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Don’t Open This Blog Post and Walk Away From Your Computer

This weekend I set out to do nothing and that is exactly what I achieved.

I laid in bed until 1 on both Saturday and Sunday, ate lunch with my Texas family and friends, took naps, watched Django Unchained at the dollar theater, strolled Town Lake, played bocce ball and had 100% non-work related conversations with my creative partner (Geoff).

Simple and sweet.

This weekend might not sound particularly noteworthy, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve discovered that these common tasks are often difficult to achieve.

Going freelance has been both creatively fulfilling and mentally debilitating.

At times I’m afraid to stray away from the computer out of fear that I must be “creating” something or being “productive” at all times.

Even before I went freelance, I felt that I had to be “moving forward” every day, otherwise I’d stall.

I’d grow old, miss opportunity and wonder what the hell I did with my life.

Obviously this logic doesn’t bode well for life-work balance.

In (more…)

April 8, 2013 by hipstercrite

Austin, Music, Pop Culture

If You Love Depeche Mode and Joy Division, You’ll Love Austin-Based Band Knifight

You know that special moment when you randomly walk into a bar, completely unaware of what musical act is playing there that night, and as you’re ordering your drink, you hear the most transfixing music pouring in from the back? You make your way through the crowd and find yourself planted in front of a five-piece band creating a sound conglomeration of your favorite musicians: m83, Depeche Mode, Joy Division, INXS, any wonderfully moody synth music over the past three decades…

I’ll never forget that night at Cheer Up Charlie’s when I first saw the Austin-based Knifight.

We were scouting locations for our film Loves Her Gun (Cheer Up Charlie’s makes an appearance in it!), and we fell so in love with Knifight’s music, that we asked if we could use one of their songs in our movie. The song we used is one of my all-time favorite songs by anyone: “Girls Don’t Get Crushes”.

If you don’t fall in love with Knifight after listening to that song (and the others listed below from their (more…)

April 4, 2013 by hipstercrite

20-Something, Hipstercrite Life

How to Handle Debt: A Personal Story

The other day, I posted on Hipstercrite’s Facebook page that I had just finished paying off my car, and in a several months, my credit cards too.

I’ve written about debt before; like many twenty-somethings, I’ve been strapped with school loans, credit card and car payments for most of my third decade.

When you’re facing debt, it’s often difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel. In fact, many mornings you wake up in a cold sweat, suffocating from the heavy blanket of your finances.

I was raised by a fiscally conservative mother who always paid her bills on time. When she pushed me forth into the world that was the only advice she gave me. Fresh out of college, I landed a salaried position in Los Angeles and thought I was set. Boy, was I dumb!

My debt was established in several steps: 1.) I often used my credit card to go out to eat (I was very sad and lonely in LA and didn’t want to be at home) 2.) I foolishly put the down payment of my new car on a credit card and (more…)

April 3, 2013 by hipstercrite

Austin

Austin Changing: Why My Love for Austin is Being Challenged

When I first drove into this city five years ago, I fell head over heels in love.

Lately, my undying love for Austin has been challenged.

I’ve learned the hard way that writing about Austin as though I’ve lived here a long time will provoke scorn, but to hell with it. Even within the five years I’ve lived here, I’ve seen rapid growth that makes one’s head spin.

Austin has been in influx for decades, but it’s hard for anyone to argue that the “big city” changes have been most prevalent these past 5-10 years.
Unlike LA and NYC- who came into their own decades ago- we’re watching a city grow and mold right before our eyes.

Readers make fun of writers who talk about Austin as though they’ve lived here a long time because they write articles titled this: “Austin is ch-ch-ch-changing: Give up the hate and embrace the non-natives who make our city great.”

This article, which I wrote in January of 2012, was from the perspective of someone who was confused as to why Austinites were (more…)

April 1, 2013 by hipstercrite

Film, Pop Culture

The Many Faces of Chevy Chase (pictures)

Well, yesterday’s post provoked the wrath of Khan, so I’m going to write about something warm and fuzzy today… like Chevy Chase’s face!

I had no clue what to write about earlier, so I sought inspiration from my friend Mike who has been on a Fletch kick lately.

“What should I write about today, Mike?”

“The many faces of Chevy Chase!!!!” he said to me.

I snickered to myself. Surely Chevy Chase only has a few faces!

I did a Google search and was surprised to discover that Chevy Chase does indeed make many faces.

Now, I think Mike was implying the wonderful faces that Chevy Chase made during the Fletch era, when Chevy was a stud muffin, like this endearing photo here:

And here:

But what I discovered is that the double and triple-chin modern day Chevy Chase makes waaaay more interesting faces, like:

The Val Kilmer Meme Face

The Farting With Each Step I Take Face

The Recalling Seeing Beverly D’Angelo’s Boobies Face

The Trololo Face

The Cerebral Masturbating (more…)

April 1, 2013 by hipstercrite

20-Something, Hipstercrite Life, Writing

How to Overcome Writer’s Block With the Help of Social Media

I thought that once the film premiered, my creative juices would be flowing like an unbridled river out of every pore in my body.

Boy, was I wrong.

Since the film premiered over nineteen days ago, I’ve felt creatively adrift. Lost in a sea of cerebral noise.

Not only have I had difficulty constructing coherent sentences, the creative gauge has been running on fumes. For the first time in a great while I’ve had absolutely no interest in writing. I barely know what I’m feeling right now, so the ability to express thought, emotion and inspiration into words seems impossible. All the ideas and characters that playfully swim through my head have been snuffed by anxiety and fear. Though I try not to let it, reading the occasional “mixed review” of our film sends me into a spiral of self-doubt. I’d like to think I’m able to handle criticism, but it’s never easy.

Instead of enjoying a creative milestone that I never would have imagined achievable, I’ve been a cantankerous curmudgeon (more…)

March 28, 2013 by hipstercrite

Music, Pop Culture

Lady Crush of the Day: Nicole Atkins

Sad fact: I typically don’t gravitate towards female singers. Their voices often sound too perfect- too clean– and in the great words of David Byrne, “The better the singer’s voice is, the harder it is to believe what they’re saying.”

Only the ladies with stories to tell in their voice and lyrics such as Janis Joplin and Stevie Nicks, or the ones who challenge gender norms such as Annie Lennox and Patti Smith, or the ones who are just as gritty as they are beautiful such as Deborah Harry and Chrissie Hynde are of interest to me. As for the the Gwen Stefanis, the Beyonces and the Taylor Swifts: I will not argue their talent, but their music does absolutely nothing for me.

To me it is all pop drivel.

It has been a very long time since I had a contemporary female music idol.

I wasn’t very familiar with Nicole Atkins’s music until recently. Why? I’m not sure, other than that I’m really bad at checking out new music (side note: Nicole Atkins is not new new; her first full-length (more…)

March 19, 2013 by hipstercrite

Austin, Film, Music, Pop Culture, Writing

Has SXSW Music Gotten Too Big For Its Britches?

via www.lauragibsonmusic.com

Well, SXSW is over.

We all survived.

We had a busy week with our film, Loves Her Gun. I won’t bore you with the details, but if you’re interested in reading reviews, awards etc. that the film received, check out our Facebook page.

Participating in the film portion of the festival spoils you. It’s contained and organized, no unofficial events surround it and you casually run into peers and friends within the Austin film community and beyond. It is always a pleasure and a treat to experience this part of the festival.

I could tell the second that SXSW Film and Interactive had ended and Music began when we tried driving out of our neighborhood. Living on the eastside now means you co-exist with official and unofficial music events. No longer do you have to live a couple of blocks east of downtown to experience this; you can live as far as a few miles away to feel the effect. The story I’m about to tell you I already shared on my Facebook (more…)

March 18, 2013 by hipstercrite

Austin, Film, Pop Culture

SXSW Film 2013 Infographic: How Many Films Used Crowd Funding This Year?

Amanda Farmer at Austin Freelance Writer was kind enough to share with me her fascinating infographic on SXSW Film 2013 stats.

It gives tremendous insight into the what films will be debuting at SXSW and how many were crowd funded (our film Loves Her Gun was partially funded by Indiegogo and USA Projects).

I also spy one of our film’s actresses, Heather Kafka, in the infographic!

Make sure to check out Amanda’s work here!

March 6, 2013 by hipstercrite

Austin, Film, Hipstercrite Life, Pop Culture

One Week Before SXSW!

It’s one week before SXSW starts and one week and one day before the premiere of our film Loves Her Gun.

I’m nervous and I’m excited and hopeful and fearful.

What if no one likes the film?

What if during the film, the audience collectively rises in a wave of anger, throws vegetables or dead animals they had been hiding in their purses and pockets at the screen and tackle me into the theater seats to ensure my broken arms never write again?

Like George McFly to Marty when he sheepishly explains why he can’t ask Lorraine out, “I don’t know if I could take that kind of a rejection.”

This movie is my density.

I’m scared shitless!

I’ve never experienced anything like this.

Will you still love me even if my dangling broken limbs are covered in tomato juice?

Over the next week, I’ll probably be posting a significant amount about the film since it will be taking up a good chunk of my life.

It’s a tough industry and every share and retweet about our film (more…)

March 1, 2013 by hipstercrite

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