Video Blog

Only a couple of weeks ago I thought there was no way I’d ever make it to New York University. I was brainstorming get rich schemes, buying lottery tickets and asking my mother to get her church friends together to ask God for some special consideration. I was feeling really despondent about the idea and felt it was an intangible dream. Then everything changed. My best friend met a big time Executive Producer at a restaurant and told her all about my situation. That’s how Lizzy Nash became my mentor and my hero! It’s so good to have someone from the industry who believes in my cause. She came up with the idea of blogging and social networking. She’s got so much energy and enthusiasm and she’s really convinced me that I can do this!

Lizzy suggested I make a video blog to explain what a big opportunity I’ve got here and how people can get involved. I’ve had two weeks to make it and I would never have finished it in that time had it not been for the amazing help of my very good friend Nic Mckenzie. He did the animation and voiced the characters. We were up until the early hours of the morning twice in the last week! My colleagues at work must think I’ve become a crazed party animal. Nic’s band Deep Sea Arcade has just released an awesome new single called ‘Don’t be Sorry’ and they’re in the middle of promoting it so it was truly saintly that he gave up his time to help me. At 4am on Monday morning he looked at me pleadingly and said ‘Can we stop now? I have to go to work tomorrow.’ I felt terrible, but I will find some way of repaying him. Freshly baked cookies will be a good start.

Baked goods will also be greeting Nicky G next time I see him for letting me use his computer.

The video should be up in the next couple of days. I’m nervous about it and I really hope you like it!

B

New York, New York

The silence of the internet is so intimidating. I feel like I’m beginning a stand up comedy routine in an empty room. Currently, I’m sitting in front of my extremely messy desk trying to come up with an idea for a video blog. I’ve been working on this since Wednesday! My progress is ridiculous, but I want it to be perfect. I have to get the word out –I need help if I’m going to make it to NYU!

For inspiration, or to distract myself, I’ve been discovering what some of the famous NYU graduates were doing before they went to college. From what I’ve read so far, Martin Scorsese was nothing like the tough guys he went on to write about. In fact, author Peter Biskind portrays him as a nerdy, Mummy’s boy. Oliver Stone went to Yale University but then dropped out to travel. He ended up fighting in the Vietnam War and won two bravery awards. Obviously, this experience influenced his films ‘Platoon’, ‘Born on the Fourth of July’ and ‘Heaven and Earth’. In Minnesota, Joel Cohen was making backyard film productions with his younger brother. Ang Lee, to the disappointment of his teacher father, failed his University entrance exam in Taiwan before moving to the US to study.

I guess, in contrast, my early years haven’t been too unremarkable. My work as a reporter has been very educational. Journalists frequently bare witness to the darker side of life. You become adept at hunting for the most bizarre details and extracting the most extreme emotions from the people you’re interviewing. Perhaps my first film will be entitled ‘Newroom’. : P