I'm working on updating my reel, but my stuff is all over-- some in Mexico, some in the US... That made me curious enough to Google myself and some of my projects, not just to stroke my ego, but to see if I could find any mention of my work. Lo and behold, I stumbled upon a hard-to-find music video I directed for Mexican rock band La Gusana Ciega while I was still in college.

The band was on the verge of breaking big (I like to tell myself my video did the trick) and this song, off their first album, was never released as a single, but they wanted a video anyway. They pitched in, but the project was paid for mostly by myself and a few of my fellow students. It got some exposure on MTV Latino, but the band had signed with a larger record company, so the video was soon shelved to promote the new album. They went on to bigger things with bigger budgets. Sadly, as much as they loved the video, the record company picked other, well-established directors to film anything new.

I was pleasantly surprised to bump into this.

Alien vs. Predator vs. Ruins: Ruins win.

I just saw Alien vs. Predator: Requiem and The Ruins. A perfect comparison of gore for gore's sake versus gore that affects the characters.

There is no question as to why the former was more successful, in box-office terms, than the latter. It was "cool" (which translates to action-heavy, regardless of character and plot, neither of which it had much to speak of). The Ruins is a quieter film, and if the audience isn't willing to go along for the ride, slow as it may be (slow, in contrast to AvP:R), then it becomes just a bunch of people talking... even if they are pretty.

And pretty they are, but their dilemma isn't. It's a thought-provoking situation, and the villain, as unexplained as it is, is far more menacing than a dreadlocked outer-space hunter and the aliens, which have been reduced of late to being a pest (I could delve deeper into why both Predator and Alien are superb franchises dumbed down of late, but that's another post). The threat in The Ruins is not overt, and, when all is said and done, turns out not to be directly responsible for the deaths of most of the characters. Hell, I even liked the damn thing better in the film than the book, and that's saying quite a bit.

Different Strokes

I've had an influx of screenplay translations to work on, which has limited the time I can spend on my own writing, but it's been very illustrative to read other peoples' words.

My opinion on the screenplays themselves is irrelevant, and far be it for me to decide what is good or bad when I'm certain many would have qualms with the stories I create. No, what I find interesting is the style, the approach each writer takes when crafting a screenplay.

Some are so succinct that finding an appropriate equivalent in a different language becomes a challenge; over-writing can happen in any language. Other writers treat their screenplays like novels, except with every single stage direction spelled out. And others seems to thrive on not having a style whatsoever, which makes the screenplay a little too dry and impersonal for my liking.

Saying what is right or wrong is beside the point. Each writer needs to find his or her own voice, and each screenplay is a springboard towards higher craftsmanship and artistry. I try to learn with each and every one of them. And mine.

Can't wait 'til I get back to mine...