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• CRASH WHERE YOU LAND

  Friday, Sep 5, 2008 11:07AM / Standard Entry / Members only

  Hi, guys. 
  
  Back in the Fall of 1996, while an undergrad at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX, I took a documentary film course taught by Tom Bywaters.  Tom was new to teaching at the time, but he was already a veteran of network television.  He had won a couple of Emmys, three Peabodys, and God knows what else. 
  
  Personally, I was most impressed by the fact that he had worked on the Maysles’ 1970 documentary, “Gimme Shelter,” which featured The Rolling Stones (still my all-time favorite band) and shed some light on the infamous “Nightmare at Altamont.”  Tom also had in his possession the only surviving copy of a short film by Jim Morrison, which was made during the latter’s brief stint as a film student at UCLA.  Very, very cool stuff.  But I digress…
  
  Anyway, Tom didn’t just expose me to some of the greatest documentary films (e.g. “Titicut Follies,” “Gray Gardens,” “The Thin Blue Line,” “Roger & Me,” “High on Crack Street,” etc.), he was also a great inspiration to me personally. 
  
  One day, as I was sitting in class, I started to think about the homeless kids in New Orleans’ French Quarter.  Although I’d grown up in St. Louis, Missouri, I always had family in New Orleans and visited frequently.  Whenever I did, I would inevitably find myself in the French Quarter and, whenever I did, I would always wonder about the homeless teenagers I saw on the streets there.  Who were they?  Where were they from?  Why were they on the streets?  What went wrong? 
  
  Suddenly, it dawned on me that these questions might serve as a basis for an interesting documentary film.  I turned to my friend, Chris Mano, and said something like, “I want to do a documentary about homeless kids in New Orleans.  Wanna do it with me?” 
  
  Chris must have thought it was a decent idea, too, because he agreed.  Then, after class, we approached Tom and told him our idea.  After hearing it, he said simply and without hesitation, “Do it.” 
  
  Literally, within a few weeks, we were on the streets of New Orleans, shooting during our Christmas holiday. 
  
  My friend, Colin Bickley, lent me his pro-grade Hi-8 camera.  My friend, Brandon Blake, agreed to shoot the film.  My parents agreed to let everyone crash at their house.  And family and friends coughed up the $750 budget.  God, I miss the speed with which projects used to come together. 
  
  What followed over the next couple of weeks was a profoundly disturbing life experience.  The stories I heard possessed me like demons as I lied awake in bed each night.  And I wouldn’t fully exorcise them for years. 
  
  When shooting was complete, we returned to Dallas with more hours of footage than I could ever count.  Having never edited a documentary before, I didn’t know where to start and the task was truly daunting.  And so, I began to log the footage, transcribing each tape in detail until they were all gone.  The process took months. 
  
  When it was finished, though, I had essentially an unedited scrīpt of every shot and every word we’d captured, complete with time code.  Having written screenplays before, I decided to organize my footage on paper first.  Organizing, structuring, cutting, pasting, editing, etc.  This, too, took months. 
  
  When it was finished, though, I essentially had an edited scrīpt of how the documentary would look if we ordered the raw footage exactly according to my list of time codes.  There was just one problem.  I had envisioned the documentary as a feature-length affair, but we lacked the time and the resources to assemble such a lengthy cut.  Borrowing a camera was one thing.  Borrowing an AVID and someone who knew how to use it was something else. 
  
  And so, it was decided that we would do a 30-minute cut and, if the film generated sufficient interest, we would go back and lengthen it.  Chris and I spent many nights hunched over my scrīpt, trimming it down to 30 pages.  (It’s a rule of thumb that 1 page of scrīpt is roughly equivalent to 1 minute of screentime.) 
  
  Once the scrīpt was of a manageable length, the real editing began.  My friend and frequent collaborator, Stewart Mayer, would once again prove himself to be utterly invaluable.  Stewart, my usual cinematographer, wasn’t able to shoot the documentary, but he was able to edit it for us.  At the time, Stewart was working at Quin Mathews Films, a small production company in Deep Ellum.  Needless to say, the place became like a second home to us, as we spent many long nights assembling our little documentary. 
  
  When the editing was finally complete, I lamented the fact that the film wasn’t what I originally envisioned, but was quite pleased with what it had become, especially given the constraints with which we had to contend. 
  
  The film was accepted at most of the film and video festivals that we submitted it to, but the entry fees were murder -- and they added up, eventually costing more than the budget of the film itself.  Ultimately, the film either wasn't good enough or simply didn't get seen enough to generate the interest we felt it needed to warrant a longer cut.
  
  The unused footage did, however, serve as the basis for "All the Sinners Saints," a feature-length scrīpt that got me one of my first writing gigs in Hollywood.  So, in the end, I guess it all worked out. 
  
  It’s hard to believe it was over ten years ago already. 
  
  In any case, I want to thank Tom, Chris, Stewart, Brandon, Colin, Margaret, Jan, Rose, my family, and everyone else who helped us on the film.  Without your generosity, we couldn't have completed the film.  And, most importantly, I want to thank our subjects.  Without your stories, there would have been no film. 
  
  With Stewart’s help, I’ve uploaded the documentary onto Youtube.  It is broken down into three parts and can be viewed below.  I hope you find it interesting. 
  
  -Dax
  
  Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STGM6_RrS3U
  

  
  
  Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbEbRd5SbgA
  

  
  
  Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHL6NJS1IYE
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

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• HURRICANE GUSTAV

  Monday, Sep 1, 2008 4:47PM / Standard Entry / Members only

  
  
  I've been getting phone calls and e-mails all weekend from people who are wondering if I'm currently in New Orleans with my family or not.  Fortunately, I'm not in New Orleans right now and neither is my family.  I'm in L.A. and they evacuated Saturday.  Anyway, I sincerely appreciate everyone's concern and I hope this blog will answer any further queries people might have.  It's all a bit surreal and more than a little scary... Almost three years to the day after Hurricane Katrina made landfall, the Gulf Coast has found itself in grave danger once again.  Thankfully, as I said, my family is safe and sound, but I can't help but wonder what fate will befall our homes.  We were relatively lucky last time, in the sense that our houses suffered wind damage and did not flood.  However, when you live on the water, the likelihood of having your home flooded as a result of the "storm surge" increases exponentially.  I can only hope and pray that that doesn't happen this time.  We'll see, I guess...
  
  -Dax
  
  P.S. The following article was taken from CNN...
  
  Hundreds of thousands flee coastal Louisiana ahead of Gustav

  Hurricane Gustav began to lash the southern Louisiana coastline early Monday as it moved closer to an expected midday landfall, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

  While forecasters said it could intensify a bit before moving inland, it will not likely be the Category 4 storm that had been predicted -- a possibility that added urgency to mass evacuation orders in recent days.

  Nearly all of the roughly 2 million people in coastal Louisiana and the New Orleans area had cleared out ahead of Hurricane Gustav on Sunday night.

  Road, rail and air links out of New Orleans began to close as the first storm bands began to strike the city. But more than 1.9 million people had fled New Orleans and its surrounding parishes by Sunday night, and fewer than 10,000 people were thought to remain in New Orleans, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said, citing the city's police chief.

  New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin had demanded an evacuation of the city, which still is recovering from 2005's Hurricane Katrina. Forecasters warned Gustav -- a Category 3 storm Sunday night -- could hit Louisiana with devastating effect by early Monday afternoon.

  Jindal said New Orleans' levees should "barely hold or barely be overtopped" if the storm, as predicted Sunday evening, hit southwest of the city.

  But even a slight shift to the east could bring "very significant flooding in these areas," he said. 

  A leading researcher said the hurricane probably would test New Orleans' western levees, which, unlike levees in other parts of the city, didn't receive the brunt of Katrina's force in 2005. The western levees are low in some sections, he said.

  "From the west bank of New Orleans all the way across to Morgan City ... we're going to see communities potentially go under water from levee overtopping and potential breaching," said Louisiana State University Professor Ivor van Heerden, who warned long before Katrina that a major hurricane would be catastrophic for New Orleans.

  At 2 a.m. ET, forecasters said Gustav was a Category 3 storm and was centered about 170 miles (275 km) south-southeast of New Orleans and it was moving northwest across the central Gulf of Mexico at 16 mph -- the same speed and track reported late Sunday.

  The storm had sustained winds of 115 mph (184 kph), the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida, said. Category 3 hurricanes have sustained winds from 111 mph to 130 mph (178 kph to 209 kph).

  Hurricane-force winds could hit Louisiana's southern coast by sunrise Monday, and the storm's center could hit southwest of New Orleans by early Monday afternoon, CNN meteorologists said.

  Storm surges of 10 to 14 feet above normal tides are expected near and to the east of Gustav's center, forecasters said. Rain accumulations between 6 to 12 inches are possible over parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, with isolated amounts of up to 20 inches, through Wednesday morning, according to forecasters.

  Gustav killed at least 51 people in southwestern Haiti and eight in the neighboring Dominican Republic last week before moving to Cuba,which said it evacuated 250,000 people from the storm's path. No storm-related deaths in Cuba were immediately reported; a Cuban official said many people were injured on Cuba's Isle of Youth. 

  In New Orleans, Lt. Col. Jerry Sneed, the city's emergency operations chief, said government agencies had evacuated 18,000 residents who were without transportation.

  Jindal said the New Orleans area had finished evacuating homebound and nursing home patients by 7 p.m. ET Sunday, and 73 critical-care patients deemed OK to move still were in the process of being moved out of the area.

  Some critical-care patients had to stay at medical facilities. Eighty patients remained Sunday evening at New Orleans Children's Hospital, more than half of them in a critical care unit. Nurse Crystal Mayeaux said she will not leave them.

  "We are attached to all the babies here," Mayeaux said. "They know us."

  Highways out of town were packed all day with evacuees from Louisiana and Mississippi.

  "It was bumper-to-bumper for about 10 hours trying to get out," said Roberto Ascencio of the New Orleans suburb of Gretna.

  Charter flights, paid for with federal funds, carried thousands of evacuees to other Southern cities. The air evacuation was part of a detailed plan developed in response to criticism after Katrina, a Category 3 storm, flooded most of New Orleans, flattened beach towns in Mississippi and killed more than 1,800 people.

  Nagin said New Orleans would impose a "dusk-to-dawn" curfew for anyone left. 

  The city-wide curfew will continue until the threat of the storm passes, Nagin said, warning looters would be dealt with harshly. 

  "Anybody who's caught looting in the city of New Orleans will go directly to Angola [Louisiana State Penitentiary]. You will not have a temporary stay in the city. You go directly to the big house, in general population," he said.

  The storm altered plans for the Republican National Convention, which is scheduled to run from Monday through Thursday in Minnesota.

  Rick Davis, campaign manager for presumptive GOP presidential nominee John McCain, said Monday's session would run only from 3 to 5:30 p.m. CT, and will include only activities necessary to launch the event. 

  Convention plans for the rest of the week will be made as the storm is assessed, he said.

  Earlier Sunday, President Bush said he would forgo an appearance at the convention to meet with emergency workers and evacuees in Texas.

  Also Sunday, a federally supported computer projection says Gustav could cause up to $32.8 billion in property damage when it hits the Gulf Coast.

  The software, developed by FEMA and the National Institute of Building Sciences, also projected Sunday that about 75,000 structures will be destroyed. The path also ensnares about 180 hospitals and more than 1,100 police and fire stations.

  Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said government agencies were "10 times better prepared" than before -- but "that doesn't mean everything is going to go right," he said.

  "Anybody who thinks everything is going to go perfect just doesn't know what they're talking about," Barbour said.

  Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Hanna was churning in the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday night and was expected to be near or over the southeastern Bahamas during the next day or two, the hurricane center said. It had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph, the center said.

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• THE RETURN OF VITALI KLITSCHKO - PART II

  Friday, Aug 29, 2008 1:10AM / Standard Entry / Members only

  
  
  
  KLITSCHKO FINALLY READY FOR COMEBACK FIGHT
  

  
  The Associated Press

  Wednesday, August 27, 2008

  NEW YORK: All eyes were on Samuel Peter as he walked to the dais, more than an hour late to a news conference formally announcing his WBC heavyweight title defense against unretired champion Vitali Klitschko.

  The biggest surprise wasn't that the usually punctual Peter was running behind, though, it was that Klitschko was standing there waiting.

  Saddled with a well-worn reputation for backing out of fights because of injuries, Klitschko in fact showed up early Wednesday, eagerly professing his health after four years away from the ring and vowing to resurrect his career by capturing the belt he gave up when he felt his body breaking down.

  "Always my biggest enemy was injury," Klitschko said at a Manhattan steakhouse, ahead of the Oct. 11 fight in Berlin. "There's never a guarantee, but I'm 100 percent ready. I have my health now and I'm very optimistic."

  Not everybody is convinced.

  "I'm still wondering if he's going to show up," Peter said, smiling and clasping his hands in mock prayer. "I signed the contract five months ago. They just signed the contract yesterday, or so they tell me."

  Ivaylo Gotsev, who has coaxed along Peter's career since he turned pro shortly after the 2000 Olympics, was even more candid: "Get in or get out."

  "Please, just be there," Gotsev added, turning toward a glaring Klitschko seated two seats away. "The business we'll take care of in the ring."

  Klitschko relinquished the WBC belt just days before he was scheduled to defend it against Hasim Rahman in 2005, choosing to retire rather than speed through six months of rehab after tearing a ligament in his right knee.

  The two-time champion has been busy since then, unsuccessfully running for mayor of Kiev, Ukraine, and closely following the exploits of his younger brother Wladimir, the WBO and IBF titleholder and the man widely considered the best of an ambiguous and disorganized cadre of so-called heavyweight champions.

  It was the notion that the two brothers could capture all of the heavyweight belts between them that drove the elder Klitschko back into the ring.

  "Always we have the dream to be world champions at the same time," Vitali said.

  So the erudite Klitschko announced he was making a comeback, scheduling his first fight for last September against Jameel McCline. In the weeks leading up to the fight — and hardly shocking to anybody — Klitschko hurt his back and needed emergency surgery.

  McCline wound up fighting Peter (30-1, 23 KOs) for the interim title, and the stocky Nigerian-born and Las Vegas-based Peter easily won on points. Earlier this year, the popular puncher took care of Oleg Maskaev with a devastating sixth-round knockout in a Cancun bullfighting ring to stake his unequivocal claim to the WBC belt.

  As the "champion emeritus," Klitschko (35-2, 34 KOs) was entitled to fight Peter whenever he chose to unretire. And he called for it without so much as a tuneup, even though Klitschko hasn't fought since an eighth-round win over Danny Williams on Dec. 11, 2004.

  "Samuel is very strong. He's the biggest puncher right now among the heavyweights. That's why this is going to be an interesting fight," Klitschko said. "It's two world champions, two punchers. Let's meet in the ring and see who has the better skills.

  "I know," he added. "I know the answer."

  While the fight appears to be a make-or-break moment for Klitschko, it seems more like an annoyance for Peter, whose only loss came after Wladimir knocked him down three times in a close unanimous decision nearly three years ago.

  Peter called out the younger Klitschko after his victory over Maskaev at Plaza de Toros, hoping to avenge his only loss in a fight between the best the heavyweights have to offer.

  Like Peter, Wladimir has spoken passionately about unifying the fractured division and restoring the championship to a meaningful place in sports. But as usually happens in the sometimes seedy world of boxing, politics and sanctioning bodies got involved, forcing Peter to accept a defense against the former champ.

  Now fight fans are left wondering whether Vitali will make it to the ring in six weeks, and whether another Klitschko should be stepping between the ropes.

  "No, he doesn't deserve it," Peter said quietly, when asked his thoughts on fighting the elder Klitschko. "He made a great mistake coming out of retirement to fight me."

  
  

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• THE RETURN OF VITALI KLITSCHKO - PART I

  Sunday, Aug 24, 2008 4:24AM / Standard Entry / Members only

  Technically, I'm supposed to be writing another project, but my brain needs a rest and, as a result, I've decided to write about something else.  I know the quality of this blog doesn't really measure up to past blogs, but I'll go back and fix it later...
  

  Anyway, as all of my friends can tell you, I'm a huge boxing fan and it's very rare that I'll miss a megafight.  In June of 2003, my friend, Charlie, and I bought tickets to see Lewis vs. Johnson, which was set to take place at the Staples Center here in Los Angeles. 
  

  Charlie, being from Britain, was and still is a big Lennox Lewis fan.  Personally, Lewis never managed to capture my imagination or inspired awe in me in anyway.  Sure, I thought he was robbed in his first fight with Holyfield, but I also thought Holyfield was robbed in their rematch.  Regardless, Lewis was inarguably the top heavyweight in the world in '03 and, whether I was a fan or not, even I was excited about the prospect of seeing a big heavyweight title fight in my own backyard. 
  

  Lewis' opposition, Kirk Johnson, was an up-and-coming heavyweight from Nova Scotia with a few entertaining KOs under his belt.  In fact, he had dispatched future WBC champion, Oleg Maskaev, in brutal fashion just a few fights before.  In other words, Johnson was a legitimate threat. 
  
  Then, a week before the bout, Kirk Johnson tore a pectoral muscle during training and had to pull out of the fight.  Because Lewis was in shape and anxious to fight, the promoters began searching for a replacement, hoping to save the event. 
  
  Vitali Klitschko stepped forward. 
  
  A lot of people hadn't heard of Vitali Klitschko at that time, including, I'm embarrassed to say, myself.  Everyone, however, had heard of Wladimir Klitschko.  Wladimir, Vitali's younger brother, was an Olympic Gold Medal-winner and had been on a hot streak until earlier that year, racking up KO wins against top heavyweights, and was clearly the heir apparent to Lewis' throne.  (The two even fought in a Steven Soderbergh's remake of "Ocean's 11.") 
  
  Unfortunately, several months earlier, Wladimir suffered a surprise and brutal TKO loss at the hands of South African journeyman, Corrie Sanders.  After that fight, Vitali approached Sanders in the ring and asked him for a revenge fight.  It was clear from the way that Sanders dismissively patted Vitali on the cheek that the South African wasn't too terribly worried about the elder Klitschko's challenge. 
  
  In fact, nobody was worried about Vitali Klitschko.  Although, like his younger brother, Vitali had racked up impressive KO wins early in his career, his heart became questioned when he retired on his stool in a fight he was winning against Chris Byrd in 2000 due to a torn rotator cuff.  The loss cost Vitali more than his WBA title.  It cost him the respect of American boxing fans.  After his recovery, Vitali continued fighting and winning in relative obscurity.  His boxing career in the States, however, was over before it ever really began.  Vitali watched from ringside as he was passed over and his younger brother became a star. 
  
  So, when the offer to fight Lennox Lewis for the WBC heavyweight crown in Los Angeles came through, Vitali jumped at the opportunity, despite the short notice.  He was already training for a fight with Cedric Boswell and, therefore, was already in decent shape.  And the opportunity to fight a legend was too good to pass up.  When I asked Charlie what Vitali's chances were against Lewis, Charlie scoffed, "He's not even the best fighter in his family.  Lewis has nothing to worry about." 
  
  That was pretty much everyone's sentiment.  Although Vitali had the highest KO percentage of any boxer in history and his only loss was due to injury, everyone thought it would be a relatively easy fight for Lewis. 
  
  It wasn't. 
  
  [Note: Be sure to turn the music down on the following clip.]
  
  Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lq1_IA5Ssbk
  

  
  
  The cut Vitali suffered over his left eye is the worst cut I've ever seen in a professional boxing match.  It was caused by an unintentional headbutt.  In the State of California, if a fight is stopped due to a cut caused by an unintentional headbutt, the outcome of the fight is determined by the scorecards.  At the time of the stoppage, Vitali was leading Lewis -- four rounds to two -- on all the judges' scorecards.  Therefore, Vitali Klitschko should have been crowned the new WBC champion.  Unfortunately, the referee mistakenly attributed the cut to a punch.  And so, Vitali lost.
  
  The audience at Staples Center was vocal in its response to the ruling, chanting "Bullshit" for ten minutes.  The look on Lewis' face was priceless.  Even he knew that he escaped with a win he didn't earn.  Vitali, upset by the ruling, went to the corner and raised his hand.  The crowd went wild, cheering for the fighter everyone knew was the real victor.  A star was born. 
  
  In an attempt to avoid controversy, the WBC ordered an immediate rematch between the two fighers.  Lewis-Klitschko II would take place in December of that year.  Lewis attempted to scuttle the fight, claiming that the cut over Vitali's eye wouldn't have had sufficient time to heal, and, in an unprecedented move, asked the WBC to have an independent physician inspect the Vitali's eye.  When that physician said Vitali's eye had healed and cleared him to begin training for the rematch, Lewis announced that he wouldn't be fighting again that year.  Lewis-Klitschko was put on hold and, again, the organizers of the event searched for a replacement. 
  
  Ever since pulling out of the original June fight with Lewis due to injury, Kirk Johnson made it clear to the press that, if it had been he who'd been in the ring with Lewis that night instead of Vitali, he would have been crowned the new WBC champion.  Furthermore, since since he was still the WBC's top-ranked contender, Johnson argued that he should fight Vitali in December and that the winner should be given a shot at Lewis. 
  
  The WBC agreed and Klitschko-Johnson was set for December.  Vitali knew he had one opportunity to stake his claim that he was the real heir to Lewis' throne.  And he seized it.  This is what happened. 
  
  (Note: You can see the whole fight at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tb6CyHRNSEo&feature=related)
  
  Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZxE4iBwR0A
  

  
  
  
  After the fight, Vitali, the WBC's new top-ranked contender, called out Lewis.  Rather than face Vitali, Lewis retired from boxing.  His decision was a great disappointment to boxing fans around the world, many of whom believed that Lewis had finally found the opponent who would finally force him to prove his greatness.  Just as Robinson needed La Motta, Ali needed Frazier, etc., Lewis now needed Klitschko.  But Lewis walked away from the sport, becoming the first champion to do so with his title intact in recent memory. 
  
  Now, since Lewis hadn't lost his title in the ring, the WBC needed Vitali to fight someone for the vacant WBC belt.  Then, in an incredible twist of fate akin to a Hollywood movie, the WBC announced that Vitali would be fighting none other than Corrie Sanders, the very same South African fighter who had made a name for himself when he vanquished Vitali's younger brother the previous spring. 
  
  Klitschko-Sanders was set for April and the pressure on Vitali must have been immeasurable.  Not only was he fighting for the most legitimate title in boxing, he was also fighting for the Klitschko name.  It was the revenge fight he sought, but surely even he couldn't have predicted such an alignment of the stars. 
  
  This is what happened.
  
  
  Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pffSDq0xjAI&feature=related
  

  
  
  
  At long last, Vitali Klitschko's dream had come true.  The man, who wasn't even regarded as the best boxer in his family, made history. 
  
  Afterwards, Vitali hoped to secure a fight with the legendary Mike Tyson.  His hopes, however, were dashed when Tyson was knocked out by Britain's Danny Williams.  So, in his first defense of the title, Vitali fought the "Tyson conqueror." 
  
  This is what happened. 
  
  
  Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nSRa5pa_Jg
  

  
  
  
  Sadly, due to recurring injuries, this was Vitali's last appearance in the ring.  He retired in 2005.  Since he never lost his WBC title in the ring, the WBC named Vitali its "champion emeritus," giving him the right to immediately fight the current WBC champion, should he ever decide to return to the ring. 
  
  In the years since, Vitali's younger brother, Wladimir, slowly came back from what many perceived to be career-ending losses to Sanders and, later, Lamon Brewster and is now both the IBF and WBO champion. 
  
  Then, in 2008, after three years of retirement, Vitali announced his return to the ring.  The world awaits...
  
  

  KLITSCHKO-PETER FIGHT SET FOR OCT. 11 IN BERLIN
  

  1 day ago

  BERLIN — Vitali Klitschko's long-awaited comeback against WBC heavyweight champion Samuel Peter will take place in Berlin on Oct. 11.

  The title fight will be Klitschko's first since he announced his comeback last year. He has not been healthy enough to fight since then. The venue and the date were announced Friday by RTL television, the broadcaster of the fight in Germany. It will take place in the new 02 World arena, with a capacity of 13,000.

  The two fighters' camps reached a deal on the fight in May.

  Klitschko, the 37-year-old older brother of IBF and WBO heavyweight champ Wladimir Klitschko, was entitled to a fight with Peter because the WBC named him its "interim champion" nearly four years ago when he first left the sport with a series of injuries.

  "Samuel Peter is an exceptionally dangerous puncher who has already beaten some worthy opponents," Klitschko said in a statement distributed by RTL. "I know that it will be a very tough fight, I will reach my dream of winning the world championship for the third time and being champion at the same time with my brother."

  Klitschko (35-2, 34 KOs), who lost his WBC title to Lennox Lewis by knockout in June 2003, hasn't fought since reclaiming the WBC title by knocking out Danny Williams in December 2004.

  Peter (30-1, 23 KOs), a native of Nigeria who lives in Las Vegas, claimed the title with a sixth-round knockout of Oleg Maskaev in March in Cancun, Mexico.

  Though he still craves a unification rematch with Wladimir Klitschko, who handed Peter his only defeat in September 2005, the champion has said he'll be patient for his shot at both brothers.

  "For me there is no doubt at all. I will defend my title. Klitschko is an experienced and very difficult opponent but I am younger and better. I will beat him and then his brother Wladimir - I have an old account to settle," Peter said.

  -Dax
  

  
  
  
  

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• SCREENWRITING: A Few Basic Suggestions For Those Starting Out

  Tuesday, Aug 12, 2008 9:05AM / Standard Entry / Members only

  Hey, guys.
  
  Over the past year or so, some of you have written me with questions about screenwriting.  I’ve done my best to respond to most of you, but I know there are a lot of people to whom I still owe responses and I sincerely apologize for the delay.  It’s just that I’ve been so busy with my own writing endeavors that I simply haven’t had the opportunity to help you with yours yet.  Judging by most of your queries, many of you already have an idea as to what story you would like to tell, but you aren’t exactly sure how to go about it – where the scrīpt should begin, how it should look on the page, etc.  If you haven’t the means to attend a screenwriting course at your local college or university, then I strongly suggest that you read the following books, particularly if you’re preparing to write your first feature and wish to verse yourself in Hollywood conventions:
  
  “Screenplay” by Syd Field
  “Making A Good scrīpt Great” by Linda Seger
  
  The first book is referred to by many as the “screenwriter’s bible.”  It’s required reading in a lot of introductory screenwriting courses and has been for almost thirty years.  It also happens to be the first book I read on the subject and remains on my shelf to this day.  
  
  I’m not sure how popular the second book is, but I find that it complements Field’s quite nicely.  Although Seger’s primary focus is on the rewriting process, she also covers the fundamentals while, at the same time, stressing specific points (e.g. the importance of your opening image, etc.).  Anyway, between the two books, you should glean a rather comprehensive overview of screenwriting.  
  
  Most importantly, and I really can’t stress this enough, you need to read a lot of scrīpts.  You should read the great scrīpts (e.g. "Chinatown," "Three Days of the Condor," anything by Steven Zaillian, etc.)  But, perhaps even more importantly, you should read the BAD scrīpts.  In fact, in my opinion, you learn much more from reading a bad scrīpt that you do from reading a great scrīpt.  Copies of scrīpts can be purchased from Scrīpt City (www.scrīptcity.net) for about USD $15.  (Make sure you request single-sided rather than double-sided.)  Or, if that’s not in your budget, you can download them from websites like The Daily Scrīpt (www.dailyscrīpt.com).  Personally, I highly recommend reading PDF copies of scrīpts rather than HTMLs, since they preserve the words on the page as originally intended by the writers themselves.  
  
  Anyway, since I hate people who pontificate, I think it’s probably best that I close by saying that I’m hardly an expert when it comes to this stuff.  In fact, to quote Dr. Frank Byrant from Willy Russell’s Educating Rita, “The only thing I know is that I know absolutely nothing.”
  
  Best of luck in your endeavors,
  
  -Dax
  
  P.S. For those of you who’ve asked to read some of my own work (cough, cough, Mabelicious, cough), I regret to say that the producers have specifically requested that I not post the scrīpts in their entirety.  However, I have received permission to post the first 10-15 pages of several for reference purposes and they are available at the following links.  I hope they're helpful.
  
  http://www.uploading.com/files/GS22J0GI/THE_KEEP.FIRST_FIFTEEN.pdf.html
  
  http://www.uploading.com/files/3D053AJY/THE_KEY_TO_REBECCA.FIRST_FIFTEEN.pdf.html
  
  http://www.uploading.com/files/E8CTOEVQ/TROTW.FIRST_TEN.pdf.html
  
  http://www.uploading.com/files/TFYX8UPR/CTS.FIRST_FIFTEEN.pdf.html
  
  
  
  
  

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