Keep Your Arms and Legs Inside the Ride at All Times

Infrequent Blogger Extraordinaire or Epic Blogger Fail? It’s up to you…

Hello hello dearest fans. I have missed you, as I am sure you have missed me. Twenty One One came and went with an array of projects and adventures... but I find myself now four months into Twenty Twelve (which I hope is where you’re finding yourself as well… if not, there might be cause for concern).

So, we are a third into this new year and already our seemingly privately owned Eckert rollercoaster, “The Curveball” has taken a few spins…

First up, after a couple of ambulance rides and medical procedures, the Queen Mom is in the midst of a legal battle with Scientific Medicine. She is suing them for spewing negative falsehoods about heart attacks and leaky valves… Her lawyer, the Lord, feels she has a solid, open and shut case.

In all seriousness though, Mom is doing much better. I’ve been lucky enough to be able to be here in Wisconsin with her for the past few months and there’s been dramatic improvement since she came home from the hospital. Cooking the low sodium, low cholesterol, whole food meals has been my helping forté and I must admit, I didn’t know I had any aptitude as a homemaker… but I do. Seriously. Someone should lock this down…

As with any good rollercoaster, with plunging lows come soaring highs… The East Coast Eckert Kingdom is again pregnant! Below, Baby E says “What up!” to everyone. Andrew, Ashley and Nutty will welcome their new addition in October and I ask you all to join me in wishing and praying for my niece/nephew to join this world healthy and happy. (I am SO looking forward to being the bad-influencing yet bitchin'ly cool Aunt!)

We’ve taken a few loopty loops around a carpocalypse… (Apparently my sister, Princess Marissa, is the Angel of Death when it comes to automobiles and my brother, Prince Justin, has a haunted headlight. Also, if you didn’t know, folks: Mom's Jeep vs. Ally's Neon? No contest!)

It’s been a wicked ride thus far, and I can only imagine what else is in store… especially since I’ll be grabbing my already packed bags from Pauly’s attic in Seattle and heading to Los Angeles in the fall. Six months ago, I decided I wanted to go back to school. Five months ago, I sent in an application for a very competitive graduate film program. This month, I finally got the much-anticipated word… I have been accepted as a 2012-13 Directing Fellow at The American Film Institute Conservatory!

Since this is my blog, I feel I can gloat a bit, right? This program is incredible! First of all, only 28 Directing Fellows out of hundreds of applicants worldwide are accepted each year! (I feel I must apologize for the loud voice in my head yelling, “suck it” to certain previous professors. This voice obviously lacks maturity and class, unlike myself.) Over the next two years, I’ll get to direct alongside peers who are as passionate and enthusiastic as I am. I can’t wait!

LA, here I come… Wisconsin, thanks for keeping me company and Seattle, I promise I won’t stay away too long.

PS - If you’re interested in “getting in on the ground floor” to help group-fund a Director, check out this write-up and its links in Seattle Celebrity News

Redundancy of Awesomeness

Here I sit in my multi-colored bed, my studio somewhat vacant as Jenny is gone for a week… feeling calm since I’m home earlier than normal and have a later call time for tomorrow… and all I want to do is share my truly blessed adventures, endeavors and splendors…

ONE: Call me Aunt Ally because I am going to have a little niece or nephew (Al or Allison, I’m sure) in July. The card that told me of this glorious happening was retrieved from my mailbox at about two (maybe one) in the morning after my second day of a somewhat horrific shoot; a beacon of light that was needed in that night of fear for the next day of work. Of course, I called my biggest brother to wish him congratulations… it was met with a sleepy thank you and with the next sunrise I proceeded to tell my entire cast and crew (and maybe some strangers) that I was indeed on the path to Aunthood.

TWO: Thankfully this news endeared me somewhat to my director at the time… which was needed. I was ADing a segment of a hopeful-to-be-picked-up pilot episode of a TV Show titled “The Divine Marigolds.” A difficult undertaking of an originally 12 page script, that turned into something like 15... and was to be shot in just a weekend. It was a rollercoaster of a ride, although a product that I feel I can be proud of! (I mean hell! We got it done!) Each time I am on set, I find that I love this career path even more than with the completion of that last project; even more than that naïve teenager did when her idealized/romanticized notions of what the film industry would be were unfolding in her mind. After the finish of this project, however, it did take a bit longer to see the benefit of the experience, but it is there, nonetheless. (Just heard BBC wants first dibs?!)

THREE: I can officially say that I am a filmmer fulltime! That’s right, I left that clerical caboose and hitched a ride on the Biz Kid$ express. I am, and have been since December One, the Production Coordinator for a PBS show called, you guessed it, Biz Kid$; a kids-teaching-kids finance program that is in its fourth season. I was reluctant to hand in my two-weeks notice, saying goodbye to health benefits, paid vacation, and a fat bonus at the end of a year’s work… but it has been an enjoyable venture since. A bit new for yours truly, whose used to working on set; this job title keeps me tied to my computer and phone, but I am enjoying the work without a doubt. The hours are long and I am sharing them with a team that I am thankful to know. The season of shooting will end mid February (that’s when the true “fulltime” test begins) but I am working my booty off for tomorrow’s shooting day, number 12 of 24, first.

FOUR: My favorite number and my favorite people. No, I did not spend Christmas at home, the first of this… but I did meet up with all three (now four) of the siblings in good ol’ Wisconsin for Thanksgiving. Loving them the way I do, and knowing the quality of the time that is spent with them, I sometimes wish to go back to the days of Rapter and Polly Pockets; I yearn for the days of dinners spent together and our Friday Night Movie tradition. Being together now is as if the planets have aligned to allow the Eckerts to converge in a single setting and take part in the games that ensue. Each one, whom I call my own, is someone to be proud of. I love them and look forward to my private jet that will allow more of our time to be spent with one another.

SIX: (I don’t like fives) Another year is upon us; another year I get to live in God’s Grace and I feel privileged. A year where Jenny and myself will move from this one bedroomed, anti-privacy zone and find a perfect little spot in Seattle; a year where if I can hold no other job than that of a film, commercial, or tv gig, I will indeed be successful; a year of new family members and new excitements that are all on our horizons. Here we go folks… two zero one one!

PS. This is an interview from “The Divine Marigolds” shoot… a little longwinded, but I still feel pretty damn cool anyway.

http://schn00dles.wordpress.com/2010/11/27/seattle-celebrity-news-11/

Summer's End...

Fall… this is my favorite time of year. September kicks it off with my oh-so-important birthday, pregamed the day before by big bro’s birthday (which I’m glad we don’t have to share parties anymore, Justin)! Then we move into bigger bro’s birthday in October, who apparently has refused to take birthday wishes this year since he wont return his siblings’ calls. Candy and costumes follow… my costume this year will highlight my badass-ery quite well I feel. Big sis’s birthday in November followed by the holidays of winter… what’s not to love? (My fingers are crossed for some snow this year… although I risk assault from Seattleites if they were to find out…)

Let’s see, most important news? Hmm… I think the biggest news might actually be personal instead of career this time around. Yours truly, for the first time ever, has loved another. I, whose record relationship was two months long, charged past control issues, vulnerability and catastrophic thinking into the sexy arms of a seven month commitment. (No, no, seven months is a long time. Trust me!) Unfortunately, the romance with that handsome, bike riding, vegetarian boy has come to its end. A fascinating road nonetheless, filled with constant milestones. It was extremely eye opening and for those friends who know me best, my apologies for the unwavering, uncompromising opinions throughout the years… even though I was obviously always right.

I still hold my clerical job… at an office, in a high-rise, that’s slowly been sucking my soul and sanity for almost a year now. It sucks them both from my fingertips with each strike of the keyboard. But hey, I can now write “can type ‘commercial general liability’ while sleeping” on my resume, so a fair trade off at least. Angry typing teacher, Mrs. Jackson, would be so proud of my skills. If I were to be honest, I’m actually kind of proud of myself. I haven’t lasted a year at any job since working at the Star Cinema of Fitchburg, Wisconsin… where I got free movies, thus my resolve in staying for three years. I do hope something else is on the horizon though, before I’m held accountable for actions taken during a blackout rage…

Movies, films, commercials, festivals… all have been sporadic yet satisfying throughout the summer. I’m pleased with the projects I’ve been able to work on and the steps up I’ve been able to take. In the commercial world, I Production Assist my ass off and now am beginning to Assistant Direct in the Indie world. My biggest undertaking so far was ADing a feature film called “Easter Weekend” (Zombie Jesus) in five days. We went camping in Eastern Washington and had an incredible time! The naysayers can eat their words because that project was the best experience of my film career thus far. I met some truly incredible people that have no choice but to work with me again.

Pictures from “Easter Weekend”
working on the schedule
most the group at the made-from-scratch tomb
some of the group after last day, sunrise


Oh and “Journey Quest” episodes are now online (I worked on it as 2nd AD for a couple of days)…

Episode One: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVORGr2fDk8
Episode Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7jFcV1FZ3Y
Episode Three: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSFDR8kmbM0

…and episode four goes live Oct. 12th!

... and she's back.

Once again, the time has come. I feel that my life is so fantastic, and I’ve reached the appropriate level of narcissism that it indeed needs to be shared with the loved ones. So welcome back kids, after a year, to what was previously known as ‘Here Comes The Sun’. Hope you enjoy the new title as I do. I feel it encompasses me; all the tiny treats that you’ll get to experience when you take a break, unwind, and read about someone cooler than Andrew.

Ahem… ahem. The year was 2009. The month, May. Our princess, the student extraordinaire was back from Prague, finishing what she hoped would be her last semester of secondary school. Potential failure loomed beyond the horizon however as our excellent pupil had turned into no less than a senioritis cliché. Her finals ended with a flip of a coin…

While our stressful student was enjoying a carriage ride to the Emerald City, The Queen, better known as the Judge, Jury, and Executioner of the Eckert Kingdom called. The diploma had arrived (and I’ve been told they can’t take those back). So hats off to our Princess, the graduate.

Since that glorious moment of elation, (I mean, come on, no school ever again) I’ve been living it up, down and sideways out here on the West Coast. Its okay, I judge myself too. I’ve called Seattle home for ten months now; just eight weeks shy of a year, although I still use my Wisconsin ID with pride.

I would give you an enticing recap of this time in Seattle; an epic montage full of laughs, tears and not too many beers, but let’s be frank… if you’re reading this, oh dear family of mine, you already know ‘cause Mom told you.

What you do need to know however is that life is grandiose at the moment. Since around thanksgiving I’ve been getting into the film scene up here in the Northwest. It’s been a dream, more or less. I’ve been able to meet some cool and kooky filmmers that have made Sea-town a bit more like a home for me. I am proud to say that the last project I worked on was a web series by the same talented folks who made the movie ‘Gamers’. Having nerds as siblings, and you know you are, (and I must admit I’ve existed as a half-elf rouge from time to time) I felt privileged to be on set with wizards, elves and orks.

Best news of all, Jenny Lentz, one my lovely roommates from Prague, has officially moved into my… our studio. Cramped as it may be, I am enjoying her company and feel lucky to have such an excellent cook finally utilizing my kitchen. I must say I’ll probably be eating better than I have since high school. (Should have thought ahead before purchasing that pallet of ramen.)

Other than that, I’m enjoying the sunny weather as spring is peeking around the corner. I think I’ll actually take advantage of residing in Washington this summer, so here’s to all the adventures of youth that await me. Until next time…

Proud B-Team Member

Yes, I am back in the States. All six of you who read this most likely know because I’ve seen you.

It is wonderful being back! All the things that were missed while away were waiting with open arms upon my return. Even large to-go coffee greeted me with a warm, caffeine-induced smile.

After my return, and Christmas, the Midwest Eckerts made their way to North Carolina to ring in the New Year with the East Coast Eckerts. It was a difficult trip because one: I didn’t want to get on a plane again, and two: apparently, unbeknownst to us, John Carpenter’s The Fog was rolling in. I’ve never witnessed such fog (*see Eddie Izzard bit about San Francisco and fog… very funny)… it was so bad that our flight was canceled and we took a lovely little bus ride to Minneapolis to catch a plane there, not knowing if the weather was any better.

It was and we got to North Carolina safe and sound. We proceeded to spend the next five days sitting on the beach. It was amazing. The beach house we rented had seven rooms, each with their own bathroom, a hot tub, TVs galore and hey, most importantly, the beach. I read three books and enjoyed the wonderful cookings of the Kennedy family. I was sad to leave and come back to the real world.

Classes started this week and I don’t know quite how I feel about them yet. I do enjoy class, but being on campus and having a few people who’ve been with me my entire collegiate career gone has been distinct. Things feel the same, yet there are slight differences in people which makes me feel like I’ve missed more than I wanted.

Of course, being back means that the family I got to be apart of while away are now the ones afar. I miss them dearly… even moupe a few of them (Christy, you know what I mean.) Plans are indeed already made to see a few of them the first chance I get. These were wonderful people whom I was blessed to meet.

Oh, and again thanks Mom (not Marissa) for sending me things while abroad… it was wonderful getting your lovely cards!

Until next time… I’ll be enjoying the novelty of being 21 back here in the States.

Wanted: 24/7 Diner

Excitement and pure fear would almost seem to be mutually exclusive, but these two feelings seem to come hand in hand with filmmaking.

Jonathon and I shoot our project in exactly one week… thus the stress levels are high. For today though, the film is safely in the back of my mind. I should pull out the script and I should continue to storyboard and figure details out, but the overwhelming feeling of leaving it hidden in my backpack seems like a better idea. Right now, I just want to sit down in a coffee shop that isn’t overpriced, with free wireless internet and drink a white mocha with a banana nut muffin. Unfortunately, I have to settle for an expensive cup of filtered coffee, no muffin, and wireless for a crown a minute.

It’s been interesting the things that I’ve come to miss while studying here in Prague. Of course I miss my family and friends, that was to be expected… but missing the equivalent of a Perkins wasn’t something I had anticipated; a twenty-four hour establishment where a student can go get coffee and pie while writing a paper until three in the morning is something Prague should look into. This sort of business would also offer some amazing drunk-food at five in the morning when coming back from a club… not that I’ve been in that specific situation…

I miss ordering a coffee to-go that is larger than the size of a shot glass as well. Keeping the purse strings tight, I have not invested in a coffee maker here, (actually, I did go halvsies on a French press but have been unable to find the correct coffee for it) thus I’ve been reduced to making instant coffee in the morning. Some mornings, when instant just won’t due, I make my way to a coffee house for some delicious take-away coffee. Now, imagine the little Dixie cups you use at a water-cooler… do have that image in your head?? Well that, filled with coffee, is what to-go coffee is here; even when providing them with my large travel mug, they only fill it half way… it’s like they think coffee isn’t healthy or something and therefore you shouldn’t have too much. Frankly, I don’t understand it!

Other news… my brother came home from Iraq this weekend, so welcome back big brother! And as always, thank you – I’m so very proud of your ugly face!

My time here is creeping to an end and I feel that by the time December 20th comes, I’ll be more than ready to get on that plane. Prague is truly a lovely place, and I’m so glad that I’ve taken part in this adventure, but being away from family and friends has opened my eyes to how integral they all are to my day to day joy. I miss the way certain people laugh, and the way certain people hug; I miss certain people’s humor! I look forward to seeing you ALL again!

It Takes Two

Christy and I are welcoming the weekend with open arms. Today marks the start of a much needed break; we have been graced with a five-day vacation. The other students in the program have decided to travel, some visiting Budapest, others to Italy, even the Czech buddies have vacated the flats. Christy and I are the only two left! Having decided to stay behind and take in the unvisited sights of Prague, we are both excited for some touristy fun as well as some peace and quiet!

The two month marker of calling Prague home is fast approaching and thus the break couldn’t have come at a better time. Over the past six weeks, we’ve been attending our ‘Topics in Production’ classes as well as our elective courses. It’s been wonderful sitting in class, absorbing film theory, history, and criticism, all of which are new subjects for me. The program back in Nebraska is mostly technically based, so these courses have offered the perfect compliment to what I’ve already learned. One of my favorite classes is Camera and Film Language. The material being taught in the course is very basic, but this is the first time that compositional theories besides the 1/3rd rule have been articulated for me. I have a growing eagerness to apply and utilize all these ideas for future projects.

As much as I’ve been enjoying the academia here, after class, the only thing I want to interact with is my bed. Total, we sit in class around fourteen times during the week and this has proven to be exhausting. I’m a homebody on the weekends; recuperating and of course working instead of bopping around the city. This was the reasoning behind staying in Prague. Christy and I are excited for our desired rest but also, I can’t rightly be here for four months and not visit Kafka’s grave or the Charles Bridge. Plus, at the moment, Prague is particularly enchanting! The leaves have turned all the wonderful colors that accompany the fabulous season of fall. (The past three years in Nebraska have been unsatisfactory falls; not offering much of the fall spectacle, so I’m happy to stay here and take pictures of the charming city.)

Some of you have heard of the frustrating time Jonathon and I have had coming up with an idea for our film project. I came here with an idea and script already in hand, and frankly, it was and is fabulous. The teachers however, in their infinite wisdom, vetoed the idea… well, maybe not vetoed it so much as kept trying to change it into something it wasn’t. Leaving Sean’s script on the back burner, we continued to rack our brains for three weeks. Each time we came up with something new it would be changed into a story neither Jonathon nor I wanted to tell. Luckily, our perseverance has paid off and we have the skeleton of our story and I’m excited, and relieved, about it. The script is due on Nov. 5th and the week after, our ‘Topics in Production’ classes end and we go into preproduction! That’ll be when things get really crazy… I can’t wait!

Everyone enjoy Halloween… sadly, it’s not celebrated here, but I think we’ll figure out some way to observe the awesome holiday anyway!

(Oh, and if you think Christmas comes out too early in the States… it isn’t even November yet and Christmas goods are starting to occupy the store shelves here! The giant chocolate Santas are particularly enticing!)

P.S – 1st Lt. Andrew Eckert… I’ve had some amazing milkshakes here! Thinking of you!