0

Category: Life

hospital bed with dvd player
Nov142025

What I Learned from Filmmaking… from a Stroke (about Johnny English)

If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll know that my mom had a stroke last year. Among the effects of the story, it took away her ability to read (letters, symbols and numbers) but oddly not her ability to handwrite. If you want to learn more about that oddness, here’s last year’s post: https://www.debpatz.com/what-i-learned-about-writing-from-a-stroke/

Another lesson on the journey of recovery is from the time when she was still in the hospital: a lesson about hope.

Beyond her struggles to remember how to read, to calculate what year it was, to identify cutlery on the lunch tray, and so on… my mom had a desperate need to see the movie “Johnny English.”

Really?

Apparently, in all her hospital tests and discoveries about abilities lost and not, she wanted to know if she could still understand movie comedy and enjoy one of her most favourite films. She knew she had shelves of books in her home she might never be able to read again. She needed to know if her shelves of movies were also going to be out of reach.

She asked about the movie near daily, looking forward – no doubt with trepidation – to when she’d have the chance to see it again and find out. But until she did, she was determined that she’d not know the full extent of what was lost with the stroke.

So, one day, I brought the movie along with a portable DVD machine and headphones to the hospital. I had to help her use the machine because she couldn’t read the icons on the player – not even the buttons for play, pause or volume.

Watching her watch the movie… well, I can hardly describe the joy on her face as she discovered she could still understand the story, still catch the humour – both wit and slapstick. In that moment, the movie gave her hope: hope for the future, hope for some level of recovery. And even if some skills were going to remain lost to the stroke, she’d still have movies. She’d still have story and comedy.

You see, the medical profession keeps you alive physically, but stories can keep you alive emotionally.

That moment in the hospital will stay with me. It is the reason I entered the film industry in the first place: to truly affect people’s lives with filmed story. To make a difference in people’s lives through story.

As a filmmaker, you rarely see that connection actually happen. You are part of the movie being made and during release, it goes out strangers you may never meet. It’s a blessing that, every now and then, life will let you know that the connection is working. And hope is born in me too.

The hope and power of story!

Cheers & a good shoot to you,
Deb

=====================

“Film Production Management 101” (now in its third edition) is updated for today’s respectful workplace and sustainable practices – available worldwide, including Amazon-USA, Indigo-Canada and many other bookstores or directly from the publisher (MWP).

“Write! Shoot! Edit!” (written for young adults) is a choose-your-own-path book where you can follow the path of the writer, director-DP or editor to make your first films. It’s also available worldwide, including Amazon-USA, Indigo-Canada (Kobo), or directly from the publisher (MWP).

Hand holding an award
Oct12025

What I Learned about Filmmaking Life from Guild Wars 2

“Mistakes make us human. It’s rising up again that makes us heroes.” – Your Human Character (Guild Wars 2 video game, personal story)

With the expansion to Guild Wars 2 coming out this month, I dipped back into the game and started a new character. In playing the personal story anew (where your choices affect the story you play and the characters you meet), I was affected by this advice that my character gave an NPC.

A freelance career in the film industry is indeed made up of many ups and downs over the years – some in our control and some not. I’ve turned down working on a film because I didn’t particularly like the script… and then it went on to win incredible awards. I’ve also been faced with choosing an 8-month series or a 4-day unique shoot – a harder choice to make because the longer one provided monetary security whereas the shorter one provided more glamour factor but would leave me unemployed shortly thereafter.

When it comes down to it, though, none of the choices made were “mistakes” (ok, maybe passing on the award-winning film was), but in reality, they just led to different paths through my career life. And for each path chosen, I had to rise up and keep looking for work, keep networking, keep making connections. That is the path to self-improvement in career and life.

I also love that it’s my character in Guild Wars providing the advice. It’s so true that you can give yourself your own best advice. The important step, though, is to take it… and become the best you that you can be. And then you will be a true hero in your own life.

Cheers & a good shoot to you,
Deb

=====================

“Film Production Management 101” (now in its third edition) is updated for today’s respectful workplace and sustainable practices – available worldwide, including Amazon-USA, Indigo-Canada and many other bookstores or directly from the publisher (MWP).

 

Business cards in a pocket
Sep152025

Industry Parties and the 2-Pocket Business Card Season

Festival season is well underway and all those industry parties! Are you ready? And how do you remember all those people you meet? Including what you talked about?

Use business cards, of course! Yes, they are still relevant.

I like to wear a blazer as part of my outfit at these parties, or at least something with two pockets. In my right pocket, I have business cards to hand-out, and in my left pocket, I place business cards that I receive during the event. Keeping them in separate pockets means I can find a business card of mine effortlessly and they don’t get mixed up with ones I’ve received.

I also keep a pen in my right pocket with my giveaway business cards. I use it to jot down a word or two or a question on the back of any received card so I know what we talked about or I can follow-up with an answer after the party.

If someone doesn’t have a physical business card – which is more and more frequent now – we can connect via digital business card or Linked-In invitation on the spot. In this case, I also have the opportunity to use one of my own giveaway cards and jot down the person’s name and a word or two on the back and transfer it to my received pocket for my own reference.

If it looks like I always use physical business cards, well, I do prefer them and their tactile nature. As an introvert, fingering my received cards gives me comfort that I’ve reached out of my comfort zone to meet people at an event. Plus, there are many options now for eco-friendly choices in card stock: post-consumer recycled material, paper made with natural fibers like hemp or bamboo, and even recycled cotton or biodegradable options.

But if I forget to bring business cards with me (which certainly has happened) or I don’t have a 2-pocket outfit, I definitely use my digital business card. I mean, we always have our mobile phone with us now, don’t we? The digital card is great with its QR code for fast connecting, and the photo avatar is fantastic for when you remember a face more so than a name.

So, whether you use a digital business card or physical one or both, consider the 2-pocket system for when you connect with people. Maybe I’ll see you at an event and we can trade cards!

Cheers & a good industry party to you,
Deb

=====================

“Film Production Management 101” (now in its third edition) is updated for today’s respectful workplace and sustainable practices – available worldwide, including Amazon-USA, Indigo-Canada and many other bookstores or directly from the publisher (MWP).

 

Earth from space - photo from NASA at Unsplash
Apr52025

Know Your Expertise, aka Ever Been To Space?

The good news is you don’t have to know everything to work in the film industry. No two productions are the same; you will frequently be inventing what to do to get a shot, scene or concept on film. That’s why you need to take stock of your experiences to date and be knowledgeable of your expertise.

Take my first day at IMAX. We were shooting a documentary in space (yes, real space) when the MIR space station was in orbit. The camera was scheduled to go up on the Space Shuttle, which would dock on to MIR. The Space Shuttle would then go about its business, leaving as scheduled. But the camera – and film stock – would still be on MIR. Our challenge: how do we get the camera and film back to Earth?

I thought nothing in my life would prepare me for contributing to the logistics discussion (between Producer, PM, and UM) … but I was wrong. From my life experiences, including a love of international travel, and those photo safaris with my dad when I was a kid (experimenting with both antique and modern film cameras), I could contribute. Sure, I’d never dealt with the potential for sun’s radiation in the vacuum of space, but I’ve plenty dealt with multiple airport x-ray machine radiation on exposed and unexposed film stock.

In the end, we chose to send up (on an earlier shuttle) unexposed film stock from all the leading film stock companies to see which one(s) would handle the extreme radiation best. Then when it was time to send up the camera. We had our best-choice film stock, and we brought both camera and film back via Soyez into Russia instead of the Space Shuttle into the USA… which meant, yes, we also need to prepare the documentation for crossing the international border via a trip to space!

So… what life experiences have you had that could cross-over into the film industry? On your CV, you can flag some of these experiences as hobbies; they also double as good prompts for interview ice breakers.

Cheers & a good shoot to you,
Deb

=====================

“Film Production Management 101” (now in its third edition) is updated for today’s respectful workplace and sustainable practices – available worldwide, including Amazon-USA, Indigo-Canada and many other bookstores or directly from the publisher (MWP).

Nov12024

What I Learned About a Film Career from Bloomin’ Flowers

In short: Flowers blossom at different rates… and some blossom more than once per calendar year.

Going for a walk recently, a local magnolia is in bloom for the second time this year and it looks lovely. Again! But as with any blooming shrub, I notice that not all flowers blossom at the same time. Some buds become ‘early adopters,’ opening up and announcing their colour to the world while others stay as buds a while longer before opening up and shining their colour. Neither flower is more beautiful than the other, they just have different timing.

So too, I’ve noticed with freelance film careers. Some folk manage to shine quickly in their given field while others find a longer path to find their niche (and so do their shining later on). Considering that finding your place in the industry is the success, then neither path is more successful than the other, it’s just different timing.

With freelance work being so volatile, that’s a comforting thought. Keep going along your path and find your way. You may not have blossomed yet, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be blossoming soon.

Cheers & a good shoot to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – –

FYI, the third edition of “Film Production Management 101” is coming to bookstores and online in January 2025, but available now for pre-order (e.g. on Amazon, Amazon Canada, Indigo-Chapters).

Notebook-pen-blindfold
Sep62024

What I Learned About Writing from a Stroke

I’m finally back to writing my FILM blog. Besides being busy with the editing/publishing process of the next edition of “Film Production Management 101” (how exciting!), I’ve also been busy dealing with my mom’s stroke which she had this summer (not so exciting). She’s doing OK, BTW. Now, every stroke is different and my mom’s was certainly baffling to a number of us on the journey so far. What is interesting, though, is that I’ve learned two amazing discoveries about writing:

#1 – The ability to read and the ability to write are in different parts of the brain.

#2 – The ability to type and the ability to handwrite are in different parts of the brain.

You see, my mom can’t read or type (i.e. use a keyboard), but she oddly, can handwrite. And once she’s written something, she can’t read it. It’s kind of like handwriting with a blindfold on. Both strange and amazing, isn’t it?

Whod’ve thought reading and writing were so separate in the brain? Whod’ve thought that you could prove that writing on a computer is different from writing with pen and paper? My mom has proved it.

The inspiring element to this journey (beyond my mom’s spitfire dedication to re-learn to read), is that starting even from her hospital bed, she started writing. All those stories and children’s books she wanted to write over the years but never found the time, she wrote. Sure, they are messy handwritten first drafts but they are complete first drafts, story arc and all. And her spelling isn’t nearly as bad as she thinks it is.

Basically, she was forced to ignore the self-editor voice that gets in the way of writing with all kinds of corrections and judgements… because she couldn’t read what she’d written. Her only choice was to write forward. To shelve the self-editor voice. And she did. When she re-learns to read, she’ll have a body of work ready for editing and second draft. But it will be there. Pages and pages.

Makes you reflect that if you’re having trouble writing into a story on keyboard, it’s worth trying pen and paper. Mix it up and don’t let your self-editor have voice. Put on a literal or figurative blindfold if you need to. Be inspired by my spitfire of a mom and get that first draft written.

Cheers & a productive writing session to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – –

Where is Deb?

Mon. Sep. 16 – Guest Speaker at GEMS ETVP (Emerging TV Producers) Program, Vancouver BC

Tue. Oct. 8 – Guest Speaker for Telefilm at the Sustainable Production Forum (SPF24), Vancouver BC

And FYI, the third edition of “Film Production Management 101” is coming to bookstores and online in January 2025, but available now for pre-order (e.g. on Amazon, Amazon Canada, Indigo-Chapters).