The Artist's Way and Breaking Bad

The Artist's Way's writer certainly loves to do lists. We have more lists.

I'm not that good at lists. I tend to draw a blank when asked to do them. Forget about them when I've done them or lose them. And often forget what I put on them. Also, they are never in order. My brain is apparently too poorly indexed for lists.

This chapter of the Artist's Way is frustrating me. It wants me to stop reading for a week. I mentioned this to mother.
( me whinging about an exercise in a self-help book )

Lists..

1. list five hobbies you'd like to try
2. list 5 classes you'd like to take that sound fun
3. list 5 things you would never do that sound fun
4. List 5 things that would be fun to have
5. List 5 things you used to enjoy doing
6. List 5 silly things you'd like to try once.

Then these exercises...

1, Describe an ideal environment to live in - town, country, swank, cozy. Why? What does it involve? Write one paragraph and find an image that describes it.

Describe your favorite season - why it is your favorite, and provide an image.

2. Time Travel

a) Write a letter to your 80 year old self, and figure out what you would be like at that age, what you would be doing. (Eh, pass. It's hard to do when I'm dealing with an 80 year old mother.)

b) Remember what you were like at 8, and have your 8 year old self write you a letter - what would they say? (I have no clue.)

3. List on-going self-nuturing toys to buy your artist self. (Mine is bereft, I have subscriptions to Apple Music, Comixcology, Audible, and various streaming channels. But I might want to do the theater ticket thing at some point.)

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In other news, Wales has decided she wants a vacation somewhere, and wants me to come with. Which okay. Except Wales is cheap. Which again okay. Wales is also contemplating moving to Switzerland and Scandinava.
( Read more... )

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Life in Pieces by Bryan Cranston

Still working my way through Cranston's biography. More so today - since I foolishly decided to do the reading deprivation idea - only to realize in 2023 - it would make more sense to make it a smartphone deprivation. We aren't addicted to reading in 2023, we're addicted to smartphone's. Of course I'm not really addicted to mine, I just listen to stuff on it most of the time. I can go a whole weekend without looking at it - and have. For me? A television deprivation might be the most useful.

Anyhow, it's interesting where you learn stuff from. ( Read more... )

His description of working on Malcolm in the Middle and Breaking Bad is fascinating. I always knew television is a collaboration, but didn't realize the extent. Cranston filled in the gaps on both characters. The writer didn't really create these characters, he did. He created the character on Malcolm. Came up with the attire, the weaknesses, what motivated him, everything - because it wasn't on the page. Same with Walter White in a way - he figured out what Walter White would wear and why. He asked Vince Gillian about Walter White's motivations, and when Gillian didn't know what they were - challenged the writer to find them.

Excerpt...
( Read more... )

Cranston states that he had to find a way to get into the character, understand who he was and what he thought, and build him. Once he did that - he'd know without thinking what the character would wear, say or do in every scene. He could sell the writing and the character.

He also states, that he chooses his projects based on the writing. ( Read more... )

The collaboration between the actors, studio, writers, directors, etc made that show work. It was one of those rare instances in which everyone fit or came together in a perfect marriage of equals. There were some issues, of course. Mainly to do with direction and blocking, and the idiotic writers trying to make direction and blocking decisions from LA, while they were working in New Mexico. But other than that - it went smoothly.

The reason - Cranston got the role was he'd played a similar character trope in an X-Files episode written by Vince Gillian. ( Read more... )

Hmm, now I kind of want to rewatch Breaking Bad and that episode of the X-Files. (I won't, too much else to watch, damn it. Maybe a weekend without television? Not this weekend - it's supposed to rain.)

(no subject)

To good a quote not to share:

From Donald Glover's Interview of Himself (he basically got sick of bad interview questions, and decided to interview himself for a change of pace):

Well, that brings me to my next question: What role does criticism play in your life?

"There’s good takes, there’s bad takes, but most of them are just untrustworthy takes. I liked it more when Camp just came out and it felt like everyone hated me. Because there’d be some actual good insight and it was easier to see who was dealing with their own identity problems, who really hated me, and who just didn’t like me because I didn’t dislike myself. But you can’t believe the good or bad stuff now because it’s all just the economy around you. There’s money and clout in loving and hating you. You have to sift through and try and see if someone is debating in good faith. The internet doesn’t provide a large-enough amount of that. You know what? I’ll tie in my Joe Rogan and Chappelle answer now, too. A lot of people believe both of them are doing what they do in good faith. It’s not cynical. It’s not CNN or Fox. It doesn’t feel to most people like they’re trying to sell something. People are looking for other people to interact with in good faith. Because a lot of this rage is artificial. People have emotional diabetes and don’t even know it."


Yep. Very true of fandom, and Twitter. Certainly true of Facebook.

Less true of DreamWidth, but this is more of a blogging site, so there's that.