I was on the treadmill, watching MTV when this video entitled, “Corona and Lime,” by Shwayze came on. Here is more info about them from today’s LA Times article by August Brown

I’m not really feeling the lyrics, but the melody is really chill, So-cal, and the type of music that you would blast at a Summertime BBQ. I haven’t checked out “Buzzin,” which is the new reality show surrounding Shwayze and that dude Cisco Adler. (former beau of Mischa Barton)

Here’s the music video so you can judge for yourself.

Wednesday in the office. The middle of the week. Ah. So, just wanted to write another completely non-technology related post. And I uploaded an “Office” spec that I wrote entitled, “Meet My Folks,” if you want to check it out. It’s just the first act, but if you wanted to see inside my head… considering I did spend time on-set… then go for it.

I interviewed Patricia Handschiegel, the creator of Stylediary.net for this blog, and she has a great post called, “How to be a Girl and a CEO,” which contains all that info. for you ladies out there who want the corner office and love high heels and a little Peter Som.

Here are some of my personal obsessions:

Hoodies- OMG. Love these because you can dress them up or down. All you need is a great pair of heels or boots, add some crazy denim shirt, and a blazer. Or if you want to go urban, just pair with a great pair of Earnest Sewns or Sevens. And a re-constructed hat is best.
Try Triple 5 Soul for hoodies, as this brand is super-cute, trendy, and a tad over-priced. But very funky.


Origins- A Perfect World- I love skincare products, but I don’t have the biggest budget, so I’m all about natural, inexpensive products. This one is moderately priced and has the wondrous white tea with tons of antioxidants and also Origins is just great in general with yummy scents and mostly natural ingredients.

Goji Berries- These are a Himilayan superfruit that is a bit odd-tasting but has TONS of nutrients, antioxidants, Macronutrients, and Phytochemicals. It’s excellent when steeped in hot green tea.

Just thought I’d share some of my fave obsessions of the day.

Hope you guys had a good Monday! I realize more and more that I’m obsessed with the blogosphere. haha. I love them!

Anyway, I saw this segment on the “Today Show,” about Nerd Girls who are attractive, smart, and breaking the stereotypes that smart women don’t shower and have never applied lip gloss. These women are engineers, and very savvy in engineering, technology, Mathematics, and the Sciences. Very cool, ladies.

Also, I came across this amazing blog post called “How to Be Creative,” from Gaping Void. This guy is a cartoonist who just tells it like it is which is so refreshing and I really related to a lot of the content. It’s true that when you decide to go off and start a “crazy” venture, you’re usually alone for a majority of the time, wondering if you’re crazy and if you’ll ever achieve what you set out to do. Posts like this are so inspirational and amazing. Hugh, you rock.

And… I usually keep my blogs pretty light, but I felt the need to write about this. This past weekend, I witnessed some racist taunting at Asian-Americans, and felt like I was in 6th grade again when a boy named CJ Carson called me a “chink,” and told me to “Go back to where you came from.” All I could think was, “Well, I was born here. What do you mean?” Then I went to the bathroom, cried for an hour, and then got in trouble from the hall monitor for not having a hall pass. Go figure.

I mean, sometimes I feel like we’re making so much progress, especially with the possibility of the first African-American president, and also how technology is allowing us to have a more global society. Then, someone calls out a racial slur, and I’m back in 6th grade again.

When you’re Asian-American in this country, you’re pretty used to being ignored. When politicians speak of the racial issues that divide Whites, blacks, and Hispanics, they rarely mention Asian-Americans. We’re kind of like the iceberg lettuce in a sandwich…you always put it in between the meat, cheese, and toasted bread, but no one actually acknowledges it. Sigh.
Sorry for the depressing post, but I needed to just write this.

Peace,
Kat

I’ll try to keep this post short and sweet. First, my good friend, Christian is moving back to NYC. Tear. He will be missed, but we HAD to celebrate with a night of karaoke, of course.
We ended up going to Palm Tree for a long night of singing. BTW, if you’re ever in LA’s K-town and decide to come here, make sure you bring at least person who can speak Korean, otherwise, no one will understand each other.
Here are some things to remember:

1) Don’t Let the Background Videos confuse you- In private Korean karaoke spots, your song will play and there will usually be Korean dramas playing on the TV. Don’t be confused, scared, or weirded out. This is just the way it is, so enjoy the random videos of Asian couples who walk in the countryside.

2)Beware of the Quiet, Shy One- Yeah, at karaoke, there’s always that one quiet, shy person who claims to never have done karaoke. Um, yeah, then an hour later, they’re totally hogging the machine. haha…

3) Service- In Korean spots, this means they’ll give you something for free. Again, if you bring an Asian person, they will work it out.

4) Be courteous- In these spots, if you’re not Asian/Asian-American, you will probably feel odd, but hey, just have fun, kick back, and sing. The point is to make a fool out of yourself and have fun. It’s okay, you can rap Biggie, sing like Bon Jovi, or pretend that you’re Britney Spears in her “Oops, I did it again, days.” lol.

Also, check out the following websites that I came across… really funny and interesting.. in case you wanted to know what an Angry Asian Man thinks or perhaps John August, a Hollywood Screenwriter.

Oh, and thanks to Anthony at Ploomy for the t-shirt. Your site rocks.
Peace out,
K

1) Google Translate-
My parents live in Asia and usually I just e-mail them in English, but because of google translate, it automatically translates the English into Korean for me! This is great because my Korean writing skills are pretty bad, especially since I no longer attend Korean school on Saturday mornings.
My dad was pretty impressed, but then I had to confess that it was Google, and not me, that actually wrote the text. He was like, “Oh.”

2) Musicshake- I met these guys at the twisstup even on Thursday and thought the concept was so cool and awesome. You basically get access to a ton of hip hop beats, melodies and rock songs,and can record your vocals over the music. Then you buy it for 99 cents. They’re backed by companies from Korea and here, in the states. I love the concept and think it will really catch on. Good luck guys!

3) Drew’s Script-O-rama- You can get a ton of scripts here, whether in PDF format or Word, or non-formatted. It’s a great resource and I come visit this site regularly for all the content.

Matt and I started off yesterday’s workday with some Starbucks and of course, some conversation about Lepracaun sightings in Mobile, Alabama.

Here is the youtube video of a real newscast that warned of Lepracaun sightings… and can I just say, “Where the gold at?”
haha…

Hey All, the next interview is with Gillian, web producer, of YouthNoise, which advocates sports for social change. They’re partnering with Nike for the “Let me Play Campaign.”

More info later…

So… I haven’t really written about auditioning and those types of things on this blog, mostly because I’m aware that I work at a tech start-up and you know, I try to write about technology. Then… my right-brain starts to kick in and I write poems about Target and my obsession with downloading yoga classes. haha. But I just wanted to write about it…

Anyway, last week I auditioned for an upcoming TNT pilot called “Men of A Certain Age,” with Ray Romano and Andre Braugher, and everything actually went well. I went in, auditioned, read several times, and they brought me back to read for the role again. The role, by the way, was for a recurring guest star, and the characters was non race-specific, which means that the producers aren’t necessarily looking for a particular ethnicity.

Acting/Auditioning can be strange, especially when you’re in the waiting room and everyone auditioning kind of looks like you, and you’re thinking…
“Wow. That girl looks like me but shorter and with a tan.”
“This girl is trying the hoochie look. I should’ve worn a tighter top.”
“Um. That one is a model. I have no chance.”
“That one is trying to bring back the grunge look”
“Ooohh….cute boots, I wonder where she got them.”
“OMG. I have 20 minutes left on my meter!”

Then…you go inside the room, and usually its you, the casting director and a camera or several producers. This can be extremely nerve-wracking especially when you have a scene when you’re supposed to be extremely sad, emotional, screaming.. and then end it on a soft note.

And then you’re done. You leave wondering if you totally sucked, if you rocked it, or if you got a ticket on your car. I’ve gone on countless auditions and have gotten to the point where it’s not so stressful about the auditioning part, its the “staying positive and creative” aspect that can get a bit dicey. So…that’s my rant for the night.

Oh, and a bunch of new developers started today, and just wanted to give them a big shout-out/Holla/Welcome to docstoc. We’re looking for office space right now because we’re all crammed into the office like sardines at the moment.!

Good night and see you at twisttup tomorrow!

Okay, I started this series called “So You Work a 9 to 5,” because I knew that there are tons of people who work jobs to pay the bills and also have other creative passions that they’re pursuing. Daniele Ferraro is not only one of those passionate, driven people, but she’s the type of person that is always super-positive and smiling. Plus, the woman is talented. Word.

So, tell the readers of girlatastartup about yourself. Where are you from and what brought you to the City of Angels?
I am from Ft. Liqourdale Florida. I wanted to spread my wings and fly solo. ( in a 89 blue chevy Camero)

Nice! Gotta love a Chevy. What made you decide to take the chance to come out here?
I wanted no regrets. I was listening to that inner compass and it landed me here in Los Angeles.

Tell us about “Dirty Mary,” and all the awards.
Dirty Mary is a 17 minute romantic comedy that I wrote, produced, and starred in. It was like giving birth to my first child (my bank account incurred the stretch marks). It was one of the most exciting projects I have ever worked on. I absolutely loved every moment of it! It screened in over 35 film festivals and won 25 short film awards including the “Women in Film” award and HBO’s online short film contest.

You’re quite the entrepreneur.  How did you go about getting financing for your film?

As far as the financing goes…. I held a major fundraiser that almost took as much work as the production itself. I had liquor companies donate alcohol and people donate services and goods that I auctioned off. My friends Claude  who is a stand up comic hosted the ugliest tattoo contest where the winner won a free laser tattoo removal. I also auctioned off free headshot sessions, pies, underwear, acting classes, painting lessons… you name it, we auctioned  it off.   It was a lot of fun and a great start to get things rolling. Then as the production started going, a few friends stepped in and offered to sponsor craft services and then another good friend donated a large amount to post production. I felt very blessed to be surrounded by such supportive people. When we wrapped, I walked through the unknown costs of post production, and that’s when I had to whip out the credit card out- constantly… but when your baby needs something you buy it and that’s how I felt. I always bartered or researched the best prices, but I never skimmed on what was needed to make my film the best it could be and I think it shows.

Wow. You really took a chance and obviously reaped the benefits. Tell us the inspirational things that get you up each morning.
That fact that I have two eyes that see when I open them and I have two feet that move when they hit the ground.

Ah! Good answer. And the worst job you ever had…
Cleaning bedpans in a hospital and putting dead bodies in a freezer.

Um…. I have mad respect for you. So, what is your current day job? And also, how do you stay creative?
I am a real estate agent at Keller Williams. I stay creative by surrounding myself with people and things that inspire and excite me.

Word. And what is your ultimate goal at the moment?
I just finished writing the follow up feature to my short entitled, “Warrior Princess”. I think it’s a great time for female driven comedies, so now I want to give birth to Dirty Mary’s big sister, Warrior Princess! Any Executive Producers out there want a kick ass female comedy?

Sounds like a fun concept for a feature. Did you have any mentors to give you advice or help you out when you were in a rough spot?
Yes, I have worked very closely with my artistic director, Stuart Rogers, who started the theatre company, Theatre Tribe. He has been very inspiring and has stretched me artistically for the past 10 years.

How do you stay inspired with your writing? And with life in general?
I sing off tune, moonwalk and breakdance. I read inspiring works. I am also a huge Tony Robbins fan. I think he rocks!

Because I know that I’m not the only karaoke freak…what is your karaoke anthem?
Meat Loaf, Paradise by the Dashboard Light.

Favorite film and why?
I don’t have a single favorite film, but “Death of a Salesman” is my all time favorite play. Willy Loman will forever bring me to my knees. I am a lover of good stories and characters much more than cinematic style or structure.

Definitely. I fall in love with characters and stories because you relate to them more. Thanks for doing this interview and by the way, if you’re a Studio exec who accidentally came across my blog and ended up reading this interview, check out Daniele’s “Dirty Mary,” short.

I love Target. I mean, if Target were a man, I would marry him and start a family filled with thrifty shoppers. haha. So, I’ve decided to write an Ode.

Ode to Target
by Kat

O Target, how I love thee.
Red and white, Candy Stripes
Discounted prices from soap to black t’s.
I can spend hours in there without a gripe

I try to go, list in hand
But I’m mesmerized by the “On Sale ” stand
Do I really need 75% off of ceramic bows
Of course you do, my mind does scold.

Snobby people pretend not to go
But I see them, hats on, disguised, but I know
Rich or poor, bougie or cheap
O Target how I love thee, haha… aren’t I mad deep?

I know, I know… the next Shakespeare. SIKE!