Sydney Stories

In a few hours I'll be hopping on a plane for a 2 hour flight back to Hobart. Been up here for the last 10 days.

So see you later Sydney. Thanks for fucking nothing!

Nah- just kidding. Actually had a really nice time. Experienced a whole myriad of things- from the joyous to the heart breaking. Got back to my roots, got perspective, got a kick in the pants and got inspiration.

The original reason I flew back to my home town was for a friends wedding. A really special girl who would not have let me get away with out being there. That was saturday just past.
I was tossing up on which week to fly up, but my descion was sealed by an engagement party of 2 of my good friends early in the week. 2 sundays ago. So on 4 hours sleep, i flew up and went straight to this engagement party from the airport. Despite my extreme tiredness i was able to function socially and caught up with the old crew. Lovely friends (who i do consider family-like). Some of these guys I haven't seen in YEARS! I also made new friends!

My being in Sydney at this particular time enabled me to represent the studio at a launch. The bosses were in Europe at "the markets" so I filled the role of meet and great. Thank the sponsors and politicians and check out the competition.
Ok, so the launch was for the ABC (Australian Broadcasters Corporation) and the AFC (Australian Film commission) BROADBAND PRODUCTION INITIATIVE. Basically these two groups getting together (with some other funding groups- Telstra, TECC, SAFC, AFF etc) to throw money at multimedia/filmmaking types.

Our project was accepted in the first round of funding that included 3 other projects, with 3 more to be completed in the 2nd round.

The launch was ok. It was a mid morning thing- so NO FREE BOOZE! And no real celebrities. The producer of Japanese Story was there. Thats about all for the 'famous' people. Dunno. I think it went alright. I met a few people. Introduced and thanked the appropiate people. Made some contacts. Didn't embarrass the studio. Much. (I fell asleep on a couch in the corner).


LINKAGE:
Our product:
Dog And Cat News

The others:
The Life, Times and Travels of the Extaordinary Vice-Admiral William Bligh
(Actually this may be of interest to you comikers. This is "an interactive graphic novel charting the astonishing life of William Bligh". I haven't really looked at it proper, but i think the art is pretty shit. Maybe. I'll have to have a proper look.)

UsMob
(This looks pretty interesting. Interactive short film type of thing about and with Aboriginal youths in Central Australia)

Dust On My Shoes
(Some travel/journey thing. Actually produced by a studio I'm about to do some work for. Probally should have a proper look at some stage)

And the other ones still in development:
(as of writing this, these links weren't active.)
Chiko Space Cadet
( this maybe the only real competitor for our site. Artwork by Nathan Jurecicius aka Nathan J. He's shit hot and the art world darling. I want to be the art world darling.)

A Stowaway's Guide to the Pacific
("A history of the greatest ocean on earth through the eyes of two curious children" Lame?)

The Pure Drop
(Interactive online doco of world music).

I filled in the week by catching up with various friends. Old ones from when I was in Sydney, and mates whom escaped Tasmania. Hit a few swing dances. Saw a shit band. Saw a few movies. Hung with Los Fras Bros. Spent money on cd's. Bought PANTS! Dealt with various relationship and work crisis in Sydney, Melbourne and Hobart.

It's funny. EVERYTIME i get back to Sydney this happens. See my parents live in the burbs. My friends live in innercity. The first few nights i take public transport into the city because I know I'll be having a few drinks. But after the first few nights of taking trains (anywhere from 40mins to 1.5 hrs)and walking the 20 mins from the train station to my parents house, i give up on that idea. I end up spenign the rest of my time driving in and drinking lite beer!
This time round the first night took me about 2 hrs due to track work. Train, then bus then back on the train, then the walk. Wasn't too bad as I traveled with a classical violinist who is living and working in a small coastal town in Spain.
The secound night took me about an hour and a half because this time I got a los fras bros to pick me up from the station.
My traveling companion this time was some crazy old italian guy who was telling me how some person was mugged and killed for 20 cents recently and that back in Italy they'd only do that sort of thing for a million dollars- or perhaps a grand. I think HE may have been in the East Coast Mafia.

Waking up in the mornings is always interesting at my parents. I'm either woken by the numerous native birds around (there're flocks of sulphar crested cockatoos, magpies, lorikeets, gallahs etc) or airplanes. Or lawnmowers. Or my dogs barking. Our my parents yelling. Or my mum yelling at my brothers to get out of bed.
This morning I was woken by BOTH parents yelling at the dogs at 7am. I'd gotten to bed at 2am. I couldn't get back to sleep. It can all get too much for someone who lives by himself!

Speaking of sleeping. My one and only whinge about my parents. My mum and dad are doing pretty well for themselves. Dad is looking at buying himself a Porche to race. They've just got a new computer system for home. A new big-arse tv. Shiny new bbq. Repainted the house. All in the last few months. Throwing money around.
But not my way.
Don't get me wrong- I'm not and never ask for hand outs.
All i'm asking is for them to buy a sofa-bed for the spare room! They continually ask me if it's good to be "back home". Well sure, except I don't really consider this to be my home. Because at MY home I don't have to sleep on a fucking dog hair-riddled single blow up lilo on the floor!!!
They've been promising to get one for ages- but "they're expensive" or "you need to order it in". Unlike, say, a 1972 Porche 911 specifically built for racing.

But I whinge about this here not because I'm particular dark about it. It's just kind of funny. And all things considered there are people out there with FAR worse things to whine about.


but my fucking back kills from this thing!!

ANYWAY! I've gotto pack and catch a flight.

I'll consider finishing off my Sydney Tale at a later date. There is much more to tell. The wedding whereupon I got stuck in a lift for 20 mins at the afterparty. I was incapacitated, lost and confussed due to thie horribly devasting 5 yr old "export" Thai whiskey.

But the next day, hungover, i drove to the Blue Mountians. To visit a family. More about these guys later. Perhaps. Quite sobering yet fun.
I also went to a funeral yesterday.
On secound thought I wrote write about this stuff. Instead I'll be pulling out photo's and drawings I dug up here.
HIGHLY EMBARRASSING and educational!

Will be particular amusing for fans of that wunderkid- Doug Holgate!!!!

Current music: Swingin' at the Daisy Chain- Count Basie.