Friday, February 12, 2010

The Creator, The Make-up Artist and The Musician.



All the breaks you need in life wait within your imagination, Imagination is the workshop of your mind, capable of turning mind energy into accomplishment and wealth.
-- Napoleon Hill.




Well, hello my little blades... SO happy to be back! I have been in desperate need of blogging... Can't believe I am even saying this -- but it's true. I do heart my blog followers and I love your feedback. And so in some cyberly way, we are all connected. And it feels good.

Okay, first -- I have gotten emails and texts and phone calls from some of you saying that you have tried to comment, but alas... No can do. And so today, voila! I figured it out. I changed the setting on my blog and you can ALL easily leave a comment after a blog. Hallelujah!

I am SUPER excited with this latest improvement because alas -- this is a learning process for me too.

And so, my blades, or in Spanish my bladitos, hehe... Onto my 3 Daily Updates:

1. The Creator. My dear friend, the uber-talented, hyper-intellectual, madly ambitious, Kamran Pasha is blossoming sooo beautifully into his big, big dreams that over lunch on Monday at http://www.realfood.com/ on La Cienega, he continued to inspire me while simultaneously blowing me away! (His photo is in the upper left hand corner.) And the real food there, as an aside, kicks arse! I had a bowl of tofu, today's veggies and brown rice with a delectable peanut sauce and I was still eating it 2 days later. Mmmmm... :) First off, we'd sadly fallen out of touch for years and so, when we re-connected, it was like being back in track, reminded of my best self, stretched again to see that there are indeed no limits to what we can accomplish in this lifetime. Just to give you a sense of his success: In the three years since we'd missed one another, he published a large and beautiful novel. And he is now on his third!!! He has a blog on Arianna Huffington's website, he is in the midst of creating (writing and producing) a super intelligent thriller (top secret!) TV show pilot, he's writing movies like some people drink chai tea latte with soy (not mentioning any names, hehe) and he just moved into a production office with two lovely brother partners. How excited was I as I walked past he kidney-shaped pool through the garden smelling of night-blooming jasmine and up the stairwell-being-painted-by-two-young-and-adorable-assistants???

I honestly felt like... Holy shiite. Dreams DO Come True. We would talk about our dreams together and we've admitted since we've reconnected how we were like kids imagining these bright things for our future, btu did we whole-heartedly believe in it? In us? In our infinite abilities? Was it hope and a pinch of desperation? Or was it s steely faith and certainty that WE ARE STARS?!!

That's the thing. The energy around us knows. God, the creator, knows. When we truly believe in our guts believe. When every molecule in our bodies says, YES. THE TIME IS NOW.

Or when we are like, it has to be now. I need it to be now. Do you think it's now?

And in those 3 years, MAGIC. And this is only the beginning. His writing even feels more self-assured. It flows like an "adult's writing." And that sounds funny -- but what I mean is that -- his writing feels like that of a man who knows exactly what he is doing.

And on Monday, he showed me the jacket cover for his latest novel, the art work and the letter from Simon & Schuster, the paged ready to be all bound and sent off to bookstores, all I could think was, YES!!! He is making it happen. It meaning his dreams. And I thought of my goal of having my memoir ready for that agent and amaaaazing editor, Judy Clain, by March 1st. And I am READY TO DO IT. Two more weeks!!! I'm like that kid in college -- deadlines make me work even harder. I heart a damn good deadline.

And I heart Kamran. For always pushing me, with love, to grow -- like that little angel above the grass that whispers grow, grow... He has always believed in me. And now -- wow... It's like - I gaze at his burgeoning success and the world becomes this ball of clay in my hand and I am ready to sculpt and design and do whatever I dream to do with it, run with it. Write my memoir this year, star in my movie, and sell the "f" out of my SNIFF. And that my dear blades, is only the beginning...

2. The Make-up Artist. Now we move onto the lovely and talented Whitney Rose. What a spirited and talented young lady she is. First off, she's got the skin of a baby's bum. She can apply make-up like a Russian ballerina can attack Swan Lake. Home girl is GOOD. Like I told you a few days ago, I decided to go back to www.paulsmithphotography.com for one more look. One night only, one night only... I just couldn't help myself -- imagine the music... :) (p.s. any actors checking out this blog, you've gotta check Paul out -- super laid back Aussie, great space, killer lighting, he plays your ipod, super chill vibe...)

And I had an instinct that I wanted Whitney to do my hair and make-up. She'd done me up for my former producing partner Lulu Brud's movie trailer last summer and I dug her confidence and sense of style.

So, I emailed her and called her and she was down. She arrived punctually -- something definitely worth mentioning in this town. And she took to my face with make-up as if I were a painting yet to be painted. So professional, so prepared, super funny, and wow. We got it. I believe we got it. I actually felt like -- this is the Kieren headshot for film and TV that says, I am beautiful. I am going for it. The other commercial one was natural and I dig it. But, for those of you who know me, I am a pretty chill, down home girl. I adore my flary jeans, my white tank, my super fuzzy socks, and my dog. But -- after having seen the other shots, I thought to myself -- I want one where I am going for it. My moment. My beautiful shot. My Audrey, my Julia, my Jaclyn Smith, my Marilyn. My Kieren. Me. Whitney arrived at 6am, we got her parked, I jumped into the shower to wash my (often unwashed hair, zoiks!) and she turned me into movie star me. And I loved every minute of it. Her brushes back and forth on my cheeks, swishing brushes, my eyes coming alive and smoky and defined, my lashes darkened and like rays of sun. She is a master.

I arrived at Paul's swanky downtown loft on South Main Street at 8:45am and we were off. I sooo dug my shoot again with Paul. he showed me some of the shots on his TV in the studio and I saw 3 that were MAGIC. Going with your gut is the best thing you can do for your career. Listen to that voice that says, I need this. This will be the one. And that little voice can win you a phenomenal opportunity to meet with a huge director, to read for a top casting director, to open a previously shut door -- wide open.

Thank you, Whitney. I will post the photos from my commercial shoot, if possible, next Tuesday. And from today's shoot, hopefully by next Friday -- if not earlier. So stoked. I have not cared this much about a photo since NYC pre-Broadway. This is another reason I know something huge is around the corner.

3. The Musician. So, on our benefit night for our Little Bird Theater Company's MIX TAPE Festival was this past November -- and we had booked a really lush sounding band from Long Beach called Parade of Lights. But unfortunately we learned all too soon that the larger theatre space we'd rented in The Elephant Theatre Complex was wildly unequiped for a live band. And so, I was madly dashing around, trying to figure something out, when Lulu, my producing partner, said to me, "I have this friend Kenneth Pattengale, who's a great musician. Do you want me to see if he can play that night?"

And admittedly, I was like -- uhhh...(clenched teeth) I want a band. Not an acoustic guy. But as time crunched on and I got a chance to listen to his link on MySpace, I said -- Book him. And so we did.

And he opened the show. He was sooo smooth and relaxed and fun with the audience, like an old pro and he;s a young guy. His voice and songs reminded me a little of Joe Pug meets Ryan Bingham. A RAD combination.

The crowd -- we rented a 100 seat theater and we had standing room only -- was like a little pup in his hands. They loved him. Plus, he was handsome, had great style and could he sing.

Soooo... when I was thinking about the soundtrack for my movie, I thought of Kenneth. I asked him to meet me for tea at http://www.intelligentsiacoffee.com/locations/view/Silver+Lake+Coffeebar Intelligentsia on Sunset in Silverlake. But the line of hipsters would've made Andy Warhol dizzy. So, we journeyed across the walkway to Cafe Stella http://www.cafestella.com/ and had eggs (real breakfast!!!) and tea and oj. Lovely, lovely...

And we got to talking and playfully flirting and exchanging ever-expanding witticisms, and before I knew it, I thought -- I want him to cover "Mona Lisa and Madhatters" for the opening of my movie.

He agreed, is sending me some of his songs and I've begun listening to his music at http://www.myspace.com/kennethpattengale and I am stoked!!!

Turns out he has also scored an animated WB movie. And he has already turned out over 5 albums and I he's not even a quarter of a century.

Not bad. Plus, he's a native Angelo. And that means he's an endangered species. And for this, I embrace him ever more.

Sigh...

Happy sigh.

So, my little blades, I am chugging along. I also am calling that TV casting director's office on Tuesday to speak with her assistant to set up a meeting with her for a week from Monday. Let's see what RAD show or movie she is casting that is right for me.

And I am calling 4 lawyers on Tuesday to seek representation.

I am working on my memoir over the weekend. Picking an opening and 50 of the best pages for sending out.

I am reading a great script to see what THE DIRECTOR will be shooting.

Hopefully talking to my friend about a meeting while I am in NYC. To thank him. For believing in me. And to see if we can find something GREAT to work on together. He is a HUGE TALENT.

And alas... I am taking care of me.

I heart you all, my little blades. Go off into the night and dream big dreams... Then, turn on the lamps in your homes, take out your laptops, your books, your phones, and make them happen. Every little last one of them.

It all, as Napoleon Hill stated, begins with your imagination. If you can envision it, you can do it.




2 comments:

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  2. Eliott, I enjoyed what you said, and I completely agree with the conclusion. Though I would have gotten there by different means.

    Kieren - You're one of the most beautiful, determined hearts I've ever met. The way you laud and support those around you is, to me, inspirational. I hope to be one of the many who are fortunate enough to return you the many favors you give out every day simply by smiling.

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