March 29, 2018: The Speed Dating Directors Selection Process!

About a month ago, I agreed to take part in a showrunner/director speed meeting event that will essentially involve me sitting down with eight pre-selected directors for 10 minutes each over the course of an evening.  “Wait a minute,”you’re no doubt thinking. “You’re not a freakin’ showrunner!”  Well, while technically true, I was a showrunner and do feel pretty good about my chances of showrunning again in the not too distant future.  So I thought “Why not?”  It would be nice to get to know some people currently not on my radar.

Anyway, I agreed and, last week, was sent a list of over a hundred directors and instructed to choose eight.  Eight out of 120+!

So I sat down, researched credits and reviewed reels.  I crossed off the list the dozen directors I already know simply because I’m already familiar with their work and if they really want to sit down with me, all they have to do is send me an email.

After the first lengthy review, I’d narrowed the list down to 25.  Then, over the course of that afternoon, 16.  Then 10. And, finally 6.  Until I realized I actually needed to choose 8 candidates, so I went back, doubled that number to 12, and then wrestled with indecision for the next two days.

Until it eventually dawned on me that, rather than narrow down my choices to a mere six eight, I could simply reach out to some of the directors on my short list and actually meet up with them outside of the planned event – for LONGER THAN 10 MINUTES!

So I did.  I reached out and ended up meeting three amazingly talented young female directors.  Over the course of a leisurely lunch, we discussed the television industry, their respective backgrounds and longterm goals, and I imparted nuggets of wisdom like: “It’s the small moments that make an episode,” “Don’t be crazy!”, and, most importantly, “Try the grilled octopus.  It’s delicious!”.

I would have reached out to more but I’m amazed by the number of industry professionals who aren’t on twitter.  In some ways, I get it.  I’m not a huge fan of the platform either, but I do recognize its value in providing quick and convenient online connections.

Anyway, to make a long story short (or, more to the point, bring this rambling blog entry to a close), I’ve chosen my eight directors and look forward to learning as much about them as possible – in ten minutes.

In other news.  Hey!  I did an interview for The Digital Fix

Also, the results of my recent online poll are in.  And Akemi breathes a sigh of relief…

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Finally – When we first adopted Suji, she could barely get around, dragging her back legs around wherever she went.  Over a year later, she’s such an avid walker that she gets downright angry if we’re ever late for her morning stroll…