holidaze

i arrived at paramount just at the right time, since tonight is the big tree-lighting ceremony and holiday party. they've been preparing for it for days. one street looks like a winter wonderland, i saw tap dancers in rehearsal yesterday, and we've heard rumors of an ice-skating rink and a rock-climbing wall. UNFORTUNATELY, since we at "case 39" are only temporary employees of paramount, we are NOT invited to the festivities (besides the tree-lighting). i call bullshit!

besides that annoyance, the job has been fine. it's a small editorial room, so it's pretty low-maintenance and everyone is easy-going. i'm also going to get to learn some more stuff on the AVID, so that'll be fun. i've read the script, but besides that, i don't know much about the film and i probably shouldn't say anything even if i did. since i have "fresh eyes," my bosses are going to use me as a test audience once the rough cut is done. but i'm a scaredy-cat, so i don't really enjoy horror/thrillers and i'm not that jazzed about seeing the film. but hopefully i can view it objectively and give some constructive feedback, since it's not often that i have a chance to voice my input for a movie in its early stages.

as i learn more about the editing world, i get excited about the things that i may be able to do in a few years, but i've also discovered the downsides of this career. editors are at the mercy of many forces that they can't control (harsh deadlines, director's schedules, the will of the studio, etc.), and that can make things pretty frustrating and stressful.

to top it all off, the crazy hours that editors work (12-14hr days, 6-7 days a week) often result in a total lack of social/family life. i didn't have much of one before i got into the business, but it scares me to think that i might not have a choice later on, and i could miss out on everything fun and normal. out of all the movie people that i've met and worked with out here, just a handful are married (or divorced) and maybe two or three have families. i know that the pursuit of a career requires some sacrifice, but i also don't think that any career is worth giving up the things you really want in life and the things that make you happy. i have this horrible mental image of myself in ten years, exhausted, bitter, and alone because i won't have time for friends (or even a dog). it's frightening, and i really hope it won't come true. however, we all struggle with juggling careers and social lives, so hopefully there is a way to balance the two.

"But as the philosopher Jagger once said, 'You can't always get what you want.'" -- Dr. Gregory House



(lit palm trees that look like fireworks; the real thing)