As President of an entertainment company, it is almost in my job description to watch television and go to movies - how can it get any better than that? Considering my company, Platinum Studios, is a comics-based entertainment company, it DOES get better as I pay particular attention to television shows and movies based on comic books and graphic novels. This coming weekend we will see the kickoff of the early summer movie campaign with the highly anticipated Spider-Man 3, the 4th comic-based film to premiere in 2007 following Ghost Rider, 300, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (all of which hit #1 in box office receipts at least one weekend in their respective runs!) And Spider-Man 3 should be the highest-grossing film of them all, especially considering the first two Spider-Man movies grossed just under $1 Billion in worldwide box office. This weekend, we get to see our spidey hero wrestle with his own dark side as well as the bad guys. The Plot Outline: A strange black entity from another world bonds with Peter Parker and causes inner turmoil as he contends with new villains, temptations, and revenge. While I'm too old to go stand in line at midnight and catch the 1st possible showing, I am going on opening weekend and I am really excited.
On a cool side note, my oldest daughter (now a 5th-grader - yikes!!) was in a private school for kindergarten back in 2002. Like most private schools, this particular school required a lot of parental involvement in the classroom, which is nearly impossible on a regular basis when both parents work. My daughter had one parent who she really loved hanging out with because he always came on parent reading day and he was her reading partner. All year, I heard about Sam reading this book or Sam sharing that story, but because I came to school on different days, I never met Sam. Near the end of the year, there was a classroom event where our kids showed off stories that they had written with the help of their reading partner and I got to finally meet the infamous SAM. Needless to say, I was speechless as I stood there shaking hands with my daughter's reading partner, Sam Raimi, the director of all three Spider-Man movies, among other amazing credentials. But the surprises didn't stop there - the day was May 3, 2002, the very day that the original Spider-Man was premiering -not just some ordinary day. I asked him why, of all days, he felt it was necessary to come to school on this particular day when there was so much going on surrounding the premiere of his movie, and he told me something I will never forget. He said "Work is just work. My son's education is important to me and I made a commitment to be involved as much as possible and whenever I can. I'm never too busy to be here for him."
If Sam Raimi can come to kindergarten on the opening day of the largest movie of his career (up to that point) to be with his son, I can NEVER complain about being too busy to come to a talent show, open house or any other event my kids have going on. "Work is just work. I'm never too busy to be there for them."
-Brian
Monday, April 30, 2007
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Sanjaya's 15-minutes are just about over
Well, it had to happen sooner or later - Sanjaya's days on American Idol are over (for now!) He definitely won't get a recording contract or, if he does, it will probably go the way of William Hung. But you gotta hand it to this kid: he turned his Idol experience, with a mediocre singing voice, into a fan sensation with a cult-like following. I wouldn't be surprised to see him turn this experience into an acting or modeling career - he is a good-looking kid and he has amazing chutzpah. He continued to fly in the face of conformity and against all odds.
I hate to be trite but the simple lesson here is to believe in yourself. It is amazing what can be accomplished when you believe. It also helps to have millions of people vote for your success. Even though Howard Stern and others were encouraging fan support of Sanjaya as a way of mocking the contest, I don't believe for a minute that he avoided elimination ONLY because people thought he was the worst. In fact, I bet this ploy accounted for only a small fraction of his total votes. Think about it, would you really spend $0.99 per text message to vote for this guy just to mock the show? Multiple times? Can people really be motivated to spend their hard-earned money just to prove a point?
38,000,000 people voted this past week to send 6 finalists on to the next week and it looks like the real talent fans showed up. Perhaps they were scared of the idea of seeing their favorite supplanted by Sunjaya. So fans rallied and called in their support for Melinda, Jordin, Blake, Chris, Lakisha and Phil so they wouldn't have to see Sanjaya's next hairdo choice. That's real motivation. I wouldn't be surprised if Howard Stern sees a little kick-back "thank you" gift from AT&T for the amazing amount of revenues generated by this mocking agenda. What a country! If only we could vote for President via text message and by phone. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if we see something like that in the next election. We have had more people vote for this year's American Idol than voted for President Bush. Now that I think about it, perhaps www.votefortheworst.com got its start back during the last Presidential election.......hhmmm.
I hate to be trite but the simple lesson here is to believe in yourself. It is amazing what can be accomplished when you believe. It also helps to have millions of people vote for your success. Even though Howard Stern and others were encouraging fan support of Sanjaya as a way of mocking the contest, I don't believe for a minute that he avoided elimination ONLY because people thought he was the worst. In fact, I bet this ploy accounted for only a small fraction of his total votes. Think about it, would you really spend $0.99 per text message to vote for this guy just to mock the show? Multiple times? Can people really be motivated to spend their hard-earned money just to prove a point?
38,000,000 people voted this past week to send 6 finalists on to the next week and it looks like the real talent fans showed up. Perhaps they were scared of the idea of seeing their favorite supplanted by Sunjaya. So fans rallied and called in their support for Melinda, Jordin, Blake, Chris, Lakisha and Phil so they wouldn't have to see Sanjaya's next hairdo choice. That's real motivation. I wouldn't be surprised if Howard Stern sees a little kick-back "thank you" gift from AT&T for the amazing amount of revenues generated by this mocking agenda. What a country! If only we could vote for President via text message and by phone. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if we see something like that in the next election. We have had more people vote for this year's American Idol than voted for President Bush. Now that I think about it, perhaps www.votefortheworst.com got its start back during the last Presidential election.......hhmmm.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
RIP, Hokie Victims
After watching news report after news report on the horrible massacre at Virginia Tech, I can't help but think that outside of Virginia, this tragedy may be lost in the overwhelming sea of similar "academic shootings" across the country. I hope not. Whether we were directly impacted by knowing the victims personally, or indirectly impacted just because we're human, we cannot let this story become Page 2 news so quickly. The victims (all of us included) deserve to be remembered and honored and mourned. We all died a little yesterday.
Not only was this an injustice done to those innocent students and professors (one a Holocaust survivor!) but this was an injustice done to our "free" society. This is a critical time around the world where religious and cultural issues are diverging further everyday and here we are, showing the world what freedom looks like! What a shame and a terrible tragedy.
What I can't understand is, if these deranged individuals want to take out 30 people with a legal handgun, why don't they enlist in the army and go fight in Afghanistan or in Iraq? Why cut down some of the promising minds of our future? What could these victims have become if they weren't cut down in their pursuit of higher knowledge? What advancements in science, math and engineering could they have brought to us? How could they have made our world a better place? What were we shortchanged by this twisted killer? We'll never know. We all died a little yesterday and we are a little worse off as a world because of it.
Rest in Peace, Hokies. You will not be forgotten.
-Brian
Not only was this an injustice done to those innocent students and professors (one a Holocaust survivor!) but this was an injustice done to our "free" society. This is a critical time around the world where religious and cultural issues are diverging further everyday and here we are, showing the world what freedom looks like! What a shame and a terrible tragedy.
What I can't understand is, if these deranged individuals want to take out 30 people with a legal handgun, why don't they enlist in the army and go fight in Afghanistan or in Iraq? Why cut down some of the promising minds of our future? What could these victims have become if they weren't cut down in their pursuit of higher knowledge? What advancements in science, math and engineering could they have brought to us? How could they have made our world a better place? What were we shortchanged by this twisted killer? We'll never know. We all died a little yesterday and we are a little worse off as a world because of it.
Rest in Peace, Hokies. You will not be forgotten.
-Brian
Monday, April 16, 2007
Cereplast on "The Green"
Robert Redford is supporting a series on his Sundance Channel that is dedicated to companies, issues, ideas and efforts in the new "green" movement, aptly titled "The Green", which is set to premiere tomorrow night at 9pm. Sponsored by Lexus and Smith Barney, the series will explore everything from global warming and alternative fuels to food choices and city planning, all of which will help make our planet a better place to live. While not complete, the website gives a lot of information about the people behind the effort around the globe and the companies dedicated to that effort: www.sundancechannel.com/thegreen. Having a force like Robert Redford and his foundation behind this series will surely get the attention of many!
I am also thrilled to report that Cereplast, Inc. will be featured in an upcoming episode of "The Green", with a projected air date of June 19. From the press announcement: In “Big Ideas for a Small Planet: Paper or Plastic,” the United States Post Office teams up with William McDonough to develop a “cradle to cradle” policy that will reduce the USPS’s environmental impact; Frederic Scheer of Cereplast creates biodegradable containers made from corn and potato starch; and the designers at Ford present a tour of the recyclable Model U, a concept car that embodies the “cradle to cradle” principle with its hydrogen fuel cell supercharged engine featuring high fuel efficiency and recyclable or biodegradable parts.
Cereplast has been a leader in the biodegradable food serviceware industry for a few years, making biodegradable resins out of corn, potato and other starches to great success. Cereplast’s products are used to manufacture plastic products that are biodegradable and compostable. This makes them key elements in the fight against global warming and instrumental in the national drive for energy independence. The company’s resins have received strong acceptance from some of the major plastic resin users in the United States including Solo Cup, Duni-Innoware, Genpak, and Alcoa Kama, a division of Alcoa (NYSE: AA).
I am proud to sit on the Board of Directors of Cereplast (www.cereplast.com) and play a role in making this planet a better place for my children and the many generations to follow.
-Brian
I am also thrilled to report that Cereplast, Inc. will be featured in an upcoming episode of "The Green", with a projected air date of June 19. From the press announcement: In “Big Ideas for a Small Planet: Paper or Plastic,” the United States Post Office teams up with William McDonough to develop a “cradle to cradle” policy that will reduce the USPS’s environmental impact; Frederic Scheer of Cereplast creates biodegradable containers made from corn and potato starch; and the designers at Ford present a tour of the recyclable Model U, a concept car that embodies the “cradle to cradle” principle with its hydrogen fuel cell supercharged engine featuring high fuel efficiency and recyclable or biodegradable parts.
Cereplast has been a leader in the biodegradable food serviceware industry for a few years, making biodegradable resins out of corn, potato and other starches to great success. Cereplast’s products are used to manufacture plastic products that are biodegradable and compostable. This makes them key elements in the fight against global warming and instrumental in the national drive for energy independence. The company’s resins have received strong acceptance from some of the major plastic resin users in the United States including Solo Cup, Duni-Innoware, Genpak, and Alcoa Kama, a division of Alcoa (NYSE: AA).
I am proud to sit on the Board of Directors of Cereplast (www.cereplast.com) and play a role in making this planet a better place for my children and the many generations to follow.
-Brian
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Lost in Woonsocket
SYNOPSIS: Lost in Woonsocket is a story of hope, miracles, and the painful reality of addiction. In 2005, a group of filmmakers from the A&E series Random1, come across two homeless alcoholics, Mark and Normand, living in a tent, literally on the edge of society. Hopeless and out of touch with their families for years, the two nonetheless maintain a strong bond of friendship. John and Andre break the rules of the show to get Mark into detox, a halfway house, and hopefully -- a life of sobriety. In their effort to get Mark cleaned up they pick a friendly barber out of the phone book who turns out to know the hard truth about what it takes to stay clean. When the episode runs in the fall of 2005, an avalanche of E-mails from the audience want to know why John and Andre didn’t help Normand as well. Their answer that day was that they could only help one and Mark seemed the more willing candidate. Then the bombshell arrives. An E-mail from a man named Timothy saying he is Normand’s son. He and the rest of the family has watched Mark’s R1 episode and sees their father for the first time in 13 years. He is asking where the R1 crew was when they filmed the episode. Normand’s family wants to find their father and take him in from the harsh New England winter.
The R1 crew changes direction and goes back to Woonsocket to find Normand and reunite him with his family. What ensues is an unlikely set of coincidences that as everyone says later, had to be directed by a higher source. What is revealed is the moment of surrender every person struggling with addiction must face.
If the life of an addict were only that simple, the story would have had a happy ending, but after the R1 show is no longer on television, a call from Pastor Brian brings the principle characters in Mark and Normand’s story back together again in a rainy Woonsocket parking lot. Someone has fallen. Up close and unflinching in its raw honesty, the moments of pathos, humor, and grace continue to unfold as this story of addiction and redemption in America plays out to its surprising conclusion.
Lost in Woonsocket has three upcoming screenings:
April 23rd - Newport Beach, CA
May 12th - Woonsocket, RI
May 19th - Jacksonville, Fla
June 24th - Austin, TX
We're looking to release this as a DVD for wide distribution before the end of the year. More news to come on this. See more information at www.lostinwoonsocket.com
-Brian
The R1 crew changes direction and goes back to Woonsocket to find Normand and reunite him with his family. What ensues is an unlikely set of coincidences that as everyone says later, had to be directed by a higher source. What is revealed is the moment of surrender every person struggling with addiction must face.
If the life of an addict were only that simple, the story would have had a happy ending, but after the R1 show is no longer on television, a call from Pastor Brian brings the principle characters in Mark and Normand’s story back together again in a rainy Woonsocket parking lot. Someone has fallen. Up close and unflinching in its raw honesty, the moments of pathos, humor, and grace continue to unfold as this story of addiction and redemption in America plays out to its surprising conclusion.
Lost in Woonsocket has three upcoming screenings:
April 23rd - Newport Beach, CA
May 12th - Woonsocket, RI
May 19th - Jacksonville, Fla
June 24th - Austin, TX
We're looking to release this as a DVD for wide distribution before the end of the year. More news to come on this. See more information at www.lostinwoonsocket.com
-Brian
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Welcome to the jungle!
Years ago, I was having breakfast in my kitchen, mulling over a work problem that had kept me awake all night. Little did I know it would be first of many work-related stress-induced nights of insomnia...and then it hit me! I don't know if it was my fascination with the Kix floating in a pattern in the milk in my bowl or the white noise effect from the neighbor's lawnmower (why do gardeners start at 7:00 in the morning?), but, from out of nowhere, the answer to my problem hit me. I called it my "Breakfast Epiphany."
It is amazing to me how often I have those epiphanies and even more amazing that they come in the early morning as I'm starting my day - perhaps it's the coffee. Whatever the source, I consider these jolts of brain power to be signs that there is more at work than that which meets the eye. I'll post thoughts here on a wide range of topics - hopefully, we can have an interactive conversation about a good many of them.
'Til then.
-Brian
It is amazing to me how often I have those epiphanies and even more amazing that they come in the early morning as I'm starting my day - perhaps it's the coffee. Whatever the source, I consider these jolts of brain power to be signs that there is more at work than that which meets the eye. I'll post thoughts here on a wide range of topics - hopefully, we can have an interactive conversation about a good many of them.
'Til then.
-Brian
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