Feb. 18th 2007, 1:37 AM
Well last night at midnight I logged on to see what my theme, prop, and line of dialogue would be for the start of the 24 Hour Video Race: Theme - "Reservation", Prop - "Pipe", and Line - "God, Please help me win." I then went to bed to let this percolate in my subconscious.
When I got up this morning, try as I might I just couldn't get it together with what I would do for the project. Most people signed up in teams of up to 8 people, but I wanted to try it on my own this time out. It was far easier last time having the help of
_the_antihero to bounce ideas off of.
had left Stillwater at 10:20 AM, and arrived at his apt. at 11:20. We then went to lunch and hashed ideas for an hour. By 1:00 PM we were shooting, and by 4:30 we were editing. Of course the erroneous knowledge I had about my new laptop at the time meant that even though we were at the drop-off location by 11:57 PM with a finished product, we just could not get the video off the computer in a format they required, and hence, we were out of the competition. Fortunately I was able to post that video on here and YouTube so it could at least have some form of audience, but missing out on that $500 cash prize was a huge bummer.
Well this time I tried to follow the same schedule to get it finished to DVD on time, allowing myself an hour and a half window to get from Stillwater to OKC. But after driving all over town for an hour and a half in search of a tub of plastic indians and villages, it was 2:00 PM and I was beginning to be very pressed for time. No script, no clue about a story, no props! What was I to do? I decided to rely upon my natural improvisational talent and just start. Anything. Capturing anything at all.
I quickly grabbed up a bundle of props and costume pieces, went down the hall where I could be alone, set up the lighting, camera and backgrounds, and voila! Without a clue as to what I'd be addressing, I started improvising in front of the running camera, and 13 minutes later I felt like I had gathered enough material. By the time I'd broken everything down and cleaned up, it was now 2:35 PM. I immediately started editing fast and furious, and after a half hour for dinner at 5:50, plus a seven minute call from
techix, plus twenty minutes of goofing around for a break, I finally finished at 10:10 PM.
10:10? Aaaggh! Because I'd been to IAO Gallery only once before a year ago, I wasn't trusting my memory enough to ensure I could make it there without a snag. And I at least planned to get there 15 min. before the deadline so I wouldn't have to rush through the paperwork. I had planned to leave by 10:00 at the latest, and even though I finished the edit, I still hadn't compiled it yet as a DVD. Foregoing the usual method, I plugged my camera up to a DVD recorder console and hit it. However, five minutes later it finished, telling me it contained a 4:30 min. video. ???. The video is five minutes! I quickly checked, and for some inexplicable reason, it had cut off. I've done this dozens of times before with the same recorder and NEVER had this happen. Thankfully we have a second DVD recorder console above the television. Five mintues later I had a DVD (which I then had to spot-check). Time: 10:39. Aaaarrgggh!
I leapt forward, grabbed the disc and all my gear, flew down the stairs, got to the door and realized I'd forgotten my car keys. By the time I retrieved them and got situated in the car, it was 10:43. I looked at the gas meter. Empty! Come on! Circumnavigating all the tons of construction blocking my path to the highway, I tore ass to the Conoco on the way, and let the car gas while I sprang inside for a bottle of water. I reasoned that however much gas was in the tank by the time I came back out was what I'd be going with.
I then sped off down the road, speeding wherever possible until I saw a highway patrolman up ahead flashing his beams in my direction. I quickly coasted down to 70 and he let me pass. I then set for cruise control at 3 miles over the limit the rest of the way. I was *almost* there when I realized I didn't have my entry fee with me! I had to quickly pull off again and use the ATM as fast as possible amidst scores of leering truckers. After two failed PIN attempts, it finally went through! One last leg of the adventure: But Mapquest failed me at the final moment (I'd tried to access the good ol' Yahoo standby earlier in the evening, but apparently they've reformatted to be non user-friendly, so I went to the second method I knew).
Despite the directorial hiccup, I used common sense and pulled up with a screeching halt at 11:56 PM (one minute earlier than last year's debacle). I quickly finished using a Sharpie on the disc to add my e-mail address, gathered my release form, and then ran inside. Steve Liggett was sitting there with a woman and the guy at the counter. They seemed please to see someone at the last minute. Fortunately everything I had together was polished, with all i's dotted and t's crossed. According to their clock I signed in at 11:55 PM. There were only six other teams on the list for this OKC location (Tulsa being the other one). Doesn't sound like I have much competition! After Steve weighed me down with flyers and talk of some cool upcoming Living Arts shows (including his own drive-in dance theatre), I thanked them, turned, and what did I see but a remaining stack of NONzine newspapers, the ones that has my new two-page 1,500 word write-up! It just came out yesterday, but there were only five copies left. Not wanting to clear them out, I took three.
I arrived back home at 1:23 AM, and now the beeping computer behind me tells me its time to post this video for consumption, and time for me to tear into reading the excellent write-up!
Without further ado, "A Guarantee of Time"!