Second Skin

Lyrics by the Chameleons UK - too beautiful, too haunting not to share - feeling it right now.

One cold damp evening the world stood still

I watched and held my breath

A silhouette I thought I knew came through and someone spoke to me

Whispered in my ear "This fantasy's for you."

My whole life passed before my eyes

I thought what they say is true

I shed my skin and my disguise and cold, numb and naked I emerged from my cocoon

And a half remembered tune played softly in my head

Then she turned smiling and said I realize a miracle is due

I dedicate this melody to you but is this the stuff dreams are made of?

If this is the stuff dreams are made of no wonder I feel like I'm floating on air

Everywhere, It feels like I'm everywhere

It's like you fail to make the connection - You know how vital it is

Or when something slips through your fingers - You know how precious it is

When you reach the point where you know It's only your second skin
Someone's banging on my door

Render Me Dead

I recently had the opportunity to work with a local director, Greg Brotherton on his first feature indy film "Render Me Dead." RMD is a fim noir spoof set here in Seattle with elements of corporate espionage, murder and comic relief. I initially was slated to do storyboards for the film but much to the chagrin of the DP and the rest of us visually minded people he chose not to. I did however act as Art Director for the film's finale in which a makeshift gallery is constructed in a barn and all sorts of visuals created as clues revealing the identity of the murderer.

The location of the finale was about an hour away from Seattle at a place called Smoke Farm. It was a gorgeous place but during the final weekend of shooting the weather was miserable and prevented the crew from finishing.

Aside from acting as Art Director I made some art for the finale. I did three pieces in total. Two were on 8'x8' canvas and a third was done digitally and projected onto paper. The first concept was to create an illustration that graphically captured the crime scene with chalk outline and police tape. The second was to illustrate the logo of a group of corporate thieves known as the Air Pirates.

Alot of time and effort was spent constructing the set for the finale which required frames for all of the art and projections. Each visual was 8'x8' and I worked closely with Ben the construction guy to meet all of the deadlines - which meant alot of sleepless nights. One of the construction set ups required us to drop an eighty pound plexiglass and wood framework down on one of the leads!