Lauren's First Oscar

I found this picture and wanted to post it here...seemed relevant :)

Words of Wisdom

This past week in The Business of Representation, we had a Producer come in and talk. I just wanted to touch on two things that he said quickly.

#1: He explained to the class that he started out painfully shy.

He hated having to take lunch meetings and would often order food and then go to the bathroom and hide out for fifteen minutes. He got in trouble with his boss for his expense report being too low! When he wanted to make phone calls...he would stare at the phone for ages before he would finally pick it up and make the call.

This was really nice to hear, to me personally. I know I have come a long way and most people are surprised when I tell them I am shy...but somehow I still see myself as the shy little girl I once was. I know I have definitely come a long way, but I know there is still room for improvement yet...and its nice to think that he started out shy and managed to mature and find great success as a producer. If he can do it, then so can I right?!

#2: The people who work the hardest finish first.

This has always been one of my greatest attributes--my work ethic. I love working hard and feeling productive, which is probably going to turn out to be a big career booster! I have always been smart luckily, but I'm not a genius by any means...I really do earn the grades I get and deserve the opportunities I am offered. Its just nice to hear that in spite of all the nepotism in Hollywood and the hoops that one has to jump through to be in this industry, that those who work the hardest really are the ones to find success in the end.

Anne Frank Influence

"I don't want to live in vain like most people. I want to be useful or bring enjoyment to all people, even those I've never met. I want to go on living even after my death!"

-Anne Frank (April 5, 1944)


I first read the Diary of Anne Frank when I was 11. This quote stuck out in particular to me and is something I have always remembered...perhaps because it was exactly the way I felt.

When we read the book in school, boys would laugh at Anne call her "dumb" and "lame." I never called them out on it, because middle school life is all about appearing "cool." But I remember thinking that I felt a sort of camaraderie with her...she was someone I desperately wished I could have met. I felt like she was the only person who ever might have gotten me. I desperately wanted to be assured that might my life was going to matter.

I suppose I still feel that way, only my interpretation of "mattering" has changed a bit. I see now that making my life matter doesn't necessarily mean everyone in the world needs to recognize my name. Helping a child learn to read or helping out a friend in a time of need--this stuff helps life matter too. Contributions don't have to change the whole world, for touching just one can leave a mark :)

Drumroll Please!

Now online:

www.laurengabel.com

YAYYYYY

All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my closeup

So tonight I helped out a friend's cousin by standing in as a hair model. She is an assistant stylist (which is apparently like an internship) at an upscale salon. Every week, the assistants take classes in different styling techniques.

This week, was up-dos. So I got to have my hair fashioned after a picture of Kate Winslet at the Oscars. It took a while since the instructor kept taking parts down (this is a training session mind you), but it was really interesting to watch and I had fun doing it!

Here are some pics of my hair after the fact:

Let's Sound It Out Together

This morning, I had my first day at West Vernon elementary school helping out with literacy. I am in a 1st grade class room and the kids are absolutely adorable!

My job in the classroom is to help out during reading time. While the teacher instructs the class, I take the kids to the back of the room one at a time to practice reading with them.

One little girl, would read with her face practically touching the paper...she would get closer and closer to a word as she tried to sound it out. The longer it took her, the closer to the paper she'd get. Another boy was great, but he could not get the plural Ss at the end of words! He skipped it every time.

All in all, I was actually pretty impressed with them. One little girl missed words frequently, but she always noticed when she misread it (without me telling her) and she'd go back and correct herself. She was so proud when she got it right, she'd smile really big--revealing her missing front four teeth! Adorable.

I can't wait to see them again Wednesday :)

I wish I was able to have two careers....one with kids and one in film!

Appreciation goes a long way

So today started off with an interview with an independent producer, searching for a paid production assistant to help him out.

After that I went home and memorized some interview questions because at 3, I had another interview for Life After Film School--a Fox Movie Channel program.

I was kind of nervous at first, but I think I got pretty into it and actually did an okay job. We'll see what happen with that...I'm not expecting anything. It would be really cool to get to meet all those filmmakers though!

After that it was coffee with Lucy! I miss that girl! Ran into Tomer and talked a little bit about the short film he was directing...he asked me what my experience was like working with my director last semester. I told him that Mike used to drive me absolutely nuts, as he did with most everyone on the crew. But at the end of the day, he would come up to you and make some really nice comment about how much he appreciated your hard work and it would make all the hard feelings melt away. I always went home loving him, even if I wanted to kill him during the day.

That evening, I heard from one of his crewmembers that Tomer sent out a thank you note to his crew :)

Please boys, take a hint

Okay so I already spoke earlier about the dude who kept using the "gorgeous" and "babe" speech. But I felt I should follow up on that story since this is kind of comedic...

So just a re-cap for those who didn't read my post below...met a dorky guy at a club, accidentally gave him my number. We chatted via facebook for a while and he seemed like a sweet kid, then he asked me to dinner, I said yes and he immediately started acting all cocky and texting me all day using sappy language. So I told him I couldn't go out (told him I didn't feel well, which wasn't a lie).

ANYWAYS, he keeps texting me all the time anyways. Then last night I get this:

"What's ur fav romantic movie? Frozen yogurt flavor and topping? Personal trait? Biggest turn off? the most memorable thing Ive said 2 u? Do u like surprises?"


I responded because I'm a nice person and hate ignoring people:

"When Harry Met Sally (I like Gone with the Wind and Casablanca but both of those end sadly); vanilla with oreo; ambition; baby talk; ha dunno; hate surprises"


He asks some more questions but I don't respond (I'm busy getting ready to go out)...Then 40 minutes later I notice that I have gotten 4 texts from him...

"I gotta be random w u. u don't respond well 2 blantant interest, prob bc bar/club exp. has told u tat bc ur cute, guys will do anything 2 get w u."

"Eh, im not tat way, but doesnt every1 say that? 1 want 2 get 2 kno u really. im in the same boat, very focused on my future, but u seem worth gettin 2 kno.

"So im jst havin fun askin u random questions that pop in2 my head. like: fav hobby? what made you fall in love? how many kids do u want? Fav restaurant?"

"I don't think you like it when im very open like that? I dont kno why. It wud be nice 2 kno what goes on in ur head."


I was kind of lost by all that but responded saying:

"Woah that was a lot of texts. I appreciate your honesty and interest but I really am not interested in you in that kind of way (aka romantic way), you are very nice and sweet but I don't want to lead you on."


So then he immediately goes on the defensive and I get these series of texts...literally one after the other...

"No prob, I actually appreciate the honesty. yeah I felt the same way, but figured i didn't want 2 make a call on it til i actually hung out w u once."

...Few minutes later...

"I always try 2 give ppl a very good chance before I decide. Would hate 2 misjudge someone's potential."

Me: No worries

"No prob, haha, its okay...I already knew we weren't gonna work; totally diff ppl, but great in our own ways. Tkae care babe. Hope u get everything u want in life."


So I thought that was the end of it...but then I get a FB CHAT from him.

Him: Hey thought this would be easier to chat on! So were you ever interested in me? Like when you met me at Hwood? I have a hard time knowing when girls are flirting with me or not...I was in a relationship that ended 2.5 mo ago and so I'm a little slow on this stuff right now.

Me: I flirt with everyone. Girls included.

Him: Haha, that should be your pickup line! I hear a lot of guys are into that...not me, I think its really gross when girls make out...but some guys think its really hot. Don't really understand why.

Me: Ummmm, I'm bi

Him: Oh really??
Well I actually have a lot of friends who are bi, believe it or not.
I'm not homophobic, I'm actually pretty liberal socially.........


I let him suffer for a while before telling him I wasn't really bi.

Woo

So I got a bunch of responses back today...

The script supervisor who I worked with on an indie feature said I could come shadow her at work (as long as it was okay with the next production she was on). So yay!

AND I sent an email to Diablo Cody's agent asking her to forward a note I had written along. She sent an email back saying it was a very sweet note and that she'd be happy to pass it on! Woooo!

Women in Film & Tips From A Scripty

I've decided that I'm going to start writing to women in film who have careers I'd like to emulate or who I think I could learn something from.

I started tonight. I wrote several emails to some script supervisors and to a few writers. We'll see if I get anything back, but I figure that if I send out enough, someone is bound to read it and agree to meet with me!

One script supervisor wrote me a nice note in response to my email about working in Dallas vs. LA (she is based out of Dallas).

Thanks for the compliments.

You've asked a tricky question. This industry tends to be very cyclic: one
place is the hotspot now, but two years later, it's somewhere else. Things
happen like union strikes and film incentive programs that cause work to
migrate to certain areas. Sometimes Texas is a happening place; sometimes
not. Since Texas is so big, you might live in Dallas and miss out on
everything going to Austin or vice versa.

Two places you can ALWAYS count on film work are NY and LA. However, that's
where the competition is most fierce. Plus, they're union towns, and the
cost of living there is very high. I don't know your personal situation,
but you might want to consider marrying and raising a family there vs.
Texas. I've known a lot of people that started off in Texas, moved to LA to
work on the big stuff, then moved back to Texas to raise a family.

Last year, I worked pretty steadily until August, then I didn't work again
until March (when I accepted a job on a TV series as a logger for a PA
rate). I didn't work again until July, when I did 2 movies back to back.
I've had to turn one down in Louisiana and I've got another one that
hopefully will start in mid-October. So now I'm busy again. It's always like
this, and I've been freelancing for almost 20 years. It's always feast or
famine.

So consider these factors in making your decision:
One of a handful of scriptys vying for a handful of movies (Texas) or one of
a thousand scriptys vying for one of a thousand movies (LA).
Quality of life
Family and personal connections

You can always work for a while in one place, and then move if things don't
work out or you want to change things up. No decision is forever. If you're
in LA already, you have a place to stay and friends and contacts--what about
trying to start your career there? You can always come back home and stay
with your family to regroup in Austin, but if you come back to Austin you
may find it hard to go back and start over in LA.

Good luck to you!

Eve

Say Cheese

I haven't posted any pictures in a while. So I thought I'd add a few cute ones.

It Starts

Well I finally figured out what classes I'm taking and I am almost completely registered for everything! We had Monday off this week, which is nice. I only have 2 classes this week!

I've read 10 books in the last 7 or so weeks, pretty darn good!

I haven't been great about going to the gym, but at least I am going two or three times a week...its better than nothing for sure.

Don't know which screenplay idea I am going to commit to and write character bios for and a beat sheet for my screenwriting class! Ugh, gotta nail that down!

Securing an Internship

I had two internship interviews today. At HBO and a visual effects company, Digital Domain. They both seemed like fun opportunities. We'll see what happens! Wish me luck. I got another response from CAA Agency for a research assistant intern position...it is paid as well. I hope I can get lucky this semester and find someone to finally pay me for my intern work! Its annoying how difficult it is to find a paying internship within the film industry.

50 days of summer

I saw 500 days of summer tonight with my mom. I would have loved it normally, but tonight it reminded me way too much of the situation i recently went through. except that i was the pathetic joseph gordon-levitt and the boy was summer. except that in this situation he wasn't as upfront as summer. at least SHE told him that she didn't want a relationship at the very start.

I just spluged on a bunch of itunes music....its therapeutic for some reason. I don't sing anymore....normally when i'm going through a happy period, i sing a lot...like when I'm in the car...and i haven't done that in a long time.

I got a book about his country from the library...is that pathetic? Maybe....i read the whole thing in one afternoon. I don't think i had any epiphanies though.

Commitment Issues

I am trying to write this screenplay for my class. I like the subject matter, characters are mildly entertaining. And yet I cannot stick to it! Every time I start working on it, my mind wanders to my newest screenplay idea and all I want to write about is that. I can't decipher which is the more sensible premise to explore. Why must I be so indecisive?! Ugh, its quite annoying really. Bassel always asks me where I want to eat and I always say "I don't care." I usually don't though. As long as it isn't seafood or Vistango, I am usually fine with whatever. I am picky, but can usually find something to eat wherever we go. I always feel that if someone else feels strongly, I'd just assume do what they want because I'm easy. I don't know if this is me not being able to make up my mind, or me just being extremely agreeable. Or maybe somewhere in the middle?

Commitment issues aren't new to me...they seem to pervade my life every which way I go. I am indecisive and am bad at communicating--usually because I can't decide what I want--which causes a lot of problems. Oh well. I've matured a little over the years, but I'm still no expert. Its so much easier to just go with the flow and evade questions...its nice that way for a while...until it isn't. I wish someone would just tell me what to do sometimes. Tell me what to do so that neither me, nor anyone else, gets hurt. But there is no such person. There is only me.

Its been a while...

Sorry its been ages since I've written...I feel like I go through periods where I have this burning desire to write several times a day and then I forget about you...and leave you hanging for weeks on end, unattended to. I'm sorry for that.

So a quick little summer update...the indie film I was helping out on finished filming. I started taking a screenwriting class--which is stressing me out a tad. Its hard to come up with one idea and stick with it. Every time I start working on it, I think of some other idea and open a word document and start working on that instead. Its quite exasperating. I can't stick to something! I'm supposedly filming a soft core porno next week...we'll see how that goes. Hanging out with a new boy I think. The bar is ridiculously slow, its painful to work these days. Umm that is about it. I will try to write again soon about something more legitimate. Okay talk later. Ciao. Gotta run off to my horribly slow job....where I'll likely make nothing in tips and simply waste my time.

Troy Camp

So I am back from Troy Camp and I feel like I have this renewed appreciation for the life I have led. The kids were fabulous and I had a ton of fun, but there were a few occurrences that just made me realize how truly fortunate I have been. I was a family member which meant that I hung out with the four cabins in my color team--G2 (third grade girls), B2 (3rd grade boys), G7 (4th grade girls), and B7 (4th grade boys). It was quite different from last year when I was a cabin counselor in that I got to meet a lot more campers.

I absolutely loved B7, the fourth grade boys. They were so cute and fun. One day DJ started telling me about his family and the conversation transitioned into this conversation about violence and scary situations he had witnessed. Other kids joined in the conversation and talked about violent situations in their own families. It was the saddest thing I had ever heard. These kids had seen so much and knew about so much for being so young. They shouldn't have to know about that sort of thing and yet they spoke of it so calmly, as if it was a natural part of life. Spearmint, Fishbag, and I were on the verge of tears the whole time. Everyone listened completely silently. All the 4th graders were so respectful as well, listening intently and even asking questions when they did not understand something. Although everyone was listening, DJ was speaking directly to me, he looked at me the whole time and it made me feel special to be the confidante to such sadness. DJ had also had kidney problems his whole life and a few months ago had 3 surgeries that cured him. He said he wanted to be a surgeon and help kids like him one day. He is just so mature for a 4th grader, he talked about really respecting his parents and all that they did for him, recognizing how hard they work to give him and his brothers a good life here. His brother got a full ride scholarship to Humbolt University, and he seems to look up to his brother so much.

Another instance of sadness occured in the G7 fourth grade girls cabin. There was a girl without an arm there. She was really quiet and it was difficult to get her to engage and participate in activities. I spent a lot of time with her because I felt it was important to make her feel comfortable and included....she always seemed to be off on her own...at the end of the line...etc. I sat by her the first couple nights at campfire. Each night she cried a little bit and I would try to distract her by asking her questions and talking to her about Twilight--she was a big fan. Anyways, one night I was sitting by G2 at campfire and I noticed that she seemed to be crying. her counselor took her off to the side and a few other counselors joined them. Later I saw her being taken down the hill in a car. It wasn't until later that I found out the severity of the situation. Stephanie, that was her name, was taken down to Dr. J and she calmed down a little. She had been sobbing uncontrollably and hyperventilating. But then she started staring into the mirror and they asked her what she was looking at. She said she was looking at a face. They asked her to describe the face and she said there was a lot of hair and an eye. She said it wasn't any of the people in the room. It sounded just like a horror movie. Dr. J insisted that they take her to a psychiatric hospital immediately. Some of the counselors had to drive her all the way back to LA, where her dad met them at the hospital. This poor girl, Dr. J says that it looks like early signs of schizophrenia or another disorder that could last her whole life. It is so scary. Her mother left her family when she was two as well. She has no arm, no mother, is painfully shy, and now a serious psychiatric disorder. It doesn't get much worse.

I know I just talked about lots of sad stuff, but there was tons of happiness too. There was this adorable little girl in G2 who just melted my heart. She moved to the US two years ago and is fluent in English, but would use the funniest phrases and mix up prepositions and stuff. It was literally the most adorable thing ever! She would say things like "take a fart", "have you touched a girl?" (in reference to wanting to give the cootie shot), etc. One of the fourth grade boys flopped on his bed and complained to me that he would just never be good with girls. Another 4th grader at lunch made me cry when he said "no offense or anything, but you know Mario Kart? Because Adrian looks exactly like Bowser." I died laughing...and started cracking up midway through the meal as well. Every time I looked at Adrian--because he really did look like Bowser!

This was a fantastic week. I feel like the kids got a ton out of it, but so did the counselors as well.

A decent day

Today was pretty good. We had Christine Lahti the actress/director come to our directing class and direct some of the actors in scenes. It was really interesting seeing her work and she had a lot of really great ideas to help perfect the scene. After class, I had my semester conference with Jennifer. I really love that woman. She is just so interested in her students and I feel that she truly has their best interest at heart and is always going out of her way to help us. We went over my production book and then we just talked. She told me that she had really pushed for me and that she was sorry I didn't get a chance to pitch. She said some of the stuff the guys would bring in was just so difficult to compete with. I know its all true, but that is just never going to be my style. I'm not edgy and experimental. I like good characters and a good story. That's it. We talked about Roham for like 15 minutes. She really likes him and is annoyed that Linda is ruining his chances. We talked about how talented he is and how much he deserves the chance at directing. I then talked to her about loving 480. I love being on set and the crew feeling.

I asked Daddy for more money today. I felt horrible asking, but I spent so much on my recent film project! I asked for a hundred and he wrote back saying "I was gonna say 200. But how about we just round it to 500. You work so hard and I am so proud of you." I wrote back telling him he had made my day! To which he responded, "well you have made my life :)"

In the evening I just mostly did work and wasted time on facebook. I think I did some productive stuff tho.

I really wish I could get myself to start writing. I need to get myself in the habit of writing!

life sucks sometimes, and other times it all works out...

Last week wasn't too great. I had a hard week from finding out I didn't make director to all the boy drama. Two of my friends dropped out of the director race. I am sad they aren't at least giving it a go. They took one of the coveted slots and now they aren't even pitching. Oh well. I guess if I hadn't found a script I felt passionate about it would be difficult to try to act enthusiastic in front of the faculty.

This week has been gruelling, but somehow everything has worked out. I filmed my 475 final directing project last night. I was so stressed leading up to it. I was freaking out about the location, about my actors awful performances, figuring out if I could get it on a medium to edit, etc. Monday night I couldn't sleep because I was so stressed. But somehow things seemed to fall together. After 3 rehearsals, I felt like the actors were finally figuring things out. I didn't feel they were really right for the parts, but it wasn't a train wreck. The hours leading up to the shoot I was freaking out. I was super nervous. I ran around a bit collecting equipment and then had to drive up to Palos Verdes to meet John, whose house we were going to film at. On the way up, he tells me that he found this perfect house for me to film at that would prevent us from having to move locations. Their backyard turned out to be absolutely FABULOUS. It was so gorgeous, overlooking a cliff with the city spread out behind it. So they boys set up the first scene and it looks great, really dynamic and interesting.

We had a minor setback when we learned that the boom mic was broken! Ahhh! I was freaking out. I called my friend Ken who also does sound for 480. He told me he had passed the kit off to Adrian his partner, but managed to get a hold of Adrian who was willing to let me use the kit. So then I call Sonya and beg her to drive it up for me. She graciously agreed. She was supposed to have a meeting with the producer for her music video, Tyler. I told her she should have their meeting while driving up to see me....they could even ride in the carpool lane then! She agreed. I absolutely love her.

The scene went really well. I didn't give too many directions and felt like I wasn't doing much. But the boys kind of took over and decided what it was that we needed. I should have been a little more vocal, but I felt a tad intimidated by their amazingness...and was shy to say too much. I know that isn't how I should be, but I trusted them a lot and I figured the actors weren't going to improve much after all this time of working with them. They were doing fine and I just gave them a few notes here and there. At one point Roham asked me if he could give them a direction and told them something that I had been trying to get them to do for ages on our last practice and was quite difficult....they did it slightly better.

I was really paranoid by the end of the shoot because when we were setting up for the second scene this grumpy neighbor lady yelled at us telling us to be quiet. We tried really hard to be as quiet as possible, but I was soooo paranoid that she was going to call the cops that I rushed things along at a very quick pace, not really paying as much attention to performance as I perfect should have (this was when Roham jumped in).
Oh well I will try to be a little more bold and less worried next time!

Roham was so fabulous through this whole thing. I really can't believe he did all this for me. On the way home, at like 3AM, he scratched my head softly as I drove. I should have been doing that for him...he did most of the hard work! Then he held my hand, and it felt so nice...just what I needed after a stressful week.

I didn't get home til almost 4AM and had to wake up at 8AM to go work on Sonya's music video. At the first location I got to be an extra in her music video as a patron watching a concert. Then I went and did a bit of Production Design for her at another location. It was really fun. The music vid part had tons of people there! And they even had this crazy jib arm thing!

Now I am quite tired and have to settle down and work on my stupid writing 340 paper and production design project. ICK.

Plays, Strippers, and More

So last night Roham invited me to go see this play that his friend was in. It was called Into the Pines and was at the blackbox on campus. USC's blackbox is really tiny. Ours at Westlake was much nicer. Going to see the play made me nostalgic for high school when I got to participate in all the shows. I really loved doing theatre. Its a shame that I can't participate in acting any more....but film production is just so grueling!

After the show, a group of us went to Santa Monica to this bar. It was pretty fun. We all danced and had a nice time. But then another friend showed up, and I guess he got mad because I was dancing with another friend. So that whole situation was just awkward. I felt like property. Some prize to be won. Not like I even had a say in things! It felt very awkward for me, especially since no one was talking to me about what was going on. It was all being dealt with by the boys.

After that we went to this strip club. It was surprisingly fun. Kind of random. But I had never done it before and I love new experiences! One of the strippers came over and started talking to us. Her name was Monique. She is 25 and she told us she has a 9 year old son! She talked about how he doesn't know what she does for a living, he thinks she goes and sells drinks each night. When she comes home, he asks her, "did you sell a lot of drinks tonight, mommy?" I love kids. Isn't the innocence so sweet. I wish we could all stay like that forever. Not get all caught up in the craziness of the adult world. Everything was so much simpler back then, and pleasure was so easy to come by. Monique told me I was really pretty and invited me up on stage! Luckily I was sobering up and I had enough sense to say no thanks.

Later when I was waiting in line for the restroom, I met this producer guy. He told me that he worked on Marley and Me and Superbad, which is cool. He tried to get me to go into the bathroom with him and do coke, but of course, I graciously declined :) Crazy entertainment people! I wonder if these are the sorts I will always be dealing with....