Jake Tompkins

Scattered about my bedroom are roughly a dozen books on filmmaking, all of which I can proudly say I have not read. These books are purchased by film students like myself in hopes that reading them cover-to-cover will magically make them a rockstar director; the odds of them or me doing so are about the same as them actually finishing the book, which is often thicker than a phonebook and about as obsolete.

As I near the end of shooting on my first actual production, My Sixties Girl, I can almost assure you that these books will provide virtually zero knowledge on how to be a filmmaker. Practically everything I garnered from the casual skimming of these books rarely applied on my film, save for one quote that I read, a quote that I will impart to you now:

“A director who can edit is an empowered director.”

The quote followed a half-page discussing the ubiquity of modern video editing technology, and suggested that independent filmmakers need not despair if they do not have an editor lined up, but embrace it as an opportunity to invest in non-linear editing software and take a stab at editing their own film.

The quote stuck with me, and led to my decision to edit my own senior thesis film, something that other Senior Project members have opted against, be it lack of desire, equipment, or capability. After editing about half the film so far, (on Temple’s beautiful new Mac Pro workstations, no less) I can say that this statement has never rung more true to me. If a film is truly made in the editing room, then I want to be at the helm. This has been observed by friends as “control freak.” I prefer the term “creative authority.”

This, of course, doesn’t negate the fact that you should always let several sets of eyes peek through your scenes before declaring final cut; a fresh pair of peepers will assuredly catch something you have missed in your Red Bull-fueled wee hours of the morning. Post a rough cut to Vimeo and don’t make a final cut until you’ve gotten plenty of feedback.

One of my favorite producers and personal idol, J.J. Abrams, closed a speech at TED in March 2007 discussing the “democratization” of the creation of media. Like the half-page before the quote, Abrams points out that the technology necessary to make films - cameras, lights, edit suites - is now ubiquitous, and that “no community is best served when only the elite have control.” Check that speech out here:

Then grab a computer and start editing. =)

My sister was just accepted into the University of Miami.

And Mom was just looking for an excuse to loudly warble the lyrics to Will Smith’s “Miami.”

This post has floated around Drafts for some time, and it all began with this YouTube video:

Why do I publish a video of every guy’s daydream, that his girlfriend would find a videogame so realistic that she’d gladly sit and watch him play for hours on end?

Because it brings to life in thirty seconds a point I always enjoy making: nerdiness can be sexy. That the girlfriend believed she was watching a movie is irrelevant; the simple act that she was entertaining herself with her boy’s toys is what is attractive about that commercial.

And I’m not just talking about videogames. Guys are typically more technologically-oriented than woman, which means you probably have a myriad of toys that you can develop proficiency with, if not feign interest in. Trust me, he will enjoy, and may even become more agreeable when you decide to drag him along on that shopping spree.

This long-winded point extends beyond the scope of relationship advice or videogames. Technology becoming a larger and larger part of peoples’ lives is a trend that has really exploded in the past few years. The average American populace is becoming more technogically-aware. Last month, my grandfather taught himself how to send E-mail, both a gift and a curse, as I’m now graced with his catch-up messages as well as bombarded with stupid joke chain letters. Social networking tools are also the new “it” way to communicate directly with friends, followers, and most recently, family. Facebook, once the hallowed domain to glorify those posted drunken photos of you sharing your Diet Coke with a Broad Street hobo, has given access to any nosy mom with a valid E-mail address to tsk-tsk all over your shit.

Twitter has given fans of celebrities ways to communicate directly with them. Or, alternatively, stalk them. I resent the flak Twitter gets all the time, usually because the offending classmate brazenly dumps on the service before understanding what it actually does (for the record, it isn’t “the new Google,” jerkoff from my Future of TV class).

Take this to heart, women. Because in my book, a cute, tech-savvy girl is downright sexy. You don’t have to handwrite HTML, just basic understanding of modern-day technology will do. Or, failing that, the patience to listen to me overtly explain and therefore teach such things. Or you probably use Twitter, but not to describe the viscosity of your New England clam chowder.

Meet any or all of these requirements, and I will likely jump head-over-heels into a committed, if not slightly dorky, relationship with you.

But whatever you do, just don’t call an iPod Touch an “iTouch.” That is grounds for </relationship>

Also, I bought a PS3 like three days ago. So be prepared to hear about that nonstop.

I created this website and this subsequent first post because, in the last few days, I have encountered at least three things that I hold a near uncontrollable urge to rant about or discuss in depth. As Twitter limits me to 140 characters and Facebook is obviously purely for stalking, I’ll post here.

Tonight, I boarded my usual SEPTA train, or as I not-so-affectionately refer to it, The Fail Rail, and headed on my merry way home. Halfway into the journey, we were informed that the train was “out of sand” and therefore having a difficult time climbing the slope towards our first station stop.

Another twenty minutes in, and we were forced to disembark and wait for the following train, which evidently had the necessary sand.

Now, I’m not one to judge. But it seems when water falls from the sky, nothing in Philadelphia seems to work correctly, notably SEPTA. This is understandable, because when SEPTA was created back in THE 1800s, there was no such thing as rain, so it is just silly to expect them to adopt new technologies to cope with falling water.

Anyway, welcome to my poorly conceived Tumblr. Enjoy your stay, have a few laughs at my expense, and just keep swimming.

It is very possible that I will not update this often.