Now, in the actual travel part, it’s not a problem. There’s nothing more pleasant than going to sleep on one coast, and waking up on the other. It’s kinda like I’ve figured out teleportation.

The problem comes in when I need to stay awake during some part of travel. If I have work to do, something to read, or have to prep for whatever is going on on the other side of the travel. I find it nearly impossible to stay awake long enough to get anything done. So, I have to plan around my “disability” when traveling for work. Which means I’m often showing up at the airport exhausted. Which means I fall asleep faster.

Vicious cycle.

This year I did not have a film showing. I debated whether or not I should go. We looked at the calendar, pushed things around, and decided yes. I should.

Now, I have parts of Sundance I love. I’ve been coming to Park City since, I guess, 2004. Of course, in 2004, I only came here mistakenly. I was in Salt Lake City shooting a film (Go Figure), and on a weekend, we decided to head up to Park City to ski. Now, at the time, I was bound and beholden to the House of Mouse, so things like Sundance weren’t on my everyday radar. But, low and behold, I drove to Park City on Saturday morning, got stuck in the traffic, and stayed and played with friends all weekend.

Now 2008 and 2009 I didn’t go. My business partner and I have been so all consumed with the day to day running of the business that taking a week in another city…even when it was work…seemed unfathomable.

So this year, I was back. In the couple days leading up to leaving, my asst and I spend time everyday making sure I’m on all the party lists I need to be on, and planning out my schedule. Now to those of you who don’t do this, what you have to know is that doing the party scene at these festivals is 1. necessary and 2. exhausting Especially if you are like me, and want to go to films in the morning too.

So, a typical Sundance day goes something like this: Up, showered ready and primped for the whole day by a 9am screening, noon screening, lunch meeting, afternoon cocktail party, second afternoon cocktail party, often a third afternoon cocktail party, late afternoon movie, dinner meeting, drinks meeting, sometimes an evening movie, premier party, event party, house party.

did I mention it’s exhausting?

but my favorite part is the films. The fact that I get to spend a week seeing 3-4 films a day is a film geeks dream come true. Were they all good? No. Were there enough that were good to make it satisfying? Absolutely.

So, as I came home, drained….but having reconnected with colleagues and friends from around the world, I can say that the lost sleep and exhaustion was worth it. Being surrounded by a group of people passionately pursuing their dreams is enough to recharge me.

Oh, and it’s super pretty, too.

Aspen, CO —–>Central Colombia—–>Vegas, NV—–>Paso Robles, CA—–>back to NY—–>VT——> finally home for about 6 weeks!

So for the next six weeks, I will be catching up on everything, including the blog. After all, since I blogged last we have:

1. started the festival submission cycle with A Little Help

2. sold off a project to get it into production

3. gained a reality television agent

4. brought on a small budget film with Pierce Brosnan attached which we are putting the finance together for

5. begun to regroup and plan out our next few projects

Much has happened, and much is happening in the time coming up, so I need to get caught up. Finishing a film is always a time to reassess and come up with the best attack plan for the next year or so. Onward!

Capitol City Brewing Company

Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

now to finish the About Me and Contact too….

Luckily, the driver sent to pick us up made sure we were brought back down to earth, with a reminder that, outside of our little world…no one knows who we are.

Wait...who is he welcoming? let's take a closer look.

Ahh. Yes. Welcome to NY, Ham Shake, welcome to NY

The Giant, on the other hand, will absolutely never cook. When he’s left to his own devices, he subsists on a steady stream of Del Taco and Fatburger. Now, normally, there’s no problem here. I love to cook, do all the shopping, and make sure there’s meals ready to be warmed up whenever I’m not around. 

However, this poses a challenge when I’m about to leave town for the next 15 weeks. So, all of my free time has been buried in a mountain of pots, pans, sauces and spices, trying to make sure he’s fed for at least a good part of the time.

So far, made, portioned, and ready to be unfrozen for consumption are:

• turkey and spinach lasagna
• whiskey soaked chicken
• pesto lemon/lime chicken
• spicy yuzu chicken
• mixed bean turkey chili
• herb meatballs
• polenta

Still on the agenda are all the things to baked. Quick breads and cookies both freeze well, so that’s what I’ll be focusing on:

• banana walnut bread
• zucchini poppy seed bread
• fig and almond bread
• blood orange snickerdoodles
• oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

By my calculation, this should be enough food for him to have at least one meal every weekday for the first six weeks. 

After that, if I were you, I’d buy some Del Taco stock.