Channel Introduction

Hello, everyone and welcome! My name is Easton and this is my channel, Kestrel Studios.

I created this channel as a personal motivational tool to keep at my goal of creating a low-to-no-budget independent film. Deadlines are an important tool for keeping a project going and if I can give myself hard deadlines, along with the threat of public-shaming if I fail to meet them, I imagine I will feel more motivated to complete them.

I also feel that I should share what I learn along the way since I know I’m not the only person on this journey. Two years before opening this channel I wrote two original screenplays: ‘The Fox and the Hare’ and ‘Oneirogeist’. Boy, did I learn a lot with just those two writing projects. But after writing I realized those were lessons I only could’ve learned by writing. If you’re along a similar journey in life, or simply curious about the stuff on this channel, maybe those lessons could help you as well.

Each week I will create at least two updates to this channel: a ‘Project Update Journal’ entry and a ‘Lessons Corner’ entry.

The Project Update Journal will focus on letting you know where I am currently in the process of making my low-to-no-budget independent film. It will also let you know where my budget currently stands in relation to the project. I think it might help my audience and I to grow excited about the film project if there is real-world-dollars associated with it. Also, since it’s important to stretch a dollar as far as it can go on such low budget projects, others could provide advice on how to invest that money wisely. This will publish on Fridays.

The Lessons Corner will focus on sharing what I’ve learned along the way. I can’t promise those lessons won’t be similar to what you can learn on other web pages in the screenwriting world, but I can promise that I will only share important lessons that have benefitted me and/or offered insight into the field. Off the top of my head I already know I will write about: how I encountered the Trolley Problem in my first screenplay, why ignoring story structure for twenty years was super-dumb, and why there is no single right way to write. This will publish on Tuesdays.

There will also be other entries on this channel that will not be published with any regularity: a Feedback Corner, Movie Reviews, an Open Journal, a Writing Journal, and maybe random images or video from my journeys around my home city of Seattle.

Regarding the Feedback Corner, I am trying to muster the courage to share my screenplays online. I know for a fact I will share the current screenplay I’m working on once it’s finished, ‘Metamorphosis, Interrupted’ (working title), which I will cover more in its initial ‘Project Update Journal’ entry. But the first two screenplays I wrote, ‘The Fox and the Hare’ and ‘Oneirogeist’, those are a bit harder to share for some reason. I’m more comfortable with sharing the first since it’s good but not ground-breaking, but I’d kick myself in the butt if the second one turned out to be good and some jerk-off ‘borrowed’ some ideas from it.

Regarding the other irregular entries, an Open Journal will cover any random thing I think should be discussed, such as channel updates or slice-of-life nonsense. A Writing Journal stems from Steven King’s advice about writing at least a 1000 words a day. I would do that daily if my schedule allowed it, but even though I can’t (at this stage of my life) it’s still good to do so when I can.

That’s all, folks! If you stuck around reading this far thank you and welcome to my channel!

Sincerely yours, Easton.

#filmmaking #storytelling #minds #blog #introduction