Thoughts Ideas and Other Stuff

Pilot and LA X side by Side. Lost Season 1 vs Lost Season 6 (Extreme Spoilers)

2010-02-04T13:54:00.000-08:00

*MAJOR LOST SPOILERS AHEAD*

I love the TV show Lost it's in my top list of shows of all times, and is one show I've watched since the Pilot week after week as it aired, now when 5 years later friends are getting the DVDs or Hulu and watching all the episodes, which is great. I had to wait 9 months to find out what happened, saw the first 2 episodes and still have no idea.

The editing of this show is masterfully crafted take this side by side comparison of Season 1 and Season 6.

Tony Soprano / Where the Wild Things Mashup - NSFW

2010-02-01T15:03:00.000-08:00

James Gandolfini was the voice of Carol for Where the Wild Things are, and someone made a creative mashup of the 2 for this short trailer. I'm a big fan of taking existing footage and re-purposing to create something new, although on one hand it's a simple joke. It's done well and funny. Check it out.

Ton's of F-bombs / NSFW

- 2010 The Future -

2010-01-29T17:27:00.000-08:00

It's been a whopping 5 months since I've written anything here. The holidays are long gone, over and done with, another difficult year done. Goodbye 2009, I won't miss those last few months.

Ever since I've move to Los Angeles Ten years ago, spending time with close friends and family out of town, laughing, drinking, and celebrating is one of my most anticipated times of the year. Unexpectedly, not this year. Which sucked, and it's time to move on and no longer dwell in the past.

When I was a kid I remember hanging out with some friends and talking about what's the future going to be like. Oh man there's going to be a new Star Wars and we'll be in College! I recall saying that, someone mentioned maybe we'll have flying cars! Datapads like you see on Star Trek, This was 15+ years ago, and I'm still friends with that same group, close with those friends and now there family's. I can keep up with all of them via the net and social networking sites no matter where they are on the planet. Couldn't of predicted that, and I still think that apple got the tech to build the iphone from aliens. Honestly I don't think we'll ever see small scale affordable flying cars, if Toyota can't make a solid ground vehicle then who can?

So far we're a couple of weeks into 2010, a whole new decade. Growing up all those video games, comic books and movies told me that 2010 is The Future. I can see that this is in fact true, the world around us is vastly different then it was 5 years ago. I don't need to tell you how, you already know.

So sit back relax and enjoy The Future, that is until the Zombie Apocalypse is here.

Hahaha Mock dating ad with Tapeoka

2009-08-26T13:18:00.000-07:00

See them all right here:
TrueLoveAlwaysForever.com

Lego Stop motion awesomeness 1500 hours. You won't see anything cooler on the internet this week...

2009-08-24T01:40:00.001-07:00

I saw this and it blew my mind.

2009-08-09T00:33:00.001-07:00

BIRDY NAM NAM - THE PARACHUTE ENDING from Steve Scott on Vimeo.

The most amazing thing I saw in the internet today: Visual awesomeness 3d Projection.

2009-07-10T13:57:00.000-07:00

Projection on Buildings from NuFormer Digital Media on Vimeo.

I've seen this done in the past in a video, this is a much better more refined proof of concept. I wonder how difficult it would be to create this on a smaller scale, it's worth looking into.

Check out this TV Pilot at ITV fest.

2009-07-10T12:57:00.000-07:00

I worked on a great project with the one of the best crews I've worked with in years. This project opened up a plethora of opportunities in my personal life as well as my career. It's a pilot for a TV show called Keep Dreaming.
If you'd like to check it out:

It will be playing twice in the festival.
Sunday, August 2nd - 1pm
Thursday, August 6th - 5pm

(Just so you know, it's always paired with another pilot within the hour it's playing in the festival)

Click here to buy tickets!

Sunday, August 2nd - 1pm
Thursday, August 6th - 5pm

Both of our screenings are taking place at Laemmle's Sunset 5 theater at the corner of Sunset and Crescent Heights.

Sunset 5
8000 Sunset Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90046
(323) 848 3500

Tim Burton's : Alice in Wonderland

2009-06-23T10:02:00.001-07:00

Wow..... These pictures are fantastic. I hope he gets this one right, I love this story.

Moving forward!

2009-06-16T18:30:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy past couple of weeks, I think I've done more personally and work related these past few weeks then the the last year. Which is great, I've been working on a website project for some time and it's now online. behindthe4thwall is that website.
Behind the 4th Wall is an outlet to share your thoughts, stories, and insight into the creative aspects of any chosen creative media. Currently I am accepting submissions for content, with the idea of publishing a bunch of them together in the beginning of July, My aim is for July 1st, but well have to see if we have everything done in time.
I just completed work on another project working together with a extremely talented artist, I'll post more about this project on BT4W in the next few days. Also one of the short films I'm a Production Designer on is entered into the Palm Springs Film Feastival.

So true...

2009-06-01T01:55:00.000-07:00

Taking low budget film logic and applying it to the real world. I've had this happen to me in the past, funny and well done piece that low budget film makers could relate to.

Moving forward!

2009-06-01T00:41:00.001-07:00

A project that I've been working on for sometime is now online at www.behindthe4thwall.com Tagline: Behind the 4th wall is an outlet to share stories from behind the scenes in all aspects of entertainment media, art, design, and film making.

So after many, many, many hours of working on that website, concepts, business plans, and a bunch of other boring time consuming production based stuff I decided that I'll just make that a totally new endeavor and just keep this as my personal blog.

When see something that makes me go OMG you gotta see it I'll post it here. My readership is rather small, I think. So please; if you've just discovered this sited check out some of the earlier posts.

BT4W (as I'll refer to it from here on out) is currently a work in progress, and so far I've achieved some success, but I don't want to talk about anything .... just yet. It's been very busy! In production news I just got another IMDB credit, for Production design work on a short film that's headed out to the film festival circuit. Monday night will be a party and the premiere of the pilot The Day Player.

I've been becoming sorta in demand rather fast which is great, but I gotta pace myself and really think about if I can devote the amount of time needed to a project, full disclosure all the projects I work on are not paid. I'd rather make connections, friends and have some fun doing something I love then sitting at home and talking about how I'm not doing anything.

Back in October I was Production Designed a pilot TV Pilot Keep Dreaming and one of the Producers Richard Chui was talk about how keeping a project internal and not telling anyone about it keeps up the momentum, internally. Hmmm... that's not a bad idea.

How Sacrament was born...

2009-05-31T03:44:00.001-07:00

Here's a cool short that gave me a writing credit on IMDB. I didn't even know it, for a while. Flashback to 2008, I ended up crashing on my friend's couch for well over the couple of weeks, due to some economic hardships and misfortune after my return of 7 months in Boston. Which lead me to with a friends. Craig and Jay, Craig is a director, and is often working on a film/production related project, and he was getting ready to shoot a short for his Trespassing on the Lot series. (link below). Hanging out one night chatting in the kitchen we talked about his latest script. I felt that it was very simular to something I'd seen recently on TV. I watch quite a few shows on TV or the Internet, thanks to DVR. After discussing some ideas and situation the conclusion was, "this doesn't work" to quote Craig. Brainstorming for a bit late at night new stronger idea struck. Sacrament was born...

I think this could be a feature idea, if you agree please comment.

And now I present to you Sacrament in Glorious HD
Written and Directed By: Craig Ouellette
Story By: Craig Ouellette and Brian Erzen
Starring: Laurel Marlantes, Scott Tompkins, and Lauren Patti

Check out more great shorts here!

...

2009-05-29T01:53:00.000-07:00

Super cool.... Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor

2009-05-28T17:35:00.001-07:00

This is super cool, two super talented girls play Bach on the large keyboard at FAO Schwartz. I swear I only try to post stuff that's worth watching, this is def one of em. They had to rehearse this for hours and hours. It's quite impressive.

Creepy, yet funny? Hangin' with my dad (From Tim and Eric Awesome show!)

2009-05-03T17:45:00.000-07:00

This awesome video stars my good friend Christopher Gunkenberger, in one of his finest preformances. It's from the TV Show Tim and Eric Awesome show great job. It's got 88k hits. I'd love to see another one.

Is this creepy, or funny or both.... discuss

Truly amazing 2:20 sec short film, inspired by the Dark Knight.

2009-04-19T13:33:00.001-07:00

This is next level, alien technology at work. The fact that it's super jam packed and 2:20min long is a feat in and of it's self.

You can read more about it HERE. plus it looks much better on this site.

Enjoy and comment!

NIN Iphone app in action.

2009-04-07T17:55:00.000-07:00

When's the blackberry version coming out?

Mow the Lawn: The funniest double entre commerical you'll ever see.

2009-04-04T14:20:00.000-07:00

HD Link

en·do·sym·bi·ot·ic

2009-04-04T13:02:00.000-07:00

en·do·sym·bi·ot·ic

“ You may not be her first, her last, or her only. She loved before she may love again. But if she loves you now, what else matters? She’s not perfect - you aren’t either, and the two of you may never be perfect together but if she can make you laugh, cause you to think twice, and admit to being human and making mistakes, hold onto her and give her the most you can. She may not be thinking about you every second of the day, but she will give you a part of her that she knows you can break - her heart. So don’t hurt her, don’t change her, don’t analyze and don’t expect more than she can give. Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she’s not there."

"Bob Marley"

Stars Wars as an opening for the TV Show Classic Dallas.

2009-03-31T10:52:00.000-07:00

Growing up as a kid I hated Dallas. I dunno why, I think my mom watched it. I oddly remember only watching one episode, the one where the some guy walks outta the shower although I think he was dead, it was a big deal. I dunno I can't remember and I don't care.
On the other hand LOVED Star Wars. I mean I still love Star Wars, but not like I used to. So when I see something cool that's Star Wars related I tend to watch.
What I really like about this, is that it's more creative editing. I've been teaching myself how to edit. I learned years ago, but I'm a little rusty when ever I see something like this it makes me intrigued, and it's a mashup and becomes newly created art. To take subject matter and change it up and create something new.

Enjoy!

Who Could Ask for More: Directed by Craig Ouellette

2009-03-25T14:14:00.000-07:00

Set Pictures by Brian Erzen (AKA Me)

Contest Winning Short: The Big Blowout Directed by: Craig Ouellette

2009-03-18T13:35:00.001-07:00

Director Craig Ouellette, gathered a bunch of friends one soggy evening in Pasadena at the Beginning of the year to shoot a short film for Filmaka.com. With only the tageline : The Party.
Craig came up with a rather interesting idea, and it won the jury prize. Now on to round 2. I make a quick appearance in this as well.

The Last Big Blowout from Craig Ouellette on Vimeo.

Awesome short, What's in the Box

2009-03-18T13:32:00.001-07:00

If you got to youtube. The message is: temp film will be deleted soon. I love it! No one knows what it is. My guess is something to do with Half Life 3.

Final version is up:

Devil's Land : Teaser Trailer

2009-03-16T03:59:00.000-07:00

Director: Val Tsatsos was telling me about a short film he's been working on called Devil's Land. Now his idea is some smart low budget film making, to shoot a short based around the locations you have access to and write a story around that. He found a super kickass location, came up with an idea. 6 Months later they shot a trailer.

It's all desolate and creepy, out in the dessert. Reminds me of post-apocalyptic end of the world type of stuff, I dig a fun trailer that tells me nothing about the story, lots of cool imagery and some damn good score. The footage looks great, and it's shot on the new wonder cam everyone like's to talk about the Red Camera.

Val Tsatsos talks all about this project and others on LA Talk Radio. It's a really good interview, he's a busy guy with a bunch of good ideas. It's a pretty good story to listen to the process how this was made and what's currently happening if you're interested in the so call film making process.

You can listen to that here. (or right click to save it).

Dwarfed Punk

2009-03-13T04:49:00.001-07:00

This was a cool video that I saw about a week ago posted on a couple of sites, and I've watched it about 8 times now. It's just such a creative use of editing. I'm blown away with how well it works too, and Daftpunk has that catchy style that sticks in your head.
On a creative level this video, was inspiring for me.

Check it out, it's pretty short. 2:30mins

A tour with Silk Spectre (Malin Akerman)

2009-03-13T04:48:00.001-07:00

Watchmen Tour with Malin Akerman from Malin Akerman

25 Things I hate about Facebook: By Julian Smith

2009-03-04T15:07:00.000-08:00

I've been on Facebook for awhile, now and I do like it. There is a meme that's going around 25 Things, I'm sure if you read this much you know what I'm talking about. Since it's been going around for awhile now and no longer a new thing. This is a really simple, but ellegant video done by a guy named Julian Smith.

Check it.

Eascape from City 17: Part One

2009-02-21T11:34:00.000-08:00

This video is setting the bar on self made short films to an entirely different level, this is such a great useage of actors, green screen, and the graphic assests from Half Life 2. I can't wait to see this next one. If you only watch one sort film I post this should be it.

Whoa? How would someone from Fox know? hmmm....

2009-01-25T06:22:00.000-08:00

Will George W Bush be known as the worst president ever?

2009-01-19T22:43:00.001-08:00

Finally it's hours till W's gone, and well it's going to be nothing but sunshine and rainbows right?

How funny is this?

2009-01-09T02:09:00.001-08:00

This could be the coolest commerical you'll ever see.

2008-12-31T15:41:00.000-08:00

Who cares what it's for, this is a breathtaking work of art IMO.

Coolest fan made trailer ever? Thundercats

2008-12-23T01:49:00.000-08:00

Hanging out unwinding getting ready to go to bed after a long and stressful day, up in San Fransisco I came across this trailer. It's a really well done fan trailer, and makes for 2 mins of entertainment. Apparently the guy who made this spend a year and a half and edited it frame by frame with photoshop and used premier to edit it together, pretty awesome worth watching.

Enjoy
Post your comments.

Trent speech from the 12/13/08 Vegas Show.

2008-12-16T17:21:00.000-08:00

Some big NIN news from Trent, I loved there show this year. It was by far the best visual and audio live concert experience I've seen in many years.

Iphone discombobulation Self Portrait: Rose Coleman

2008-12-12T11:42:00.000-08:00

I was at a Christmas party last night, sitting down talking to a my friend Rose, we were looking at some pictures in her Iphone and she showed me this crazy pic.
She said she went to take a self portrait, and this was the result. The picture was taken, and it came out scrambled in visually pleasing and artistic way. The composition of the image as well as the color balance make this a work of art in my opinion. It's a fascinating to me how this randomly happened, and it looks really cool.

Photo Credit: Rose Coleman

Mmmm... Guinness, check this out.

2008-12-10T18:52:00.001-08:00

Prop 8 the Musical

2008-12-04T01:55:00.000-08:00

I found this from one of my facebook friends, weird I never thought I'd use it. It's addicting and I can use it anytime from my blackberry. That's dangerous.

Anyway check this out, a star studded affair!
Prop 8 The Musical

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Profound words by Lonny Chant.

2008-11-30T12:45:00.000-08:00

"Moving to San Francisco would be a step up , in your life path. If you think about it."

Change!

2008-11-09T01:03:00.001-08:00

is good....

Democratic Presidential Nominee, Barack Obama and his family on election night in Chicago, IL on Wednesday, November 5, 2008. (David Katz/Obama for America)

Take On Me: Literal Video Translation

2008-10-13T14:49:00.000-07:00

Since I was coming up to San Fran, I managed to coordinate a potluck dinner gathering with some close and dear friends. After much drinking and merryment, some one started playing videos on youtube. This was prob one of my favorites, it is the literal song translation to the classic video Take on Me by Ah Ha.

Check out this compelling piece of entertainment.

Greg Phelan's Keep Dreaming

2008-10-06T14:48:00.000-07:00

***In progress, not done*****
So Late one night in August after work I went to a bar for some drinks with 2 close friends and we got talking about production projects happening with around town with friends, I was quite buzzed and ranting on about a project I wasn't involved in. As well as I needed to get more involved and find some production work.

Around the same time I received an email from an friend of mine. I didn't know him well at the time, but I worked with him a bunch of times and he was just a really nice guy with healthy and positive energy.

Greg was finally shooting a Pilot Presentation called Keep Dreaming an idea he came up with about a year prior and he was looking for some help on the project. So I contacted Greg and told him about my production background and that I was interested in working on the project.

I sent off my resume, went and partied in the dessert for a week, and then came back home and got the job. I was hired on as the production Designer. Over the course of 2 weeks we had 4 production meetings. Which let everyone get to know each other. As well as prep, I believe that is the most important element of production in my opinion.

For the three days of Shooting, production was calm and cool, and everyone busted their ass. The days went smoothly and it was a fantastic shoot. It's all about the prep work. So let me explain what the production designer does, he comes up with the ideas of how the sets/locations are going to look and works with production to come up with what's fitting and what can be done. I found out what props and set dressing I needed, and set off with a small amount of cash, and got materials from friends.

I'm proud of my work on this project and couldn't of done it without the help of Meridith Myers and Ashley Beverage. This was the best crew I've ever worked with. Some truly talented and creative people. I also made a couple of good friends on this project.

Here is a couple pictures from the set.

*Keep Dreaming is currently in post-production and estimated to be done sometime in November.

Wow

2008-10-06T14:44:00.000-07:00

The highest resolution picture of Jupiter ever taken, amazing.

The footprint.

2008-10-06T13:52:00.000-07:00

I am currently in a state of flux, my life has been a crazy roller coaster the past couple of months.
My dilemma, do I write about it? Cause, once you send something to the net Google swallows it whole, absorbs it and that information will be kept forever. Often even if this information is deleted it can be tracked down through the deadly Google Cache, I can only imagine that this will get worse as time goes on.
So do I write about my life and post it on the net? How personal do I want to make those posts?

I guess time will tell.

BTW
Send comments!

Best Rick Roll Mashup.

2008-09-14T14:00:00.000-07:00

This is a great mash up of the Replublican National Convention Footage, and Obama in the background.

Check it!

I Met The Walrus

2008-09-12T18:23:00.001-07:00

When Zombies Attack! Shut Up and Kick Some Ass!

2008-08-23T14:54:00.000-07:00

When Zombies Attack! PSA 6: Shut Up & Kick Some Ass from Craig Ouellette on Vimeo.

Director Craig Ouellette is at it again with Trespassing on the Lost season two, and Zombie PSA 6! This short was shot in one day, and the crew was Craig and I. I set up the lights, was the AD, and gave some ideas with the art direction. I acted as one of the Zombies, but I can't really been seen.
To my knowledge there is only one more Zombie PSA then it will be done.

The rest can be found here!

Teaser Trailer for "Night Before the Wedding" a film by David Branin.

2008-08-22T13:03:00.000-07:00

This is a great little film some friends of mine have been working on and planning for awhile, now. They are still working on raising money to finish their film shoot. Here is the fantastic trailer they made for the movie.

I really like David's idea here, to shoot documentary style with little character snippets. No footage from the movie is used, and nothing is spoiled. Too many trailers give away the entire movie and I hate that.

Just check it out yourself.

"Night Before the Wedding" Extended Teaser Trailer

You can find out more here.

Coolest things I've seen on the net in awhile.

2008-08-15T00:17:00.001-07:00

Vimeo Tribute: Star Wars from Casey D on Vimeo.

Be Inspired......

2008-06-12T01:33:00.000-07:00

Rememory....

2008-06-02T00:33:00.000-07:00

I was thinking about this picture, and this time, and how tasty this Absinthe is.

It's been awhile.

Violated....

2008-05-26T14:53:00.000-07:00

I've been really busy lately. My social life has taken a back seat and all I've been doing is working, nonstop as much as I can. After working close to 3 weeks straight and on my final shift before a 2 day break of fun.... My car was broken into.

Out of all the days I leave my wallet in my car, locked in my glove box.

My car had the window jimmed, the glovebox unlocked and open as well as my trunk. Those bastards got away with close to 2 thousand dollars in stuff, including my GPS system and digital camera. Which made my evening end in a crashing halt.

So now the bullshit begins of tracking down what was stolen, and replacing my credit cards and license.

Damn... Memorial weekend ruined...

*I figured I'd post this here, since honestly it seems like only my close friends and people I've known for awhile read this*

*Update 06.02.08 So, I'm almost back on track, I should have a new license and bank card by the end of the week. I lost a $70 dollar check to cash that I can't replace, and I have to wait 2 weeks to replace another check in my wallet. Ah. Well I got a solid block of work then I'm going out of town for a Wedding. I haven't been to a wedding in a very long time.

Weezer: Pork and Beans....

2008-05-25T15:16:00.000-07:00

I see this video and I recognize most of these internet Memes. Do you?

The most amazing explanation to LOST!

2008-05-21T16:42:00.000-07:00

This is a post from the blog Lost Addicts: a fantastic blog that dicusses Lost in detail, and does a recap the day after a new episode airs. Someone named "Steve" posted this deep theory as to what happens in the show and explains many of the mysteries. It's in no way fact, but it seems pretty damned close. Please for your enjoyment, only read this if you've watched up to Season 4 of Lost.

Enjoy.....

Let's go back to shortly after the turn of the Twentieth century, the days of Einstein and other early theoretical physicists. This was the dawn of the age of quantum mechanics, which provided new understanding and insight into physics at the sub-atomic level. New mathematics described the behavior of the tiny particles that make up all of matter in the universe. The math was clearly described in terms of numbers, symbols, formulas... however the application to nature as we know it was strange, weird, bizarre.

It was very difficult to wrap the human brain around many of the concepts of quantum mechanics, and the math alone was inadequate to explain the problems. Thus, physicists and mathematicians turned to "Gedanken Experiments," German for Thought Experiments. Applying the known concepts of quantum mechanics to situations in the "real world" allowed a conversation to take place in a way most anybody could (sort of) understand.

Before I lose you, here is an example. In the mathematics of quantum physics, time travel is THEORETICALLY possible. One of the most famous Gedanken Experiments is the Grandfather Paradox. If you could travel back in time, could you kill your grandfather? Logic tells you that no, you could not, for if you did, you would not exist. (Pause here and consider why Locke insists that "he can't" kill his father, he needs somebody else to do it.) The beautiful thing about Gedanken Experiments is that they are both scientific and philosophical, perfect fodder for a creative writer. In the case of the Grandfather Paradox, while they logic is clear, the actual experience of it is a mystery. Imagine actually standing there in the past, holding a loaded gun to the head of your grandfather... what would actually prevent you? "Something" would, some unknown mechanism of physics... and that is where the writers of "Lost" imagine for us.

"Lost" is a grand Gedanken Experiment, a test of science and philosophy. It asks the question, What if time travel were not only possible, but real, with technology developed in a manner as realistic and consistent with known theoretical physics as possible? And to make it even more dramatic, What if you could travel back in time, AND NOT KNOW IT? The passengers of Flight 815 have done exactly that, and the writers have made the audience go along with them, sharing the same sense of confusion and mystery.

Let's talk about what we know about time travel today. We are not talking about cheesy movies of the past, where one can travel back to the age of dinosaurs or the middle ages. In fact, in the "real" science of time travel, a few things are known by the constraints of physics and quantum mechanics.
There is a conceptual model of a real time machine, and it works something like this:

A time machine must have two parts, essentially two portals, connected by a wormhole (or black hole or whatever you want to call it). Door #1 is built alongside Door #2. Door #1 is allowed to continue along the "present"
timeline, while Door #2 is encapsulated in a bubble within space-time, thus separated from the present timeline. This would require a great amount of energy and technology obviously unknown today... but thanks to the writers of "Lost," it has been solved by Dharma Industries. The amount of separation would be only slight to begin with... say, 108 minutes. Since Door #1 exists in the present timeline, it can safely be located anywhere (Dharma headquarters?). Door #2, now operating in a different place in space-time, in the past, must be safely located in a remote location, for any type of interaction with it from the outside could be catastrophic.

There is a very important concept in time travel here, which is that you can NEVER travel back further in time than the creation of your time machine; Hence the impossibility of visiting the dinosaurs, etc. Now, if the two doors of your time machine were separated by only 108 minutes at the initial "event", but then allowed to just sit there, then both timelines would progress at the same pace, forever separated by only 108 minutes. Traveling to the past, but only by 108 minutes, would not be very interesting. Much more exciting would be to keep Door #2 back at the original time of its inception, while Door #1 continues to move forward in time. You could do this by continually "resetting" the clock on Door #2. Over time, the separation between the two doors would grow and grow, from minutes, to hours, to days, to years.

If you actually had the technology to achieve time travel in this manner, there are MANY profound questions you would have to test and answer in order to be confident that you could safely operate the time machine without catastrophically altering the future. The Grandfather Paradox is the most obvious, but actually only one of many questions.

ANSWER #1: What is the Dharma Initiative? It is the building and testing of a time machine, as described above. Door #1 is at the Dharma Headquarters, Door #2 is on the Island in the remote South Pacific.

The question isn't, Where is the Island? The question is, When is the Island? The answer to that depends on how long ago, in the present timeline, the time machine was created... approximately 14 years ago, I believe.

ANSWER #2: Why must the button be pushed every 108 minutes? This "resets"
the clock of Door #2 of the time machine, essentially holding it at the time of its inception in the relative past. If allowed to pass 108 minutes on the clock, then the time machine will lose the ability to reset itself. Why, then, must it be pressed by a person, and not just programmed to reset itself? This is because the controllers at Door #1 do not have control over Door #2 in the past, and should disaster strike, and nobody is left alive in the past at Door #2, it should be allowed to pass 108 minutes and no longer reset. ANSWER #3: What happened when the clock was allowed to pass 108 minutes? Door #2 of the time machine lost the ability to reset, and will now continue to progress along a timeline into the future, locked at approximately 14 years separation from Door #1.

What are some of the other critical questions, like the Grandfather Paradox, that must be answered when considering time travel? Here is a great one:

What if a childless woman travels back in time and conceives a child? ANSWER
#4: A childless woman cannot travel to the past and conceive a child, because if she did, she would not have been a childless woman. In "Lost", both mother and child die before the birth, thus preserving the timeline and laws of nature. Perhaps the Others do not fully understand this, and brought in fertility doctor Juliet to see if they can overcome this obstacle.

Consider another:

What if a child travels back to a time before he or she was born? Perhaps nothing... but what if the child dies in the past, before being born? Again, impossible. ANSWER #5: The Others abduct children on the Island to protect them at all costs, for they cannot allow the catastrophic violation of the laws of nature of a child dying before being conceived.

And yet another:

If you travel to the past, will you be the "you" of the present timeline when you arrive, or the younger "you" of the past, or some combination of the two? I do not know, but I believe this offers insight into why John Locke can walk on the Island despite being paralyzed. ANSWER #6: Locke can walk not because the Island has powers to cure, but because he has traveled back to a time BEFORE he was ever paralyzed. He is somehow a blend of the Locke of the present and the Locke of the past.

Who is Ben? I believe he is the creator of the time machine. The Others are his associates living in the time-space bubble around the Island and Door #2 of the time machine in the "past." They are managing it and testing the effects of time travel, and strictly controlling who exits this bubble into the outside world.

How does one arrive at the Island? There are two methods of traveling to the site (and time) of the Island. First is the controlled method via Door #1 at Dharma Headquarters. It is not via plane, submarine, or any other traditional method of transportation.

The other method is in the accidental collision with the time-space bubble that surrounds the Island, as happened with Oceanic Flight 815, the Portuguese woman's helicopter, etc. Despite the many theories that abound in online forums, the Others did not know that Flight 815 was coming or going to crash at the Island. It was a chance encounter. It was a disaster that created a paradox... what happens to a plane that crashes in the present, while entering the past? This leads to the question of whether the passengers are alive or dead, answered by talking about a cat.

Schrodinger's cat, to be specific. Again, quantum mechanics can be very strange. One of the strangest behaviors in particle physics is known as Superposition, which is the ability of a particle to occupy two different states simultaneously (like up and down, left and right, here and there, etc.). In the world we know, you cannot be both here and there, but in particle physics, a world of probability, chance, and duality, you can. How can one imagine this? Another great Gedanken Experiment was conceived, as follows:

Place a cat in a sealed, steel box, along with a bottle of poison. In addition, a radioactive element is placed within the steel box. The decay of this radioactive element triggers a hammer, which breaks the bottle, releasing the poison and killing the cat. For the observer, outside of the box, you do not know when this radioactive decay happens. Because of the laws of Superposition, the radioactive element can occupy both states simultaneously, for the briefest moment. For that blink in time, the bottle is both broken and intact... the cat is both dead and alive, at the same time. This is a puzzle of science, but more important perhaps is the philosophical question of what does it mean to be both dead and alive?

ANSWER #7: The passengers of Oceanic Flight 815 are dead at the bottom of the ocean. AND they are ALIVE on the Island. They are both dead and alive. I told you that you would love this one. Since they are alive in the "past" of the Island's timeline, can they return to the present in which they are dead? I guess that is the ultimate question that we will have to watch the show to find out.

A suggestion of an answer is found in Locke's/Sawyer's father. We were led to believe that he died in a car accident, and finds himself here on the Island. Of course he would think he's in hell! We believe that somehow Locke "willed" him here, but that was actually never said on the show. In fact, Ben said to Locke, "you brought him here." Perhaps what he means is this:

ANSWER #8: Locke's father did not die in the accident. I believe that we will find soon that Locke is going to leave the Island. The question that nobody asked Locke's father was when did the accident happen? See, Locke is going to return to the "present" timeline, and is going to pursue his father. He is going to find him, perhaps he is even going to cause his accident. He is going to drug and kidnap him, unable or unwilling to kill him by himself. He is somehow going to get him to Door #1 of the time machine and send him to the Island, where he already knows that Sawyer will kill him. Locke is going to "bring him here" to the Island... he just hasn't done it yet. When he is on the "outside" in the present, why is he going to do this? Because he has to, because it is destiny... for on the Island, it has already happened. You know Locke loves destiny.

I could go on and on. Why is there a zoo with polar bears? ANSWER #9: The animals are on the Island for testing the effects of the various paradoxes associated with time travel. Perhaps another reason is that by keeping and preserving endangered animals, like polar bears, within this bubble in the past, there is a resource for their recovery should they become extinct in the future. Consider it a Noah's Ark.

How do the Others know so much about the passengers of Flight 815? ANSWER
#10: The Others have had perhaps years, with Dharma Industries in the present timeline at Door #1, to research each of the individuals, and transmit this information to the Island. To the audience and the survivors of 815, it seemed like the Others instantly knew about them. However, it likely required years of research to compile the files.

There are still mysteries that remain, and stories that we do not know how they will play out. With this explanation, though, the behavior of the Others is understood. They must protect the timeline AT ALL COSTS. That makes them seem evil to the survivors of 815, but in reality their intentions are to prevent catastrophe.

There are many other stories I haven't touched, but they are all consistent with this basic theory. This includes Desmond's apparent "time loop" he is experiencing, and many others.

So there it is. Or, I'm out of my mind. Time will tell.

Steve

Thinking back to Broken....

2008-05-13T01:58:00.000-07:00

It's sorta ironic that my Good friend and fellow kick ass artist Lonny Chant, posted this picture on his blog today, since I was talking about this project to a couple friends earlier in the week. And I haven't talked about it or thought about it until recently.

Broken is a 6 issue mini series I worked on with Lonny Chant some 2 1/2 years ago, everything was moving along nicely. Then real life happened and the project got pushed to the way side.

Now that web comics are quite popular, maybe we could bring this back in one form or another. I love this picture that Lonny drew, with 2 of the main Characters Tronik and Adam hanging out in their pad. I loved the idea, and had basic direction on where it would go, hmm....

Nine Inch Nails :Discipline

2008-04-25T12:32:00.001-07:00

A Fine Frenzy: Almost Lover...

2008-04-23T00:07:00.001-07:00

I feel this video is sorta generic and disappointing, but I love this song. It's one of my favorites... I think it's cause I can strongly relate to the song.

What? Lost....

2008-04-10T18:12:00.000-07:00

Help Stop Global Warming...

2008-04-01T15:01:00.000-07:00

I made another blog.

2008-03-31T22:47:00.001-07:00

So I didn't realize I could make multiple blogs, which realistically that's what I should be doing. I made one check it out here: thevalleyguy. It's so simple yet, goofy at the same time. Plus it seems much easier to write when I have focus. I was hoping to have thevalley@gmail.com , but no it's already taken so as always send your emails to brianerzen@gmail.com. -Did that confuse anyone?

New Nin Album.

2008-03-02T23:12:00.000-08:00

Zombie PSA 3 is live!

2008-02-28T19:31:00.001-08:00

About evil, this is a great unfinished short.

2008-02-27T16:18:00.000-08:00

Vote! Super tuesday.

2008-02-01T01:19:00.000-08:00

This test tells me that Hillary is the Candidate for me. I'm not sure if I agree, but Hilary gets us Bill, and I would love to hear on CNN Here come President Clinton and the First Man... Hehe First Man

2008-01-18T00:16:00.000-08:00

The man burns in 225 days, and you can only buy tickets before Burningman . The tickets are much more expensive then last year, so I don't know if I'm going to make that commitment.

There are 220 days to figure it out.

Audition - Best Super Bowl Dance

2008-01-15T09:28:00.000-08:00

Watch some of LA's finest actors, James Semmens, Elliott Owen, Brian Erzen, Stephen Miranda, Patricia Villetto, Gregor Collins and Daniel Sol. This was an idea that Director :David Branin came up with.

Me

2008-01-11T01:22:00.001-08:00

It begins.

2008-01-09T12:22:00.001-08:00

January has been a slow month so far, I'm spending most of my time
working on creative projects, and helping friends with theirs. I
found a good deal to buy some web hosting and the url brianerzen.com.
Slowly I'm working on figuring out the very basics of html, and how to
build my own content on the internet. This comes out of curiosity as
well as a need, right now I'm taking baby steps, so far I've manged to
forward my url to my blog, and added a photo gallery on my server.

Test over the इंटरनेट...

2008-01-08T16:30:00.001-08:00

This is a test to see if I set up the email to blogger system correctly.

*Test successful, after first attempt :)

Zombie PSA 2-6-2008:10:45pm

2008-01-07T03:21:00.000-08:00

Some really cool behind the scenes pictures from the latest trespassing on the lot. More information to follow.

* Small update, I've added a bunch of photos from this film shoot. It was a long and wet night, but one hell of good time, hanging out with friends and making a short film.

Such a great poster.

2008-01-04T00:57:00.001-08:00

I love this poster, I found it on the internet somewhere.

Happy New Years!

2008-01-01T01:02:00.001-08:00

"May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, and don't to forget make some art -- write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself."-Neil Gaiman

2008-01-01T01:02:00.000-08:00

Best short film to sell products.... ever.

2007-12-22T11:39:00.001-08:00

Larp + DD + Baby Jesus = Funny.

2007-12-22T10:40:00.000-08:00

I googled myself.

2007-12-14T18:52:00.000-08:00

Found this, interesting it's one of those things you do forget about it, and never think you'd see what it was for.

Check this out I'm in a book.

Merry....

2007-12-13T20:12:00.001-08:00

Good Morning....

2007-12-09T16:25:00.000-08:00

Gamespot Sucks!

2007-11-30T01:38:00.000-08:00

Theres a rumor going around that Jeff Gerstmann was fired from Gamespot.com for giving the video game Kane and Lynch a 6.0.

Gamespot sucks, I was working in the game industry for about 2 years and heard about all kinds of reviews being bough by the larger company, back end deals with publishers and magazines and websites, but never someone getting fired.

Here's the youtube video of his review.

I've never been a fan of gamespot, but now I say boycott their site and never go there again.
More information here.

Internets stole our music.

2007-11-29T11:42:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-21T19:33:00.000-08:00

I Fucking HATE Vista.

2007-11-19T10:51:00.000-08:00

Vista is such a shitty operating system at this time, I have it on my laptop forced no option for XP had to get Vista, since I only have one legal XP key I'm stuck leaving Vista on my laptop. I don't understand why Microsoft had to change around some of the the naming conventions just enough that it's different enough that everything you do is a pain in the ass, took me 20mins the first time I wanted to uninstall something, XP is just easy to use, maybe when Vista Service pack 3 in 2011 comes out it will be better, nah I'll just wait for XP2.

Greatest college halftime band performance ever....

2007-11-13T19:37:00.001-08:00

This is a really creative and cool idea, I wonder how long they had to practice to get this right.

Need a costume for Halloween?

2007-10-27T20:26:00.000-07:00

Sacrament a cool 4 min short film.

2007-09-20T18:43:00.000-07:00

This is the film that I was talking about in my last blog, there was this totally different idea that after I read it I mentioned it's cool, but already been done to death. We chatted and brainstormed for a bit, and Craig came up with this.

Sacrament

Written and Directed by: Craig Ouellette

Story By: Brian Erzen and Craig Ouellette

Life on the couch...

2007-09-20T18:27:00.000-07:00

So I finally found a new place to live, the only problem with that is I can't move in until the middle of October. Luckily my good friend Craig Ouellette, is letting crash on his couch for the next month or so until the place is ready, or I find somewhere else to crash, until it is.

It's been interesting being here, I've known Craig for about 5 years and since I was away for a good 7 months, it's been cool to spend time and hang out. He's a film maker, and an avid fan of movies, so we often have deep conversations on movies, and film making in general. Craig, has been staying busy with a project he is doing called Trespassing on the Lot that he's involved with another Director Brendon Fong. There idea was to take the weekly challenges from the show On the Lot. With intention that for little to no money, and actor friends in the area they could do something equally exciting or better.

On the lot was a huge flop, but they haven't given up and are continuing to create new short films. Since I'm with Craig quite often, we ended up brainstorming this idea from another idea he had and he did an awesome job of putting it all together and making this really cool short film called Sacrament. Which is also the finale to Season one of Trespassing on the Lot.

So I've been having a good time, hanging out, watching movies, and talking about making future ones.

Not a bad month so far, and Saturday it's going to be my Birthday!

Greedy assholes - A dialog with Trent Reznor

2007-09-17T19:58:00.001-07:00

Update: 9 - 20 - 07
Funny I never knew that this video would become a big deal, but it's sending ripples all over the internet. I can't wait till Trent Reznor is on his own label, creating his music for the fans and the fans only.

Battle and Kruger

2007-09-09T12:52:00.000-07:00

This is the best animal attack video you can see, watch the whole thing. You need to see the whole thing.

Meme The Song : Internet People

2007-09-08T18:22:00.000-07:00

Wow I recognize most of these memes, not sure if that's a good thing or not. Check it out.

I'm Not Stupid.... Tori Amos Impromptu Song

2007-09-04T20:19:00.001-07:00

I found this on the net, it's Tori Amos doing an impromptu song being called "I'm Not Stupid" , I was a huge fan of Tori once upon a time ago, this feels like the old Tori I know and love and so I thought I'd share it, the song also runs into Winter.

Crude Awakening.... Burning Man 2007

2007-09-04T02:25:00.000-07:00

See I found it on Youtube!

Short Clip of the Explosion:

Another longer clip:

This is the Art Exhibit Crude Awakening from Burning Man 2007, it was the most spectacular explosion I've ever seen before in my life. The Oil Derrick was 90 feet tall and you were able to climb to the top, Lucky I was able to climb to the top early Friday morning, before it was burned down late Saturday night.

Oh Miss South Carolina you are so smart.

2007-08-27T19:06:00.001-07:00

What a great idea, wow you can almost see the sparks fly out of her head trying to figure out an answer to such a complex problem.

Welcome to my home - Parody video.

2007-08-27T01:42:00.001-07:00

Went out last night to the Improv to see the comedian Joel Bryant (who had a great set), when I heard about this lovely gem by Deven Green, who happens to be his wife.

This is a fantastically funny voice over from some old video called "Welcome to my home" which I've never heard of, but it's by some washed up 80's day time soap star.

Another Short Film by Craig Ouellette : Lady Carlove.

2007-08-24T17:47:00.000-07:00

A fun little short Written and Directed by Craig Ouellette: for the latest installment of Trespassing on the Lot.

The man burns in 13 days.

2007-08-20T01:11:00.001-07:00

Funny response from Kevin Smith at Comic Con....

2007-08-04T20:02:00.000-07:00

Pushing Daises is going to be the best new fall show.

2007-07-29T15:38:00.001-07:00

One of the advantages of living in Los Angeles is having friends in the entertainment industry and hearing about and seeing projects before the general public does, I was lucky and in the right place at the right time and saw a couple of the new fall shows, Pushing Daises being the best.
Pushing Daises is written and produced by Bryan Fuller, who is well known for the shows Wonderfalls, Dead Like Me, as well as had written multiple episodes of Heroes, and Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld Director of Get Shorty, and The Adams Family. I recommend not watching the trailer on the ABC website that I linked above since it will ruin the entire pilot. This show is going to air on Wednesday nights 8pm.

Short Film By Craig Ouellette : Home Invasion

2007-07-27T17:37:00.000-07:00

Home Invasion is the latest short film Written and Directed by the Director Craig Ouellette. This was done as a weekly short for the website Trespassing on the lot. Each week Director Brendon Fong or Craig Ouellette complete the same challenge the TV show On the Lot does with zero budget, this was for the week of "Action". This is a great short action film that stands up quite well, shot with 2 HD cameras and a makeshift dolly, I can't wait to see what Craig Ouellette will be able to create with a modest budget. Surprisingly the action and the acting are quite well done, it's unfortunate that currently there is only this low res version on You Tube, hopefully within the next month their is access to a high resolution version.

What would you do?

2007-07-21T13:05:00.001-07:00

Last night ended up being an odd night, and some of the major reasons why I've grown to dislike many aspects of the social scene in LA.

Hypothetically speaking lets say YOU make arrangements to go out to dinner in about an hour and a half, and when you show up at that persons house to pick them up and go out for the evening (this is Friday Night BTW). You get offered to go work a 2hour gig and make about $60 bucks? They gig is right now, meaning you would need to cancel your dinner plans or meet up later at night. You both sitting in the car currently:

What would you do?

Would you stay and keep your dinner plans that you made about an hour and a half earlier?

Or

Would you leave go work the gig and call later?

But mommy I just wanted to read a book :(

2007-07-21T11:34:00.001-07:00

This clip is from Jesus Camp, I still have yet to see that movie. Oh, and Harry Potter Book 7 came out today, I'm still on Book 5...