Hello there! This is the first time I'm posting here! I am a student at Los Angeles Film School, about to start production on my final project in two weeks! I have participated extensively with programs at Camp Reel Stories, and contributed to two films there: Choice. and Jasmine's Book (both of which can be found on YouTube). My first released short film was titled Bear Trek, which I made for the Adam Young Scores Short Film Contest in 2016, and this year I made Bear Trek 2 as a project with LA Film School (both of these are also on YouTube). My first ever film was a medieval-princess-fantasy feature I made with Playmobil figures, and one of my biggest dreams is to make this film live-action, in Ireland, and have Michael Wincott, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Daniel Radcliffe star in it, among others. My other biggest dream is to have my sitcom, My Friends In Bantry, get made- a project which between June 2017 and January 2019 I hand-wrote 132 episodes of outlines for. I now have many of the episodes actually written in script form, including a pitch ready Pilot.
Fast films facts about me: my favorite movie(s) are the Lord of the Rings trilogy, my favorite shows are The Golden Girls and Bones, and my two favorite directors are Jenn Kaytin Robinson and John Francis Daley.
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Welcome, Riley Blankenship , from an LAFS alumni (some years back haha). My favorite film is also The Lord of the Rings (which I consider one long film). If you need any feedback or notes, please don't hesitate to ask!
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Sounds like you're on a good path. Keep on truckin'.
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James Welday: thanks! I'll keep that in mind! It's nice to meet a fellow LAFS alum! I pretty much consider LOTR one long film, too.
B A Mason: I have considered releasing that Playmobil film, however there are a few reasons I hesitate. 1, I made it when I was 12, so there are things that maybe don't make sense and the sound is probably its most notable shortcoming. It's not a great example of my current skill, but I don't know that that's a reason not to post it. The other hiccup is that the original mp4 file is on an old computer that I may or may not be able to get into anymore, and the only other place I have it is on a DVD (which could be digitized I guess). I just don't know if I actually can post it anywhere.
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Welcome to the community, Riley Blankenship. "My first ever film was a medieval-princess-fantasy feature I made with Playmobil figures." I want to see that movie! :D Congratulations on writing and directing a movie when you were 12!
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"Dharma & Greg" -- one of Chuck Lorre's early hits. I know Mimi Kennedy from another Lorre sitcom, "Mom." Not really a TV writing guy, although I love sitcoms (ever seen my current favorite series, "Bob [Hearts] Abishola"?); rom-com features are more my speed.
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Hi Riley Blankenship - it’s great to meet you here. I’m the Director of Education at Stage 32. We have fabulous education on all facets of the industry. Please let me know if I can make any recommendations for you or provide any information that can be helpful in your creative endeavors. I look forward to watching Bear Trek & Bear Trek 2. What’s the premise of your sit-com (if you can share)?
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Riley Blankenship great work building such creative momentum! Welcome and best wishes for continuing success!
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Hi Sam Sokolow- so the logline for my sitcom goes "In the charming town of Bantry Bay, Ireland, a group of friends learns new meanings of the word family while trying to leave behind the demons from their pasts that threaten to hold them back."
I have had some people wonder how this was a sitcom, so in case you're wondering, this is why: I'm heavily inspired by The Golden Girls, which not only tackled a lot of heavy topics, but is also a show that keeps me afloat when times are hard. With My Friends In Bantry I aim to combine the raw, emotional human experience with silly shenanigans- a combination which I think gets the point across, makes plots interesting, but is also easier to digest. Not to mention, the fact that it's set in Ireland became a metaphor for that very thing in its own right, as that's a very Irish concept.
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Hi Riley - it sounds like a great premise and I like that it’s set in Ireland. Could even be helpful in your sales initiative with the globalization of the marketplace. I am a huge Golden Girls fan - it plays in my house all the time. It’s a terrific balance of humor and authenticity and the characters are all world. I’m also a big fan of Jim Sheridan’s work which so often finds that balance so skillfully. I’m excited for your journey with this project.
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Welcome Riley! Nice to meet you. Glad you're here.
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Hello, good to meet you.