This is my Venice moment. Like when my wife was fine on our week-long trip to Italy till the last day when we were on a water taxi and she saw a baby rocking in his stroller and broke down crying out of nowhere, missing our two-year-old back home. I had no words but could only hold her hand. Now I am having the same moment, flying back from Austin to Oakland after a long weekend away. There's a girl in the seat in front of me, kitty corner, with a lilac blossom woven into her hair. And the tight lid I've been keeping on missing my daughters has slipped. It's hard to even talk to them on the phone when I'm away because the sound of their little voices sets my heart to breaking. But I push through it and they don't hear the waver in my voice because they're little and have no concept of such things.
The girl with the lilac blossom swings her little legs on the edge of her seat but I can only see part of her head through the crack between the headrests. Like with my daughters, I can only see part of their beauty at once, sideways, because the full thing is too overwhelming. Tiny dimples on their knuckles, a pigtail sprout too tiny to even be called a pigtail, pink tutus spinning to invisible music. The way my 8-year-old Branna runs and tackles me when I get home - throws herself full force into my love with no reserve - confident that her Daddy will catch her but I'm not sure I can hold it, not all that love. But she trusts me, so I try. Try not to let any of it spill out but it does. It blazes out with a radiance. But some of it goes in a secret chamber in my heart, where I store it up like a squirrel gathering nuts for winter - the winter of her teenage years. The years I dread because I don't think I can handle it. No more "Daddy!" No more launching herself into the air. My sweet flying girl, this missile of love aimed right at my heart - my most vulnerable part. I'm afraid I can't contain it - that she'll pierce me straight through and we'll both fall to the ground.
I think of her now, my Branna. She looks up from her book with her hound dog eyes. Loyal like a great dog, loving like all dogs. "Hazel buddies," we say. These are the first of things we share - our eye color. Reading buddies, soccer buddies, dimple buddies. There will be none of this in the coming winter. There will be slammed doors and shouting. No more super snuggles, no more sloth hugs, no more horsey back rides, no more leg bugs. Just the empty space between us. I hope that isn't true but I know it is. Because it's the same space I gave my parents in my winter. I thought I hated them (I was wrong.) Or would have thought that if I thought of anything besides myself in that time. And I know that we never really got back to that place - to that unreserved, unabashed love when I was the missile. But the love sneaks out in quiet, unexpected moments, like when someone accidentally brushes against a wound you forgot. My Mom used to do that to me. But she's Mom now, not Mommy. And I know the same is coming for me. But right now, I just got home and I'm still "Daddy! " and my girl is in the air - she's flying to me and my arms are wide open and I'm ready to be pierced. And I'm storing more nuts for winter.
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Poor Pluto
I wrote this short story in wonderful Lissa Rovetch's class at Pixar. It's a story about Pluto getting kicked out of the planets club for being too small. He decides to start his own club and has to deal with some unexpected results. This story was inspired by two things:
1) I grew up with Pluto as a planet and am sad to see him demoted from being an "official" planet. That must suck.
2) I heard a story in one of my storytelling classes about a younger brother being excluded from his older brother's friends' club and it stuck with me. I'm the oldest bro but I've seen the pain on my younger brothers' faces from being excluded from my awesome karate dojo for being "too undisciplined."
The artwork was done unbelievably fast by the super-talented Pixar sketch artist Dan Holland. One of the many benefits of working at Pixar is that you're surrounded by great artists. Every night we had class, Dan was constantly sketching. I don't think he can turn it off, which is how I feel about writing. He did a couple of two-page interior spreads to communicate the look and feel of the images.
Dan's artwork:
Jupiter playing cometball with Pluto:
Pluto wandering the solar system after being kicked out of the Planet Club:
1 - Deep in the Milky Way, a planet named Pluto loved to
play cometball. He never got to play with the other planets
because he was so small.
2 - But today was different. Three planets were out and you
need six to play, which meant--
"Aww, we have to let Pluto play," said giant Jupiter.
3 - Jupiter hurled the huge comet toward Pluto. VISHHHH--
Flames crackled out from its tail - KRKK-POP!
4 - Pluto caught it in his orbit. But he couldn't hold it -
ZANG! It broke free and zapped into--
5 - A black hole. "PLUTO!" shouted Jupiter. "That was my
favorite comet! You ruined our game, Stupid."
6 - Jupiter called the other planets together - they whispered
and glared at Pluto.
7 - Jupiter towered over Pluto. "You're kicked out of the
Planet Club."
8 - "But-- you can't do that! I've always been a planet,"
said Pluto.
"We have new rules for being a planet," piped Earth. "One:
no funny orbits. And two: you must be big enough."
9-10 - Pluto knew the angry planets would never accept him.
He drifted through the asteroid belt--
Past the ecliptic plane--
Beyond the scattered disc.
11 - He drifted so far the Sun grew dim and cold. He curled
up at the edge of an icy rock belt.
12 - "What's wrong?" said a voice. Pluto turned around. It
was someone a little smaller than him named Eris.
13 - "I'm not big enough to play cometball," said Pluto.
"What's that? Sounds fun," said Eris.
14 - "It is fun. But you need a comet to play, and they're
hard to find--" said Pluto.
Eris zipped away and back-- with four small comets!
15 - So Pluto showed Eris how to pick up a comet - SHUCK.
He showed her how to spin - ZUUU-ZUUU. He showed her how to
throw - VOOOM.
16 - Pluto found he was great with the smaller comets - they
were just right for his orbit. Some Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs)
came to watch them.
17 - A tiny KBO approached Pluto. "Do you think I could play?"
"Sure. Anyone can play," said Pluto.
"Anyone?"
18-19 - Pluto looked at the dozens of KBO's now gathered.
"What if you have a wobbly orbit?" said a lumpy KBO.
"Anyone can play," said Pluto.
"What if you have strange colors?" said a purply-green KBO.
"Anyone can play."
"What if you don't have any moons?" said a moonless KBO.
"Anyone can play."
20 - "Yes, anyone can join the Plutoid Club," said Eris.
"I want to be a Plutoid. Me too!" said the KBO's.
21-22 - Soon the club had thousands of players. FHWOOSH!
ZHOOMP! WUH-RRANG!
23 - A bumpy KBO fumbled a comet near the Belt's edge.
When Pluto went to get the comet, he was surprised to see
Jupiter hiding in a nebula.
24 - "What are you doing here?" said Pluto.
"Tell him to spin more before he releases," said Jupiter.
"Tell him yourself," said Pluto.
25 - "You'd let me play with you?" said Jupiter.
"I thought you had your special Planet Club," said Pluto.
"We kicked out a couple more planets. But then there weren't
enough for cometball," said Jupiter.
26 - By this time, several KBO's had gathered around.
"Can I play with you?" asked Jupiter.
27 - "Anyone can play," said Pluto.
28 - "Hooray!" said the Plutoids. Jupiter was good with the
small comets, but Pluto was the best. They lit up the sky
with their fun. ZING! ZANG! KA-ZOOM!
THE END
1) I grew up with Pluto as a planet and am sad to see him demoted from being an "official" planet. That must suck.
2) I heard a story in one of my storytelling classes about a younger brother being excluded from his older brother's friends' club and it stuck with me. I'm the oldest bro but I've seen the pain on my younger brothers' faces from being excluded from my awesome karate dojo for being "too undisciplined."
The artwork was done unbelievably fast by the super-talented Pixar sketch artist Dan Holland. One of the many benefits of working at Pixar is that you're surrounded by great artists. Every night we had class, Dan was constantly sketching. I don't think he can turn it off, which is how I feel about writing. He did a couple of two-page interior spreads to communicate the look and feel of the images.
Dan's artwork:
Jupiter playing cometball with Pluto:
Poor Pluto
by Mike Sundy
phastman@hotmail.com
1 - Deep in the Milky Way, a planet named Pluto loved to
play cometball. He never got to play with the other planets
because he was so small.
2 - But today was different. Three planets were out and you
need six to play, which meant--
"Aww, we have to let Pluto play," said giant Jupiter.
3 - Jupiter hurled the huge comet toward Pluto. VISHHHH--
Flames crackled out from its tail - KRKK-POP!
4 - Pluto caught it in his orbit. But he couldn't hold it -
ZANG! It broke free and zapped into--
5 - A black hole. "PLUTO!" shouted Jupiter. "That was my
favorite comet! You ruined our game, Stupid."
6 - Jupiter called the other planets together - they whispered
and glared at Pluto.
7 - Jupiter towered over Pluto. "You're kicked out of the
Planet Club."
8 - "But-- you can't do that! I've always been a planet,"
said Pluto.
"We have new rules for being a planet," piped Earth. "One:
no funny orbits. And two: you must be big enough."
9-10 - Pluto knew the angry planets would never accept him.
He drifted through the asteroid belt--
Past the ecliptic plane--
Beyond the scattered disc.
11 - He drifted so far the Sun grew dim and cold. He curled
up at the edge of an icy rock belt.
12 - "What's wrong?" said a voice. Pluto turned around. It
was someone a little smaller than him named Eris.
13 - "I'm not big enough to play cometball," said Pluto.
"What's that? Sounds fun," said Eris.
14 - "It is fun. But you need a comet to play, and they're
hard to find--" said Pluto.
Eris zipped away and back-- with four small comets!
15 - So Pluto showed Eris how to pick up a comet - SHUCK.
He showed her how to spin - ZUUU-ZUUU. He showed her how to
throw - VOOOM.
16 - Pluto found he was great with the smaller comets - they
were just right for his orbit. Some Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs)
came to watch them.
17 - A tiny KBO approached Pluto. "Do you think I could play?"
"Sure. Anyone can play," said Pluto.
"Anyone?"
18-19 - Pluto looked at the dozens of KBO's now gathered.
"What if you have a wobbly orbit?" said a lumpy KBO.
"Anyone can play," said Pluto.
"What if you have strange colors?" said a purply-green KBO.
"Anyone can play."
"What if you don't have any moons?" said a moonless KBO.
"Anyone can play."
20 - "Yes, anyone can join the Plutoid Club," said Eris.
"I want to be a Plutoid. Me too!" said the KBO's.
21-22 - Soon the club had thousands of players. FHWOOSH!
ZHOOMP! WUH-RRANG!
23 - A bumpy KBO fumbled a comet near the Belt's edge.
When Pluto went to get the comet, he was surprised to see
Jupiter hiding in a nebula.
24 - "What are you doing here?" said Pluto.
"Tell him to spin more before he releases," said Jupiter.
"Tell him yourself," said Pluto.
25 - "You'd let me play with you?" said Jupiter.
"I thought you had your special Planet Club," said Pluto.
"We kicked out a couple more planets. But then there weren't
enough for cometball," said Jupiter.
26 - By this time, several KBO's had gathered around.
"Can I play with you?" asked Jupiter.
27 - "Anyone can play," said Pluto.
28 - "Hooray!" said the Plutoids. Jupiter was good with the
small comets, but Pluto was the best. They lit up the sky
with their fun. ZING! ZANG! KA-ZOOM!
THE END
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Overview
I'm going to be detailing some of my previously written projects. Then I'll start posting new writing (some of which may be incomplete). I hope to use this blog as a way to showcase my writing and share the journey of an aspiring screenwriter. If only I could get Blogger to stop embedding crazy HTML tags and jacking up my font. I'll bend you to my will, Blogger, mark my words. You'll rue the day.
SANTAGATE is an AFF Finalist!
SANTAGATE is a family comedy script I wrote over the course of a couple years. I started it in the amazing Tim Albaugh's UCLA Online workshop. After I wrote the rough draft, I pitched it at my first Austin Film Festival in 2010. Not being the best pitcher, I was shocked to tie for third in the Pitch Finals. Two years and seven drafts later, it makes the AFF comedy screenplay finals. http://www.austinfilmfestival.com/news/2012-screenplay-teleplay-finalists/ Many thanks to my fellow writers in the UCLA Online Workshop and Pixar Screenwriters' group for all the great notes.
Logline: A kid reporter obsessed with the truth struggles to uncover the greatest grown-up conspiracy of all time: the secret of Santa.
Awards:
2012 Austin Film Festival Finalist in the comedy screenplay category (top 5 scripts out of 2000)
2012 Austin Film Festival Semi-Finalist for Enderby Entertainment Award
2011 BlueCat Quarterfinalist (older draft)
Logline: A kid reporter obsessed with the truth struggles to uncover the greatest grown-up conspiracy of all time: the secret of Santa.
Awards:
2012 Austin Film Festival Finalist in the comedy screenplay category (top 5 scripts out of 2000)
2012 Austin Film Festival Semi-Finalist for Enderby Entertainment Award
2011 BlueCat Quarterfinalist (older draft)
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