Blogs about project-management from Pew Pew Laser Blog

For Art.

On Friday, as soon as I got home from work, I got started on the cupcakes for the 48 Hour Film Project. I tried a new frosting recipe - a fudgy concoction of butter, cocoa powder and powdered sugar with a bit of karo syrup and vanilla. It was tasty, but very gooey and sticky. I really need a sturdy frosting that will put up with travel and hot sun. Does anyone have a recipe they can share?

On Friday night, we got the specs for our film - a Film de Fem featuring Kristy Brown (occupation: illustrator), with a tie as a prop, and the line "Wrong, guess again.". I finished off the cupcakes while the script was written, and the husband went to a planning meeting. Once finished, we threw together some props and went to bed at about 1am.

Saturday was a long long day. We were up at 6:45am and on set (an office in SoDo) by a hair after 8. The husband got started on the credits, I finished paperwork and directed production assistants. I had good success at shopping / prop procurement on the day.

• Vodka Bottle: The script called for a nearly empty vodka bottle. Instead of buying something (not that there was budget for that), I drove down to to Georgetown and looked for bars. I found one and went around to the garbage and recycling in back. Right at the top of the recycling bin were empty Jack Daniels and Jagermeister bottles - score. I plucked those out and brought them back to the set. PA Eli cleaned them out, and filled them with a very convincing-looking ice tea.
• Tie: At 10am, Costumer Erika and I headed out to Goodwill for a necktie; something black and punky. The tie was just as easy to find as the bottles. Goodwill had their entire stock of ties right up front for Father's Day. We scored a suitable one, and went back to set.
• Hair Product: At 2pm, makeup guy Richard needed hair gel, hair spray, and hair rubber bands, so out I went again. Georgetown Pharmacy was the closest pharmacy to our location. It was very charming and old-fashioned; it would make a great location in which to shoot a period piece. Unfortunately, their stock was old fashioned too - they only had 3 hairsprays (all of them suspicious), and no gel. I drove out of Greorgetown and found a 76 Mart - they had some hair spray, but nothing else. I drove towards downtown and found a quickie-mart - they had some hairspray, and do-rags, but no hair rubber bands. Sigh. I went back to to the set to deliver the hair gel and spray, figuring that the hair rubber bands could be got later. On set, the husband had some hair rubber bands, so it was taken care of.

At noon, we broke for lunch. I and a lot of the crew got some burgers from Burger Madness - delicious and hearty.

I and some other folks, including the husband, were recruited as extras. I learned two things about acting: weary comfy shoes, and choose a lightweight prop.

At 4 we headed to the second location: a recently built house (an investment property) in Pacific - about 40 minutes away from Seattle. That shoot was tough - it felt very long, and I think everyone was getting exhausted. The husband left early to get some food, and start editing in a comfortable environment. We finished the shooting at about 10:00pm, and I got home at about 11:00. I ate some dinner and the husband, and later the producer, worked on more editing. I took a shower and got to bed at about 1am.

The husband got to bed quite a bit later, and he got up sometime in the morning to dash off to Adobe work on the film. I slept in, and am now preparing for the wrap party.

I think the film will be on YouTube in about a week; I'll post a link when it's available.

What Have I Gotten Myself Into?

I'm going to be quite busy over the next 30 days. Tomorrow night we've got another home Sounders game; vs. DC United. On Thursday I've got my 3rd of 4 glassblowing classes. I'm really enjoying glassblowing; I think about doing it all the time. I'll be signing up for the Intermediate class as soon as I can.

This weekend we're doing the Seattle 48 Hour Film Project. I've got to start the cupcakes on Friday when I get home from work, and I'm also going to be the Production Manager. The husband will be editing on Sunday.

Next week I've got a doctor's appointment - my primary care physician says that one of my moles is suspicious. I've also got the last glass blowing class that Thursday.

After that, we go to Hawaii for nearly 2 weeks. Yay! We've got just a few outings planned in Hawaii - but we're focusing on having a relaxing vacation.

Shortly after we return, the folks-in-law are coming to visit. And on that weekend, we've got another Sounders game; in fact it's Sounders games every Saturday for 3 weeks. On the first Saturday, I'm also hoping to get into the glass blowing studio to make another Ballard Artwalk piece.

Whew; very busy indeed. The blog will be a bit neglected. I'll fill it up with some canned posts, but consider yourself warned.

1 comment(s).

Beware Change.

When working on a project (both professional and personal), change can cause problems. Particularly in our modern age of quick and simple electronic edits, it can seem that a minor change is as simple as just making the change. Understanding the full ramifications of the change is critical to a smooth project.

Consider changes even to team meetings. I wasn't included in an original meeting request because I was on vacation at the time. But when the meeting was re-scheduled when I was back in the office, I wasn't included on the updated meeting notification. I was surprised to be called in to a meeting that I was unaware of and unprepared for.

Consider a kitchen remodel project, with a change to the configuration of the cabintry. If the entire planned cabinet plan isn't checked against the new change, there could be a big giant void in the finished kitchen. This story has often been told on HGTV and also happened to one of my co-workers.

A well planned project will have written change orders, which are signed off on by project stakeholders. These change orders will carefully and deliberately reconsider all aspects of the project in light of the change.

A Well Rounded Reader.

I have a reading compulsion. I must read everything - even if it's just the cereal box that I've read a hundred times before. This makes me a somewhat impolite seat-mate on the bus. If you're sitting next to me, my roving eyes will probably pick up quite a bit of what you're reading.

A couple of folks on my bus have been reading Outliers: The Story of Success. In one chapter, it talks about the 10,000 hour theory - the idea that those who excel at any one thing have invested thousands of hours doing that thing. The book points out the Beatles as having played clubs nightly before they broke onto the scene, for example.

This reminds me that JoCo spent a whole year writing, recording, and releasing one new song on his website / podcast each week. That's fifty-two times, folks. I imagine that Coulton may well have been thinking about next week's song even as he was posting the current one. Is it any wonder that he is now a successful musician? I propose that practice drives not perfection, (rarely achievable in reality), but success.

I suppose I shall have to pick up a copy of Outliers at the library and read all about this intriguing concept myself. When I am at the library, I shall also have to pick up a copy of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight. This will allow me to judge the novel on it's own merits, rather it's hype. And also the Zombie Survival Guide - which is apparently written by Mel Brooks's son!

4 comment(s).

Nice Girls Don't Get Things Done.

There's a certain point at which being polite to some co-workers makes me look less than competent in front of others. Letting your unscheduled meeting linger for "just 3 minutes" in the meeting room that I reserved means that, at best, I lose the opportunity to open meeting documents on the projector. At worst, it means that my meeting runs over into the next one.

Now that we understand each other, get out of my meeting room. And don't get me started on proofreading your copy.