Does my movie suck?

My true story about a heartbroken Michigander who loses his way on a backpacking tour and then ends up nearly freezing to death in Seoul, South Korea. Whatever hardship you might be facing, if you just hang in there even just a moment longer you will see the beauty. Life is wonderful like that. 

Starring Kris Holowicki | Directed by Brian A. Crandall

For the last five or six years something has been bothering me. During my first semester of film school, I was forced into shooting a movie I wasn't quite ready to produce. I had to have something to screen otherwise I would have failed the class. Despite the uncomfortable situation, I'm not the kind of person to do a half ass job on anything even if i'm under prepared. I shot this movie on a shoestring budget and screened it in front of my classmates who all said in one way or another that the movie...well, it sucked. I organized a screening of it too, even though I felt a little ashamed. I wasn't trying to make a movie "so bad it's good." But even if I heard that it would make me feel better.

Recently, I revisited this movie though one night when I was reflecting on my film school experiences. And although I don't think "One Way Ticket" is masterpiece, I think the movie has many redeeming aspects about it. In this second episode of "A Creations" I rewatch the movie with my friend Kwon, my film partner in crime, where I re-access whether my movie truly does suck or if I am just being hard on myself.

Brian A. Crandall tackles the hard truth with his good friend Kwon Moon! Does my movie suck?

“Watch “One Way Ticket” below with commentary and let me know what you think in the comments!”
— A.

One Way Ticket Video Commentary

Question : Is it lame to try to ride the wave of pop trends when producing short films?

Shoot me an email if you have strong opinions about this disaster film?

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The Alamo Story – Before the Battle of the Alamo (1715-1835)
The Alamo Story – Before the Battle of the Alamo (1715-1835)

Long before the United States of America was a thing, the construction of the San Antonio mission (the location of the chapel), was approved by a Spanish King, but largely carried out by an international organization. Commonly known as the Franciscan order, they were a community of devout Christians that had members all over the world.  They answered to Rome as much as they did to Madrid which is why years later the jealous monarchy would enact policies that would reduce their influence in the Spanish colonies in America, and everywhere else.

8 Movies about the Battle of the Alamo (From 1915 to 2004)
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What I have come to realize after watching eight Alamo movies is that how settings, conflicts, and resolutions are exemplified makes or breaks the audience’s experience. Here is my list of the eight that I saw. From an Alamo enthusiast’s perspective I enjoyed all of them. But I am approaching this review as a regular audience member which is why I was able to narrow my recommendations down to three. I am basing the “quality” of these movies based on how well they treated the three elements I outlined : setting, conflict, and resolution.

What the Odyssey can teach us about the need for New Media Content Leaders
What the Odyssey can teach us about the need for New Media Content Leaders

New media content leaders, like Homer and his famous Odyssey, are really most concerned about the meaningful starting point and the meaningful destination. In order to acquire long term results… Customers should convert not just with their money, but with their attitudes upon arrival. Customers should feel a special attachment to their destination, like Odysseus's special attachment to his home in Ithaca.One time customers convert to loyal customers when they take the happy route of Odysseus, not the fast and unhappy one of Agamemnon.

OK Google, who is Achilles? I listened to the Iliad with AI – it was way better than reading the book
OK Google, who is Achilles? I listened to the Iliad with AI – it was way better than reading the book

Now I didn’t expect that I would get from start to finish, but I did. I thought it would be one of those experiences where I could say, “Ok, I get what the Greeks would have liked about this work, but I’m not a Greek so two hours is enough to get the point.” Nope. I listened to all 13 hrs. And It was invigorating and inspirational. What allowed me to get to the end? It was “OK Google.”

The comedy that should have won an Oscar in 1970. Today it is more relevant than ever!
The comedy that should have won an Oscar in 1970. Today it is more relevant than ever!

As someone who is producing a podcast on Davy Crockett, I did my best to watch every single Alamo movie ever produced. I believe I am almost there, but there are a couple I am having a hard time getting my hands on.

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Davy Crockett timeline from 1786 to 1836 and beyond
Davy Crockett timeline from 1786 to 1836 and beyond

Davy Crockett wore a lot of hats — not just a coonskin cap. He was a famous hunter, a charismatic politician, and a war hero. Some people know him for his legacy — his fight for the fair treatment of the poor and his participation in the Texas Revolution. Others may play down his historical significance, regarding Crockett more as a poster child of a new American culture emerging on the frontier. But yet seeming to collide with the quintessential frontiersman image, are all of those things that make him seem more like an outlier. He was the only congressman of Tennessee to vote against the Indian Removal act — an action that lead to his political ruin.

Mark and Me Ep 2 - Out of Depth
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In this second installment of Mark and Me, Leigh explores "a particular brand of loophole-wriggling American ingenuity" that Mark Twain personifies in his writing.  It doesn't matter whether you are talking about the words of Tom, Huck, or even Twain himself in his travel diaries there is something we all admire about a rascally trickster. But when does pulling someone's leg go from being cute to just plain cruel. Mark Twain certainly pushed the limits. Leigh introspects, "Should I feel guilty about stealing my history teacher's treasured stuffed Loch Ness monster doll named Shougal MacDougal?" Perhaps we'll scratch more than the surface of Leigh's guilty admiration of rascality in Out of Depth.

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Strangely enough as Crockett was on his way out, another luminary figure was being brought into the world. This individual would become a prolific writer who would owe a great deal of his craft to the folklore and legends that were developed around Davy Crockett. 

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Mark and Me Ep1 - Big Talk

Leigh Cooper, co-creator of Do Stuff (YouTube Channel), revisits a poorly written college paper, an epic boxing match between two of America’s most prominent writers, and a best friend who doesn’t pull any punches, all in the name of telling it like it is.

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It is unfortunate that Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett are so often paired together. Not only were their personas and legacies entirely distinct, but the spirits of the ages they come from are perhaps as different as the Greeks and Romans. Ok, maybe I went a little over the top with that comparison. But I have to make the point that blending these two figures together prevents us from understanding the real men and the cultures that they belonged to.

PortfolioBrian A. CrandallB film, student film, film school, one way ticket, Brian CrandallComment