Day ??? - "Happy New Year"

Day ??? is exactly that. I have no idea what day it is. And, unfortunately, I don't have time to count. However, I do know that I have five weeks left at Vancouver Film School. And it will be a fast and furious five weeks. But just because my time is coming to end at VFS, that does not mean that Film School In A Year will come to an end. It will change, but it will continue in some form. Time is precious, though. And a picture is worth a thousand words. So, here are a few pictures of our last two productions (Final Projects). "En Passant" (DV) is a topical story of two friends who meet regularly to play chess. Over the course of their new friendship, however, one suspects the other of being a terrorist with tragic results (I was sound mixer on this production. Directors from the mid-term round were asked to sound mix because no one else wanted to do it. I am also editing this show.) "Hatred" (Super 16) is a fantastical revenge story. Frankie witnesses the murder of his father as a child and seeks revenge 30 years later only to perpetuate the endless cycle of violence (I produced this show.). - J

"I'm running out of time."
The Jacket (2005)

"Daniel" (Harold) contemplates the next move in his friendship with "Ibrahim".

"Ibrahim" talks to our Director, Bal, on location for "En Passant".

A young "Frankie" sits in what looks like a bath tub for "Hatred". For two days, we shot at an abandoned psychiatric hospital. Actually, this tub was used for electro-shock therapy.

The body parts represent only a sampling of an entire field covered in these very realistic looking appendages.

Our crew on location in an abandoned fabricated residential neighborhood used for the families of Royal Air Force families stationed in Canada during World War II.

Pablo directs an older "Frankie" (James) in an open field south of Vancouver.

Day 241 - 'Short Cuts'

Day 241 continued the trend of working on multiple projects at once. This morning, I sat in on a spotting session for sound design on "If Love Is A Red Dress". This afternoon, my editor and I continued to work on cutting "Definitions". And, boy, have we cut. Our original cut ran 8:30. Our current cut runs 6:50. And it's better for it. Finally, this evening, I had a conversation with the writer I'm working with on our Western (tentatively titled "Empty Leather"). All three projects are coming along very nicely. And as proof of how things are progressing, I thought I would present several stills from the fine cut of "Definitions". Enjoy. - J

"Everybody's got their own way of letting off steam, Ring.
It's what you do on the field that counts."

Eight Men Out (1988)

Day 239 - 'Anger Management'

Day 239 finds me in the eye of a hurricane. It's calm, quiet. But that won't last. As producer of "Shane's Trains", I continue to work on the festival marketing materials. As producer of "If Love Is A Red Dress…", we are halfway through the post-production process and are about to start the sound design phase. As director of "Definitions", we are about show the editing instructor are second cut on the film. And as a hopeful director of a final project, I am beginning development work on two scripts: a western and a comedy.

Today, however, is not the only day that found me in the middle of a storm. I was caught in the rain without an umbrella on both "If Love Is A Red Dress…" and "Definitions", figuritively and literally. I know I have not made an entry in while. I would have like to have been able to write more during production on both shows. But based on the experiences I had on both shows, it's probably a good thing that I did not write anything in the middle of those experiences. I wish I could say that I had a great time on both "Red Dress" and "Definitions" and that everything went according to plan. Unfortunately, I had less than a stellar time on both and very few things went according to plan on either. So, here's an abbreviated version of the challenges faced on both productions:

"If Love Is A Red Dress"
- In pre-production, my director broke down because she thought that I was not as enthusiastic about the show as she thought I should be. And she was right. I was not that enthusiastic about producing a show about a transsexual trying to lose weight to impress a man he had a crush on in high school who ends being gay. After her breakdown, the director and I talked through these problems (and the problems with the script) and streamlined the story, turning "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" into something more like and episode of "Will & Grace" (The story ended up being about a middle-aged woman trying to lose weight to fit into a red dress for a high school reunion in orded to impress a man she had a crush on in high school. And, yes, he's still gay in this version.)
- A day before production began, we had to recast our lead actress.

- On the first day of production, traffic on the street we were shooting on was so bad, that we had to edit those scenes out of the show because of audio problems.
- The shop we were shooting in front (which we had permission to shoot in front of), refused to allow us to plug our lights into their outlets. Rightfully, they had safety concerns regarding our extension cords and their customers.
- While picking up some equipment on the first day, the crew member who was driving the U-Haul we rented sideswiped another car, knocking off their sideview mirror.
- The apartment manager at our second location, refused to allow us to bring all of our necessary equipment into the apartment where we were shooting. After talking to him for a while (and in the process getting told to leave the premises three different times), he allowed us to take up a smaller package of equipment. Thank goodness we had already sent up some stuff or we would have been in considerably worse shape that we were already in. As a result, a good portion of the show is underexposed.
- Audio throughout the show was low. We'll probably have to replace key dialogue.

Those are the most memorable of problems we had on "Red Dress". In addition to those challenges, we also had our fair share of personality conflicts. While they did not affect "Red Dress" too much, they did come back to affect "Definitions" in a big way.

"Defintions"
- Within the first week of pre-production, my Assistant Director (AD) and Producer had a personality conflict that could not be resolved. As bad as that was (and it was bad), my AD went to the head of the school to not only ask off of the production, but out of the program. She ended staying, but changing roles. And because of those changes, two other people changed roles to accommodate her.
- I blew up at the Producer/Writer in a way that I have never done in my life. We had three weeks of pre-production for the show. I did not get a script from him that I could make changes to until a week before we started shooting.
- We had to recast both leads twice. And that was just two days before we started shooting.

And we had not even started shooting yet… - J

"Would you quit it? What, the ocean isnt big enough for you or something like that?
You got a problem? Huh? Do ya, do ya, do ya? You wanna piece of me?
Yeah, yeah! Ooh, I'm scared now! What?"
- Finding Nemo (2003)

Shooting a tracking dolly shot a local Curves location for an exercise sequence in "Red Dress".

The final day of production on "Red Dress" at a local secondary school.
And, yes, those are two men hugging. Long story for such a short film.

The first day of production on "Definitions" at a local cafe.

Preparing to shoot Brian's Wall of Polaroids in "Defintions" at my apartment.

Day 194 - 'Cast Away'

Day 194 was the last day before production begins on our first digital midterm drama. Since returning from Mazatlan three weeks ago and returning to school two weeks ago, I have been working on producing this project. "If Love Is A Red Dress…" is the story of an overweight 30-something woman who tries to lose weight before a high school reunion in order to impress a man she used to love. But he's not the man that she thought he was . . . Anyway. Producing the show has been fairly smooth (a fair amount of the credit should go the writer/director - she also directed "Shane's Trains") . . . up until the last couple of days. After casting our lead (on Wednesday), we realized that there was a scheduling conflict and we had to shuffle production around to accommodate her schedule. After making those changes (yesterday), we emphasized to the actress the importance of committing to the project and that there could be no further changes to the schedule. Within twelve hours of that conversation, she called (this morning) and said that she accepted an audition and would not be available one evening. So . . . we replaced her. A day before production begins. I guess the drama begins before the camera starts to roll.

Over the next week, I will check in with how the production is proceeding accompanied by photos.

"A good many dramatic situations begin with screaming."
Barbarella (1968)

Day 172 - 'The Crying Game'

Day 172 almost marks the halfway point in this year long intensive film program. Tomorrow is the last day of the 3rd term. After a week off (I will be headed to Mexico for 5 days and then back home to Oregon for 5 days), we will begin our 4th term and the first round of productions (on DV). And after six months of "Film School In A Year," I thought I would provide some answers to some unanswered (and in some cases, unasked) questions. If I don't answer your question, just let me know. So, here I go:

• I am attending Vancouver Film School in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

• I passed the practical Cinematography exam and was ranked 3rd out of 15 (who qualified to take the test), qualifying me to be a Director of Photography on any of Midterm Dramas or Final Projects.

• I am producing one of the three digital Midterm Dramas.

• I do not know if I will be directing a Midterm Drama in the film round. The script I submitted a Director's Proposal for was not selected for digital production. After digital production is complete, Directors for the next round will be announced.

• I made my Director cry today. When I told my wife, she said, "What did you do?" Well, the answer to that question is nothing. And that was the problem. I was not honest with her in how I felt about the script she has written. And she could tell that I was not enthusiastic about the story. But as one of the instructors so delicately put it this morning in our second Studio Notes work session, "This is s@#%." He was right. I knew he was right, but I just did not know why. And I did not try to tell her that I was not connecting with the story. Well, to make a long story short, she is re-writing the entire script and it's more in line with the instructor's suggestions (and my sensibilities). And it's a story that I can be enthusiastic about. So, things are fine. And I learned a pretty good lesson when it comes to Producing, or anything that you're invested in: if something is bothering you, don't ignore it because people will be able to tell regardless of how hard you try to hide it.

I'm going to be gone for a week. But when I get back, it's going to get fast and furious. Not only will I keep you up to date with how production is moving along, but you will also be witness to the inevitable mistakes that I will make, and the lessons learned, along the way. That's entertainment. - J

"That's it, go ahead and run. Run home and cry to mama!"
Army of Darkness (1993)

Day 160 - 'Vision Quest'

Day 160 was a test. Actually, this entire week has been a test, a test that I passed. This past week was probably the most dramatic week yet (this should familiar for all you "The Bachelor" fans). On Tuesday, I took 5 tests including Editing (written & practical), Producing, Assistant Directing, and Cinematography. The tests are important because if you want to hold any of these positions in the midterm round of dramas, you have to pass the tests. Passing the tests is not my main concern. I'm confident enough that I did. The main concern, however, is whether or not I received a high enough mark on the Cinematography written exam to qualify me to take the practical exam. And I did. Honestly, I'm not that interested in being the Director of Photography for this round of dramas. For this round, I'm more interested in producing, directing, or operating. However, I wanted to take the Cinematography practical exam to see if I ranked and where I ranked in the top six (15 students are taking the exam over today and tomorrow - only the top six are ranked, everyone else is tied for seventh). After my performance today in the practical exam, they might raise the bar higher in order to take the test. The test consists of setting up a night time scene in 45 minutes. The set is constructed and the lights are built. It's your job to position the camera, establish the frame, and light the scene. I had talked to a couple of people who had taken the test and I thought I had a sound strategy. As soon as the clock started ticking, that strategy went out the window (and I started running around and sweating like Les Schwab employees). I went into panic mode and threw up as many lights as possible making it look as good as possible. Now, it looked good to my eye. But that does not mean that it will end up looking good on film. With about ten minutes left, I realized that I did not have enough light (or lights) for the scene, so I just opened up the aperture on the lens a little bit more (f4.0 to f2.8). And I hope it worked. Although, when the instructor questioned me about the scene afterwards, I have to admit that I was making things up. So, in the end, the scene might look good on film, but the instructor might question whether or not I knew how I got there. And if he's any good at his job, he'll have an answer better than mine.

"Can I ask you a question?"
"What is it?"
"It's an interrogative form of sentence,
used to test knowledge. But that's not important right now."
Airplane II: The Sequel (1982)

Day 153 - 'The Producers'

Day 153 is about studying and preparing for four tests on Tuesday. These four test will determine what I am qualified to do on the upcoming round of three digital dramas. Earlier this week, I decided not to submit my script for production. Why? It was terrible. No, I'm not being hard on myself. It was truly not very good. And the thing is that I knew that the story was not going to go anywhere when I first submitted the idea. A self-fulfilling prophecy? Possibly. Unfortunately, I'm stubborn and I thought I could make it work. Once I got it in my head, though, that my idea was not very good, the spark to flush out the script was extinguished in toilet water. Even though I have not submitted a script for production, I can still submit a proposal to direct. But I don't think I'm going to do that for this round of dramas (including the film round). I probably have only one opportunity to direct while in the program. And would prefer to wait until the final round of dramas (hopefully, the round of Super 16mm dramas). So, for this round of dramas, I am hoping to produce, DoP (Direct of Photography), or operate (the camera). After Tuesday, we'll see if I actually qualify to do any of those jobs or if I get to get the coffee on set. I have to go . . . "Tommy Boy" is on. - J

"Fat guy in a little coat. Fat guy in a little coat."
Tommy Boy (1995)

Anonymous Instructor Sayings:
"It's not rocket science."
"It's good for filmmakers to watch animation."
"It's easy to say 'No.'"

Anonymous Student Sayings:
"That was a good movie." (Refering to "Ishtar")
"'Secondhand Lions', it's a good movie." (Same student as above)

Day 136 - '9 to 5'

Day 136 is all about working with Dolly. More about this later. - J

Later . . . Dolly work is a lot easier than it looks. You just have to get used to the heavy load (especially when it's loaded up with a couple of sand bags) and execute smooth moves. If you want to see a nice black and white photo of Dolly, just click here. - J

"As my late husband, Ephraim Levi, used to say, 'If you have to live
from hand-to-mouth, you'd better be ambidextrous."
Hello Dolly (1969)

Instructor Saying of the Day:
"Filmmaking is all about compromise."

Day 132 - 'Erin Brockovich'

Day 132 found me acting in front of a camera for the first time in a very long time. Over the course of yesterday and today, I acted for nine hours in two versions of one scene and another scene for our mini-drama exercises. And it's a lot harder than I remember it being. And I think that I am not quite as good as I remember being. Actually, I know that I'm not as good as I thought I was. Learning the lines (two and a half pages from "Erin Brokovich") is the easiest part of acting. Beyond that, it's kind of like patting your head and rubbing your stomach. Only after adding rubbing your stomach, you have to remember exactly how you rubbed your stomach. The timing of rubbing your stomach. And then, you start to add to other things. In the scene I was acting in, I was washing some dishes. Sounds easy, until you try it. It's like you can't do two things at once. You're either doing the dishes or giving your lines. Then you need to remember which dish was in what hand at what particular time for coverage (medium shots, close-ups). It's fun, but it's not easy. It's good to know what you're putting others through. Hopefully, I'll be doing it again soon. But I'll need some time to work on my biker persona. - J

"You know General, sometimes the men don't know when you're acting."
Patton (1970)

Day 130 - 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers'

July 7, 2005
In light of today's events and today's entry, the developers
of iPodderX say it best on their website:

Our thoughts and prayers go to all those involved in today's tragedy.

Day 130 is about Pod people. More specifically, it's been about Podcasting. Even though I have not had classes today, there hasn't been a shortage of things for me to do today (screenplay revisions, mini-drama prep, work). However, I have had a few moments to take a closer look at Podcasting (and make this blog entry). And it is the future of radio. Using iTunes (or any other application that allows you to subscribe to Podcasts), you can subscribe to any number of audio programs of you choice and listen to them on your computer or on the go (with an iPod, for example). Once you've subscribed to a program, your application of choice will automatically download the program you've subscribed to as new ones become available. The selection of programs available at the iTunes Store is pretty good, considering this technology is in its infancy and the price (free). And the number of available programs will only grow (it's up to you Jose G.). Check out the links I have posted and become a Pod(casting) person now. In the future, you may not have a choice. - J

"Is the world fundamentally a better place because of science and technology? We shop at home, we surf the web... at the same time, we feel emptier, lonelier and more cut off from each other than at any other time in human history."
Contact (1997)

Day 128 - 'A Day Without A Mexican'

WARNING:
The following blog contains material that may
not be suitable for the Politically Correct.

Day 128 was not a day without a Mexican. Actually, it was about a day with a Mexican. More precisely, it was about a conversation with a Mexican. I wanted to ask him a question that's been on my mind for a couple of days now. I got an answer. And then I was embarrassed.

Last Friday when I was home, I went out to lunch with my wife, mother, and youngest (looking) sister. While enjoying our lunch, I mentioned that we had a couple of Mexicans in our class. Judging by the looks I got from the three of them, you'd think I had dropped an F-bomb in church. Their eyes got big and under their breath they collectively told me to keep it down. Not having the best hearing in the world, I spoke up and asked them what was wrong with what I said. Each one of them in their own way told me that there was a Hispanic sitting behind me. I didn't take the clue and asked them what was wrong about referring to someone from Mexico as a Mexican. Someone from Sweden is Swedish. Someone from Russia is Russian. And someone from Mexico is Mexican. This was not an internal monologue. I continued making my point until I became very aware of how loud I was getting and then I stopped. Unlike most mature adults, though, I don't drop things easily. I'm still writing about it today, right? So, I told all three of them that I would ask someone from Mexico what is the proper way to refer to someone from Mexico.

In our new editing group (of 5 - replacing our documentary group), we have someone from Mexico City. While building our set for Cinematography, I asked him what is the proper way to refer to someone from Mexico. And he said . . . Mexican. He went on to say that the term "Mexican" is descriptive and is not a pejorative, derogatory, or negative term. And I thought that was the end of it.

That would have been the end of it except for the way an east Indian student and the Mexican student were going at it during our Cinematography exercise. The terms "cheap labor" and "outsourcing" were used quite frequently in regards to each other's heritage. The Canadian in our group and I were both laughing, knowing that was no way either one of us could get away with saying half of the things they were saying. Towards the end of the verbal Mexican standoff, the Canadian leans over and tells me about an episode of "The Office" (the American version) where the main character pulls a hispanic employee aside and asks how should he refer to someone from Mexico. Even though I'm from America, I felt like an Ass-ian. - J

"I don't speak Mexican. Let's keep it in English, Vargas."
Touch of Evil (1958)

Day 126 - 'Auto Focus'

Day 126 was all about travel, traveling from home back here to school. Other than a couple of stops at outlet stores along the way, the trip was fairly uneventful. However, the Instructor Shoot was so eventful, one of the students in the class snapped a number of digital photos (before being asked to stop - the instructor was concerned about the associated publicity and student releases). Here are a couple of photos to keep you entertained until I actually have something to say. - J

"What kind of film are we shooting here?"

"Please pull up to the next window."

More "Guilty Pleasure Movies":
"Jurassic Park", "Jurassic Park: Lost World", "A Few Good Men", "Independence Day"

"Oh, you don't need a picture. Just look up 'handsome' in the dictionary."
Big Fish (2003)

Updated: Important Books to Read

Day 119 - 'Guilty By Suspicion'

Day 119 was all about guilt and guilty pleasures. Guilt that I did not make it to church this morning because of work I needed to do. Guilty pleasure because of what was on television while I was working on the things that kept me from church. I don't know about you, but there are certain movies that when they are on television, I can't help but watch no matter how many times I've seen them. These are bad movies that as a fan of good films I should be ashamed to like. But bad movies can make for great entertainment. Tonight, one such movie was on and I had to watch. If you have never seen Lake Placid, you need to (This goes for Anaconda and Deep Blue Sea as well.). I have to disclose that some of the language is not the greatest. However, most of that language is coming from Betty White. And that just makes it even funnier. In this year that we are celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Jaws, I suggest you rent one of the trashiest giant animal movies of all time. Just make sure you're on your way to church when you return it to Blockbuster. - J

"To old friends, to retirement, to new beginnings."
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)

Day 115 (photos included) and Day 118 updated below.

Day 118 - 'Shattered Glass'

Day 118 was about a lesson that every member of my family should have learned by now: DO NOT LEAVE ANYTHING IN YOUR CAR BECAUSE IT WILL BE STOLEN. And if you haven't learned this lesson the hard way, I would suggest you take it to heart, the easy way. - J

"He's on his final hole. He's about 455 yards away, he's gonna hit about a 2 iron I think."
Caddyshack (1980)

Day 115 - 'Visions of Light'

Day 115 was about light and sound on the set of the Instructor Shoot. For the first scene, our group set up the lights as part of the lighting/grip department. Our job was to help the Director of Photography set up the lights he needed in order to establish the mood he wanted for the scene. Next to Directing, this was probably the most enjoyable rotation. Even though the lighting strategy was not fully explained to us before we started lighting, we were kept fairly busy and felt a tanglible sense of accomplishing something on set (Considering that I am one of the laziest people alive, this is saying something.). While the dialogue between the Director of Photography and the Gaffer was a version of shorthand (the DoP is a mentor to the Gaffer), I think all of us picked up enough of that conversation to have learned something about the overall strategy of lighting a scene. Once we rotated into the sound department, we picked up all of the conversations. While it was not as physically demanding as the lighting department, that is not always the case. In the photo below, the student wearing the shirt with the "23" rotated into the most physically demanding scene of the entire shoot. In this scene, he had to hold the boom extended all the way out (about 15 feet) for the duration of the the Master Shot. This is a shot that covers the entire duration of the scene. And we had several takes. By the time he was done, he was sweating big time. Our sound instructor told us of an operator in town who had to retire from booming because his doctor informed him that his organs were shifting around. Not good. Getting good sound can be very physically demanding and is one of the key differences between an amateur and a professional production. So, don't take sound lightly. - J

Our group set up the lights for this scene. There were about 15 lights set up for this scene. That's the most for any scene.

Behind the scenes of the Instructor Shoot. The large 2K Junior light on the left is the source of the sun in the scene.

"Louder! We can't hear you!"
Blazing Saddles (1974)

Day 114 - 'O Brother, Where Art Thou?'

Day 114 was the second day of the Instructor Shoot. The Instructor Shoot is a 4-day shoot of a 6 scene screenplay. Every term, every class collaborates with instructors in shooting the script. The script is several years old and not very good. Shooting a good script is not the point of this exercise, though. The point is set etiquette and set protocol. The class is divided into six groups and rotated between six different departments with every new scene. Within each department, each member of the group rotates between several positions with each new set up. For instance, yesterday, I rotated between the camera department and the assistant directing departments. And today, I finished up my responsibilities in assistant directing and rotated in the art deparment.

Unfortunately, I will have to write more about the Instructor Shoot tomorrow. I promise.

Before I go, though, here are a few of the things that are going on right now that I do not time to get into: "Shane's Trains" is complete and I have written a draft of my first short screenplay.

On Day 115, I will be rotating between the sound and lighting/grip departments.

"Out on that drill field yesterday, you people were miserable. You people ain't even a mob.
A mob's got a leader. You people are a herd. I'm gonna get me a sheep dog! "
The D.I. (1957)

Day 80 - 'Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope'

Day 80 marked the first time I worked with film since I was 5 years old and directed my version of "Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope". I plan on working with film sooner than that next time. However, today's experience with film kicked all of us in the rear end. Light meters. F-Stops. Frames per second. Lens sizes. More work with the Force of filmmaking need I. - J

Matt turns the power on as I operate the camera during our Bolex exercise.

My sister played Princess Leia. However, I played Hans Solo.

The guy with bag over his head is not the Unkown Comic. He is Darth Vader. And, yes, he's my father.

Not only did I direct and produce this film, I also played multiple roles. Here I am C-3PO with a dimunitive R2-D2.

"A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away... "
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

Day 73 - 'AVP'

Day 73 caught me between the Alien and the Predator (not the moon and New York City). I know it's silly. But it's true. Tonight, I attended a screening of AVP followed by a presentation and Q&A session with the Academy Award winning creature effects team of Tom Woodruff and Alec Gillis. Together, they have created and performed some of your favorite characters including the Alien and the Predator. Their numerous accolades include an Academy Award for Death Becomes Her (an animatronic Meryl Streep) and multiple nominations for Starship Troopers and Alien 3. Their other films include The Sixth Day, Tremors (the worm), Jumanji (the lion on the bed), Michael (John Travolta's wings), Evolution (the evolved ape) and The Santa Clause 1 & 2 (Tim Allen's belly). Unfortunately, I had to sit through AVP before getting to their presentation (They expressed their sympathy, at least as far as the script was concerned. They thought that the Writing Department hated them at that point). But it was worth it. Not only did they share quite a bit of their previous work with us, but they also shared little exchanges with big name directors (James Cameron, Robert Zemeckis) and gave us a glimpse at some of their upcoming work (I Am Legend and Ridley Scott were mentioned in the same sentence). Very entertaining. And I think they ignited a little bit of that "star-struck" quality in most of the crowd. These are two guys who worked on and worked in the films that have inspired you and worked with the directors that you would like to become. - J

"We are creatures of the spring, you and I."
Death Becomes Her (1992)

Anonymous Student Saying of the Day:
"(The Adventures of) Baron Munchausen is a great film."

"Producers lie and are stupid."
Tom Woodruff & Alec Gillis

Day 72 -'Almost Famous'

Day 72 was about directing. We reviewed our exercises from the weekend. I might write more about it later. - J

Instructor Saying of the Day:
"If you want to be a great filmmaker, you need to visit the classic."

On going to film school:
"I'm always going to regret it if I don't do this."

Name Drop of the Day:
Gil Bellows
Andrew Sarris
Joel Schumacher

Day 64 - 'Back To School'

Day 64 was the first day of the second term. More to come later.

Congratulations R & S on Baby C! - J

"I must congratulate you on your virtuoso performance, my boy. Centauri is impressed. I've seen 'em come, and I've seen 'em go, but you're the best, my boy. Dazzling! Light years ahead of the competition! Centauri's got a little proposition for you. Are ya interested?"
The Last Starfighter (1984)