Never Say Never: The Avi Youabian Story

Just chilling in the Min with Bieber and check out the credits!

2 nights ago we had the privilege of meeting with one of Liz's former students and close friend Avi Youabian. Avi went to USC Film and is now a successful editor in LA. He has edited everything from blockbuster 3-D movies to Academy Award winners to his own bar-mitzvah video cut with footage of him jet-skiing. His resumé includes The West Bank Story (Oscar for best short film), Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, and TV episodes of FlashForward, 90210, and Cold Case.
As diligent interns we of course had a screening of the Justin Bieber movie and gained a newfound appreciation for the Biebs. Liz even claims she is now a Belieber. In truth, though, the film was a work of editing talent, though, because in a documentary you have to make the footage you are given seem compelling and make it tell a story even if it isn't, even when it is Justin Bieber eating doughnuts out of a trashcan (yes that happens).

When meeting with Avi, we learned all about his journey to where he is now and as is now becoming a pattern with the people we meet, we learned about the incredible work ethic he has. Every step of the way he always took initiative to give every project he worked on paid or unpaid, credited or uncredited more than his all and in return he gained a reputation as a top-notch editor. We learned more about the politics behind the scenes of movie-making both for big and small films, and that sometimes what may seem like a misfortune may be a blessing in disguise.

Avi also gave us a lot of helpful information as to how the editor and director can collaborate and what not to do. A main point was to get as much coverage as possible, meaning shoot from every angle, every time. When debating whether or not to do one more take, do it. You won't regret it later. Digital space is cheap and you'd rather have more material to work with than less.
Finally Avi regaled us with stories of his beginnings and working late into the night on a project only to be offered a job on the spot after a director noticed his diligence. These things pay off and out here people find jobs in the most unexpected ways.
Watch out for Avi, he has only just begun.

Warner Bros. Studio Sneaking and Stalking

It's been a while since our last post, so let me catch you up. The past week has been extraordinarily busy with all 3 of us hard at work on our own projects creating publicity packets, cutting reels, brainstorming pitches for new projects and learning about the finance side of projects works. Unlike many other industries, this one has no set path and no predictable outcome day in and day out. It's why it's exciting and also why it's terrifying and can keep you working until all hours. But, if you love it like we do, it's all worth it.

While making sure we have plenty to do, Liz also makes sure we get the most out of our time out here, so a few days ago she had us drop everything and go on our second scavenger hunt of the summer at a studio, this time the Warner Bros. Studio. We might have stressed out a little bit worrying that we wouldn't get things done in time, but let's face it, with Elizabeth being the Batman fan she is, it was hard to push off this impromptu visit.

Our self-guided tour of WB was nothing short of awesome. We visited the site of many different famous TV and film shooting locations all over the lot and took pictures (as per Liz's scavenger hunt) with many different backdrops and the famous water tower (the one where the Animaniacs used to pop out of on Sunday mornings). We also visited Central Perk, the Ellen Degeneres Show office and the Legendary office (the company that shoots Batman) so that Elizabeth could fulfill her inner comic geek.
After all of this we tagged along different VIP tours (keeping our distance) and trailed off at times to sneak on to soundstages. In particular we snuck around the set of Shameless and saw the swamp area and building used for Merlott's in TrueBlood.

Wrote the Harry Potter Screenplays

Merlott's from TrueBlood

all the soundstages (so many!)

Shameless 

Shameless set 

Trying desperately to keep her cool

In addition to all of this we visited the chill-inducing Warner Bros. museum where the original costumes, props, and prominent set pieces from some of their most well-known shows and films are on display. We saw the new Batman costume from the upcoming film (which yes we all have tickets to already to see in Imax) and all the costumes from Friends (including the girl repelling bracelet), the Departed, and the Oscars that WB has won for its numerous films. There may have been some tears. We also went to the second floor of the museum devoted to Harry Potter. We each got sorted by the original Sorting Hat from the films (I'm in Slytherin, Elizabeth is in Hufflepuff, Annie was identified as a Weasley and was put in Gryffindor) and saw all the different beautiful props and costumes from the film. It's actually so impressive the time and effort that must go into the design of all of those and it is shocking that a lot of what we might think is CGI in the movies is actually just fantastic prop design.

Unfortunately the security was pretty tight and photos weren't allowed there.

Finally we found the hidden bungalow colony where celebrities have their offices and stalked around to find different famous parking spaces (because we're cool like that) and found Steve Carrell and Sarah Silverman.

<Pretty Little Liars shoot>

we kind of wish we were this cool

The coolest thing we saw by far though, especially if you are either of my sisters, was a shoot in progress  of Pretty Little Liars that we were somehow allowed into (Note: if you walk around like you're supposed to be there while looking at your phone like you're reading an important email, you can get pretty much anywhere in this town). We watched the shoot for a while and may or may not have seem some stars (truthfully none of us watch the show, so who knows).



After a good 3 hours of walking around and stalking random tours to find cool things, we decided to head back to the Min. It's pretty awesome getting to see first hand how things work both on the development side from working for Liz and on the production side through these visits. Getting that kind of well-rounded view is pretty much priceless.

--Jesse

The 24 Hour Plays

Many people told me when I went out here to capitalize on my time this summer, especially the weekends. Don't waster your time and make sure to have fun. Well, the Minterns (it's a thing now) decided to take that advice to heart as we, along with other Cornell in Hollywood interns Emma, Adriana, and Taylor set off to go volunteer as production assistants for this year's 24 Hour Plays in Santa Monica. If you're reading this and you're from Cornell it's a lot like 24 hour playfest. In 24 hours 6 new plays are created, written, directed, and put on. Different fro Cornell, however, is that the writers are renowned Hollywood screenwriters, the directors are pros, and the cast is filled with A-list celebrities like Jason Biggs (American Pie), Brooklyn Decker (Model and movie star), Gillian Jacobs (Community), Rosie Perez (Generally good at all things), Tracey Thoms (Cold Case, Rent)--just to name a few (24 in all, I felt like listing all of them would be excessive). Each play is written in around 9 hours and then the cast rehearses until 4 and then there is tech (yes full on tech with lights, sound and a live band with video projections) right until opening. It's a pretty insane process.

What was really cool, though, besides the being starstruck every time you turn a corner because "Oh there's the mean guy rom the Hunger Games" or "There's Lauren Zisces from Glee" or "Hey it's a Gossip Girl!" was seeing all of these pros be in their element and work their hardest for the love of the art. 

The event itself was a benefit for Urban Arts which is a school program that helps bring the arts to underprivileged schools in New York and LA and is funded primarily by donations. The biggest donor was Mont Blanc (as we were told and saw over and over and over again). 

Even though our jobs were generally menial like stuffing programs or setting out food, it was a great way to meet people and feel awesome or actually make connections. 

What was even more amazing was the quality of the actual show. Seeing each scene develop throughout the day you tended to wonder how these pieces would pull together. It seemed like the chaos of a 6-week rehearsal process was being so rushed that it would never work, but with the incredible skill and will from every person it became a production worth paying quite a bit of  money for. 

To top it all off, as volunteers we were allowed into the after party at The Shore Hotel afterwards. Complete with ravenous paparazzi and an open tequila bar, it was a pretty great way to finish off the day. It was also nice to have a place to speak to anyone we wanted/had guts enough to actually talk to (I may or may not have accosted Wilmer Valderrama in passing--no shame). 

Shout outs to Mircea Monroe (who was an actress on Dating Rules Season 1), Stephen Godchaux (a fantastic screenwriter), and Phil Courteney (the production manager for the 24 hour plays) who were all incredibly friendly to the whole group of us. 

All in all a very good and productive use of 24 hours. 

The next one is Nov 16th in NYC, go see it or be a part of it!

The Mintern Army with Princess Grace de Monaco in the background (namesake of the featured Mont Blanc pen of the night)

The cast

Morning Meeting with Shiri

This morning, after we all went over our daily to-do lists with Liz, Shiri stopped by to talk to Liz about a pitch they're doing for Hulu.  We helped them brainstorm plot ideas, cast lists, etc., and Shiri showed off her new outfit!

Field Trip! On the set of Dating Rules From My Future Self

Hey everyone!

My name is Annie, and I’m one of Jesse’s fellow interns this summer.  Hope you’ve all been enjoying the tales of our many adventures working with Liz.  We’ve all learned so much and have gotten to meet some really interesting, creative people, and it’s only week two.

I’m going to backtrack a bit to write about a little field trip we took on Monday.  One of Liz’s good friends is the actress Shiri Appleby, whose impressive resume includes Roswell, ER, Life Unexpected, I’m Reed Fish, Swimfan, and Charlie Wilson’s War, among (many) others.  She recently starred in and directed the online series Dating Rules From My Future Self, which Liz directed.  For those who haven’t seen the first season (you should), it’s centered around a woman who, while trying to navigate her difficult love life, receives advice via text message from herself ten years in the future.  Shiri only has a cameo in the second season (in which a new main character chats with her future self via Facetime), but she’s directing an episode for the first time and was generous enough to let us come to the set to cheer her on and learn how things are run.

Let me be honest: being part of Liz’s entourage is nothing short of awesome.  It became clear pretty quickly that she was a VIP; she was bombarded with hugs and hellos when we walked in, and a few of the producers gave up their seats so that we (yep, even the lowly interns) could have front row seats behind the monitors.  Oh, and we got headsets to listen to the audio being recorded.  I should mention that one of those producers, Tripp Reed, was actually Liz’s first intern back in the day. Between Gregg Hurwitz and Mr. Reed, we’re beginning to notice a trend…looks like we have big footsteps to fill.

Seeing Shiri in action was a lot of fun.  I have met very few people with as much enthusiasm and energy as she has, and I think Elizabeth and Jesse would agree.  She was commendably organized and confident, and I certainly don’t think I would have suspected she was new to directing if I had just wandered on set.  It was great seeing her various strategies with the actors to get different reactions out of them, which sometimes included yelling (slightly) outrageous things from off-camera.  By the way, Shiri now refers to us as her interns as well, which is more than okay by us!

Actress Lindsey Kraft, who stars in this season

Because everything else just wasn’t enough, we got to have “lunch” (at 7:30 pm, because of the weird call-time schedule) with Shiri, Liz, and the rest of the cast and crew.  And the food was really good.  Seriously.  After helping myself to seconds and a half, I considered grabbing a to-go box but decided that was a little out of line for someone who had contributed nothing to the show.  Although, come to think of it, Shiri did ask us our opinion on a shot set-up…so I guess I could have taken some asparagus after all.  Special thanks to Toby Meuli, one of the stars this season, who was kind enough to sit with us, answer all our questions and tell us about all the interesting work he’s done.

All in all, we had a fantastic time.  We owe a lot to Shiri and the cast and crew, all of whom were very gracious and welcoming even after Liz left and we hung around for a while longer.  And make sure to check out Dating Rules when it’s out!

Selling You

Today was a full day at the Min with work straight through the day (my Starbucks card is getting a workout these days--go for the gold!) One thing that is slowly becoming clear is that in this business, even the strangest and most obscure talents may become useful and a potential selling point. Especially on the creative side, but also the business side, the entertainment industry is a whole lot of selling yourself. This doesn't mean being conceited (well maybe just a little), but it does mean knowing your strong points and highlighting them and then finding your weak points, acknowledging them and improving them. This can be tough for some people, especially because some of these strong points might have to do with personality traits or personal beliefs, or other things that are hard to change or you don't want to change. 


One of the best ways, though, to automatically make yourself more valuable, especially these days, is learning how to use professional software. I know, I know, we all came out here to avoid math and science, but computers have taken the place of an editing room and the cutting room. I know this may seem obvious but then think do you know how to use FinalCut Pro?  How about Photoshop? Avid? (I didn't even know what Avid was until last week)


Thanks to Liz, we're being exposed to all these different tools and learning how to use some of them. Today and probably a fair share of the next week and a half or so, I'll become well acquainted with Avid (film editing software) as I edit some things for Liz. It may seem tedious but compared to getting coffee for someone who doesn't know your name in some office building, it's paradise. 


The great thing about these tools, though, is that even if you aren't lucky enough to have a Liz to coach you through, the programs are actually quite intuitive and a lot easier than the old method involving a razor, a dark room, and negatives.


Some good programs to know include:


Avid Media Composer
Photoshop
Dreamweaver
FinalCut Pro
ProTools (sound software)
FinalDraft
Adobe Firework
Microsoft Excel (yep it matters here too)




And there are obviously more. The more you know the better off you are and the best thing to do is to find someone who has these programs and play around with them (because some of them can be pretty expensive) but by the time you're good at them you'll have access to them for free---at your job (hopeful thinking never hurt anyone right?) 


What's even better is that they aren't an all consuming task to learn, but they can turn into a well-paying job straight out of school if you play your cards right. It's all how you spin it, but having these tools are a surefire way to make a resumé look better and make you special (not that you aren't already, my mom would probably like to point out.) 

Director's Reel

Because this is the summer of self-promotion and networking, and because we thought it might be interesting for all of you to see, we decided to post Liz's fantastic new reel courtesy of WME (thanks Brett!)
A reel is like a video resumé that people on the creative side of the industry use as a promotional tool. It showcases your skills by using clips from past work edited together in a video montage. Longer versions also include full scene clips from films and TV episodes or other work such as commercial or music videos, although these tend to be for people looking for something specific in a director, cinematographer (or DP), editor, actor etc. rather than just to get a general sense of their skill and style.

Here's a link to the montage (the first 3 minutes or so) and the clips (the rest of the video). Enjoy!

http://media.wmeentertainment.com/w/bh_cs/elizabeth_allen_reel_v3/

A Day in the Life: LA Excursion

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Jesse, Annie, and I were treated to an easter egg hunt of sorts, except rather than scouring a backyard for candy, we traversed the sprawling LA jungle hunting down some top secret goods.  Needless to say, it was a fun little adventure making pit stops all over town.

Cruising down Mulholland Drive:

The three of us screamed and jumped out of the car at the sight of the Hollywood sign:

Yes, we were so lame that we took a picture.  Stars in our eyes!  And of course shortly after we side-eyed the tourists on Hollywood Blvd.    

Meeting the lovely Rachel Tobias at Alloy Entertainment:

Rachel works at Alloy Entertainment (The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants, The Vampire Diaries) known for producing YA novels, television, and films.  It was fascinating learning about the process of book to television adaptations on their hit shows like Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars.  

Sharing some personal insight, Rachel explained how agencies are like the grad school of the entertainment business.  It was inspiring to meet a successful young woman so passionate about creative development.  

Thank you, Rachel!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back at the MIN, we got crackin' on our regular duties--compiling casting lists, brainstorming alternative titles for projects, etc., and prepared for our night class with Liz!

One of Liz's former students at USC, producer Alex Burunova, was kind enough to come to the class and give us the low-down on how to make student projects in LA--how to get equipment, set up auditions, etc.  She had lots of great advice and tricks for getting it done well, but on the cheap.

(left to right): Emma, Annie, Alex, me, Caitlin, Linda, and Jesse

Liz's class has been so awesome so far.  It's unbelievable actually performing and directing little scenes in front of her--already she's taught us so much about how to make a scene work and getting the best performance out of our actors.  As Liz says, we're all "kindred spirits".  

Another epic day for us here at the MIN!

Cheers,

Elizabeth

Gregg Hurwitz: How to make it as a screenwriter and be a badass all at once

Today was one of those days when Liz decided to take us on a networking trip.  We accompanied her to a meeting with her good friend, former intern, and possible screenwriter for a project, Gregg Hurwitz. After a windy drive in the smush-mobile (AKA Elizabeth's sexy Lexus, because right now it is a federal offense for me to drive) all the way to Sherman Oaks through 405 Fwy traffic we arrived at Gregg's humble abode, a gorgeous blue house overlooking the valley. The view alone made you want to faint and be aroused all at the same time. The house was equally exciting, especially all of Gregg's published novels in many different languages and comic books (yes comic books that he wrote and basically directed) that line his office. 


As we sat down to lunch outside with the view in tow, Gregg gave us an intense overview of how he made it as a screenwriter in the industry and what it takes to be successful out here. For someone so accomplished, he is incredibly humble but sharp as a knife and doesn't take shit from anybody (nor has he ever). He spoke a lot about the type of diligence and sheer love for the art it takes to be in his line of work. His main point was there was only so much that was important to screenwriting that you can learn in a class, but the real way to get great and be successful and do this as a living is to fully commit to it without regard for the fact that it's a "risky" occupation and to just keep writing, every day, every hour and to keep writing even when you think you are done. Right now Gregg is working on the rough draft for his next, next, next novel because, he stated, "if you start waiting around and procrastinating then you fall into the habit of complacency and waiting for someone to finish something on some deadline who then doesn't follow through. That's how you suddenly end up with no work and no leverage for jobs coming in." (PS that's only sort of a direct quote, not sure that should actually be in quotation marks). He is so committed to keeping at writing that he even once hired a driver to drive him to and from a meeting so that he could write in the car because it was rush hour. 


Gregg has 12 published novels with more on the way and he's not slowing down. Additionally he writes (read: directs the creation of) comic books for DC such as The Penguin and Batman and works with legendary comic book illustrators on the daily. He also writes screenplays and TV shows such as V. (the one with all the creepy alien people).  


And it's not even like he lives in a little hole by himself like some sort of J.D. Salinger. He has an awesome family and a beautiful African ridgeback named Simba who keeps him company in his office. 
Yes I realize I'm gushing--but we all basically agreed when returning to the Min that we just witnessed the life we all dream about. He rocks the entertainment industry in every department of writing imaginable like it's no big deal and still remains true to what he wants and to having a life---and he makes money doing it. 


Sometimes he even writes naked because he gets overheated from overcreativity. Class A badass in my opinion. 


Needless to say we're all pretty excited and driven to get working on the assignments he gave us. 

With Gregg  looking at one of his comic books

lunch with a view

Patio view

--Jesse

Life in the Min

For those of you who are not blessed enough to have graced the Maxwellton house of the esteemed director Elizabeth Allen, let me explain to you the origin of our name. Liz's house is on Maxwellton Road--thus it is the Max. We interns, however, work from the converted garage behind the house (its not as bad as it sounds, its pretty much a lounge with a kitchen, bathroom, even a bed and A/C that we can't figure out how to use). This workspace is aptly named the Min as can be notated by the stencils on the wall. 


Max..Min..it's witty.  


Generally we spend our days making a to-do list of all the different things Liz needs done for her various projects and goals and then doing those things like writing cast lists or finding imagery for upcoming pitches and practicing those pitches. But, Liz, unlike many other bosses tends to find us the best of opportunities all over LA to make our days more exciting and hectic (in a good way). So far in just one week we have explored the Disney Backlot (complete with scavenger hunt and secret entry onto all the sound stages), meeting Shiri Appleby and Michael Barton (IMDB them and be impressed), and going on set of the upcoming season of "Dating Rules From My Future Self" (watch the first season on Hulu) where we met cast members and took advantage of Craft Services. 
In addition to all of this, every Wednesday night we have a condensed version of a USC film directing course that Liz teaches us along with former interns where we will be creating, casting, shooting, and directing our own short films. As if we weren't getting a hands-on experience already, this is pretty much the best way to put everything we get out of each day into action. 
All in all it's pretty amazing what we get to do and every day is like a crash course in the film industry.  We're also required to leave an hour for exercise each day. So basically by the end of the summer we're all gonna be jacked, really smart, and expert directors. Sounds good to me.


Follow us for more posts to come and cool tips we pick up from our workshop every week and from people we meet in the industry. 

The Intern Army from left to right: Jesse Turk, Elizabeth Davis, Annie Hayes

Sound Stage

Find the famous names

The famous watertower

--Jesse