Pre-Production FUN!

Shooting creeps closer... Busy week of meetings, order giving, finger wagging, yelling matches, beatings, and secret interment camps. You know, the typical stuff that makes filmmaking such a FUN activity!

Seriously, though, things are going really well. My staff is the closest. Not only are they consummate pros, they are fun, interesting, passionate folk all around.

Last Sunday, I went with DP Shu G and lighting director Ota to check out the location. It's an 80 year old home located in a quite neighborhood near Koenji. Walking into the home is like stepping back into pre-war Japan when Japanese were no more than 4 feet tall. I say this because the sink in the kitchen comes up to just above my knees. It's going to be interesting to put Stephanie and Shogen in that setting. I mean, Shogen is a whopping 184cm in height!

After that, Abbey, the owner of the house and my one-time music partner Kumi's manager, invited us to join them on the tail end of the Hanami season, or the cherry blossom viewing time, that night. A bunch of us headed over to Inokashira Park and took a spot by the lake. And have no fear, we sat on the mandatory, traditional blue tarp! Wouldn't be Japan without that totally unnatural surface to sit on.

I drank a bunch of beer and got a decent buzz going. Spent much of the time chatting with Kumi about music. We're thinking to continue our music collaboration if we can find a common ground in our musical goals. But, for the moment, until shooting is over, I really can't commit to anything. But, I tell you, I could do a lot worse. Kumi's a total talent and her possibilities are endless.

After the park we went over to "Jap Inc," a store in Kichijoji that makes some of the most outrageous jewelry and "art things" in Japan. They also provide outfits for films and music acts. I first meet the couple, Youko and Kawakami, that runs the place on the set of the film "Lorelei" as they made the outfits for the film. It's my intention to have they do the alien outfits for my dream project "Invasia," if I can ever work my way up to that level of filmmaking.

The Jap Inc people had a bar in Kichijoji, but recently closed it. In response, they've made a small bar on the side of the shop. We took over the place after it closed and proceeded to get even drunker and just had a good time all around. Youko and Kawamaki are also musicians and our musical tastes are in total alignment. I LOVE their band and can't wait for their next show in June. I'll be there, fist in the air, screaming, "rock and roll will never die!" Although, as we all know, it has.

The rest of the week was given over to meetings and planning for the shoot.

The next two weeks promise to be hectic. Not only do I have my 50th birthday coming up (please pass the cyanide!), but also "The iDol" will be playing at a theater in Tokyo and I'm obligated to go and give a talk after the screening. I also am going to attend the CD release show of Stephanie at Zepp Tokyo. After that, I'll be in the deep dark, wonderful hole of shooting. Can't wait!!!