Shiro's Head Screens at the University of Guam

Click Here for Shiro's Head @ UOG Ticket Info

Okay, I guess the smoke isn't clearing as fast as I thought it would BUT that's a good thing. This week, Shiro's Head will screen at the University of Guam College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences to help raise funds to send 2 UOG students to take a student film out to Bali for a Pacific Asia conference. The name of their film: "Casting Our Net: Rediscovering Community in the 21st Century". The name of the conference: The East West Center International Conference: "Building an Asia Pacific Community: Unity in Diversity", November 13-15, 2008.

This is a pivotal time for Pacific Asian media. With "Shiro's Head", "Casting Our Net" and now "I Fuetsan I Taotao", Don and I want to help the momentum along and to create an awareness for local art by showcasing it where it needs to be. It all starts with the effort. A BIG thanks to Sandra Okada, Charissa Aguon and others involved for initiating such a bold and much needed project. Click Here for Shiro's Head @ UOG Ticket Info

...and yes, I'll be posting about Hawaii and Philly. I'm still unwinding.

As the Smoke Clears

This past week (not to mention month) has been a wild one. Wow. A lot to soak in. Don and I just flew in from Hawaii from the Louis Vuitton Hawaii International Film Festival and we have much to talk about. Our brother Mike was the proxy for the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival and was amazed at what he saw. There is a lot to tell you all and I'm extremely eager to share - BUT - I just need a little while until things settle so I can get my life back to normal and spend time with family.

Yo, Adrian! (aka) Hafa, Philly?!

At the same time that Encore Presentations of Shiro's Head will show this weekend here on Guam, the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival, sponsored by HBO will be showing it as well. Out of hundreds of feature film entries, they will showcase only eight for their inaugural festival. And needless to say, that Don and I are extremely honored that Shiro's Head is one of them. Although Don and I will be here at home during the Philly Film Fest, the Festival Director Joe Kim and staff have been more than hospitable to the people that are heading out east to represent Shiro's Head at the fest. Thanks, Mr. Kim!

Our other brother Mike will be heading up along with a few Guam boys from Houston to check it out. We're as excited to hear about it just as much as you all may be. As soon as we get pics/updates we'll be able to share them with you all as well. If you have any relatives/friends in the Philly/East coast area, please invite them to the showing. I'm sure the guys might be able to squeeze a barbecue into their schedule.;)

Oh and one more thing...YO ADRIAN! I DID IT! Get it? Rocky...Philly? Yeah? No?

Shiro's Head Encore Shows!

Thank you to all of you who have voiced your demand for more showings of Shiro's Head! Because of you, there will be 5 Encore Presentations of Shiro's Head this weekend at the Agana Center Stadium Theaters!

So for those that haven't had a chance to get tickets for last weekend's showings (or would just like to see it again) now's your chance! The dates and times are as follows:

Saturday, October 11th
12pm, 3pm and 7pm
Tickets are $10 and are available at these SELECT 76 Circle K locations: Sinajana, Barrigada, Ypao Road (across the UIU building), Dededo and Anigua

Sunday, October 12th
12pm and 3pm
Tickets are $10 and are available at these SELECT 76 Circle K locations: Sinajana, Barrigada, Ypao Road (across the UIU building), Dededo and Anigua

Don and I will be present for a question and answer segment after each show. If you're too shy to raise your hand, no worries. Feel free to come up to us and we can chat face to face if you got time.

Again, THANK YOU for letting your voices be heard. Bring a friend and we'll see you there!

p.s. to my personal friends, guys - especially Dur - don't wait 'til the last minute again, pare! hehe.

Shiro's Head Sold Out Crowds - Thank You!

Again, I just wanted to say "thank you" to all of those who attended the general admission showings over the weekend! WOW! You have no idea how I feel right now! I have to collect my thoughts and devote more in-depth posts to it sometime soon. Count on it! Thanks to you all! Although I'll try my best to thank you individually a little later, I will take a quick moment to say "Thank You" to Ms. Flores my 6th grade art teacher from Agueda Johnston Middle School. She was part of the full house on Sunday's showing. Sorry so short, but there's a lot of last minute stuff I need to get done for the movie. More to come!

Shiro's Head World Premiere - Thank You!

The journey has reached a crazy point in its timeline with the Shiro's Head Red Rug Event and World Premiere taking place last Friday. Words? I have plenty of them - however, there are a lot of things that I'd love to post - especially with all that's happened within the last month - and I will just as soon as the smoke clears (from the film fests, etc), so please stay tuned as I spill my guts about the whole experience within the next few weeks or so.

For now, I must take this time to let everyone know (and I think I speak for Don on this, too) that we are more than forever grateful for your support throughout this entire "nutso" journey. It's a crazy feeling, man. Totally unreal. For those that were there for the Red Rug, thank you for coming out and supporting not only a dream from me and Don, but also for local talent as well as supporting the unsung heroes like those from Erica's House. From family to friends, the bands that came out to perform like Rebel Lion, By Blood, Matala, and the full house of moviegoers who just wanted to see a homegrown flick on a Friday night- THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

-oh and don't worry...once don and i get a chance to settle in, we'll be putting up tons of pics from not only the premiere, but of all the showings. more to come!

photos by Steve Hardy

Relentless Pursuit of Better

Hello again. I know that it's been a couple of months since my last post and I apologize for that. For those that have been following the latest on Shiro's Head and our move back home to Guam, you probably understand why. Thank you for keeping updated on our journey, it really means a lot to us. We've been extremely busy with the movie and with real life. There are tons to talk about but I'll tell you all about it in flashbacks in my future posts. I know blog posts are usually posted sequentially, but hey - it's just another norm to stray from, I guess.

Today, however, I feel the need for my first post back from a long hiatus to be an excerpt from one of my mentors, Seth Godin (from his best-seller "Small is the New Big" pg 174.) If you get it, cool. If not, then don't worry - should you and I ever get a chance to meet, I'd love to explain it.

PROGRESS?

What an amazing world we live in. Information flying about at the speed of light. Cures or treatments for many major diseases. Airplanes. Food for many, if not most. Cat food that tastes like pate. It almost feels churlish to complain. But here's the deal: Almost everything is lousy. ...What's with the layout of this keyboard? They came up with a keyboard a century ago, decided it was good enough, and then stopped! Holy carpal tunnel, Batman. I've got a few chapters' worth on this topic, but here are my two main ideas:

1. Humans tend to work on a problem until they get a good-enough solution, not a solution that's right.
2. The marketplace often rewards solutions that are cheaper and good enough, instead of investing in the solution that promises to lead to the right answer.

This all sounds pessimistic. Are we doomed to inefficient products, unreliable computers, overpriced services, and new devices that last for a while and then just break? I don't think so. I think that the open nature of the Web and the hypercompetitive environment of worldwide competition are pushing things in two different directions at the same time. First, toward hypercheap, sort of junky stuff that discounters and others want to sell in volume. And second, the "relentless pursuit of better" (RPB). The RPB is the opposite of good enough. It's not Welch's Six Sigma nonsense, through which engineers codify mediocrity. It's a consistent posture of changing the rules on an ongoing basis.

David Neeleman, CEO of JetBlue, was talking recently about the way he's running the airline. By any measure, it's good enough. Hey, it's far and away the best airline in the United States. But he's not even close to settling. He riffed about turning one out of three bathrooms on every one of his planes into a ladies-only bathroom. What a great idea. Low cost. Fast. And embracing the RPB.

I asked him why he doesn't just raise the price on the 20,000 seats JetBlue runs between New York and Florida (every day). If he raised it $10, he'd make an extra $11 million a year in profit! Without losing a customer. He said, "We could always do that later. Right now, it keeps us focused and hungry and efficient to do it for less."

Shiro's Head Trailer - Thank YOU!

The Shiro's Head Official Trailer has been launched this week and I just wanted to take a moment to give my deep and sincere thanks to EVERYBODY for all of your responses. I would also like to thank you all for being extremely supportive and interested enough to come along for the ride while we were making Shiro's Head. From our island brothers and sisters at home on GUAM to Germany, US, Japan, Australia, Brazil, England, France and the rest of the appreciated folks out there - you don't know how much your responses have meant to me and Don - especially after the grueling journey of making such a small, no-name, no-budget DIY film on our own. It's been a long 2 years, but I still wouldn't have done it any other way.

This is a milestone for us at this point in the project and I just wanted to say thank you for being there and for showing your support, your interest and even just dropping in lines to say 'what's up?'. It really means a lot to us and motivates us to keep going when we lose steam.

If we're lucky enough, we'll be able to have a screening for the deep roots on Guam that made all of this possible. Until then, Don or myself will be keeping you posted while I enjoy this little break and reflect on all that's been accomplished so far. So from me to all of you...I just want to say THANK YOU! and stay tuned for more...

Camp Roxas Film Documentary

As much as I can, I make it a point to take my son to the Guam Art Gallery at UOG to renew our eyes through different exhibits. Last February we were fortunate enough to see the Camp Roxas documentary sizzle reel and photo exhibition. If you haven't yet heard about the Camp Roxas movie, check out this great article about the Guam documentary spearheaded by Bernadette Provido Schumann which includes talents like Chamorro director Alex Munoz.

This premise is not only interesting, but inspiring and has been able to gather a very positive light on what was almost a lost but very important time in Guam's history. A very big thumbs up to Bernadette and crew! Great job Burt! This film is one of the building blocks we need in preserving Guam's culture and history for ages to come.

What's In a Name?

Taking a quick break from posting about my Italy adventures, I have a quick note about the safe choice. I just spent a couple of days in Japan en route to Guam and I was reminded about the effects of a name when dealing with the convenience of familiarity in the subconscious psyche. While checking for a place to lay my head, I automatically went to the nearest "Comfort Inn" (i know, such a western tourist move) searching for a double occupancy twin-size room. The room rates were equivalent to $160.00 USD per night.

After checking with the locally preferred, yet lesser-known "Toyoko Inn" just a few yards further down the street, their rates were equivalent to only $80.00 USD for the same room. The amenities were pretty much the same as the "Comfort Inn" (free airport shuttle, internet, meeting room, private bath, continental-style breakfast, tv and more) and I'm sure to the weary traveler, the beds are just as comfortable. My point? A familiar or "proven" choice may seem like the best choice just by automation, but if you're willing to look past your comfort zone from what you already know, you just might discover something great.

The Black Mask Project

Familiar with the new movie "Vantage Point"? If you think the concept for the movie is a little too far fetched, I suggest checking out Blackmask.org. - their marketing is outstanding.
NOTE: Pay close attention to the clip below at 1:39.



WARNING: here's the spoiler link, but consider yourself warned as you'll see the man behind the curtain.

Guam Travel: Standby Style

The circumference of the earth is approximately 24,900 miles. That's about 2 roundtrips from Guam to LA. That means that I have traveled the equal distance around the earth in the last three months. On standby.

Here I am back on another layover at the Honolulu Intl. Airport. Sure, it's fun for the first two or three times, but after you get too familiar with the drill, it becomes a chore to travel so many times for so many miles. But because of this, I can tell you where to find the best corner to sleep in. Or the best bathroom large enough to change your clothes, brush your teeth and wash up without any interruptions. Or the best place to charge your phone and laptop while enjoying a tropical panoramic, open-air view of the relaxing outdoor gardens.

I'll be sure to give this info out as soon as I can access my photos. But for now, as I sit at Gate 14 awaiting the boarding calls, I need to figure out just how to plan for yet another leg from Hawaii to Guam. Shoot!

Photo by Jim Frazier

The Big Game vs. Shiro's Head

Staying with the one year production birthday theme, I found this pic from our production photos. This is how I spent last year's Super Bowl. Good ol' Durwin let us borrow the 13" that you see in the background. We used it for our monitor while capturing footage. But this particular day, even though I was invited to some SB parties, I stayed in and used it to watch the game as I took care of business with Shiro's Head pre-production notes. And yes, I used a plastic chair for my desk...which Don borrowed from Nick.

Thank You - Shiro's Head Teaser Launch

On Friday we launched the official Shiro's Head teaser and I am very humbled by all of the positive response from those that have left comments on the Shiro's Head MySpace page, signed up for updates or just sent an email through our contact page just to say hi.

It's a great feeling to receive such support and encouragement from people everywhere interested about the movie. Rest assured, Don and I are doing our best to take it to the next phase and to have it ready to go on schedule for everyone. Sometimes it can get tough for an indie project to keep pushing forward, but your comments really do help our morale, so please keep it coming or just drop a line to say hi!

Thank you all again - very much.

Guam Primetime Media

Guam makes its way into primetime twice in less than a month. In this episode of "Psych" which originally aired on the USA network last Friday, January 18th, Guam gets its second hit show coverage. The earlier was on ER. Here, Psych trumps ER since this has been the first time that I've heard not just 'Guam' mentioned on a show, but with it a mention of an actual village! And the best part? I don't know if was the fact that Shawn (James Roday) doesn't say it with a haole accent or that Gus (Dule Hill) was given the name Nik-Nak.




The writer for this episode, entitled "The Old and the Restless" is Anupam Nigam. She must've stayed on island at some point. Cheers!