The LXD perfom at TED – Ingenious & Amazing!

March 5th, 2010

OMG!

They’re so sick I can’t even contain myself. The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers are my heros! To see them on the TED stage which I so greatly adore, well it’s just a truly awesome moment!

…more on LXD from a post I did Dec. 2nd 2009 on my ‘Short Blog’

What do I love more then anything? DANCE and my generation of dancers .. Meet LXD (League of Extraordinary Dancers)

LXD dance crew announced a partnership with Agility Studios to create an original narrative web series dubbed The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers (LXD). John Chu (the director of Step Up 2) will direct the online series which is scheduled to launch in 2010.

The show will chronicle the formation of “the most elite dance crew in the world,” tracing the origins of the seven schools of dance that make up the famed crew. Chu blends comic-book style characters with a fictional cinematic narrative. The story begins with the modern day regrouping of a 1930’s era dance troupe birthed out of the traveling circus circuit.

An Epic Online Dance Adventure…Get ready. For the past six months, some of the most talented people in the business have been locked in a room secretly building a project that combines music, dance, story telling, sport and interactive media. We call this project the LXD. You’ve seen us on Ellen, YouTube Live but the LXD is part of an idea that is much bigger than that and always has been but we had to get a lot of pieces together to fulfill the vision. An now, with our partners, Agility …

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8toQxUVejiE

Check out the LXD YouTube Channel and subscribe to the series!

HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Dec. 1 /PRNewswire/ — Paramount Digital Entertainment and Agility Studios announced today that that they have struck a deal to launch the “The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers (LXD),” a multi-platform property from writer/director Jon M. Chu (STEP UP 2: THE STREETS) and Agility Studios. Beginning early 2010, The LXD will debut on select online video destinations.

“The LXD allows us to evolve how we tell stories using dance while creating a platform for the best dancers in the world to do what they do best,” states Jon M. Chu, Creator of The LXD. “PDE’s commitment and passion for the LXD has been amazing and together with Agility and my creative team, producing partner Hieu Ho and choreographers Harry Shum and Chris Scott, we hope reshape the future of dance and storytelling.”

The LXD launches with a scripted online series about heroes and villains with amazing powers of dance, that band together in rival factions, with an epic back-story and mythology woven around how the various dance styles in the hip-hop world came to be. The LXD employs the hugely popular and visually stunning culture of dance battles, intertwined with a cinematic narrative. The series will be complemented by live performances, instructional videos, and a web community where fans can learn and perfect their own dance moves, and even become part of the story.

“We are thrilled to be involved with Jon Chu and Agility. The LXD is an exciting property that fits our strategy: it’s a highly commercial project from a proven filmmaker that has feature-quality production values,” said Thomas Lesinski, President of Paramount Digital Entertainment.

Agility Studios, a boutique studio, develops, finances and manages content franchises that engage audiences across multiple media platforms including digital and traditional distribution platforms, including, videogames, live tours, film, television, broadband and more. Descending from industry elites including LivePlanet (Project Greenlight), Newscorp, AOL, NBC and REAL Networks, the founders bring a wealth of knowledge, experience and legacy to their investments and projects.

“The LXD has been one of those projects we believed in from the first meeting with Jon. His passion, vision and track record in the dance space is unparalleled and The LXD provides a platform for synthesizing dance and storytelling in a way that takes the genre to places no one has been before,” said, Scott Ehrlich, CEO of Agility Studios. “Our priority in finding a company to launch The LXD’s first set of products was finding a team that not only believed in the property but had the muscle and experience to help us make it big. We are excited to be in business with PDE given their industry leading track record and history of innovation in digital media,” adds Larry Tanz, President of Agility.

“The LEGION OF EXTRAORDINARY DANCERS” is the next generation of Chu’s successful run of dance projects; beginning with “STEP UP 2: THE STREETS,” the worldwide film sensation that grossed $148 Million at the box office, followed by “THE BIGGEST ONLINE DANCE BATTLE,” an internet phenomenon that has had over 20 million views on a series of dance videos with celebrity cameos including Adam Sandler, Diana Ross and Miley Cyrus. His upcoming project “STEP UP 3D” will be released in the summer of 2010.

A TRAILER IS AVAILABLE AT WWW.THELXD.COM

About Paramount Digital Entertainment:
Paramount Digital Entertainment (PDE) is a division of Paramount Pictures Corporation. PDE develops and distributes filmed entertainment across worldwide digital distribution platforms including online, mobile and portable devices, videogames, virtual worlds and emerging technologies.

Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The company’s labels include Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., Paramount Studio Group and Worldwide Television Distribution.

About Agility Studios:
Agility Studios is a boutique studio committed to transforming digital media properties into viable businesses by supporting content creators with services that include creative development, financing, distribution, sponsorship and advertising sales, production infrastructure, business affairs and back office support. Founded by Scott Ehrlich and Larry Tanz, the company combines five decades of experience in new media and traditional media production and distribution as well as brand and advertiser sponsorship and integration.

About Jon M. Chu:
Jon M. Chu is the director of the wildly successful movie, “STEP UP 2: THE STREETS” which grossed over 150 million dollars worldwide in 2008. The film won Best Picture Drama at the 2008 Teen Choice Awards and the Best Kiss at the MTV Movie Awards. He is currently in post production on the next installment of the Touchstone/Summit franchise, “STEP UP 3D”, which will be released in the summer of 2010.

SOURCE Paramount Digital Entertainment

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The Cold Cold Mood

January 9th, 2010

So, the first snow storm and cold snap 1 month ago brought this excitement and reaction!

One Month Later … I’m just COLD … and nervous to see the heating bill.

The upside, getting a whole lot of work done! Being snowed in a majority of the time and just too cold to leave the rest I’ve been extremely productive. see my new company website YogaStudioDecor.com

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The Disgruntled Chicken – Production Stills

January 5th, 2010

Here’s the first look at the Disgruntled Chicken – a short film featuring Douglas Rodgers (disgruntled chicken) and directed by Babe Baker of Big and Fancy Productions.  Doug is one of the great emerging spoken word artist of our generation.  His disgruntled creativity was fueled when working at a small restaurant where part of his job description included dancing on the side of the road in a chicken suit.  The Disgruntled Chicken was produced on a budget of less then $20 in one day down in Asheville’s River District.  The day of filming was about 90 degrees and 100% humidity, most of the shoot required Doug to drink and smoke throughout the day and sweat it out in the suit.  By the end of the day a disgruntled, dehydrated sick chicken remained.  The film is set to release online early 2010!

After the extremely hot shoot we celebrated with refreshing swim in a waterfall.  Below is the softer side of the disgruntled chicken with his lovely girlfriend Sarah at Skinny Dip Falls off of the Blueridge Parkway.

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The Adventure of Spending Fall on the Farm

December 29th, 2009

So, for those of you who don’t know me … the past three years I’ve spent fall up on a farm in Minnesota.

The Orchard Back Story: About 3 years ago Babe and I were living in Minneapolis, MN and had decided to move to Charlotte, NC.  The last 3 months in MN I needed to find  temporary job.  I replied to an add on craigslist to guide children on field trips at an apple orchard for the fall harvest.  I mean really, how much fun does that sound like!  I called my now great friend Heidi who is the Tour Director and she hired me instantly over the phone.  By my standards I had just landed a temporary dream job!

The first season (2007) I helped Heidi with tours and after about a month worked as a cashier in the retail Apple Barn.  I did other miscellaneous stuff too like paint signs on sunny days all by myself in the middle of an apple orchard, draw weekly signs with colored chalk, ride on antique tractors, pick and eat top quality apples off the tree every day and take pictures!   The barn sells a lot of local and handmade products and art.  The orchard was the first place ever to display my photography, I sold about 5 pieces in 2 weeks.  Selling my first photograph was absolutely amazing!  I love the feeling I get now every time someone buys one of my photographs.   I also collectively met a large group of people who I would now call family.  The people I worked with on the farm that first year have now become some of my closest and dearest friends (range in age from teenagers to 70’s) for which I am eternally grateful.  The last week of the first season Jay and Scott (brothers who run the orchard) asked me if I would consider coming back up from NC next year to manage the Apple Barn … YES!

The second season (2008) Babe drove up with me from NC to MN the first week in September.  Betsy (cashier in the barn) offered up what she called a ‘corner’ in her house with a bed that I could stay at for the season.  I had never been to Betsy’s house before and what she called a corner was my own room with my own bathroom in a house that sits on 30 acres and is nothing less then spectacular.  Throughout 2008 I had helped the orchard with the design and production of marketing materials, materials that were paying off and helped lead to a record breaking season.

This season gave me the butterflies, I showed up two weeks after open and although I had agreed to the job I had never actually managed anything or anyone before and had only very briefly worked in retail establishments and didn’t know that much about the apples.  Shit, I was freaking about simple stuff like making the pies and making the coffee.   Most of my staff was hired before I arrived and the rest I hired pretty much anyone who walked through the door because we got so busy so fast.  This proved problematic, I didn’t get along with some of the staff that had already been hired and a couple that I hired were damn near nuts … combined this damn near drove me nuts on a few occasions.  Turns out though I do have a knack for scheduling and positioning people and ended up helping out with the weekend staffing.  Most of this season is a blur because we were soooo busy that when there weren’t thousands of people there we were trying to order and put everything back together before they all showed up again the following weekend.

The one very clear memory I have of this season is sitting on a porch talking to Babe on my cell phone and him telling me the economy had crashed and they were out of gas in Charlotte and there were shootings at the gas stations.  ALL news to me, for weeks I was on a farm in the country so busy with work that I didn’t have time to even turn on the tv or read the news… FANTASTIC!  The orchard felt like a heavenly oasis protected from the madness of the outside world, life was simple, productive and fulfilling.  I had so many jobs in the past that in the grand scheme of things were just not necessary, but the fulfillment of providing food – a basic necessity for people just feels so gratifying and ‘right.  So, would I drive cross country and relocate next year and do it again … YES YES YES!  When I left this year Babe and I moved a few weeks later from Charlotte to where we presently reside – the top of a mountain in Asheville, NC a.k.a. HEAVEN!

The 2009 Fall Harvest -

Well, during 2009 I worked on design, marketing and social media for the orchard.  During the summer they were awarded ‘Farm Family of the Year’ by Hennepin County and everyone was getting set for a banner year.  This season I was there from the start at the end of August and I was also the ‘buyer’ for the Apple Barn.  Meaning I purchased and inventoried everything that we would sell in the barn for the season.  The staff that I loved I was in touch with and hired and scheduled before I even drove up.  It was setting up to look like an amazing, fun and busy season with all the newbie stress removed.  I know knew about the apples, how to bake pies, how to fix the register when it beeps at you, how to order stuff .  This year the orchard was also able to put me in my own apartment right next door, my commute was walking up a dirt trail through the orchard to the barn  … fantastic x 10.

Oh, it was gonna be good … we thought.   The first three weeks were busy getting things prepared in what was extremely warm Minnesota weather.  Then in a day it all changed.  The whether went from 80 to 40 and the clouds moved in.  We saw the sun total for a few sporatic hours over the next 31 days. It rained, it snowed, it froze.  Freezing temperatures damaged some of the fragile and most popular apples on the trees.  Which almost didn’t matter since it rained and was so cold every weekend that almost no one came out to the farm anyways.  The October set records, all within the top ten worst for MN, most rain, most snow, coldest temperatures, fewest days with sun.  This led to one of the worst financial seasons for the farm itself.

Now for the good part, because even in the shittiest of circumstances it’s always there.  We required very little staff for the year and with little distraction from customers we all spent a lot of quality time together.  I drank more wine then I ever have in my life.  One night even though I drove the quarter mile to the barn do to the rain I had to walk home because I had just been drank under the table by two 72yr olds and was too tipsy to drive back.  I learned much about hard cider and wine making.  I learned first hand just how fucking important the sun is!  Seriously, I watched all of us turn slightly depressed and miserable 2- 3 weeks into the rain and cold. The day the sun came out was magical.  Everyone was smiling and laughing and you would find people just looking up at it in a happy trance.  The event season ends the last weekend in October as soon as the season was over the temperature rose by 10-20 degrees and the sun was out almost every day in November.

Below are some of my favorite pictures of the orchard from over the years.  For more info on the farm visit MinnetonkaOrchards.com

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