Convercinema, with Miles Maker

Miles Maker‘s Convercinema podcast recently hosted those twin dynamos at Film Courage studios.

Film Courage? Huh? You know, that popular L.A. radio show hosted by David Branin and Karen Worden?

Ah, I knew it’d ring a bell!

I knew it! I knew you were going to ask me to define Film Courage in a sentence! Okay, if I must: well, it’s not so much a radio show (which it technically is) as much as it’s a rec room where aspiring and “made it” indies come over for a drink and a spirited chinwag. It’s the place where independents sometimes kvetch about the state of affairs in the biz, commiserating and comparing notes about what works and what doesn’t for those of us weighed down by our as-yet unfulfilled cinematic dreams.

The name David and Karen chose for their show isn’t accidental: courage (sorry if I sound like Bryant Gumbel).

Joining David and Karen (Karen and David?) in the ambiance of their delectable little green room and engaging them in a discussion about your projects, it’s almost like you’re breathing the courage in. What — mere moments ago — seemed totally unattainable, now seems possible. What seemed downright Sisyphean when you rolled out of bed that morning, is now well within your grasp. And all because the F.E.A.R. (that mendacious “False Evidence Appearing Real”) which branded itself on your psyche just melted away under the searing intensity of David and Karen’s (Karen and David’s?) infectious feelgood.

Can you dig it? So. Bring. It. On!

Without going into the content of Miles’ broadcast, which is quite long (though definitely worth a listen, kids!), I thought I’d list my personal Top Ten Reasons why you, too, should be regularly catching up on your Film Courage clips. And when you do, please make sure to get to the entire canon, not just tiddly-winks style, kiddo. Why, pray tell? Because courage is only to the brave. For those willing to prostrate themselves at the Cinema Gods’s altar of joy, grinding away, persistently, at the cinematic millstone.

TOP TEN REASONS TO FAN FILM COURAGE:

#1) Get to know your industry, dude!: Ever asked yourself why cliches persist? I mean, if they’re so inane, why don’t they just disappear? Well it’s because they’re honest and true. So when I tell you now that “Rome wasn’t built in a day,” take a Coke, and a smile, and my advice and duly apply it to your independent film’s odyssey. Because if you want to be good at any industry, even the experts say it takes ten years (or 10,000 concerted hours, take your pick, Malcolm) of dogged mastery and relentless pursuit of your chosen craft, to be considered knowledgeable. And the indie scene is no different. While it certainly has its fair share of chart-topping exceptions to the rule, becoming a maven in the indie world is akin to a steady, though steep, climb. It’s a worthy one, however, for those who roll with the blows. So get out there and get to know who’s doing all the cool stuff in indie. Watch fellow indies’ films. Read blogs and mags. Research, parse, and analyze them, then repeat the entire process anew. And do it every day. All day. Forever. Breathe it in like air. Simply revel in the world of film. Since Film Courage is rapidly becoming a compendium of the best on indie offer, pretty soon anyone who’s anyone will have appeared on the show. So you know what that means: you miss Film Courage, you miss what’s going on. Now is that any way to start a career? I doubt it, Frankie…

#2) Useful tips and (completely legal!) tricks of the trade: Puff pieces, mental strokage, Vitamin D blasts up the sphnicter muscle, and other assorted grab-assing never takes place on the storied Film Courage casting couch. What you instead get is a pot-pourri of valuable takeaways you can apply to your very own projects. All from the folks who have been there and succeeded. The women and men who stared down “Angst” squarely into its dripping maw, yet who didn’t hesitate to brandish their spherical sacs of venom when summoned. So pay attention, kids. There’s a lesson to be learned here.

#3) Pringles-sized bites of info: Truth be told, you will get the occasional 5-7 minute piece, but it’s rare. What Karen and David have instead attempted to do with their “interactives,” as they call them, is pump you hard with a deft film-y fix for two to three minutes, intro and outro included, then, er…release. Suddenly imbued with, um…knowledge, you leave the session better off than when you arrived. For the time-challenged or those hapless control freaks out there, what could be betta’?

#4) Rump-shaking vibes: Whether it’s the infectious beats of Tha Deviants or them bass-heavy throbbing cadences of Tyshawn Bryant, David and Karen have branded their interactives with distinctive choonz that’ll slap a smile on anyone’s face, even Scrooge’s. So if you’re not getting up off your swivel chair the instant the soundtrack cues, you’re either tone deaf or stuck an eighties time-warp. Either way, you’ll miss out on those feet-movin’ beats which might otherwise brighten up your day.

#5) The venues, baby, the venues: Yes, I know, it’s not just you. I, too, feel like I’m in Mission Impossible as we cut from film festival to film festival, repertory theater to press conference, exterior location to L.A. Talk Radio‘s green room, and all the while David and Karen intrepidly chase down all the breaking stories. Still, though, I appreciate it, even though at least one other listener I know mentioned how they were coming down with a chronic case of Film Courage-induced vertigo. Poor guy…more for us, then!

#6) Karen’s “radio voice”: There’s a rumor going around indie circles that Karen Worden employs a variety of different tones, depending on who she decides to be on a given day. I hardly know if this is true, and, personally, I can’t discern any differences. But, um…might this have something to do with the fact she’s an actor? Could be…could be, my overly inquisitive friends. However, Karen definitely is the right person for the job, given how charismatic females have the edge over XY Chromosomal Units on interviews. With males, it’s just a congenital defect. We don’t seem to have the required sensitivity. Something to do with our D.N.A.

#7) The guests: Face the facts: where else but on Film Courage would you ever get the chance to get this up-close-and-personal with players like Jeff Bridges, Clifton Collins Jr., and Gabourey Sidibe? Artists like Mo’Nique or Mariah Carey? Nowhere else. Full stop.

#8) A perfect way to spend your script writing breaks: Veteran screenwriters already know this, but for those just wading out into the wild torrents of writing for the screen, try to take ten minute breaks every hour-and-a-half. During those precious 600 seconds, do something to get your gray matter the hell off the script. My recommendation? Listen to music, do some pushups, or, better yet, watch archived Film Courage clips! Lookit, I’m not just blowin’ sunshine up your ass here: these things will inspire you and propel you to the next level. It’s like not like I’m telling you to watch something you shouldn’t watch. ;-)

#9) Film Courage swag: Whether it’s the SNORG Tees Karen is fond of giving to her show guests, the free DVDs, the books, tchotchkes, or the other delicacies on offer in the green room, it’s always a surprise to see what will the two of them think of next.

And, of course, the best reason to watch Film Courage?

#10) “It’s about the community, stoopid!”: Most important of all, Film Courage is about David and Karen giving something back to the community which has offered them so much. The photos on the wall prove it. Like Norm at Cheers, their kind of L.A. is a place where “…everybody knows your name.” Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!

SMASH CUT TO:

Nice job, Miles. Nice job, David and Karen. Nice job everybody.