3. Goldletter (or Newsfinger)
Hi friend, welcome to the third of my quarterly emails.
If you had no idea that there was a first or second, fear not. Either your spam filter was doing its job well (but has now retired) or much more likely… prior to three months ago, I had no idea who your email address was. But now I do, so hello! If you’d like to never receive one of these emails again, let me know and I will depressionlessly remove you from my list.
If you DID receive the last one AND you read it all the way to the end, A) I love you, and B) you’ll know that at the time my future held two things: Work on a movie called No One Will Save You and then 50 days of self-imposed people-free internetless solitude. Both have now successfully emigrated to my past.
No One Will Save You was an absolute dream. It went unfairly smoothly, and everyone on the cast and crew (except that one person) were amazing. It was one of those shoots that spoils me and makes me wonder if I should get a civilian job where you work with the same people every day forever. Nah…
Everyone in the 50 days of isolation was great too. But that ends today. I made it 30 days before I had to order a round of groceries from Whole Foods (does a bag of spinach staying fresh for AN ENTIRE month constitute a miracle? I think so). I watched something like 120 movies, read 25 books, and (almost as miraculously as the spinach) managed to avoid fracturing into several disparate personalities. Also, I got a bit of writing done.
I confess that I was not totally without human contact for the ENTIRE time because… thanks to a delayed reaction to a wasp sting I did have to break quarantine to go to a doctor’s office. And this happened at the exact halfway point, so I can’t even say I went 30 days without seeing anyone. Curses. All in all though, a wonderful experience and one I intend to duplicate in the future, albeit in slightly shorter (and stingless) form. Perhaps annually?
And how shall I break this period of isolation? With a party obviously. So, if you happen to be in New Orleans (well, Metairie) tomorrow and want to come see what happens when you give a hermit alcohol for the first time in 50 days, hit me up!
And now, Some AWESOME THINGS to check out:
1. Protein2O Protein Water – I quasi-arbitrarily decided to do this whole 50 days thing without meat or cheese, made all the trickier by my near-Keto diet. But this stuff is amazing. Yes, the protein is Whey, but it’s remarkably tasty. My personal preference, mix a bottle of the Cherry flavor with a can of Coconut La Croix. Delicious. Also, Quest Bars. And cookies. Seriously.
2. Cold Showers – I read the whole Wim Hoff book but I DON’T recommend it. The book is 80% filler fluff and the breathing technique did nothing for me. But cold showers… What better way to save time finding the right temperature, then just deliberately choosing the wrong one? Yes, the moment before you get in… sucks. But the moment after you get in… also sucks. Then its fine. Great, in fact. And afterwards you feel amazing! Plus, I do think there’s value in reminding yourself that the dread is almost always unjustified. #SittingDownandWriting #ThisEmail #OrReadingIt
3. The Intellectual Life – This 1940s book by A.G. Sertillanges is a brilliant philosophical treatise, productivity cheat sheet, and motivational self-help book rolled into one. And it’s an interesting and easy read. BUT… some portions of it are quite religious (not my thing) and others (there’s overlap) are VERY sexist. There’s an entire section on how to be a good wife to an intellectual. Those parts aside, this book is well worth it!
4. Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth by Chris Ware – Reading this graphic novel feels like swimming through the mind of someone with severe ADD and social anxiety, and yet… it’s pleasant and enjoyable. At least, once you figure out the method to navigating the panels. I’d love to see this style rendered cinematically, in part because I have no idea what that would look like.
And Some AWESOME PEOPLE Who Do Awesome Stuff
1. Brian Duffield, Jason Blumenfeld & Aaron Morton – Director, 1st AD, DP. I’ve long said that for a film set to run smoothly at least 2 of these 3 people have to be good at their jobs and pleasant to work with. On No One Will Save You, all 3 were. These people are incredible! Check out Brian’s previous film, Spontaneous. And in September keep an eye out for this little show that Aaron shot called The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
2. Marcos Gonzales – Marcos is a hair genius. He’s cut hair for dozens of amazing movies and me. He was one of only two people to cut my hair in the last decade. He gets a shout out here because at the beginning of my 50 days I shaved my head. I always knew it was oddly shaped, and I figured when better to get a real look? My findings: I am half Xenomorph. Seriously. My head looks like a time lapse of someone nodding vigorously. Not kidding. I have NEVER seen a head shaped like this. Ever. But there are two silver linings: First, 50 years after we have all died, my skull will be more identifiable than ANY OF YOURS. And second, I know Marcos Gonzales, who is truly a wizard, because trust me… you may think my head looks weird, but you have NO IDEA! (Though if you come to the party tomorrow, you’ll have some idea)
3. Deshi Deshington – Anyone who has called or emailed me in the past 50 days has seen or heard her name. She was my lifeline to the world, or vice versa, during my isolation. Knowing that she’d update me if any hurricanes had died or if any family members were about to destroy the coast made it possible for me to cocoon in peace. And I never heard from her once. Thanks Deshi!!!
And also, what’s next for ME:
1. The Mature Live Read – A cold read of a hot script written by yours truly. On August 20th, this feature length movie-play of mine will become the first in the Cold Readings Series of the Actor’s Apothecary, right here in New Orleans. Directed by Hanna Hall, produced by Laura Cassidy (who gets well-deservedly thanked in every one of these emails) and cast live on the spot. Check it out!
2. New Scripts – I’ve got two finished (or nearly finished) for other folks, and a whole bunch more of my own, soon to be polished up and spread about. And I’m very, very excited. More on that soon.
3. Half/Lives, Viridian and They Whisper – I’ve JUST gotten word that these three films, which I wrote and directed nearly two years ago are now being submitted to festivals. Expect to hear a lot more about these too.
But most importantly:
4. My Coming Out Party – When I made the Facebook event two months ago, this was the best name I could come up with for a celebration of me ‘coming out’ of isolation, and yeah, it does beg some other questions doesn’t it? Oops. A few paragraphs back it occurred to me that ‘Beautiful Butterfly Party’ might’ve been good too but alas, too late. Anyway, my cranial symbiote and I hope to see you here!
But before then, I’ve got an absurd number of letters, emails, and texts to respond to. Not to mention social media.
AND… I finally get to check the news again! I can’t wait to see how much better the world has gotten in the past 50 days. I mean, surely we’ve cured COVID and enacted legislation to permanently protect women’s rights, right?! I’ll drink to that!
Until next time (unless you email asking me to F O (or better, saying hi and telling me what you’ve been up to lately!)
Cheers!
David Bush