Happy New Year!

Putting the wraps on another year full of ups and downs (thankfully many more ups) and I just wanted to quickly tell you guys & dolls (and invisibles) that I hope you have a Happy New Year!

Make Believe has big plans this coming year and I know that 2012 will be amazing; full of following, pursing, catching and accomplishing our goals and dreams. That's not saying it'll be easy, it's just saying that we are determined to do anything we have to do to get where we are meant to be.

Even kill.

Okay, perhaps there is a small list of morally objective things we won't do, but we aren't talking about that.

I'm personally re-energized, reinvigorated, possibly reanimated and definitely re-ready to get this going. It took a lot to get me to this place, physically (Los Angeles) and mentally, but I am excited to start facing these hurdles one by one.

I've got everything I need here, an amazing group of family & friends, and we've got a full slate of projects to work on. In essence things have never been better and it feels like it's all coming together at just the right time.

I hope that your New Year is everything you guys want it to be and I wish you the best in making it happen.

Now go get it, and don't let the fact that the world is ending December 21st 2012 stop you from making this the best year ever.

@MakeBelieveKyle

I'mma be, what I set out to be, without a doubt, undoubtedly 

Thanksblogging

So, I'm sitting outside of L.A. on a cold and rainy day.

I'm here to continue going after a dream I started chasing years ago. Before I knew I was actually chasing anything. Before a failed independent film back in Florida that brought me a relationship that I would come to love, then hate, then cherish above almost all. Before I ever knew I wanted to tell stories the rest of my life.

I guess I'm gonna catch you guys (all 6 of you) up on how I got to California and what I'm thankful for.

Day 1:

I left two days after my daughter's 9th birthday in August. I had three days to get from Polk County, Florida to Los Angeles. That was 2,529 miles in 72 hours.

Daunting? Absolutely.

Impossible? Nah. Just a Sunday drive ... and Monday ... and Tuesday.

Why only three days to cross the bottom of the United States? Promising job interviews to start my/our new life off right. I mean, I'm here to write but until that pays the bills, something has to.

After years of trying to get to California, years of talking about following dreams, a few false starts and blown chances and after a handful of heartbreaking & tearful goodbyes, we were on our way.

We.

Not my girls and I: I was heading out on my own to get things set up for us. It was only for a month. I'd arrive a few days before my birthday in August and the girls would follow me out in early September.

But I digress. We. Me, one half of The Make Believe Picture Company, and Fluffy.

Screw The Rules.

Madison lent me her favorite puppy to make the trip with me, so I wouldn't be lonely. So I decided if I was gonna have company, he was going to be a participant in this trip. 

Not only was he the little stuffed dog that reminded me of what I was leaving for a month (and why it was so important to keep going no matter what), but he was my partner in crime, a reason to document where I was going and where I had been.

Day 1 was to go from Central Florida to Louisiana. Not a bad beginning leg, especially since I was gonna have a quick pit stop with one of my best friends in Alabama. 

Fluffy and I roared down the back roads to the interstate in FL, sappy tunes blaring for about the first hour: oh, how we wore out The Scientist, Times Like These & Breathe Me (damn you Six Feet Under.)

Such as segregation.

Luckily throughout the trip, I had Amanda and Eric and a few others to talk to and the first day seemed to roll by pretty quickly and without issue. I was a little behind where I wanted to be and more tired than I had expected when I got to my friend Holly's driveway, but I had made it to Mobile.

Fluffy & Friends, only on the Double U Bee.

An hours worth of good talk, spaghetti and ribbing of horrible TV shows and Fluffy and I were off. 

We left heading into a beautiful sunset. It was breathtaking and it really kind of clued me in that I was seeing some truly amazing things. It made me feel a little better about my first real night away from my girls if that makes sense.

Mobile. Day 1. Also, who knew they had a tunnel?

But, dear readers, as you can figure out, the sun may have set on day one, but I still had two states to go to be on track. 

I made it into Mississippi before I totally lost the sun for the night. I was getting sleepier by the hour and was kicking my ass for not leaving a day sooner so I could've crashed with my friend.

All smiles, but he still couldn't spell it right on the first try.

Alas, I did NOT make it into the land of bayous and Swamp People. I called it a night in Diamondhead, MS and figured I would make up my lost time tomorrow.

DAY 2:

Plan was to go from the western end of MS to El Paso Texas.

We actually went: Diamondhead, MS to Fort Stockton, Texas: 889 miles.

MS to LA flew by and things were good, I was rested and renewed for the longest day of the trip. 

Fluffy did NOT get to attack the pelican.

And honestly, LA to Texas went by faster than I thought. I saw some amazing looking scenery going from the flat lands of Florida and Alabama (it was dark, Mississippi just looked black) ... (racist) to the swamps and bayous of Louisiana. 

Luckily a Cajun saved Fluffy before his untimely demise.

Texas was a different story. I was happy to get into it. I looked forward to crossing it. Eric had made this drive in 2009, so I knew that it wasn't all fun and games. I was warned that Texas was boring, to say the least. Regardless, I knew it was a state I was gonna have to blow through and because of their 80mph speed limit, that was exactly what I planned to do.

Use the Schwartz, Lone Star!

Shit really is bigger in Texas. And dumber.

I absolutely loathed Texas. From east to west, top to bottom. I hated it. I don't know if it was being in the car alone, sorry Fluffy, or if it was the fact that I had a thousand miles to go, but it was complete torture.

Nothing but smiles from Fluffy. Bastard.

Somewhere in Texas. Or Hell. Can't be sure.

San Antonio.

San Antonio was the one bright spot in Texas for me. I got off the interstate and circled the Alamo a few times before heading back into the wild frontier. 

Day 2: Outside San Antonio

The landscape was starting to change, get mountainous as the sun went down and I was happy to see that. What I didn't realize is that, although I had been through tons of mountains as a kid, I had never driven them and at night. 

It was brutal doing so. I was trying to stay up around 80mph but it was no use as the last half of Texas is up and down and apparently the deer there are hunted so hard that the safest place for them is literally ON the highway. 

So many close calls with these idiotic beasts. I'm totally with Louis CK. At one point I wanted to place Fluffy on a dead one at a rest stop. Better sense and Amanda got through to me. 

I was angry, tired, scared of demolishing my car on one of these creatures. And I still had six hours to go to get to El Paso. 

Spoiler Alert. I didn't get there. It was the closest I think I'd ever come to experiencing cabin fever. I was breaking.

Unfortunately. there seems to be only about 4 towns in between those two cities. I stopped around 2am half way between San Antonio and El Paso and it wasn't pretty.

Screw Texas. It is now North Mexico to me. I'll X out a star on the flag if need be. I will indeed Mess with Texas. 

Anyway, my hotel room was fine enough on the outside, but on the inside one bed was sticky, I was too tired to complain and I just went to the other, and as I found out in the morning, I was sleeping with a tiny scorpion/alien thing. 

Documented proof.

A little bit of bitching about sticky beds, that I didn't cause, and a deadly bedtime beast to the Senorita at the La Quinta in BFE, Texas and I got my money back as Day 3 was beginning.

Day 3:

Fort Stockton, Texas to Los Angeles: 1,052 miles.

Last day, it had to be, I had an important job interview tomorrow at 9am. No dicking around, I HAD to be in LA at the end of the day. 

Also, I woke up in some sort of awesome desert/mountain area. It looked like something out of Red Dead Redemption and almost all of John Wayne's movies. 

As much as I hated Texas, I have to say I had somewhat of a spiritual experience listening to Mumford and Sons album while driving up, around and through these giant desert rocks. 

North Mexican Mountains.

Like good Americans, Fluffy and I ran all the Indians off and took their stuff.

Mexico is scary. 

Four hours of that and I was done with North Mexico forever. 

Enchantment is a stretch but whatevs.

I'd like to say I enjoyed New Mexico but honestly I just enjoyed getting through it. It was just "eh" I was excited to be close to my destination and to be done with Texas. I couldn't believe I was only hours away from Los Angeles and my best friend. 

A few hours more and we were into Arizona. The excitement was building. 

This asshole's never-ending enthusiasm wasn't always infectious. 

I really liked Arizona. More mountains. It stormed in the desert, both wind-storms (awesome) and thunderstorms and there were beautiful spots that I so look forward to visiting properly someday. 

Windstorm. This was the middle of the day.

We busted ass and made it to Phoenix as the sun was going down on Day 3. 

Another phenomenal sunset. Outside Phoenix.

California Love was locked and loaded as we crossed over the Colorado River and then into California. 

Fluffy and I intelligently conversed about how I had been in the game ten years making rap tunes, ever since honey's was wearing Sassoon as we barreled up mountains, into valleys and finally into Los Angeles. 

It was close to 2am as I pulled onto Hollywood Blvd and saw my friend, at his home, for the first time ever. 

It was a moment, in a trip that was full of moments, that I'll never forget. 

It was an end of one journey and the very beginning of another. 

Day 106:

I thought, like many people I assume, that I would come out and L.A. would welcome me with open arms and thank me for blessing it with my genius. It hasn't. It's a fight. It's a struggle and you see that everyday in the people that this city, these industries, have chewed up and spit out.

It's a totally different world. 

My girls didn't make it out in only a month. In fact, as I'm writing this, they still aren't here. That will change soon but not soon enough. 

That job interview I rushed out for didn't work out, nor did the other twenty I went on from August to the end of September. 

I was told time and time again that I had what it took to be at their respective companies and that people loved me (such a good fit) ... (That's what she said), but there was always somebody that edged me out. It was a pretty tough pill to swallow. 

Until October where I found an amazing place to work. They cared for me, wanted me there and are genuinely good people. Everyday is a good day. 

And now I'm just slowly logging time, waiting until Eric and I can make that big break happen and waiting on my girls to get here.  

Both are coming soon. That's a fact. 

Creatively, I don't think things have ever been better. Eric and I are in the midst of working on and developing lots of promising things for you guys and for the first time ever, I know that you'll get to see them. Maybe not as soon as I'd like but it'll happen. 

I've also seen things and had experiences that have been life changing. Bittersweet but very important to me. I can't wait to share them with the girls as well. 

Personally though, I had many more downs than ups in the first two months here. Lots of rejection, disappointment. I missed big moments in time, birthdays, anniversaries and time that I will never get to make up with my daughter. 

There were nights were I was convinced I was gonna pack up and do the entire trip you just read in reverse. I was ready to give in. I was ready to go back to the known and the less-scary world I had grown up in. 

But I didn't. 

I didn't give in because I couldn't. I couldn't look my daughter in the eyes and tell her sometimes it's okay to give up, to not do what you think you can do. That's not a conversation that is in me. 

And this brings me to my last point. This is the reason I wrote this blog this week to begin with.

Since it's Thanksgiving, I'd like to do some giving thanks of my own. 

I'm thankful to have Madison in my life. She's the best thing that ever happened to me and the reason I want to be everything that I can be. Every night that I laid there thinking I was gonna take my ass back to Florida, I envisioned telling her why. And I couldn't. She will grow up in a place and with parents that will tell her and show her that anything is possible if you just keep trying. 

I'm thankful for my wife, Amanda. Through thick and thin, great times and bad, she's been the one constant in my life. She's backed me and believed in me when no one else would, she chose to share her life with somebody who didn't want to settle for less and that's not an easy thing. There have been hard times, especially these last 4 months but we've always made it through and been better for it. Everything I do is for them. 

I'm thankful to my best friend Eric and his fiancee Lauren. They took me in, gave me the opportunity to be here in the first place and honestly they were the first people who believed in me that didn't have to. They believe that I can accomplish what I think I can and they help every step of the way. I couldn't have done what I've done here and accomplished what I plan to accomplish in life without them. 

And I'm thankful to all the friends and family that have offered encouragement, checked in on me, and that have helped shape me and pushed me to be what I want to be. 

I hope everyone has a fantastic Thanksgiving. Safe and happy, celebrating with friends and family. 

Be sure to let the people that are important to you know how important they are. That you are thankful that they are in your life. 

Thanks for reading guys and dolls and now that we're caught up I'll try to stay on top of this better. 

Kyle

Fluffy and The City of Angels

Blog Hard

Hey guys, Kyle here.

So yeah, I hope everyone had a magical July 4th ... and summer ... and labor day ... and yeah, it's been a while.

So many big and amazing things have happened since then and I promise, I'm gonna blog you guys so hard.

Lot of catching up to do and I will do so ... with pictures!

And soon. ;-)

So imaginary readers ... all 6 followers ... be prepared.

@MakeBelieveKyle

Blog on The Fourth of July

Quick & Easy (also the title of my first "adult" film.)

Just wanted to tell everyone to have a happy 4th of July! Stay safe!

I'll throw up a real blog sometime this week.

Kyle

Hope Blogs Eternal

I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope. 


What a really cool week it's been here at Make Believe. 


Seriously.


We've had a good amount of momentum since Kevin Smith featured us on his Smodcast (you can check that out right here) and it's just been getting better and better. 


We had gotten a really favorable review of the last script, Heartbreak Anonymous, from a guy who we both really respect a few weeks back. It was such an unbelievable high to have someone who has navigated the turbulent waters and made a name for himself in show business to actually LIKE what you're doing!


All these "firsts" are happening to us and although we both are pushing to really get started, it's cool to take a little time and enjoy these kind of things. First's never happen again. 


So, while still riding a euphoric wave and continuing to push forward as hard as possible, we get more good news: Just a few days ago, Heartbreak Anonymous, garnered our second thumbs up, this time by a well respected producer in the business. 


Like all parents, you have all the hope in the world our kid can go out and do great things. You do what you can for it, prepare it for all the harsh realities of the world and send it off to make its way at some point. This is essentially the stage we are at with Heartbreak Anonymous.


We've written, re-written, deconstructed it, put it back together (Daft Punk style) and rinsed and repeated many, MANY times. 


Getting the reviews we're getting is basically the screenwriters version of your kid coming home with an award from school (and not Citizenship, who the fuck didn't get that thing at some point, right?) It's somebody who knows the good from the bad after being in the industry, and telling you that you're on the right track, that what you're doing is as good as you hoped it to be.


It's an amazing feeling.


Eric & I have put HUNDREDS of hours into this project. So to have someone appreciate what you've done, what you're going for, feels really good. Validated in a way. There's still MILES to go to get where we are going, but I'm glad we've taken the turns we have and that we are heading in the right direction.


And as HUGE as that news is, it's not all. Even more firsts are happening. So many good things, so much momentum, so much to be hopeful about. 


I KNOW in the upcoming months, we'll be able to turn a lot of these hopes into concrete realities and I HOPE that you guys will be along with us, our co-pilots, in changing Hollywood one story at a time.


And while we're at it, let's hope that story that begins changing Hollywood is Heartbreak Anonymous.


Thanks for being here (real & invizzies) I'll check in with you soon.


Kyle

Make B-Log...

Howdy y'all! That is Hello you all for all you invisible people residing in California. I was also saying that wearing my jorts in case you were curious. And since you are all invisible, can I just start calling you my invizzies?

Anyway, just wanted swing by and drop the quick skinny on what Kyle and I are doing right now.  We just started a massive marketing campaign into the depths of Hollywood. 

One step closer to our goal of becoming as elite as Richard Dean Anderson. Who is that you ask? That would be the one and only MacGyver ladies and gentlemen. And like him we will be using a lot of ingenuity and aluminum foil to get what we want. 

Our campaign is to start a buzz for the company, as well as get our most polished product, Heartbreak Anonymous, more recognition. 

We have eeked out hundreds of hours to get to the point we are at today.  I'm proud to have been by Kyle's side every step of the way. We are getting closer and closer to another milestone. Hopefully that will happen soon, and when it does all of you invizzies will be the first to know.

A Blog Days Night

Hey guys & dolls!

Thought I'd quickly check in with youse. Hope all is well on all of your respective ends.

It's been a productive couple of weeks at The Make Believe Picture Company; touching up some scripts, researching for a new one we're gearing up on and looking at apartments half a world away for the big move.

Exciting times to say the least. There's a lot of momentum on our side and we're continuing to plug away. Just keep working. You can't go wrong with it and before you know it, you're exactly where you need to be.

I do want to talk about something just a bit off our beaten path for a minute though. As you guys know, we write, develop and produce stories that we are going to put up on the silver screen someday (someday soon-ish, cross those fingers imaginary readers.)

Eric & I are filmmakers at heart and to me, there's nothing more inspiring than seeing a good film.

Something you can lose yourself in and apply your own personal feelings and memories to while still enjoying the hell out of the tale being spun.

To me, the epitome of that, is Super 8.

I just got back from watching it, and while I'm FAR from being a summer blockbuster popcorn movie fan, I gotta say I absolutely loved it. You can see the heart and soul put into it. Very 80's Spielberg.

I won't go into the particulars but I just love being inspired by a movie. That's what it's all about, it's why you tell stories, it's why you write, it's why you try to get into this crazy ass business in the first place. It's what makes it all worth it.

I thought it was great. If it doesn't make you to pick up a camera and start shooting a flick (or find an alien) then I don't know what will. It just makes me want to push that much harder to share our stories with you guys.

Good stuff. Check it out if you get the chance. It's mint.

@MakeBelieveKyle

Blog to The Future

Hey guys & dolls (real & imaginary!)

It's been a little bit. Sorry about that, always lots to do (writing ...  re-writing exciting, no?) and cool stuff going on, which is a good problem to have.

It's been a GREAT month for us here at Make Believe, and hopefully for yourselves. Met lots of cool new people since Kevin Smith talked about us. If you're one of those people, thanks for stopping by! If you're one of our regulars (NORM!) thanks for stopping by again as well!

It's cool that so many people check in on us and take their time, which could be filled with really important things, to listen to us ramble on.

And ramble on I will!

It's getting close to Summer again (if you're in the south, it's been summer since late February) but things they are a changin'.

Eric has been out, making his way in the City of Angels for almost two years now and finally I'm getting ready to join him. After many false starts and close calls, it's time.

Well, close to time. The plans are to move my happy little family out before school starts (September).

It's extremely exciting but there's the fear of the unknown thrown in there to spice things up. Not to mention driving across the entire country.

I've flirted with the West Coast since 2005, when I fell in love and have yet to return. That changes in three short months.


The journey of 2520 miles all starts with one step. 


I've been researching the city, and surrounding areas for so long, it'll be amazing to be face to face with these things again (and most for the first time.) We're checking out apartments, we're making the preparations, it's amazing and mind-bending all at the same time.

Hopefully I can keep you guys updated on that and just like The Make Believe Picture Company's journey to CHANGE Hollywood, one story at a time, you can come along with me on the actual JOURNEY to physically get there ;-)

I'll talk to you lovely people soon, if you have any questions, comments, suggestions, recipes, wives tales, or anything feel free to hit us up!

Kyle 

Kevin Smith talks about The Make Believe Picture Company!

Jay and Silent Blog Strike Back

So ... we've had a pretty awesome couple weeks at Make Believe and I do hope yours have been just as good!

As you may've heard, The Make Believe Picture Company will have a promo this coming Monday, May 16th, with none other than Kevin Smith on his popular Smodcast Internet Radio!

(Cheap plug #1: Listen at www.Smodcast.com, Monday May 16th, time & details coming soon)

Not only is this a huge opportunity for us, to open up and show the world who we are, what we've got to offer and how we like to do things (how we roll, for the hip imaginary crowd). Professionally it's a MAJOR milestone but personally this is something that I will always remember.

Imaginary audience, you guys know me pretty well, but in case you are new on the scene, I'm a major cinephile. I live and breath movies. I study movies. I LOVE movies. I can't get enough.

And being that huge cinephile, when I finally found Clerks, my and the world's introduction to Kevin Smith, I was in love.

This guy talked like me, he thought like me, his characters were people you'd not only want to know, but  they were people you'd want to be friends with. It was a totally different style of movies (and movie-making) that I'd never seen before.

Then to know that he did it on his own? Without the help of the Hollywood establishment? I was sold.

I look up to the greats, and while Smith is certainly no Scorsese, he was the first truly accessible guy, a guy like me, that made it through hard work, determination and great stories.

He showed me that with enough moxie, you can really do what you want to do.

For the company I'm half a part of, to even be MENTIONED by somebody I hold in such high regards is an amazing feat. One that I'm extremely proud of and grateful for.

It's the first in, hopefully, a long line of personal and professional milestones for us. And I truly hope you guys are here with us (oh, sexy imagined readers and friends) and I hope that you guys enjoy the ride as much as we will.

So stay tuned for more exciting news! Hit up the site! Check us out on Facebook, follow Eric and myself on Twitter. Get your fill of Make Believe, help us change Hollywood, one film at a time.

Take care of yourselves and we'll see you back here soon!

Kyle

Make Believe on S.I.R.

Today, May 9th, writer/director Kevin Smith is embarking on a new avenue in his career, Radio Morning Show Host on Smodcast Internet Radio, S.I.R. for short. You can hear his popular podcasts along with his new LIVE radio morning shows: Smorning's and Jay & Silent Bob Get Jobs. 

 What does this have to do with The Make Believe Picture Company you ask?

 Plenty.

 Next Monday, May 16th, you can hear Silent Bob himself promote The Make Believe Picture Company!

 He'll be talking about who we are, what we are, and how we plan to change Hollywood, one film at a time, and you can only hear this on S.I.R. !

 Go to www.Smodcast.com to hear his live morning shows at 11am EST / 8am PST & 2pm EST / 11am PST 

 Air date subject to change so stay tuned!

www.MakeBelievePictures.com

www.facebook.com/TheMakeBelievePictureCompany

The Creature From The Blog Lagoon

Imaginary audience, hope you've had a fantastic week and a good Easter!

Also, I was really torn between the title I used this week and "Love lift us up where we b-log". Just sayin' :-)

Things around here have been awesome , and that's putting it mildly. We have some extremely BIG news to throw at you guys really shortly, as in the next week or so, so keep checking back, invisible friends, you're gonna be excited.

Extraordinary tidbit aside, the writing and developing have been going really good. It's been a really busy week but well worth the sweat.

Okay, no sweat, but well worth the hand cramps and blurred vision headaches.

The script we're currently working on is coming together so well. We've been able to take a story that's close to our hearts and character's that are like old friends and revisit them, giving them a bigger and better, funnier and more heartfelt experience. It's a great thing.

What an incredibly freeing feeling to be able to tear down something you care about, knowing you're gonna build it back up better than ever.

I think you'll agree, when you see it.

In other news: Eric and I finally have the website locked down (Cheap plug #1: www.MakeBelievePictures.com) and it's looking really good. We've got the first ten pages of three different scripts up, which is a pretty cool deal seeing as how potential business partners (friends and imaginary audience members too) can click the logo, download the .pdf and enjoy!

If you happen to do so, hit us up and let us know what you think of them, or anything, really. We're open for conversations with you guys about whatever floats your collective boats: how the website looks, scripts, Lindsay Lohan, etc. We're easy like Sunday morning.

Well, I just thought I'd stop by and check in on you sexy beasts, throw out a drive-by update and get back to the grind.

Cheap plug #2: Come dig around on our newly opened Facebook or come hang out with us on Twitter. We don't bite ... much.

I hope you guys have a great and productive week and we'll see you back here soon.

Kyle

Refueling My Creative Camel Hump

Hi again!

Good to see you all so jovial tonight. I am too. I just got back from Joshua Tree National Park. It's such an awesome place. I really recommend that you go.

If it wasn't etched in stone before, I just etched my "I's" and chiseled my "T's" on what really helps fuel me creatively. Nothingness!

We can all relate to the day-in-day-out grind that life becomes. Even in a creative industry like Kyle and I work in, life can sneak up on you and syphon out some creative gas.

All of life's stress can build up; car payment, rent, forgetting to move your car on street sweeping day, etc.

Joshua Tree is in the middle of the desert in SoCal. There is nothing there, including crowds of people. Just you, nature and untouched land for as long as the eye can see.  Being out there is really inspiring.

The quietness makes it really easy to self reflect.

I hiked up a mountain in the middle of the park. At the summit I was over a mile high and felt like Simba in the Lion King when he talks to Mufasa. I felt like the center of the universe. A little selfish, yes. But isn't that what everyone does occasionally?

I believe that much of the human story is fueled by man (or woman - equal opportunity here) yearning to belong.

While on that mountain I posed myself these questions: Do I belong? What do I belong to? hmmmmmm ... My answers...

Yes, I belong to something special. A creative duo that happens to work on creating movies. A cool gig. More importantly, we work on channeling the human story in a way that is relatable and laughable.

How do going to the desert edition of BFE and our creative duo relate to one another? Simplicity!

Ok, I'm calling it a night. The peyote is starting to wear off. Plus, this pink and purple camel in my bedroom won't quit nagging me about why the title of this blog doesn't relate to what's in the blog.

Until the next hallucinogenic cactus, more shameless self promotion.

Go to www.makebelievepictures.com and tell us what you think.

UnExpected UnExpecting Blog

So... that was quick.

Today is a hugely bittersweet day for me.

#1 Abraham Lincoln died today, and being my favorite President, that sucks. (However Robert Redford's The Conspirator looks pretty enticing, sorry Abe.)

#2  I ALMOST died today in 1998. Back in high school one of my best friends and I went in his new truck to go pick up the tag for said vehicle. Well, instead of going to one town (genius) we wandered into another opposite of it.

Upon figuring out this mistake, we turned around and headed towards the right town. However, seconds later and one over-correction from going into a median, we were FLYING upside down over the road in a small truck, smashing the ground opposite the median (nice air, eat it Dukes of Hazzard) and sliding upside down towards a six foot deep retention pond.

Swimming in your clothes isn't much fun. Swimming in your (now tattered) clothes upside down in a pitch black pond wondering if you're dying (I was, but I didn't ... obviously) REALLY sucks.

So yeah, we swam out of his truck, scared to death, beat to hell, but we both got a pretty fun story out of it right?

The fact that I was starting production of my independent debut on April 15th wasn't lost on me, and that brings us to:

#3  Began filming, the as of two years later today, unedited UnExpecting.

This is part of our painful back story, I wrote about before.

I won't get into a mindblowingly long list of details about the production and cast.

What I will say is this:

I learned a lot about myself during that little journey into independent guerrilla film-making (my personal film school, as I now call it.)

I learned that making a film was something that could be done. It wasn't just an abstract dream that wasn't for me. Late nights and early mornings, heart and a lot of work can make anything happen. Especially when you have ten or twelve other people that fully believe in you and what you are trying to do. (Thanks guys, you're an amazing group of people and I love you ... well 92% of ya.)

I learned that if people really believe in something or someone, they'll do anything for them: Work for free, bust ass doing eight different jobs or more, stay up until 3am shooting scenes when they have to wake up at 5am to go to a real job that pays, donate amazing songs for a writer they've never heard of for a movie they may never see, and a million other little and big things. Those guys and girls never ceased to amaze me and I'm thankful for everything.

The human spirit wants to have something to believe in and it wants to come together to help themselves and others realize their dreams. It showed me (ever the pessimist) that there's a lot more good in the world than I previously thought.

I learned that with enough determination, anything in this world is possible to anyone.

"I feel good about the good things, bad about the bad things, but I wouldn't change a thing." - Dave Grohl

And other than a few issues, that's a very true statement. I certainly don't regret it, I learned so much and had a great time doing it, and without that foray into the independent film world, I would've never met by best friend and partner, Eric.

Good things are often times disguised as bad, it seems.

I could easily go on (... and on ... and on) about UnExpecting, the trials and tribulations, the amazing cast and crew, the good times and bad, but I won't. Not today.

And speaking of today: Today, I'm writing another script, with at least two more fleshed out and waiting in the wings, each better than the last. We've got projects a plenty, things we can be very proud of, and things to BE very proud of at a later date.

I'm continuing that dream. Following through on that dream. And some day SOON, I'll have realized that dream with the help of a few more amazing people.

Then we'll start a new one, bigger and better than the last.

I'm glad you guys are riding with us on this. It'll be fun.

One more time.

@MakeBelieveKyle

Oh and #4  Titanic sank today too. I love me some April 15th and come to think of it James Cameron probably does too.

Keep on Bloggin' in the free world...

And we're back ...

Okay, it's Kyle, and it's just me that's back, I'd have to assume you've been here all along, but welcome to blog adventure number two!

Well, number 2 for me. Yes, I know it's the third blog, I know that, you know that, but it's my second.

Why do you have to be so technical, imaginary audience?

Geez.

Lots of good things to cover on this end, writing is on track and going well, which is always a good thing after a WrestleMania-esque battle. I'll just go ahead and say I won, since I'm writing and not staring at a blank screen but don't ask it or it'll just start the fight all over again.

In fact,  not only is the writing going well, but we've got even more exciting projects to tackle soon. When it rains, it pours, and I'm starting to see that can be said in a good way and the traditional craptastic way too.  So, yay for that.

I'm extremely happy to have so many good ideas in different stages of development. I can't wait until you guys can see that too.

The website is starting to come together quite nicely, I think. It's taking shape and beginning to be what we've envisioned so that's pretty amazing. It always makes me smile to see something that came from somebody's head (especially The Make Believe Picture Company's collective noggins) to a reality.

(Cheap Plug #1:) Go check it out at http://www.MakeBelievePictures.com!

Even if it's just a logo, logline or pages of dialog with characters that have taken up residence in your conscience for a bit, it's an amazing feeling to see something you brought into the world actually COMING into the world.

With that said, your input (oh, invisible readers) is greatly appreciated so if there is anything you can think of that you'd like to see or that we're missing, let us know, we'll see what can be done about it.

Hopefully in the next week or so we'll have it so you guys can check out even more of what we do here at Make Believe as well.

Okay, so it's time for me to go back to my Charlie Sheen induced media coma now ...

Wait.

I meant to say, it's time for me to get back to writing again, so I'll have to catch you guys later. Let's say next week?

Oh, and invisible audience? Bring some friends, we can always put out more chairs. We'll be good hosts.

Kyle
(Cheap Plug #2:) @MakeBelieveKyle

They call me Suit

Hi electronic reality.

Before I begin, can you thank Al Gore for making this possible? He shouldn't be hard to find, just check the green Prius with the bumper-sticker that says "My honor roll student has a better lock-box than yours."

Hi again! I'm back from 1996.

Like my partner Kyle, I would like to say HI to this empty room. 

I'm Eric from the Make Believe Picture Company. I'm the suit-wearing half of the Make Believe creative duo. And when I say creative, I mean we can eff up some construction paper with finger paint. 

Red paint aside, I love stories. That is why I love producing. 

For me producing isn't just sitting behind a mahogany desk rolling calls all day. It's about finding good ideas and moulding them into the best stories possible.

Producing isn't as glamorous as most people think. It takes thousands of hours to get one idea in front of millions of people. Right now, that is mine and Kyle's story. 

We would like to have you in the passenger seat on our journey ... unless you are under 5. If so, please feel free to make the baby seat in the back your home. 

No citations on this one-way road to success.

There's tons of backstory and history and you'll get it all at some point. I really just stopped in here to introduce the other 1/2 of The Make Believe Picture Company to you.

Hi. 

I'm Eric. Half of The Make Believe Picture Company. 

Bloggy McBlogerson

So, this is blogging.

Nice place you got here.

I'm just gonna go slip into something a little more ... comfortable.

But really ... Hi, readers we don't have but hopefully will at some point, it's very nice to meet you. You're a very clean bunch.

I'm Kyle from The Make Believe Picture Company. I write. Or in today's case, I fight with writing.

My partner, Eric, and myself are trying to break into the entertainment industry, his dream is to produce, creatively develop, and make quality films that people will love, laugh because of, and identify with.

I write.

His job is clearly the hardest one because what exactly does a producer do? Everything it seems.

Again, I write.

But today, oh boy, today was I not writing. I wasn't exactly doing the opposite of writing, which one would assume would be erasing, but I was doing anything but. It was a struggle.

I tell people that I write, and rightfully so, they think that you sit down and just start punching out a product (to be produced!) and on the best days that's exactly how it works. Today wasn't the best day. It wasn't the worst day either, where you stare at a blank screen cursing your lack of creative juices and wondering if you shouldn't have become a carpenter. It was definitely in between the two though.

Here at Make Believe, we've got a stable of projects in a variety of different stages, from finished and ready to sell/make to the makings of the new stories and fresh characters.

Today's battle was with a finished product that we've decided to break down and build it back bigger, better, faster & stronger.

Honestly, I think it'd be easier to write one of the many new stories we have in development, but I'd like to do right by this script, get it as good as it can be, and basically kick it out of my house like a child that just turned 18.

I'll always love it, I'll think of it fondly, but it needs to get out and start doing stuff on it's own (like selling itself, making movies and producing income.) Maybe an 18 year old prostitute you're kicking out of your house is a better analogy?

Regardless, I fought with it today, I struggled and eventually it got the best of me. Today wasn't my day. It happens. I'd like to tell you it happens to the best of us, I sometimes wonder if Charlie Kaufman has these problems, but I can't do that. I just know me.

And hopefully by the time this journey really starts getting underway you'll know me too. For good or for bad, better or worse, we're gonna be roommates on this journey to conquer the entertainment world. Just to let you know though, I don't do windows, laundry is gonna stack up, and it's always your day to cook.

I'll be writing.

There's tons of backstory and history and you'll get it all at some point. It's not always pretty but hopefully it'll be pretty entertaining. I really just stopped in here to introduce 1/2 of The Make Believe Picture Company to you (you, sexy non-existent readers) and say "hi."

Hi. 

I'm Kyle. Half of The Make Believe Picture Company. 

Now go home. It's my bedtime and I've got a script to battle with tomorrow.

;-)