Remembrances of things past…

Perhaps it’s just that I’m paying more attention to it now, but there sure seem to be a lot of 80’s-oriented events converging on our entertainment scene these days. I would never have believed another Indiana Jones movie would be produced - let alone a Beverly Hills Cop FOUR. I’m seriously sitting here wracking my brain trying to remember the plots of BHC 2 and 3… guess the brainpower has been put to better use [one can only hope].

Crowded House - Yaz - The Cure - The Police with the fabulous Elvis Costello - REM - George Michael… okay many of these bands had a musical life since the 80’s, but still. I was lucky enough to get tix to see the Police/Elvis at the Bowl on Tuesday night. Barring what amounts to a fiscal fiasco when a friend failed to do the right thing it was the most magical night. The next day, I couldn’t recall their first song - I think I was in a state of suspended shock - like the energy and anticipation I had about Sting, Andy and Stewart when I was younger came flooding back in a disorienting wash of mixed emotions about lost friends, friends still standing, and some fairly amazing memories of adventures shared by both.

Upon exiting - or rather trying to exit without screaming or unintentionally elbowing someone in the face [man that place is hard to leave] - I was trying to rationalize the odd feeling of loss by saying ‘just think, somewhere in LA, as I speak, there just has to be another ‘Police’ playing one of the many clubs in this city’. A friendly stranger turned and noted that she hoped I was right - that the thought gave her hope - because we just saw the last Police concert ever.

That is a sad thought - maybe not for all, but all of us have at least one artist somewhere in our lives for whom the idea of their passing on or fading out hurts our heart. However, I do believe that there are new opportunities, new ideas just as worthy developing ready to take their place. Must be determined, yes. Must be willing to take risks, yes. Must be lucky - well that doesn’t hurt. I look at this ‘Superbeasto’ movie, and as we continue to ship retakes [yes, still] I am more and more convinced that this project will make fans of the animated artform smile - BIG TIME. It will be four years in July since this movie first began production. It survived being shelved, changes in production staff, and even changes here at Film Roman as the company changed hands from Phil Roman, IDT and Starz. But it’s driven by brilliant people, and even on the worst day when the amount of work seems just undoable, the energy surrounding the project is infectious and you find a way to keep going. Enough tooting of the horn here - I have four years of loose storyboards to pull together and designs to coordinate - as the shipping of the retakes continues, it brings us closer to the time when marketing starts to ask for materials and it’s best to be super-prepared when they do. Later all.