The City of Angels: Reflecting on the Best Summer of my Life

 

We made it.  We're here.  It feels so good to finally arrive at the city of Angels after so much anticipation.  What's the first thing on the agenda once we arrive?  Do you even have to ask?  Of course we've gotta visit the Hollywood sign.  This iconic sight has been etched into my mind since infancy, and now I'm standing right in front of it.  I have chills when I consider the significance of this moment.  This is just the first leg of a journey that is sure to change my life.  

 

Next stop: Universal Pictures.  Our first visit to a film studio was, in my opinion, the best one.  Sure it was directed more towards tourists than filmmakers, but we were introduced to so many new facets of the industry, all in one day.  Walking through the prop rooms and the wardrobe department had me mesmerized.  These are rooms that I have been seeing on behind-the-scenes featurettes ever since I started falling in love with cinema.  And then there are the intricately detailed fake cities that are designed to capture the essence of several different locales. Seeing such iconic buildings as the clock tower from Back to the Future blew.me.away. 

On to the next studio: Warner Brothers.  Now, this is a studio that I have always felt a strong connection to.  They have produced some of my favorite films of all time (Harry Potter, The Hobbit, The Matrix, Batman, etc.), so I was slightly excited to visit their lot.  I wasn't disappointed... Trust me.  It was amazing to be able to walk around inside the studio that they film Conan and many other shows in.  But the thing that really sold the trip to WB for me was the Harry Potter museum.  These films were my childhood, so being able to walk amongst some of my favorite props of all time was a surreal experience... Plus, at least I finally know I'm not a Slytherin (Gryffindor for life).

Now, there's one filmmaker who I would not be here without.  Peter Jackson is the reason I'm in Los Angeles.  He made what I consider to be the best trilogy of films that this universe has ever seen, and if it weren't for the special features attached to the extended edition of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, I would not have decided to pursue filmmaking. 

The moment I just happened to stumble across his star on the Hollywood walk of fame felt like destiny.  I connect to this director more than any other filmmaker in the world, and his path to becoming one of the only directors in Hollywood with a blank check has inspired me to be a better filmmaker more than anything.  Finding his screenplays at the Writer's Guild library made that class trip even more special for me.  The trip to the Writer's Guild was one of the most rewarding experiences I had in LA.  Screenwriting is my career goal.  I live and breath scripts.  Not just good ones, either.  For my internship, I read many horrible, horrible scripts.  And guess what?  I loved it!  My experience with reading and analyzing scripts has taught me one important lesson.  You can learn just as much--if not more--about the craft of screenwriting from reading a bad script as you can learn from reading a great one.  And this is a lesson that, in their eagerness to criticize, I think many people miss.  It's just one of many lessons that my internship taught me.

One of my favorite aspects of this city has been the recognition that many places give to feats of significant filmmaking.  Seeing Academy awards line the walls of buildings in Warner Brothers, Fox, and the Dolby theater was awesome, because who doesn't want to receive an Oscar?  I think that most, if not all, of this class have an earnest desire to hold that little gold man onstage at the Dolby theater.

And while we're on the subject of getting recognition for filmmaking, I have only one word that can adequately describe my experience at Campus Moviefest... Wow.  Being able to see my work on the big screen was one of the most gratifying experiences I've ever had.  Sure, my film wasn't great, but this was a major milestone for me.  And hopefully, this won't be the last time that I get to enjoy a film by Richard Giles on the big screen.

My short film, "Stolen Moments", wasn't even my favorite screening, though.  We went to several screenings of upcoming movies and popular television shows.  Going to the Community screening and getting to see and hear from the cast and crew of that show was awesome.

But there was one screening that just can't be topped.  That was the Terminator Genisys premiere at the Dolby Theater.  This was not only the best night of the trip, it was also one of the most fun nights of my life.  It all started with us waiting in the hot sun, not even knowing if we'd be able to get into the movie.  Next thing we know, we're standing next to the red (or silver) carpet, watching some of my personal favorite actors walk by.  Pretty cool, huh?  Well we find our seats and watch the movie.  It's a neat film.  Nothing special, but enjoyable nevertheless.  At this point, you may be thinking, "That sounds fun and all, but 'Best night of the trip?'...  I think not."  Well, my friend, by the time the movie ended, the night had not even begun.  We walked out of the theater, and, as I attempted to find out which way my car was, I looked down and noticed that I had stumbled onto the red carpet.  Our group just kept following it until we ended up in what seemed to be the happening place to be in LA.  Turns out that we trounced into the Terminator Genisys after party on accident.  We spent the next few hours schmoozing it up with such celebrities as Emilia Clarke, Jason Clarke, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, and WWE Superstar Shad Gaspard!  Definitely one of the most memorable nights of my life.

However, I think that the part of this trip that made it all worth it was getting to meet my own personal hero... Tommy Wiseau: writer, director, producer, and star of the instant classic, The Room.  I've never been so fascinated by a human being, so getting to meet the man who I've built up such an iconic image of in my mind over the past 3 years was overwhelmingly satisfying.  And believe me, my expectations were not only met.  They were exceeded to an infinite degree.  I only wish we had become best friends and started hanging out every weekend... But hey!  It could still happen!

In conclusion, I'd just like to say that this summer has been the most rewarding experience of my life, and I've grown very close to almost everyone I've met in this class.  I'm lucky to have met such great aspiring filmmakers, and I hope to stay connected with them for many years to come.