Oh Say Can You CAA?

It's not too often I get to use the blog for a bit o' breaking news but here's a bulletin hot off the presses:

I got a job!....of sorts.

It's actually just a ten week paid internship, but the 'what' isn't as important as the 'where.'

Most notably, this paid internship is at Creative Artists Agency. Otherwise known as "CAA."

Otherwise known as "the preeminent A-List talent agency in Hollywood, if not the world."

Holy shit!

Those careful readers (Tom and Nick?) will know I've mentioned CAA a few times, most notably when I had a class in the top-tier, top-shelf agency last fall.

How it all came about is as simple as it is boring to write about. There was a posting on USC's job board. Looked like a pretty awesome - if not long shot - opportunity. I applied. A month later I had a phone interview. A week later I had an in-person interview. Now next week I start what is sure to be some of the busiest, most interesting, most educational, most intense, and most stylish* few months of my tenure in California.

*As a scruffy film student I've been on a steady wardrobe diet of flannels, t-shirts, and Cubs paraphernalia. This is the first time I'll be wearing a tie consistently since leaving the hallowed halls of Benet Academy. 

Luckily, what was true then remains true today.....I look damn good in a tie. 

So, yeah, pretty wild right? It's funny.... I kinda feel like the episode of Seinfeld when George lands his job with the Yankees....(which is an apt analogy since CAA happens to represent....the New York Yankees...)

Jerry : The New York Yankees?!
George : The New York Yankees!
Jerry : Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle ... Costanza?

From the first time I found out about CAA was and even after going to classes their for a semester never in a million years did I think I'd be driving to 2000 Avenue of the Stars, Los Angeles, CA every day (at least, not to go to work).

Btw, how about this place? Like, even the address is pretty baller.

I feel like Jerry should be somewhere saying "Spielberg, Clooney, Hanks, De Niro .... Kosin?" 

Now, I'm expecting my tenure at CAA will end better than Costanza's.... getting traded to Tyler Chicken for an all-chicken Yankee concessions.

Hopefully I'll have more on this to come, but shit who knows if I've got time to keep up on this thing?

We all know how demanding agents can be...

BOOM. Think I'd get an agency gig and not show some love to the most famed agent around. Enjoy the video, and just think......that wonderful screaming asshole could be ME someday!

(not likely)

But speaking of art imitating life....or art imitating Creative Artists....funny that after finding out the news I also came across this audio clip from a musical based off a former CAA assistant's experience. It's a rather catchy and entertaining dig on the famed "high-stress" atmosphere inside.....check it out.

The lyrics are a little inside baseball but you get the jist. Rumors of dreams being crushed and hearts ripped out always swirl at the big agencies.

Is it true? Are the next few months going to be nothing but torture? Will I become horribly bitter and disillusioned? Is my soul going to be crushed?


I doubt it.


But, being a Cubs fan, at least I'm used to it.


- mjk

CHItropolis

Just a bit o' Chicago filming news - looks like SUPERMAN is going to be shooting in the Land o' Lincoln this summer -

'Superman: Man of Steel' Flying Into Chicago

http://chicagoist.com/2011/03/27/superman_man_of_steel_chicago.php

This news should make most Chicagoans pretty happy as another big Hollywood project with all its fun is coming to town this summer, and other Chicagoans with a Superman-crush *COUGH*NICKDELPRIORE*COUGH* will have difficulty hiding their erections once the Man of Steel starts flying around our beloved skyline.

Pretty good news. Pret-tay....pret-tay....pret-tay.........good.

Course, we'll see if they'll do anything as cool as BLOW UP WACKER DRIVE like 'Transformers' or EXLODE A METRA in 'Source Code' or FLIP A SEMI-TRUCK just like 'The Dark Knight'....

As long as they don't MAKE A SHITTY MOVIE like they did when 'The Dilemma' shot here, I'll be happy.

okay, that might be uncalled for. i didn't actually SEE 'The Dilemma'. It might not have been shitty. I actually wanted to see it! It just seemed like a better target than 'Eagle Eye', which really WAS shitty but also that no one remembers.

BUT speaking of films in Chicago - a not unfamiliar topic for me to cover (See SEP25 and FEB7) - I recently came across a Windy City-riffic video made by the CHI Film Office that showcases almost the past three decades in one surprisingly well-edited video. I mean, wow....this is actually great stuff...its going to take my "Chicagobating" to a whole new level. Get your tissues ready!....

Don't let the cheesy opening fool you...the real opening comes in at 1:10...and its worth watching until the end.....all your favorites are there....


KUDOS TO ...um, ...."LaSalle Bank Facets Multi-Media"...yeah, ....YOU DID GOOD.

Even got some "Stranger than Fiction" in there, one of my favorites that uses the city beautifully but, ironically enough, isn't actually set in Chi-town. Really cool, unique flick with one of the best Will Ferrel acting performances you'll ever see.

But....wow. We got some GREAT flicks. Obviously...so, so many. I don't even know where to begin.

So I won't.

I'll just say that I don't even think we've even scratched the surface of how cool this city can look onscreen.

Don't worry, though - I've got a few ideas.

Sure, most of them involve a ludicrous suspension of belief that a certain North Side baseball team could win the World Series, but hey- do a good enough job and people will believe anything!

Cubs in '11!
 

-MK

In 'Code' We Trust

Well, the Packers are Superbowl Champions and I'm not too broken up about it...unlike the Packers themselves, most of whom are physically broken, injured, or waiting at death's door.

Actually, that's just Brett Favre.

No, I'm not too bummed about those Green and Yellow, Lambau-leaping Cheesebrains to the north winning it all because tonight is an event I've eagerly anticipated for months--the premiere of "The Chicago Code" on FOX.

Many who know me are aware that I've been pimping this show like a 1950's cigarette advertiser for the last couple of months, but I just want to lay down again why I'm more excited than Ben Roethlisberger after hearing the words "dropping the charges" about the debut tonight. It's a change of pace for me, because I usually run away from any show that is about doctors, cops, lawyers or Jim Belushi.

I'd actually heard about it a while ago when some friends at USC had seen the pilot in a class back when it was called "Ride-Along". They said A) that it was pretty good and B) that I'd like it because "its about Chicago cops and there's this one scene when this cop gives a guy shit for being a White Sox fan".

$OLD.

Then, I found out that it was written/show-run by Shawn Ryan, creator of "The Shield", who is also a native of the lovely town of ROCKFORD, IL.

Back when the fam used to take trips to Galena like it was going out of style, the Rockford oasis McDonald's was just that--the ultimate oasis of greasy food and a bleach-blasted bathroom--that helped split up the 2 1/2 hour drive.

Not to mention, the guy is a huge Chicago sports fan and obviously has passion for the city of Big Shoulders....so, yeah, we'd get along. Plus, he is one of my favorite people to follow on Twitter, especially during big Chi-town sports events (my favorite was his keeping a close eye on the Miami Heat's "Race to 72 wins" long after ESPN mysteriously dropped the story).

So, good show, good showrunner- but now the best and most obvious reason I'm excited about this show:

It's filmed entirely in Chicago.


It's filmed entirely in Chicago! 


It's filmed entirely in Chicago!!! 


Now, why is this so great? Well, its more than me just getting my own John Hancock every time I see a shot of said tower on TV...no, this is great because its a quality show that is shot on location in CHI.

After trying to get interested and excited for years on mediocre comedies set in in the Windy City but shot in weatherless Burbank (here's looking at you, My Boys, According to Jim, and newcomer Mike and Molly), there's finally a show I can actually be proud of.

(Oh, and lets not forget the absolute abortion of a Chicago-set sitcom known as CURSED.)

But, better still, "The Chicago Code" spurns the blank slate of Hollywood backlots and green screens and actually shoots on location in Chi-town...in its neighborhoods and 3-flats and decades-old L tracks that you really can't get anywhere else....sorry WB Lot.

And its ABOUT the city. They're not just setting something here because it'd fit the "feeling" of the show then slapping a postcard image of the city at the top of each scene and putting a Bears poster on the bar set (Again: here's looking at you, My Boys, According to Jim..etc),

Its about the City of Chicago and its biggest problem: corruption. Its about the cops who work in a gritty, violent city that is also their hometown. Its about real pride about where you're from and who you root for. Its about "he pulls a knife; you pull a gun. He puts one of yours in the hospital; you put one of his in the morgue. THAT's the CHICAGO way."

Whoops, got a little excited and slipped into Jimmy Malone for a sec. But you get the idea.

Anyway, I'm just saying that it speaks to one of the things I've really come to realize recently, which is that despite the relative wealth of production that has come to the Second City, there are very few--none, really--that do a good job capturing what Chicago is really about. Its people, its attitude, its undefinable qualities that only come from standing at the corner of Washington and Dearborn and feeling a cold breeze from the Lake.

I mean, very few have ever captured the soul of our city the way Woody Allen and Scorcese got NYC or Michael Mann taps into L.A. or even now how Affleck just masterBostonates all over the screen.

Tapping into the sweet home Chgicago-ness in film is definitely something I hope to do one day, once I finish USC and start convincing people to give me money to make things.

But, in the meantime, I think "Chicago Code" has the chance to be the best insight into the true character of this city that we've seen on any screen in a long time.

At least I hope so.

PLUS, if the show's a hit, that means the entire film industry in Chicago will have a consistent job going that can grow our production capabilities even more, perhaps getting some new shows...

DOUBLE PLUS, if the shows' a hit, and I can somehow weasel my way into the writers' room as an assistant and -- gasp! --maybe even write for the show someday....I may actually be able to live out my dream of making movies by day and drinking 312s and Old Styles with friends and family by night.

But that might just be getting ahead of myself a LITTLE bit. Show's not even on the air yet.

It will be tonight though! So watch it! Monday nights are now officially clear of Bears' primetime failures for at LEAST 8 months (not counting pre-season) so you don't have anything else planned!

THE CHICAGO CODE on FOX: 8pm CST/ 9pm in Venice and the rest of PST.

I'll be watching.




*Oh, and here's the PROMO if you've lived in a shame-cave next to John Edwards and Christine O'Donell the past 5 months.

BEST PART - "You think you can change how things get done in CHI-CAH-GO?!"


From a film position....yeah; hopefully.



-MK

10

Bit of seriousness today. Last Friday I joined the mourning of thousands in Chicago upon hearing about the death of legendary Chicago Cubs player, broadcaster, advocate, and ultimate fan - Ron Santo.

I don't usually feel strong connections when public figures or celebrities die, its usually a brief moment of "that's too bad", a moment of remembrance, and moving on. But Ron's passing hit hard and I feel like its reverberations will be felt for more than just a few days. In fact, I think the sadness will be especially palpable when the 2011 Cubs start their season and Ron Santo's voice will be absent from the airwaves.

I don't want to pretend that I'm in any position to give a eulogy on Ron's amazing life and career, plenty of reporters and people who knew Ron can do that much better.

All I know is that being a Cubs fan is hard. We suck a lot. I've seen more wasted opportunities and depressing seasons that any fan outside of Cleveland should have to endure. Ron's amazing enthusiasm and affable personality made those painful games a bit easier to listen too.

And, on the few occasions when the Cubs were actually successful, hearing Ron's exclamations of joy made victory all the more sweet.

Pat Hughes brought up Ron's blatant homer-ism in a piece in the Tribune:

Of course, everyone remembers Ron's famous "Oh, no" call on the dropped fly by Brant Brown. I swear, his forehead was glued to the table after that one. I thought he'd died. What most people don't know is manager Jim Riggleman had to comfort Ronnie afterward, putting his arm around him, telling him not to worry, that the Cubs still would go to the playoffs.

A manager cheering up a broadcaster? Do you think Mike Ditka ever tried to cheer up Wayne Larrivee? This was a first in professional sports. I had to look away. It was a terrible day, and I didn't want anyone to see me laughing.

And there's so, SO much to say about Ron's charity work and battle with Diabetes. Again, much will be said and done in the coming days. I'm glad that Ron's family has suggested in lieu of sending flowers or cards that fans donate to JDRF.

In addition to everything great about Ron Santo the broadcaster, the fan, and the man, there was also Ron Santo the player.

A great player. One of the all-time best for his era. Its a shame so much discussion in the wake of his death centers on the Hall of Fame's committee's stubborn refusal to let him in. The important thing is that Ron's #10 flies in the wind over Wrigley Field.

On that note, one of the best idiosyncrasies of baseball is the timelessness of statistics. Though HGH and Flintstone vitamins may cast some periods under suspicion, there's little doubt that in Santo's time, his numbers stood alone. So, in a baseball geek's tribute to the exuberant third basement who munched on candy bars in between innings to keep his blood sugar up, the career statistics of Ron Santo.