On Blogging, Stamina, Subscriptions and Rent.

I've been contemplating a hiatus in a week's time for creative recuperation but especially to catch up on some pressing life concerns, mostly involving dire finances. Blogging day in and day out is tough nonlucrative work -- not tough nonlucrative like slinging burgers I know (don't misunderstood) -- but taxing in a peculiar emotional/headspace/social way, as many forms of mostly solitary, intellectual and/or creative jobs are.

A few years back I held a fundraiser which went well (thanks to all of you!) and saved me from ridiculous overage charges which the site no longer incurs (I've since fused the site & blog and switched hosts -- a big win for everyone, I think, right?... NEVER go with Pro-Hosting people!)

But fundraisers aren't really sustainable financial models unless you do them very frequently --which is annoying -- and ad revenue isn't (currently) enough to pay bills on. Hope springs eternal, though. I was thinking the other day that if everyone reading daily, every other day or weekly treated The Film Experience to a cup of coffee every month we'd be very strung out on caffeine we would be earning a totally liveable wage! Of course not everyone will contribute to anything they're used to getting for free. And I don't really, at this point or any point in the near future, want to try to challenge the New York Times (teehee) to a Pay Model duel.

So if enough of you have it in your hearts (and bank accounts) to be the kind of people who would gift The Film Experience the price of a cup of coffee, tub of popcorn, movie ticket or even dinner, on a monthly basis -- it'd be greatly appreciated and make our existential dilemma about whether we should keep blogging for time and all eternity go away :)

I ♥ The Film Experience so...

I'll buy you a coffee : $2.50USD - monthly I'll get the popcorn : $5.00USD - monthly Movie tickets on me! : $10.00USD - monthly Dinner! My treat : $20.00USD - monthly

A solid stream of revenue for the site would also theoretically (if enough people pitched in) enable Nathaniel to go to (or send someone to) more of the big ticket festivals, make trips to LA during Oscar season, and make a video series we've been brainstorming possible. Everything costs either time or money but almost always both.

If you buy a "subscription" you'll get a discount on upcoming things we're working on to sell, too (mostly commemorative books). The point is Something's Gotta Give and Please Give (It's not Diane Keaton or Catherine Keener, so it's gotta be you.)

P.S. I realize it's bizarre to preface a request for patronage with "hiatus" talk, but if I get a slew of donations that would be loud motivation to keep it real real short-like (a week-like to tie up some loose ends) rather than something lengthier in which I would be searching for gainful employment.

P.P.S. If you don't want to do something regular-like, a one time donation would still help and it's my birthday next week anyway. Plug Plug. (There's donation buttons in the side bars or right here!)

P.P.P.S. Thanks to everyone who reads for this lovely community, whether or not you can give. (If you can't give you can always help sustain The Film Experience in other ways: Tweet or facebook or digg or otherwise share your favorite articles and spread the word. More traffic equals more opportunities for ad revenue.) It's great to wake up every morning and talk to other film fans... even the super quiet ones who never talk back ;)

It's Happening Again.

The waterworks start tomorrow.

Open Thread, Oscar Topics?

With just slightly over two weeks until Oscar night, I'm wondering what golden statuesque topics y'all would like to see covered here on the blog and/or discussed on the podcast? More than most years, many of the big topics felt played out by nomination time and The Social Network vs. The King's Speech even feels worth shoving aside. That's one reason that the Melissa Leo story blew up: it didn't have a lot of competition for conversation.

What's on your mind? Don't be shy.

P.S. Over the next couple of weeks we'll also bring back the regular movie series (Hit Me With Your Best Shot, etcetera...) and move on from 2010. Nearly dunzo!

20:10 In Utah No One Can Hear You Scream.

To celebrate the movies of 2010  - the film year ends on Oscar night -- we're freezing the movies at the 20th minute and 10th second to see what's happening. Here is 127 Hours.

Kristiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii. Megannnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.

This moment is so good it's in the trailer. Aron Ralston (James Franco) has just realized how damn stuck he really is. It's that freaky zoom out (and up) to leave our outdoorsy hero good and stranded all by his lonesome in the canyons of Utah, screaming himself hoarse for the girls he recently met who have already hiked away.

I figured this was appropriate today since I was just relating how I felt. The 'off my game' has moved from sad to comical on account of the escalation: i just lost my phone. At some point you laugh and then things start getting better. Thank God it's Friday, huh? At least I remembered to hit the record button while interviewing because the way this week was going...

COMING SOON (as soon as we wiggle free): new podcast with the gang, more Film Bitch awards, favorite love scenes for Valentine's week, a Pixar diversion, Ben Affleck, and interviews from the teams behind True Grit, The Social Network and The King's Speech. Stay tuned.

Screening Log

Have you been exploring the new site? The "reviews" section contains indexes of recent reviews as well as a screening log experiment. I decided to record what I see in 2011 including movies, television and theater (that's Immortal: The Gilgamesh Variations - now playing in Brooklyn) to your left.

As for the reviews, I'm still having technical difficulty bringing past articles over to this new site so many links will take you to the old blog and other places. But hopefully more reviews will soon be imported to the site. Still unpacking boxes at the new home as it were!

Despite the boxes, I hope you're already feeling at home.