Scene and Heard

Mary Loss of Soul

There is no accurate description of the whirling dervish I met recently on the set of her soon-to-be- released film, Mary Loss of Soul. It was the last day of shooting, and the energy level and passion of this female director was boundless – and infectious!

The woman I speak of is Jennifer B. White. She is a writer, director and producer – but she’ll tell you she is first and foremost a storyteller. “I was ten years old. I’d never heard the term “folktale” – a narrated story to entertain a group of listeners. But, that’s exactly how I began my creative dream – as a storyteller in the woods. Back in the day of knock-on-door neighborhoods in the suburbs of Massachusetts, I’d gather with a group of wide-eyed kids along with my side-kick little sister. I told stories – often about ghosts, witches and anything spooky – making them up as I went along. I started writing novels at the age of 12 on my mom’s old IBM Selectric. As the family keeper of all things old and nostalgic, I held on to those precious works of fiction like they were a buccaneer’s booty.”

After college, Jennifer signed with her first literary agent, and went on to become a public relations professional heading up PR in Boston hotels and top agencies where she was published in hundreds of publications throughout the U.S. She continued writing novels throughout her career, and, through a series of fortunate encounters, began writing for Hollywood.

For Jennifer, her partner Stewart Huey and their production company Oak Ivy LLC, this is their first feature film – and from what I saw on set that day, it’s a winner. The movie centers on the disappearance of Mary Solis and her return to her family’s lake house without any memory of the traumatic events that transpired. She is also without one very important thing – a part of her soul. Even though a shocking mystery surrounds her disappearance and her disembodied soul begins a grim haunting, the Solis family mostly fears watching Mary’s true spirit wither away. When it’s soon revealed that two little girls, the same age as Mary’s sister Sophia, went missing on the lake the same night that Mary disappeared, the stakes are raised. Is Mary suffering from an ancient condition known as Loss of Soul? Or is it indeed something more nefarious at work? After enlisting the help of a Shaman, the Solis family embarks on a journey to the spirit worlds, hunting for a supernatural cure.

The film promises to take us on a ride, with its heavy symbolism and abundant metaphors. More importantly, it shows White’s commitment to plain old-fashioned good storytelling. She brought her team together to make this film in 16 days with the help of RI’s own Project 989, Anthony Ambrosino and Nicholas Delmenico. Add to that this mother of three’s passion and love for her own family, which is reflected in the guidance of her actors. “I was directed by Kathryn Bigelow, she doesn’t talk much – you make a much better director,“ said accomplished actor Nick Mancuso, who plays Detective Mark O’Hagan in the film. Diana Porter, who portrays Devra Brawnson in Mary Loss of Soul and is one of New England’s most sought after actresses, had this to say about working with Jennifer. “Jennifer is an amazing creative force who provided just incredible characters to portray and truly cared for actors as people by making sure we were completely comfortable so we could give our best performances.”

From my vantage point, I believe that part of Jennifer’s success is being able to switch hats between writer and director, and literally getting in the trenches with actors to evoke the depths she is looking for. It also helps that she has a master’s degree in psychology, researches the supernatural and grew up in a clairvoyant household. Her production company, Oak Ivy, is based in both Boston and Los Angeles, and she seems to be able to bring the best of both coasts together in her work. With partner Stewart Huey, Jennifer has over 20 years’ experience in Hollywood where they have cultivated relationships and partnered with people who are as committed as they are to quality storytelling. This bodes well for the dynamic White, who has four other scripts written. If this is any indication of what’s to come, get ready for some movie magic. She’s not about to stop here.

As an actor myself, I know there are no small film parts. White knows this and acts upon it with the utmost conviction. She expects that everyone will bring their very best to the process, as she does each time she steps behind the camera or pens each of her original stories.

When Mary Loss of Soul opens, I have a feeling that we will walk out of the theater as witnesses to the very best that filmmaking has to offer – especially if Jennifer B. White is at the helm.

Follow Jennifer’s first feature film on Twitter: twitter.com/MaryLossofSoul

You can also read about her work on Facebook here: www.facebook.com/OakIvy?fref=ts and for more production information, please check out their IMDb page at www.imdb.com/title/tt2904798/?ref_=sr_1 . You may also go directly to their website at: www.oakivy.com .

And Zombies!

Zombies learning how to talk? They will if Audrey Noone has her way! She is the creator of the new web series, “Amy Kidd, Zombie Speech Pathologist.” The zombie apocalypse decimated Amy Kidd’s speech therapy practice. How can she rebuild her business you say? Zombies can’t talk – she can teach them! Follow Amy’s adventures as she sees her first zombie client and starts her zombie charm school. (Somehow, I see merchandising here – Zombie Charms)?

Audrey Noone combines her 17-year career as a speech pathologist with her lifelong participation in the arts. She writes, directs, produces and edits “Amy Kidd,” as well as acts in others’ projects. She also has written several short films that other filmmakers are producing. When she’s not playing with live zombies, she writes and dreams about them. Thus, her dreams are coming true!

Also, look for the work of Shawn Manchester as he turns some of our local actors into the walking dead (and apparently the well speaking walking dead) in this spoof on zombie stories. I saw that first hand when I worked on his film The Next Step.

You can follow Audrey’s new series here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLc7pDeFKqw . And learn more about her here: www.audreynoone.com . We look forward to more hilarity from Audrey soon!

San Diego Comic-Con 2013 – Day Four

Oh my God what a time I’ve had so far. Day Three was unbelievable! It’s been mind-blowing; I can’t believe all that I have seen, heard, and experienced!

I don’t even think these blog posts can truly convey the scale of it all. There was just too much to see and do—I’d need ten of me to cover it all. So definitely head over to the io9.com website after reading this to check out their super-comprhensive wrap-up of San Diego Comic-Con 2013.

And now there is just one more day to go… Day Four.

Sunday is the last day. It’s supposedly when the convention starts winding down but I certainly didn’t experience that.

It seemed like it was even more packed. I think it had something to do with lots and lots of families coming to Comic-Con on this day.

Anyway, got up in the morning and got ready to head out. Pete was all done and had to catch a flight back home. Joel and I bid him farewell and he left.

We then headed out to the convention center one last time.

First we stopped at this killer burrito place called Lolita’s. We got some breakfast burritos and headed on our way.

Hahaha, I don’t even know what to say here—excellent!

We were just south of Petco Park where there are a lot of parking lots that have some great outdoor exhibits going on. Some were promoting The Smurfs 2 movie coming out complete with a 40-foot giant smurf hanging around, a Hello Kitty store, a giant pavilion setup promoting the remake of Mad Max, and a special 3D preview of Alfonso Cuarón’s new movie Gravity (starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock)—which I’ll get to later.

Oh, and speaking of Sandra Bullock, I co-host a movie review show with Rosemary Pacheco for Motif Magazine’s web-channel MoTiV called Take 2. Our latest episode featured the movie The Heat starring Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy. What was great about that episode, aside from both Rosemary and I loving the movie, was that we had a couple of awesome guest stars who starred in and worked on the movie! Erica Derrickson and Tiffany Crosby really rocked on Take 2 telling hilarious stories from the set of The Heat!

You can check out Take 2 and the other killer shows on MoTiV here at MotifRI.com!

So Joel and I took a quick look around and then headed to the convention center.

Here I wanted to take another long look at all the stuff inside the main exhibit hall.

I don’t know if I really described it well enough so here it goes:

Companies like Rhode Island’s own Hasbro, Mattel, Sony, Lucasfilms, Warner Bros, Legendary Pictures, tons of game companies I can’t even recall, and tons more all have multi-million dollar pavilions set up in the exhibit hall to promote their movies, games, toys, and tie-ins of all kinds—with tons and tons of free give-aways (t-shirts, books, buttons, etc.).

And there’s more!

Tons of celebrities are there doing autograph signings; as well as, authors, graphic novelists, etc. There’s also whole swaths of graphic artists there with tables showing off their work. Small press tables are there selling so many graphic novels, comic books, and other books that are just too numerous to describe. And Yu-Gi-Oh! and Magic: The Gathering table games going on.

Also, there’s tons and tons of vendors selling everything from t-shirts, toys, games, sculpture and figurines, to hard-to-find movie/comics memorabilia of all kinds. It’s beyond count!

And there’s killer MMO (Massive Multi-player Online) gaming pavilions with live stations and games going on.

And there’s more, and more, and more!

Not to mention the thousands, upon thousands of people in and around there—most dressed up in the most elaborate costumes you can imagine. People were taking pics of these cosplayers left and right. I even got a shot of me being accosted by a giant, and I mean giant, demon! My new best friend! Aaahh!!!

We must have wandered around for hours checking things out and talking to people.

Galactus baby! I can’t even imagine how these artists make these phenomenal costumes—love it!

I even interviewed Daniel Benkwitt (Senior Manager, Brand PR & Communications) for Rhode Island’s own Hasbro. He was telling me about the great new Transformer Constructs line of toys that were being exclusively launched there at San Diego Comic-Con.

Awesome!

I can’t even tell you how much stuff there was to see and experience.

Of course there were also plenty of zombies about, even a The Walking Dead pavilion with a prison setup like in one of the recent episode. Only here, the zombies were eating willing spectators!

And the celebrities were everywhere!

I saw Evangeline Lilly from the upcoming The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug movie doing autograph signings. Michael Dorn who played Lieutenant Worf (the Klingon) from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Movie screen and TV star Edward James Olmos (most recently of the Emmy Award-winning Battlestar Galactica rebooted series), and many more!

But the best one that I saw was just outside the exhibit hall. It was none other than Lou Ferrigno from the old The Incredible Hulk TV series.

He had just come out of the bathroom and walked by me. I said, “Mister Ferrigno!”

He gave me a sideways glance and said, “How are you?” And then kept on walking.

I totally understand why he really didn’t want to shake my hand post-toilet! Hahaha!

Anyway, I thought that was great. And even after all these years, he is still is one “hulking” dude. Wow!

And so Joel and I were almost done with the whole epic adventure.

But I still wanted to interview one more cosplay conventioneer so we went outside and found a great girl who was dressed up in a mash up costume of The Green Lantern and Sailor Moon (an anime character). And she called herself Anna-Mae (a play on the word Anime, the Japanese style of animation).

Now that’s a great costume!

Come to find out during the interview, she actually had several different costumes going for the entire con! She mentions them in the interview. That’s dedication!

Finally, Joel and I head over to the Alfonso Cuarón Gravity 3D sneak peak. We were sitting inside a mini-stadium seating theater (one that comes on a truck!), with about 50 people all wearing 3D glasses.

So we saw the already posted trailer for the movie in 3D, cool, but we also saw a 5-minute exclusive clip from the movie! And it was amazing! I can’t even describe the level of effects and thrills it had. Everyone in that theater had their minds blown!

What a way to finish up San Diego Comic-Con! Looking at the San Diego Convention Center one last time from the suspension walkway to Petco Park.

So after a quick bite to eat at The Tilted Kilt, Joel and I headed to the hotel to get our stuff and get to the airport.

So here I am now flying at about 36 thousand feet recalling my once in a lifetime experience that I soooo want to experience every year.

This has been the convention to end all conventions!

Everything you’ve ever heard about San Diego Comic-Con pales in comparison to actually being there yourself.

I plan on coming back because I just cannot get enough of this pop-culture mega-extravaganza!

With my mind blown to bits and my body in sheer and utter exhaustion, it will take me weeks to decompress.

But my memories of the end-all-be-all of sci-fi/fantasy/comic book/movie/cosplay/pop-culture conventions will last forever!

San Diego Comic-Con I love You!

Oh yes, I will be be back in 2014!!!

Nicholas Iandolo is a freelance writer from Boston, MA. He is also the author of two books on screenwriting: Cut The Crap and WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY! and Cut The Crap and PITCH THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY!, as well as the epic Sci-Fi eBook series NLV (a.k.a. New Las Vegas). He also hosts Motif Magazine’s Take 2 with Rosemary Pacheco on MoTiV, and is the producer/writer/director/host of the upcoming Nick’s Sci-Fi Corner for DedhamTV. Follow him on Twitter @cutcrapwrite, email: [email protected].

San Diego Comic-Con 2013 – Day Three

So here it is, the big day at Comic-Con! Day Three! That being the Saturday of the convention. Day Two was phenomenal but this is the peak day, an all-out tour de force of people and events. The scale of it is like nothing you could ever imagine—if you can believe that the last two days could get any bigger!

And big it is!

In the morning, I head down to the lobby to do some work on the hotel’s complimentary computer. While working, Pete and Joel soon join me. We start talking about the Godzilla exhibit that we’re all dying to get into (the buzz about it is insane!) but only Pete has a ticket. Joel and I are bummed. Then in an act of divine providence (no pun intended Providence Rhode Island, hahaha), a guy named Victor who is sitting at a computer across from mine looks up and says, “Hey, my company’s the one that built and runs the exhibit.”

And Pete replies, “That’s awesome! Can you get my boys here in?”

And Victor says, “Yes!”

OMG! We’re getting into The Godzilla Encounter first-class style!

What that meant was that we were able to sit across the street on the patio of Bubs Restaurant enjoying a morning beer while they were getting ready to open up the exhibit, and then Victor comes over and says it’s time to line up—first in line that is!

Okay, so here’s what this once in a lifetime experience is all about: The Godzilla Encounter is an entire warehouse that has been converted into a Las Vegas-style Star Trek Encounter live action experience complete with actual sets from the new Gareth Edwards movie; tons of Godzilla memorabilia, and lots staff running around pretending that Godzilla is on the rampage! A little small for Godzilla I admit but the real deal is on his way! And he’s P-O’d!

Rampage? Yep! Godzilla is headed to San Diego!

After touring the sets made up to look like Tokyo (including a high-tech sushi bar), with street signs that read: “Gojira Street” (the Japanese name for Godzilla), the alarms sound, the lights flicker, and the staff rushes everyone into the command center where banks of video monitors and NASA-style mission control equipment all say that Godzilla’s arrival to San Diego is imminent!

You know Godzilla is coming when you see this sign!

And then he attacks!

The lights flicker, the entire place shakes, and the staff moves us into a huge elevator to get us to safety!

And as the elevator ostensibly heads up to the roof of the building, it shudders and shakes and goes dark!

Godzilla has arrived!

So we stop at the nearest floor and get out in a dimly-lit office. Out through the rain-streaked windows we can see something moving amongst the buildings. And we can hear that massive “thump!” sound of the monster’s footfalls.

Then we see him! Oh my God he’s huge! Larger than any creature I’ve ever seen!

He stomps among the buildings. The staff tells us not to move or turn on any lights.

Godzilla walks off.

Then all of a sudden one of the staff’s lights goes on by “accident”…

Godzilla sees it!

His gargantuan head rises before us, and then comes the most famous roar in history, the one roar that everyone has heard since the first 1954 Godzilla movie!

He bellows his mighty roar! We’re doomed! The entire building shakes!

And then by some miracle Godzilla spares us and let’s us go!

Whew!

IT WAS AWESOME!

Then the encounter is over and the staff lets us out of the building where we can see a mighty gash hewn into it’s side by a creature beyond comprehension: The King of all Monsters!

How can you top that?

Well, there was something completely different and equally as awesome coming up later that night.

But now it was time to get lost in the crowds outside by the convention center for a few hours.

Soooo many people at San Diego Comic- Con! Upwards of 150K!

OMG was there sooooo much going on out there—especially at the gates of the Gaslamp District. And even more people enjoying the end-all- be-all sci-fi/fantasy/comic book/cosplay/pop culture convention in the world!

There were a ton of street performers and promoters doing so many things that I feel like I caught only a fraction of it amongst a sea of people just as vast as the one inside the convention center.

Can you really beat this level of cosplay? Poison Ivy and Shazam Woman. Awesome!

For example, promoting the upcoming X-Men movie, X-Men: Days of Future Past, were a bunch of people protesting for mutant rights. Yeah, in the X-Men universe there’s a big rift between so-called normal humans and the mutants who exhibit bizarre looks and superpowers. Trask Industries is an evil organization dedicated to wiping out the mutant population from the world. Hence the protests!

It was awesome to watch this realistic street performance of acting and marketing.

In fact, Joel (being a web-marketer himself) remarked that the level of sophisticated marketing techniques exhibited here at Comic-Con should be a required study for any company or marketing school!

Also of course there were tons of zombies about. People loved having their pictures taken with Hollywood-level-made-up zombies totally in character. Darth Vader busts a move on the streets of San Diego Comic-Con 2013!

There was Darth Vader dancing up a storm on the street to the dance club music being blasted from the Gamespot Basestation Bar (the hottest scene of all the bars and clubs there in my opinion).

And there was also a copious amount of Christian fundamentalists with bullhorns and signs screaming at the top of their lungs to the crowds that we’re all going to hell in a hand basket if we don’t repent and embrace Jesus.

Some of them were especially upset over a gay comic-book character that came out a few years ago (seriously, no pun intended there): The Green Lantern, Alan Scott.

Yep! There were all kinds on the streets.

From giant gargoyles with 15-foot wingspans, a horde of Hello Kitty girls, people passing out tons of freebies and postcards promoting everything hip going on, independent filmmakers looking for donations to help fund their movie projects, to every conceivable comic book character mash up you can imagine, and more, it was crazy, crazy, crazy!

I was in a complete blur for what seemed like days!

So I went back into the Gamespot to chill and recharge (with a couple of beers). Soon my buddies Joel, Dan, Ben, and Pete all joined me. Joel spent over an hour waiting in line to get into a Game of Thrones exhibit/event where he got to sit on the throne of swords and even had a custom t-shirt made that said House “X” (his last name that is).

Pete too was wrapped up for a few hours getting into a the Person of Interest and Grimm panels.

And Dan was just having a blast.

Since Dan is a real Hollywood filmmaker, I decided to interview him for the magazine. He’s done some amazing work so far, and he’s got some great stuff coming up!

It won’t be long before people will be waiting for hours to get into his panel at San Diego Comic-Con! Speaking of hours, the people started lining up the night before for the Warner Brothers panel in Hall H happening this day!

There was no way I was going to go through that again, despite the fact that they showed some exclusive footage from the upcoming 2014 Godzilla movie, and a crazy announcement about what the next Man of Steel movie is going to be about…

Can we say, Superman vs. Batman?

Oh yes! The mashed up bat symbol/S-shield logo was blasted on the jumbotron in the hall!

The fans went ape-s**t when they saw this! What else needs to be said?

From what I read on io9.com the crowd went wild over it!

But for me and my friends we were just hanging out on the Gamespot patio watching the crowds, talking to people, and having a grand ole time!

I even interviewed an upcoming graphic artist named David Turner who came to this year’s Comic-Con to find a pathway to his dreams. He was there with his girlfriend, Stephanie Guidera, who was dressed in an eye-catching Where’s Waldo costume. She certainly got my attention and did some great PR for her guy!

I found Waldo! I found Waldo! Then it was time for Dan and Ben to head back up to LA. I bid my dear friends a fond goodbye and then they left.

And we had a place to be too!

Now we were on our way to attend the famous Comic-Con Masquerade.

As I mentioned previously, this is a costume contest and pageant like none other, and thousands of people were in attendance. In fact, people started lining up at noon to get into the second largest hall at the convention center, Ballroom 20.

We knew we’d never get in so we decided to opt for the overflow room at the nearby Sails Pavilion. And I’m sure glad we did!

This place was the perfect place to watch the Masquerade on a giant jumbotron and hang with another thousand or more people all partying up a storm.

There were drinks, food, and tons of energy in the house!

And when the Masquerade was happening, everyone in the room got into it.

We cheered our butts off for the best costumes and spectacles. There was one that was a Star Wars musical to the tune of “America” from the musical West Side Story. There was a mash up of Marvel comic book characters versus He-Man & Skeletor, oh it was funny. There were super elaborate fairy costumes, superheroes, incredible demonic creatures, mind-blowing battle-tech suits, Master Shredder from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and stuff I can’t even describe!

Master Shredder on the jumbotron rocking it at the famous San Diego Comic-Con Masquerade! Look out turtles!!!

And we in the overflow room loved it!

There’s this great Comic-Con Masquerade tradition where the hosts say something like, “It’s now time for costume number…”

And the audience replies with whatever number they’re on and then, “Ah, ha, ha…” Like The Count from Sesame Street. There’s also something else the audience yells but that constantly changes as there are signs that are held up with the newest taunts to the hosts. I’m dying to know what they are so I’m Googling them as soon I get home to Boston!

Tons of fun watching and hearing all of this!

Then once the judges in Ballroom 20 retired to make their decisions, the Masquerade was paused and the dance party began!

Yep! Right there in the Sails Pavilion it was the happening-est of all after-hour parties.

OMG! The dance music was blasting, the lights were blazing, and the dancing was out of control!

It was hotter than hot!

I was caught up in a mass of revelers grooving and shaking up a storm baby!

Yeah!

I was dancing with Bane, a female Captain America, Unicorn (a guy with a giant inflatable unicorn), Poison Ivy, and Wolfman to name but a few!

This is the largest costume rave party in the world!

And everyone was having such a great time the massive floor was literally shaking like Godzilla was joining in the festivities!

I don’t know how long we were there for but it seemed like the party went on forever.

And rightly so!

These awesome people probably spend so much time in their daily lives and jobs trying to be conservative and/or mainstream that when they ultimately get to Comic-Con they can finally, finally cut loose and be themselves and everyone loves it!

It was a beautiful sight and I’m so thankful to have been a part of that!

And so after the winners of the Masquerade were announced on the jumbotron (though I don’t think anyone could hear it), the dance party went on and on. Pete bugged out a while ago, totally exhausted.

Joel and I took off about an hour later.

I think we got back to the hotel by about 2AM but I can’t be sure.

Regardless, we were spent!

I hadn’t had that much fun in a long, long time.

One more day to go! Day Four, “Ah, ha, ha…”

San Diego Comic-Con 2013 – Day Two

What a Day One yesterday!!!

Now it’s time for Day Two of San Diego Comic-Con baby!

After a slow start due to some technical difficulties getting my pics of the adventure uploaded due to the fact that the Internet here in San Diego seems to be overloaded by the multitudes of people all trying to use it, even Tweeting has been an issue, I finally get on the road back to the convention center.

Hey man! Watch the claws!

On my way, I pass by none other than Wolverine! Well, maybe not Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine but this guy is pretty damn close.

And so, I approach the convention center and already it’s a mass of people!

Friday and Saturday are the peak days for San Diego Comic-Con–Saturday being the most full. And I mean full to capacity and beyond! Inside it is a sea of people!

You can hardly walk as you’re pressed against comic book characters and soldiers from Halo (cosplayers really), etc.

Speaking of cosplay (that’s costume playing), this year it is truly amazing. The level of detail these conventioneers have put into their costumes is astounding. This is no mere hobby for some of these people. This is both a labor of love and maybe even hopes for a career doing this stuff.

These women and their costumes are simply super!

Great costume! But don’t ask me what she’s supposed to be…

Tomorrow night (Saturday) is the famous Comic-Con Masquerade. It’s a costume contest unlike any other where thousands of people get to see the most elaborate sci-fi/fantasy/anime/gaming/etc. costumes ever devised! We’re talking Hollywood movie-level quality costumes. And just like America’s Got Talent, these cosplayers also put on quite a show. It’s not just a pageant but an entertainment spectacle that people talk about for years to come!

Whole careers have been launched for winners of this amazing event! So I’m planning on camping out for a bit on Saturday to get into The Masquerade!

After walking around the gargantuan exhibit hall, I meet up with my buddy Joel and we head over to the outside Ender’s Game exhibit. It’s a collection of actual sets, props, and costumes from the upcoming movie. It’s an awesome pavilion that looks and feels like you’re actually walking through the story of the movie. What a great compliment to the Ender’s Game panel yesterday that featured Harrison Ford.

A real walk-through of ‘Ender’s Game’ the movie!

Real costumes, props, and sets from the movie ‘Ender’s Game’!

Then I went off on my own to a do a meet the author event. Part of the reason for my going to Comic- Con is also to promote my epic sci-fi eBook series of which I’m the author titled NLV (a.k.a. New Las Vegas). Today would be a great NLV day as I will get to in a moment. Book cover for ‘NLV — Double Down’ by sci-fi author Nicholas Iandolo.

After the meet the author I found myself wandering down 4th Ave in the Gaslamp District. There seems to be a plethora of zombie infestations happening this year at San Diego Comic-Con!

Zombies are everywhere!!!

Run for your life! The Zombie Apocalypse has begun!

And so I got besieged by a zombie horde as I walked by the Machinima special event (free drinks, food, etc.). As I walked into the space-age discotheque-like bar, one of the women at a makeup table asked me if I’d like to become a zombie.

So I said, “Hell yes, my publisher would love that!”

After about a half hour of makeup work, I was a zombie! Nick Iandolo – Zombie Journalist for Motif Magazine!

So, I proceeded to stagger back to the convention center–hahahha!

Anyway, people were actually complimenting me on my makeup. I looked great! In an undead sort of way.

Comic-Con is the only place where you can look like a zombie and people love it!

So, after bit trying to get into a few panels that weren’t happening due to the mass amount of people (I totally missed out on the Marvel: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. panel that I really wanted to get into), I took another stroll through the exhibit hall.

Time just seemed to pass like crazy in there. Got some good pics of cosplay attendees, and some footage of how endless the throngs of people are.

Meantime, my other buddy Pete was working The Walking Dead Run For Your Life experience. He had volunteered to work this amazing event for the latter part of the day. What is it? Well, the entire Petco Park (where the San Diego Padres play), is converted into a zombie run where guests get caught by a zombie horde and run for their lives through the stadium. It’s crazy, scary, and challenging! There’s obstacle courses and you have to NOT get tagged by a zombie!

Pete was one of the military guys trying to get people to the so-called “safe zone”–of which there was none!

Afterwards, he got to run for his life too!

Anyway, during that time Joel and I met up again and then we met up with another buddy of mine from LA. His name is Daniel Thron, a director/writer whose short zombie-procedural film Spoiler was an official selection of the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con International Film Festival. He was also the winner of the 2012 NY/LA International Film Festival for Best Director and Best Narrative Short with Spoiler.

And then he got his film reviewed on io9.com, the ultimate sci-fi/fantasy/cool science and related stuff website. When that happened, it went viral and he started getting calls from the big agencies and production companies in Hollywood! That’s how it’s done sometimes.

So, io9.com was running a panel and I asked Dan if he’d introduce me to somebody on it to help me promote NLV. The panel was called Science Fiction That Will Change Your Life. It was an engaging and great discussion from most of the main people at io9.com about life-changing sci-fi books and films.

io9.com is your goto website for all things Sci-Fi!

After the panel, Dan and I went up to the panelists. He spoke with Lauren Davis (one of the io9.com editors who wrote about Dan’s other notable work, a spec pitch trailer of Philip K Dick’s A Scanner Darkly), introduced himself (who she was delighted to meet in-person), and then introduced me and my book to her. She seemed genuinely happy to meet me. And then I gave her my 10-second pitch about NLV and my card, which she very nicely accepted. And I was psyched!

Sometimes that’s all you can do but it could be just enough to get the ball rolling and make a breakthrough in one’s career—we’ll see!

Anyway, after that it was now mid-evening time and we were all exhausted. So finally it was dinner, some drinks, and then time to crash.

All to do it again on Day Three the Saturday–the biggest day of them all!

San Diego Comic-Con 2013 – Day One

The 2013 San Diego Comic-Con welcomes its totally psyched conventioneers! 3AM, that’s right 3AM wake up. Which means no sleep really. But so what, I’m going to San Diego Comic-Con!!!

After months of planning, weeks of organizing, days of packing, and hours of last minute details to wrap-up, the day has finally arrived!

My Comic-Con buddy, Joel, crashed at my place so we could get to Logan airport together. I give my wife a kiss goodbye, and then Joel and I hop into the livery transport at 4AM.

We’re on our way!

Yeah, we’re tired but we’re psyched too.

After a quick check-in and going through security, we get on the plane.

Some 8 hours later (after a connection in DC), we land in San Diego—and the weather is absolutely beautiful. Ironically, here in southern California the temp is a comfortable 70 degrees, where in Boston it’s a sweltering 90+!

So we hook up with the other member of our party, Pete, and head to the hotel.

We drop our stuff and hoof it to the convention center.

And here’s where the fun begins…

Already, we see people dressed up in costume coming and going all around: Supergirl, anime characters, Green Lantern, Xena, etc.

As we get closer to the convention center, there’s a plethora of outdoor activities going on in the nearby parks.

I walk by a giant inflatable float of Axe Cop—like something out of a dark version of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade!

You won’t see this in NYC on Turkey Day!

There’s a whole exhibit for a new Viking television show with women dressed up as Valkyrie warriors, and a mockup of the new Bates Motel! A brand new show produced by A&E.

Then we finally get to the convention center and the sea of people in costumes and such are too numerous to describe. So you’ll have to check out the pics! The most intense cosplayers come to San Diego Comic-Con!

If you look closely, you’ll see me in the carbonite—not!

We get in and get our badges. And then it’s time to get the lay of the land.

And what a land it is!

The giant, and I mean giant, exhibit hall is like 2 or 3 football stadiums long and wide! And it’s filled with everything from pop culture, movies, comics, you name it!

Godzilla’s a big thing this year so there’s lots of Godzilla stuff going around. Including buildings in and around the convention center that are painted to look like he just attacked them!

The Godzilla pavilion (actually the Legendary Pictures pavilion that is producing the new Gareth Edwards Godzilla movie for 2014) is packed with people looking to get tickets to The Godzilla Encounter—which I hear is unbelievable! There’s even a glimpse of Godzilla’s head that is true life- size—I have to check this out before I leave Comic-Con!

Anyway, we start talking to a bunch of people and we come across some guys from Gamespot. They’re interviewing people; we decide to do a mutual interview of each other.

After that we walk around a bit—there’s just too much to see!

However, there’s one thing that we’re determined to catch: the Ender’s Game panel with none other than Harrison Ford! This is his second appearance at Comic-Con.

So we’re thinking that since the panel is in the infamous Hall H, we’re never going to get in. No one gets into Hall H. Last year I posted a story for Motif called A Tale of Two Cons. In it, I talk about how I waited around for 4 ½ hours at the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con to get into Hall H for The Hobbit panel (with Peter Jackson and the entire cast!) to NOT get in!

This year, a miracle happened!

We walked right in!

OMG!

We got in no problem, had to sit through two panels: one on the new YA movie Divergent, and the other with three directors (Alfonso Cuarón, Children of Men; Marc Webb, The Amazing Spiderman; and Edgar Wright, Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy). All good stuff. And then we were rewarded with the Ender’s Game panel!

The director Gavin Hood, the producer Roberto Orci, Asa Butterfield (who plays Ender Wiggin), and of course Harrison Ford (who plays Colonel Graff) all showed up.

I was only 150 feet from Han Solo/Indiana Jones! OMG!

It was a great panel and we got to see EXCLUSIVE footage from the upcoming movie that no one’s ever seen before!

That’s that stuff I love about Comic-Con!

And finally there were audience questions.

The most memorable being directed to Harrison Ford: “If Han Solo and Indiana Jones met, what would they say to each other?” To which a bewildered Harrison Ford replied, “Ah… hi… how are you?”

Priceless!

After that, we headed out of the convention center to see what was around.

I checked out these giant inflatable Dragon Ball Z characters, a real actual Scooby Doo Mystery Machine van, a REAL pirate ship in the marina promoting Assassin’s Creed, and a life-size Lego model of Bilbo Baggins’ Hobbit hole with Bilbo, Gandalf, and all the dwarves from The Hobbit movies!

Scooby-Doo’s in there! Really! He is!

I’m pretty sure this shows up in the next ‘Hobbit’ movie!

And there’s still more…

Later that day we got some free drinks and food at the Gamespot Basestation Bar, and the MTV2 Party In The Park (right outside Petco Park) sites! Free food, free drinks, great music! The party never ends at San Diego Comic-Con!

And after all that, and being up for almost 24 hours, it was time to crash at the hotel…

On to Day Two baby!

2013 48 Hour Film Project Screenings

Last weekend, a few brave souls took to the streets, cameras in hand, to participate in Providence’s 48 Hour Film Project. Each participating team randomly selects a genre to follow and everyone involved must include the same character, prop, and line of dialogue in their film. This year, they had to include a plumber, a book, and the sentence, “I wish I knew.”

The films are now complete and are being shown on the big screen at Showcase Cinemas in Lincoln on three screening nights, July 16, 17 and 18 at 7 pm and 9:30 pm. The films will be judged by both a panel of judges and the audience, with a best-of screening to be held at the Columbus Theatre in August. These screenings are fun events that are not to be missed. And tell your friends! Don’t leave your plumber home with a book saying, “I wish I knew.”

Semi-live from San Diego Comic-Con!

Hey Motif-ers!

Tune in from July 18th through the 21st to catch Motif’s own Nick Iandolo coming to you live from San Diego Comic-Con!

Nick will be on the scene in the heart of the grandest of comic book/sci-fi/fantasy/film/cosplay conventions of all filming, interviewing, blogging, and live-Tweeting!

If you can’t be at Comic-Con yourself, then following Nick’s amazing coverage for Motif is the next best thing!

Stay tuned you don’t want to miss a beat of this epic adventure!

Follow him this week on twitter @MotifMagRI

Take Two: The Heat

Motif Contributors Nick Iandolo and Rosemary Pacheco sit down with actresses Erica Derrickson and Tiffany Crosby of The Heat, in theaters now

Scene and Heard

Mary Loss of Soul There is no accurate description of the whirling dervish I met recently on the set of her soon-to-be-released film, Mary Loss of Soul. It was the last day of shooting, and the energy level and passion of this female director was boundless – and infectious!

The woman I speak of is Jennifer B. White. She is a writer, director and producer – but she’ll tell you she is first and foremost a storyteller. “I was 10 years old. I’d never heard the term “folktale” – a narrated story to entertain a group of listeners. But, that’s exactly how I began my creative dream – as a storyteller in the woods. Back in the day of knock-on-door neighborhoods in the suburbs of Massachusetts, I’d gather with a group of wide-eyed kids along with my side-kick little sister. I told stories – often about ghosts, witches and anything spooky – making them up as I went along. I started writing novels at the age of 12 on my mom’s old IBM Selectric. As the family keeper of all things old and nostalgic, I held on to those precious works of fiction like they were a buccaneer’s booty.”

After college, Jennifer signed with her first literary agent, and went on to become a public relations professional heading up PR in Boston hotels and top agencies where she was published in hundreds of publications throughout the U.S. She continued writing novels throughout her career, and, through a series of fortunate encounters, began writing for Hollywood.

For Jennifer, her partner Stewart Huey and their production company Oak Ivy LLC, this is their first feature film – and from what I saw on set that day, it’s a winner. The movie centers on the disappearance of Mary Solis and her return to her family’s lake house without any memory of the traumatic events that transpired. She is also without one very important thing – a part of her soul. Even though a shocking mystery surrounds her disappearance and her disembodied soul begins a grim haunting, the Solis family mostly fears watching Mary’s true spirit wither away. When it’s soon revealed that two little girls, the same age as Mary’s sister Sophia, went missing on the lake the same night that Mary disappeared, the stakes are raised. Is Mary suffering from an ancient condition known as Loss of Soul? Or is it indeed something more nefarious at work? After enlisting the help of a Shaman, the Solis family embarks on a journey to the spirit worlds, hunting for a supernatural cure.

The film promises to take us on a ride, with its heavy symbolism and abundant metaphors. More importantly, it shows White’s commitment to plain old-fashioned good storytelling. She brought her team together to make this film in 16 days with the help of RI’s own Project 989, Anthony Ambrosino (1st AD) and Nicholas Delmenico (2nd AD). Add to that this mother of three’s passion and love for her own family, which is reflected in the guidance of her actors. “I was directed by Kathryn Bigelow, she doesn’t talk much – you make a much better director,“ said accomplished actor Nick Mancuso, who plays Detective Mark O’Hagan in the film. Diana Porter, who portrays Devra Brawnson in Mary Loss of Soul and is one of New England’s most sought after actresses, had this to say about working with Jennifer. “Jennifer is an amazing creative force who provided just incredible characters to portray and truly cared for actors as people by making sure we were completely comfortable so we could give our best performances.”

From my vantage point, I believe that part of Jennifer’s success is being able to switch hats between writer and director, and literally getting in the trenches with actors to evoke the depths she is looking for. It also helps that she has a master’s degree in psychology, researches the supernatural and grew up in a clairvoyant household. Her production company, Oak Ivy, is based in both Boston and Los Angeles, and she seems to be able to bring the best of both coasts together in her work. With partner Stewart Huey, Jennifer has over 20 years’ experience in Hollywood where they have cultivated relationships and partnered with people who are as committed as they are to quality storytelling. This bodes well for the dynamic White, who has four other scripts written. If this is any indication of what’s to come, get ready for some movie magic. She’s not about to stop here.

As an actor myself, I know there are no small film parts. White knows this and acts upon it with the utmost conviction. She expects that everyone will bring their very best to the process, as she does each time she steps behind the camera or pens each of her original stories.

When Mary Loss of Soul opens, I have a feeling that we will walk out of the theater as witnesses to the very best that filmmaking has to offer – especially if Jennifer B. White is at the helm.

Follow Jennifer’s first feature film on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MaryLossofSoul

You can also read about her work on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/OakIvy?fref=ts and for more production information, please check out their IMDb page at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2904798/?ref_=sr_1 . You may also go directly to their website at: www.oakivy.com.

Double Feature! A Bouyea/Manchester double feature is set to hit Showcase Cinemas on July 18. This is a one night event that will be like no other. Brian Bouyea and Shawn Manchester, two indie filmmakers from North Kingstown, RI, have each written and directed a short film (in one, The Next Step, I had the pleasure of playing a government agent), which they will present at the screening. Along with the screening, Brian and Shawn will host an after party. There will be a short Q&A session with the cast and crew of each film, free buffet, cash bar, raffles and more! Brian and Shawn want to make you feel like you’re a celebrity – take a photo on the red carpet against a specially designed Bouyea/Manchester Double Feature backdrop. Get your interview on and have your photo taken all night. What’s better than that?

Get your tickets at http://shop.bmdoublefeature.com

Brian Bouyea’s Famous:

Julia Turner (Meg Perry) is about to be offered the opportunity of a lifetime. Wilbur Lusk (Rick Owens), a man she has never met, has claimed he can grant her instant fame. All she has to do is … say yes.

Famous explores the desire within humanity to become more than who we really are and how there are those who would throw away all that they know about themselves just to have their name up in lights. Famous stars Meg Perry, Rick Owens, Nick Jorgensen, Jose Gonsalves and Eric Walsh.

Shawn Manchester’s The Next Step:

Hank (Shawn W. Manchester) and his partner Jack (Michael Dubuc) are two experienced mercenaries hired out by the Virus Protection Agency during a virus outbreak. Agent Grant (Patrick Keeffe) has become concerned about how humanity is reacting to this virus, which is turning them into bloodthirsty monsters. It is up to Hank and Jack to exterminate them. Hank and Jack soon discover the horrifying secret behind the outbreak and decide to take matters into their own hands.

The Next Step stars Shawn W. Manchester, Michael Dubuc, Patrick Keeffe, Brian Bouyea and George Manchester Jr.

And Zombies! Zombies learning how to talk? They will if Audrey Noone has her way! She is the creator of the new web series, “Amy Kidd, Zombie Speech Pathologist.” The zombie apocalypse decimated Amy Kidd’s speech therapy practice. How can she rebuild her business you say? Zombies can’t talk – she can teach them! Follow Amy’s adventures as she sees her first zombie client and starts her zombie charm school. (Somehow, I see merchandising here – Zombie Charms)?

Audrey Noone combines her 17-year career as a speech pathologist with her lifelong participation in the arts. She writes, directs, produces and edits “Amy Kidd,” as well as acts in others’ projects. She also has written several short films that other filmmakers are producing. When she’s not playing with live zombies, she writes and dreams about them. Thus, her dreams are coming true!

Also, look for the work of Shawn Manchester as he turns some of our local actors into the walking dead (and apparently the well speaking walking dead) in this spoof on zombie stories. I saw that first hand when I worked on his film The Next Step.

You can follow Audrey’s new series here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLc7pDeFKqw . And learn more about her here: www.audreynoone.com. We look forward to more hilarity from Audrey soon!

VOTE in the 2013 Motif Theater and Film Awards

Click here to vote

The professionals have spoken and the 2013 Motif Theater and Film award nominees are in! So here’s how it works…

We contact the industry greats and present them with a list of categories. They send us nominees from each category within their particular expertise. We throw the results into a survey and deliver it to you, the, “We the people.” Get your vote on

So chose wisely, its your civic duty. Thank You!