Take Backs

TAKE BACKS from Shawn Bannon on Vimeo.

I debated whether or not to post TAKE BACKS here, mainly because it’s a little more controversial and violent than what usually goes up on Cute and Delicious. Also, maybe you guys are sick of Fantastic Fest bumpers. In the end though, I’m really proud to have been a part of this video and hope you’ll watch it. It is directed by Shawn and written by the infamous FILM CRIT HULK. It features Noah Segan, Suki-Rose Etter and myself (with appearances by Kyle Bannon and Scott Green). I hope you’ll watch it despite my disclaimer.

Exciting news though, Doctor Meow received enough votes to be a semifinalist. That means DOCTOR MEOW will be playing at the Fantastic Fest awards ceremony! We’re so very excited and most certainly couldn’t have done it without your votes. Thank you!

p.s. What do you think of my new look? (Ok, it’s not really my new look but I sort of wish it was.)

the chair

This story starts with a chair, a chair my grandfather made for me. I’ve had it since I was a kid and I love it not only for sentimental reasons, but also because it’s so comfortable with it’s giant arms.

Originally it was pink, a dusty pink, girlish fabric I didn’t choose. As a teenager I made the unfortunate request for him to reupholster it with leopard fabric and it’s been that way ever since. Partially because of this fabric choice and partially because of it’s size the chair has been banished from our apartment for most of the time we’ve lived here. A few months ago, I reclaimed it from my mother who had been keeping it for me.

I was determined to make the chair fit in our space and as soon as it was home, I started pulling and peeling away fabric, surprised that the pink was still hidden underneath. I was ecstatic, hoping I could just return it to it’s former glory by removing the leopard. The pink was actually quite nice, though faded it had a circular pattern I quite liked.

I cut and I tore and removed as much leopard as I could, only to discover that only about half of the pink fabric remained. So I was stuck. Then the chair just sat like this for months. Occasionally covered with other fabrics to disguise it’s Frankenstein appearance. I was too intimidated to reupholster it and all the slipcovers we found were atrocious.

But finally, nearly six months later, I bit the bullet and made my own slipcover. I had some “help” from little Weetzie. I made a pattern from sheets, pinned and basted all my pieces together and sewed the whole thing up.

It’s almost like a whole new chair! I’ll admit it’s still a little frumpy, but it’s a vast improvement from being covered with a sheet or in it’s torn up state. When I finally chose a fabric, there wasn’t enough yardage to make a cushion so that was sort of a drag. At least now it looks complete and blends in with our apartment. Mostly I’m just happy I tackled and finished a project that has been on my to do list for months and months. Now if only I would repaint our mantle…

Also, if you haven’t already, please vote for Doctor Meow! Just click that link and “like” the video. Thanks!

Doctor Meow

Doctor Meow – Fantastic Fest Bumper Submission from Jenn Murphy on Vimeo.

As promised, here is the video Jenn and I made for the Fantastic Fest bumper contest. I hope you enjoy it.

In case you aren’t familiar with Fantastic Fest, or the bumper contest, let me give you a little bit of background. Fantastic Fest is a film festival in Austin, Texas that focuses on genre films like horror, sci-fi, action and fantasy, in other words, some of my favorite kinds of films. Before each film, they show bumpers made by fans. This year, the theme for the contest was Time Travel is Fantastic, plus each bumper has to end with “That’s Fantastic.” The bumpers are notoriously pretty crazy, but if you win, you get two VIP Badges for the festival in 2013.

It would be amazing if you would vote for our bumper. All you have to do is click that link, and then “like” our video. If we get enough votes, we’ll make it to the finalist round. As a side note, there is a very small percentage of the bumpers made by women, so even if you aren’t a fan of our bumper you’ll vote, just as a vote for the ladies. Or maybe you’ll just vote for Meeme and Mochi because they’re the cutest?

bumper madness

This past weekend was full of movie making. It was awesome. Though a lot of work was involved, I can’t imagine a way I’d rather spend my days.

This upcoming Saturday is the deadline for the Fantastic Fest Bumper Contest so yesterday Jenn and I completely shot and edited our entry, with lots of help from Shawn. It involved tons of cat wrangling, blood, glitter, and of course, time travel. It was so fun to work on and and really rewarding to start and finish a big project all in one day. Plus our bumper is the coolest.

On top of that, we also shot one of Shawn’s bumper entries, which meant dressing up in some crazy lady Chewbacca costumes and going on a murderous rampage, which is always a good time.

Besides all our bumper making we put some finishing touches on my short film which is so close to being finished I can taste it. It’s been a long process for a little film (it’s only 13 minutes) but also an enlightening one. I’m really happy to have brought this idea to life.

Check back later this week and I’ll share our bumper.

mixed bag

My mind has felt a little like these random photos recently. It seems to be full of all things, all at once. We’ve been cleaning and organizing our home, getting rid of clutter and taking things out of closets. So many secret treasures are hiding in boxes. The end of summer has been full of birthdays and gatherings and yet I’m feeling more antisocial than ever. I wish fall were here already, the heat makes me anxious. These past few weeks have not just signaled the change of yearly cycles, but also a change in life seasons. New excitement is peeking over the horizon. New challenges are drifting in with the wind. Summer lacked direction while now deadlines are looming over me. Everything all at once.

Even the words I write here are scatterbrained. I don’t have just one neat thing to share. I wish I did. I have been struggling with where I want this blog to go, what I want it to be. It’s just for me, so it can be whatever I want but how much of myself do I want to share? How many of my worries and ponderings do I want to put out into the world? How much self reflection is appropriate for public consumption? I’m still trying to figure it out.