether a day on set is filled with massive explosion and gun fights, or hours upon hours of insert shots of clocks and spoons, I can’t imagine a better day at the office.

-Chad

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

tuesday trivia.

The Beatles made Billboard history this month in 1964 by occupying the top FIVE spots on the Billboard Hot 100 charts!

Beatles Hot 100 Singles on April 4, 1964:
#1 Can’t Buy Me Love
#2 Twist and Shout
#3 She Loves You
#4 I Want To Hold Your Hand
#5 Please Please Me

Not only did they accomplish that never before or never-since feat, they had seven more songs in the top 100!

The seven other songs and chart positions:
#31 I Saw Her Standing There
#41 From Me to You
#46 Do You Want To Know A Secret
#58 All My Loving
#65 You Can’t Do That
#68 Roll Over Beethoven
#79 Thank You Girl

In the following weeks the number of hits on the chart would expand from 12 to 14!
At the time they also held the top two albums in the U.S., the top single in the U.K. and the number one and three albums in the U.K.

Not bad for being in the U.S. for little over 2 months..!

I (ali) also wanted to share this.. anyone else enjoying Paul McCartney's new music video?



happy tuesday, y'all.

Friday, April 13, 2012

real love.

something really big happened. something so beautiful. heart break and heart warmth together in one. life changing, probably.

why does the lover have to die? why did Jesus have to die for me?

I feel bad.

I can't imagine losing Chad forever. I know we have Holy Spirit, but all of the sudden I can't comprehend losing someone in the physical for my own freedom. and yet, that is what once happened.

recently, I've been craving the next great love story. maybe, now I know it's because I needed the real thing brought to better attention in my life. I saw a movie that left me wanting to see another like it. I read a book that left me wanting to read it again.. because the love stories were so entrapping.

I also watched all four seasons of an old television show and each time the main character was separated from his love interest and then reunited, and every time the father was reunited with his son after being held so far apart against their will, I would get that feeling I imagine most women get. my heart feels bigger in that moment and so happy. it didn't have to be a romantic thing. just a real love thing. in those moments goosebumps would cover my body before the thought of what was happening would really even register in my brain. seeming like I was feeling more than just a good feeling for the two reuniting. it made me think it had to be more than just seeing actors on a screen, more than just good writing. and then yes (Mom and Dad and Chad, you might want to make sure you're sitting down), I would get teary-eyed.

[if you are not a fan of spoilers, here is my warning.. maybe I'll just spare you the title of the show. but I'm about to tell you how it ends.]

in the end the main character does all that is physically possible and dies to save his wife and child so they can be free forever. this beautiful act- and so painful; I later connected it with the death of Christ.

and I wept.

I'm a little bit embarrassed to say that I think God led me to some tv show (all four seasons) to reveal how much He loves me. but I guess if that's the case, I'll just stay real and go ahead and admit that and be okay with it.

this is no new story to me. I'm not new in the church world. like many of you, I have heard and read the story of Christ hundreds of times. I have experienced his blessing and grace on this earth more than I deserve. I've never really cried over His death like this though.. never really felt it so real to myself.. or made me feel so lovesick. never so fresh in my heart.

kind of a big deal.

{I'm sorry You had to die to save us. thank You for teaching me about true love. continue speaking. I pray I never forget this feeling.}


'I wish we could sometimes love the characters in real life as we love the characters in romances. there are a great many souls whom we should accept more kindly, and even appreciate more clearly, if we simply thought of them as people in a story.' gk chesterson.