California – Kelly Tatham

Writing days & movie nights

While it may appear that all I’ve been doing in Los Angeles is playing, I did in fact come here to get some work done. Some network! Get it? Work… network! #sorrynotsorry

Anyway, I’ve had the opportunity to meet some wonderful people here and will soon be compiling all the advice they have given me into one handy post. But for now, I’m just going to keep posting the fun stuff!

Tuesday was a REALLY EXCITING DAY.

(The only picture I took on Tuesday.)

Yeah, so Tuesday I spent the day writing and emailing and jumping at the banging noises from the kitchen. Hugo is a sneaky teenager (I blame his adolescence for us not getting along.) and continually ducks in and out of cupboards in search of a “hit.” I finally got up and found him in the top cupboard, next to the fridge, head deep into a torn up food bag.

Wednesday was also mostly filled with more of the above but I needed to leave Narnia so I decided to check out Universal Studios City Walk.

Finding something in walking distance is super rare for LA, but luckily Universal Studios is about a 40 minute walk from Ryan and Hayley’s place; (or 25 minutes plus a free tram* up the hill.) I was going to walk but the tram was right there, so naturally I hopped on. It takes you all the way up to the entrance of Universal Studios and what they call “City Walk.” City Walk is basically just a sweeping row of restaurants, tourist shops, and restaurants and tourist shops.**

*The tram loads diagonally across the street from the Universal City metro stop.

**Not a typo.

Enthralling stuff.

It was neat, but not exactly a “must see.” The real reason I went up there, though, was to catch a movie.

Mild digression: Every year I tell myself I’m going to see all the films nominated for Best Picture; and every year I’ve gotten really close, but never quite made it. This year, however, I WILL do it! (I mean, it’s really not that complicated, especially in this day and age.***)

So I bought a ticket to Gravity. (I realize it’s shameful that I hadn’t seen it yet, but I was really busy last year, okay?!) The theatre up there is massive, boasting 20 screens. Unfortunately it was no longer in IMAX (Damn you, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit.) but I was still blown away from seeing it in 3D. Gravity is truly a jaw dropping cinematic feat that will surely win several technical Oscars, but I sort of wish they’d done one more draft on the dialogue.

***But pirating is bad; don’t do it.**** Pay for movies.

****Unless you’re pretending to be a pirate, like, a real one, not then internet kind: in that case, carry on.

Exciting even at night!

Thursday I had plans to meet up with Jake (a classmate of mine from VFS). He just recently moved down to L.A. permanently, but, being California born and bred, knows a lot more about the city than I do.

He picked me up and, after some much needed coffee, we drove up to Griffith Observatory. I’d already been up there (on Nisha’s last day) but it was nice to spend some extra time wandering around and taking in the view.

That view, amirite?!

Kidding aside, it’s actually beautiful to walk around. We popped inside — it’s a legit planetarium in there — then made our way back down the hill (mountain?). For our next stop, Jake drove us to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Margaret Herrick Library. (Say that five times fast.) The building is gorgeous, but the inside is actually pretty mellow, at least for what I assumed it would be like coming from the people who put on the always ritzy Oscars.

We browsed around for a while, enjoying the massive selection of film and television books, saw a real Oscar, (!!!) (All About Eve – Best Costume Design, Black-and-White), and enquired into seeing production notes and scripts. (They have a gargantuan collection, but most requests take 24 hrs to process.) You can’t psychically check anything out of the library, but it’s a fantastic research resource for anyone spending time in L.A.

A hotel on the Sunset strip.

I hadn’t spent any time on Sunset Blvd, so we decided to drive down the infamous strip to find some food and pick out famous sites (Chateau Marmont, The Viper Room). I was craving Mexican (I’m always craving Mexican.) but Jake pointed out another place and I (temporarily) let go of my taco craving. And I’m glad I did, because it turns out that he was taking me to the diner from American Graffiti.

A classic, All-American spot, we ordered some greasy food and played Tom Petty’s American Girl on the jukebox.

Unlike Vancouver institution, The Templeton, the jukeboxes actually work here.

I wish we had more classic diners in Vancouver. Screw the Cat Cafe, I want waiters on roller-skates! We finished up our tasty (and artery clogging) food, then Jake headed off into the smog as I took to the Boulevard to wander.

I had plans to meet a VFS Writing alum in a few hours and was going to sight see up and down the strip until that time, but was feeling quite sleepy. Just as I was getting deep into my daydream of Nap Cafes***** I spotted a movie theatre! Hallelujah!

I’d stumbled upon one of Robert Redford’s Sundance Cinemas. It’s a 21+ chain where they serve drinks, fancy coffees, meat plates, edamame, you name it. The seating is reserved and the chairs large, cozy, and equipped with side tables. Now that’s how you’re meant to watch a movie! I picked Philomena, purchased a large Americano, and settled in.

Best Picture nominee, Philomena, is sweet, lovely, and ABSOLUTELY HEART-WRENCHING. Literally, bring all the tissues.

After it was finished, I had the perfect amount of time to walk down Sunset and meet VFS alum, Lynn, at The Cat & Fiddle.

*****This seriously needs to be a thing in major tourist destination cities. When you’re too far from your hostel/hotel and need a little break, you just know you’d pay $15 for a clean place to sleep for a couple of hours.

Sunset Blvd street art.

Lynn is super awesome and had a lot of great advice. (Combined advice article is forthcoming.) We had a drink and a snack then headed back onto the Blvd in search of the Nerd Melt Showroom. The Nerd Melt is a comic book/graphic novel/action figure Mecca with a back room built for storytelling, sketch, and stand-up shows.

That night was a storytelling event called Risk! and the theme was “freaky.” I love storytelling nights. (Really looking forward to the Rain City Chronicles‘ Love Hangover when I’m back in Vancouver. (Tickets still available, but they go fast!)) We settled in and it was quite the show. There were hilarious stories and heartbreak stories and meth stories and ghosts stories. It’s so cool to hear someone share something that’s meant so much to them. I sincerely recommend finding a storytelling night to go to, whatever city you live in.

Whenever you’re in L.A., though, I insist you check out Nerd Melt’s website. They’ve got so many shows with tons of recognizable actors and just quality entertainment. It’s a great addition to the UCB and Groundlings circuit. Thanks so much, Lynn, for taking me!!

How we celebrate Martin Luther King day…

By going to Mexico!

Not actually Mexico.

No, unfortunately, we didn’t go to Mexico, but we found the next best thing: Olvera St.

Hayley works an insane schedule so naturally we were both thrilled to find out she had Martin Luther King, Jr. Day off. After much discussion of what to do with such rare freedom, (her, not me. Clearly as a writer I have all day free to toil and hate myself.) we decided to check out the famed Olvera St., known for being a little Mexican corner of Los Angeles.

While I’ve only been to Mexico once, to a tourist town, when I was eight, and can’t specifically vouch for its authenticity, it did feel like we had traveled to another place, city, country…

Olvera St. is just that, a street, filled with stalls and restaurants and wandering singers with guitars. There are tons of things to buy: leather wallets and shoes, wrestling masks, clothing, and lots of little cafes and stands hocking Mexican snacks and drinks. Hayley picked up some beautiful ceramic peppers, avocados, and other various faux-vegetables to decorate their kitchen. I got a fridge magnet. Woot!

Hayley & I.

After the wandering was over, it was time for food! (Obvi.) So we headed over to a little place Hayley’s friend Courtney had recommended, El Paseo de Los Angeles. We found a lovely shaded table outside and ordered the usual, skinny* lime margaritas and table side guacamole, not to mention a new addition of the dirtiest Mexican platter you ever did see. (DELICIOUS.)

*Less sugar, I guess?

Completely satisfied, we rolled into Hayley’s car and made our way home. ‘Twas a magical little escape and while it sated my travel need for 24 hrs, after that time had passed, I just crave traveling to new places more and more. So, again, the million dollar question, how can I travel the world while building a career? (Blogging? Blogging’s the answer, right!?)

This little well reminded me of Kaitlyn. (Hi, Kaitlyn!)

Nisha’s Last Day in L.A. and Celebrity Approachment

Sunday morning we woke up refreshed and groggy. Wait… refreshed or groggy, you choose. It was Nisha’s last morning (sob!) so we decided to squeeze in a few more things before driving her to the airport. First on the list, farmer’s market! My obsession with farmer’s markets knows no bounds and I couldn’t wait to check out what a Southern Californian one had to offer.

The farmer’s market in Studio City is right off of Ventura Blvd near Laurel Canyon Blvd. (Just a quick walk down the gorgeous L.A. river.) It’s noisy and right on the street, but what it lacks in tranquility it makes up for in PONY RIDES!!!

Like, whaaaaaa?

(Vancouver, time to step up your game!)

As we wandered through the stalls, Nisha’s eagle-eyes spotted the one and only Adam Pally. Squee! A couple things to note here:

1. Nisha is super mellow around celebrities. When I met this girl a year ago, she had NEVER seen a celebrity. Together now we’ve seen several and she’s calm and collected every time. I’m pretty sure I LOST MY MIND until at least, like, my 10th sighting of a famous person. (As in, there were tears involved when I saw Jared Padalecki for the first time. Also, Renee Zellweger straight up gave me dagger eyes. (But that’s probably my fault for pointing and hissing into Carrie’s ear much louder than necessary (or realized).))*

2. Adam Pally is lookin’ fine. The Max Bloom weight is off and that is one fine beard.

3. Through all of my brushes with those professionally charming people we call actors, I’ve never wanted to approach someone more. Happy Endings continues to be one of my favourite shows of all time, even after DOZENS of repeat viewings. I’ve never been one to approach famous people or ask for autographs or pictures. I always figure they’d appreciate their privacy more than whatever I have to say to them. But you don’t go into the business without a healthy love for attention, so sometimes it’s probably totally okay to say hi. But how do you know?! Thus, I’ve created a handy, dandy chart that you may assess before deciding whether or not to approach a celebrity.

*Edit: Nisha’s response: “I was not so cool when I saw Ricardo from the Food network. I’ve evolved.”

Kelly’s Handy Dandy Chart for Deciding Whether or Not to Approach Some Who is Significantly More Famous Than You Will Ever Be.

According to my chart it would have been totally acceptable to approach him, but, alas, we decided not to. He was with his kid and farmer’s markets should be considered a safe** place (additional factors that would require a much more comprehensive chart). In hindsight, I kind of wish we had, at least just to say how much we appreciate his work, but it was too nerve-wracking at the time. Thank goodness I have this handy chart for next time!

So in between all of this we were actually sampling and buying food. There was TONS to choose from and we probably sampled our body weight in fresh California produce. The absolute highlight of it all was something called bolani. It’s a vegan flat-bread from Afghanistan and it’s FREAKIN’ delicious. You can buy them stuffed with spinach or potato or pumpkin and then choose from an assortment of spreads to lather over them. I’m talking garlic mint cheese and cilantro pesto and jalapeño jelly. Seriously, get thee to an Afghani restaurant and order ALL THE BOLANI***.

Apparently these guys (East & West Gourmet) are all over farmer’s markets in California and you only have to read a couple Yelp reviews to know I’m not alone in feeling ecstatic over their product.

We took our bolani goodness along with some fresh avocados, handmade tortilla chips, ceviche, and salsa and headed back to Hayley and Ryan’s apartment for a feast. Amazing.

**Safe from being attacked by overzealous wannabe TV writers.

***Pronounced bo-lonnie, not bo-lownie or bo-lani. (I think… Hayley?!)

If you hadn’t noticed yet, I really like panorama shots.

After the food and before the airport, we took the windy, jam-packed drive up to the Griffith Observatory. I guess all the tourists come out on Sundays, because it took us about a half an hour to get up the hill (mountain?). But it was worth it, even if the view is smoggy and you can barely see anything, you’re really there to point your camera in the opposite direction and get the ubiquitous**** tourist shot.

****Guys, I spelt that in one try. One try! *Self high five!*

I’ve been trying this new “not showing my teeth” thing in photos and I don’t think it’s working out for me. I look pissed when in fact, I am not. (Quite the opposite actually.)

You may recognize that building on the left (aka The Griffith Observatory) from Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle or if you, unlike me, are a classy person, from Rebel Without a Cause.

We then rode over to LAX and said our goodbyes to Nisha (sad!) before heading home for an evening of relaxing and TV. The end.

Today is a grey day in L.A. (but Day 9 wasn’t).

This is what, I believe, the kids calls “#nofilter”.

I’ve been in Los Angeles for nearly 20 days. (Say what!?) And today I miss Vancouver. The fresh air. The rain. The short distances between boroughs. It’s a god damn beautiful city and sometimes I have to leave for awhile to remember that. If you live in Vancouver please consider yourself very, very lucky.

*This post was written over two days. Today the sun came out. Yesterday it rained. People in L.A. LOSE THEIR MINDS when it rains. It’s hilarious. Actually, it’s pretty much exactly what happens to Vancouver when it snows. I highly recommend this Jimmy Kimmel video. So funny.

So the temperature has dropped. It got down to 50 last night (10??*). It will probably get up to the mid 60s today; still a treat for January, but not the warmth I quickly got accustomed to when I first arrived.

So, brief, fleeting homesickness aside, (I know, STFU Kelly, no complaining from you! But I’m just being honest…) L.A. is still frickin’ L.A. I guess I’m just grappling with the loss of my romanticized fantasy Los Angeles. But cities on pedestals shouldn’t throw stones. (What?!) California is known worldwide as a dream destination, and for good reason.

Day 9 (a Saturday) was a magical day. We rented biked in Venice and rode them all the way to Manhattan Beach. (A solid hour plus ride.) I (barely) managed to keep up with rockstar athletes, Ryan, Hayley, and Nisha. We only ducked onto the road for a short while and the rest of the ride along the beach was stunning.

*I’m no longer Googling the difference. I gots to figure it out on my own! 32 = 0, 61 = 16, etc…

Clearly I’m having way too much fun with Pixlr.

It was an incredibly gorgeous day. It’s moments like that where I would sell a little piece of my soul to live here.** We arrived at Manhattan Beach and set up camp next to an empty volleyball next. Hayley and Ryan’s friends were still on their way so we decided to test the water. We dipped our toes in and it was, yes, decidedly freezing, but hell if I’m not going swimming in January! After a bit of wading and much reassurance from Hayley that this wasn’t the beach the great whites like to hang out at, we dove in. (Upon later reflection, we realized said beach was only TEN MINUTES AWAY. Seriously, watch this video.) The water was gorgeous and refreshing. I even ducked in a second time later in the day. (And half-heartedly attempted to surf. But, yep, still no upper arm strength on this girl.)

**Which I’m pretty sure they collect at the DMV in exchange for a California driver’s license. (The shards of soul are then tossed in the air to rest above the city as a cloud of broken dreams.)

After we towelled off, Hayley’s co-worker/lovely lady Katie and her finance, Ned, joined us as well as Ryan’s friend, Nate, his girlfriend, Batel,*** and their friend Kyle. Tequila in hand, it was time to play volleyball. I begged to be left on the sidelines (While I played a lot of sports growing up, I always abhorred volleyball.) but, alas, to no avail. It was, shockingly, actually really fun! Clearly elementary school volleyball should be taught on a beach and missed hits should not be punished with the popular girls laughing at you, but with shots of tequila. We played a game called “Ace“. It was super fun and my awful playing even got mildly better. (Big ups to Ned and Nate for teaching me!)

***Massive apologies. I’m almost certain I’m spelling that wrong. (But maybe you should make yourself easier to Facebook stalk?! 😉 )

Then the tequila was gone and the bikes needed to be returned so we bid adieu and promised to meet up in a few hours. Nisha, Hayley, Ryan, and I hopped on our bikes and journeyed back. The ride back to Venice was even more beautiful than the ride there. We almost made it back before the sunset (but, obviously a photo shoot was necessary midway). We managed our bikes fine in the dark and then, just as we were pulling into Venice Beach and I was thinking about how incredibly perfect the day was, I kid you not, fireworks started going off behind us. Glorious.

We returned our bikes and nabbed some massive pizza slices before hopping in the car and heading home. We showered and I started getting ready to go out, but you just know after a full beach day and two hour bike ride there was no way we were making it back out; so Nisha made us some dinner and we totally crashed. A perfect California Saturday.

The panorama option on my camera, with varying degrees of success.

Live! Sitcom! Taping!

Does anyone know any good memory boosting tricks? I think with all these fictional characters and events swirling around in my head, my brain is having trouble grasping on to the tangible ones. Or maybe it’s just a product of my generation: if I didn’t tweet it youtube it instagram Facebook tumblr snapchat (ok, that last one’s flawed) right away, it never happened. Why would my brain exert actual energy when social media (and its warehouse of servers in Alaska*) can do that for me?**

What I’m trying to say is I only have one picture from Day 8, so it practically didn’t happen. But it did and it was great. Onwards!

*There’s a horror movie pitch somewhere in there.

**Those platforms have to store their info somewhere, right? Someone told me that once… I think I need to read more books.

The picture is from Day 7.

What we did in the morning doesn’t matter. (I don’t remember.) It likely involved breakfast at some point and probably a little TV. What matters is what we did in the evening: attend our first LIVE! STUDIO! TAPING! Well, except for Jimmy Kimmel the night before… So, it was our first LIVE! SITCOM! TAPING! (to be aired at a much later date). Barbara (the Wonderful) arranged for us to attend a taping of Men at Work, the TBS show we have previously seen a rehearsal of.

Danny Masterson, Adam Busch, Michael Cassidy, James Lesure

And now, like all our feelings for Clint Eastwood, I bring you the conflicted chart* of emotions:

The Good: The show, Men at Work: It’s funny. It’s not 30 Rock but not everything can/should be. It’s cute and fun and would make for excellent background TV on a rainy day of collaging.

The Bad: Our audience warmer** whose name escapes me but we’ll call Chris, because that’s what he called every male he brought up to the front, (except for Ryan – see below). I understand now that there are different calibers of warmers (stay tuned for future post) but way back then, on Day 8, I thought all studio audiences had to sit through an uncomfortable, groan inducing*** and, frankly, racist five plus hours of Chris’s brutal jokes. (He more or less just brought people up to the front, heckled them, then made them dance.) I understand that the job must be VERY hard — I could certainly never do it — and it probably wasn’t as awful as I’m making it out to be and, in fact, most of the audience seemed to really enjoy it, so, you know what, why not run with it, Chris, the same way I’ve completely run away with this ridiculous sentence.

The Ugly: The two individuals, (one nicknamed “rapey Ryan” and the other, let’s call her Christina), who chose to bump, grind, and otherwise engage in inappropriate behaviour in front of 200 hundred people. (I’m no prude but when the shirt AND belt come off and you’re shaking your bits atop the face of a woman who is now lying on the floor, I’m looking away.)

The Good: The attractive writers/crew. Nisha found her future husband. (Who, naturally, we stalked after the show and who, naturally, completely ignored us.)

The Bad: The sandwiches they served far later than midway through the night. But, hey, the taping (and the sandwiches (and Chris’s entertainment)) was all free, so this is not a real complaint.

The Good: Michael Cassidy! This guy has the smile/wave/laugh move down like you wouldn’t believe. He even took the time to come up to the audience and answer questions. It might take another 10 years but this guy’s going to be a movie star. Mark my words. (Seriously, I got a total Ryan Reynolds/George Clooney early TV days vibe.)

The Bad: Danny Masterson. (Hyde!) I couldn’t tell if he was phoning it in or his character was meant to be really, really low energy. Probably not the best question to arise.

The Ugly: Molly Sims’ face. It. Doesn’t. Move. (Which really isn’t ugly so much as sad.)

The Good: The rest of the cast. James Lesure nailed every take and brought something new every time. Adam Busch was also fantastic as were the “suburb” extras.

The Bad: The Nickelback joke! There was a great Nickelback joke in rehearsal and it got cut. I think we were the only ones who laughed at it in rehearsal and the show doesn’t air in Canada, so I get it; but we were sad anyways.

The Good: Going to a taping of a sitcom!!! All bad and ugly aside, it was an incredible experience. It’s absolutely longer than ideal, but five or six hours of numb butt is the trade off for seeing a television show taped live; and it’s worth every minute.

*Not a real chart. More of a list, actually.

**One who keeps the audience “warm” i.e. laughing during the lengthy hours and repetitive takes.

***I know that a “groan” is still categorized as a “laugh” but let’s not aim for that, okay?

The alien spaceship we saw floating on the way home.

2013 in Review

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Two thousand and thirteen has come and gone. And what I year it was. I was extremely blessed last year to spend eleven and a half months in school studying writing for film and television. Storytelling has been a passion my entire life, but, as they say, the path is not straight. There are times when I chastise myself for taking so long to figure out how to get where I want to go, but I finally understand that I’m exactly where I need to be. (If you can think of a less platitudinous way to say that last sentence, let me know.) Had I gone to film school earlier in life, there is no way I would have completed it as successfully as I did. I’m excited for 2014 like I’ve never been excited for anything before. (Well, except maybe flying to Paris for the first time.) But I am grateful for being exactly where I am and for everything it took to get me here (even all of those soul-sucking years of waiting tables). But this post isn’t about 2014, it’s about 2013, so here we go:

In 2013 I: successfully kidnapped zero dogs. My apartment got flooded with mud. I got a tattoo. I read my writing in public. I had my writing filmed. I spent three months on crutches. I went to Vegas. There were nights out: Lydia’s bday when we got bear-sprayed; fireworks when Lydia sweet-talked us onto a boat to watch; (that girl’s the best kind of trouble.) Dancing and drinking with my fellow writers. But, more than anything, I wrote. I’ll spare you the boring details, but after dozens of drafts, hundreds of hours, and thousands of words, I completed two feature films, two television spec episodes, two TV pilots, two web series pilots, dozens of film critiques, a short film, and a ten page reimagining of the end of Romeo and Juliet in full iambic pentameter. Whew. But that’s not very photogenic. So, without further ado, 2013 in pictures and only a few more words.

Vancouver, our glorious city, was extremely beautiful. The sunniest year in my memory, Vancouver showed us why it consistently places on the list of most livable cities.

Vancouver beaut 2

Making it all the more incredible, Vancouver is filled with amazing people. I neglected these beautiful weirdos more than I wanted to (see list of writing accomplishments above), but we still managed to spend plenty of time together, all of it ridiculous. Birthdays, drinks, concerts, random adventures, lazy board game nights, you name it. I couldn’t ask for better company. I love you guys.

beautiful weirdos

Between all the writing and semi-successful attempts at a social life, I also endeavoured to keep my garden alive. It wasn’t as successful as 2012, but I still managed. Sweet peas, snap peas, kale, squash, tomatoes, herbs, and flowers all grew beautifully; my pumpkin, however, died. It is my dream to have a thriving pumpkin patch and I may have shed a few tears when my baby pumpkin rotted on the vine. C’est la vie. One day I will succeed!! (Can you grow pumpkins in California?)

garden

In mid-March the trouble making Lydia invited me to try rock climbing for the first time. It was fun… until I fell and brutally sprained my ankle. The swelling eventually went down and, with it, half of the muscle mass of my right calf. It was certainly an ordeal, but I was lucky enough to have a ton of help to get me through three months on crutches.

rockclimbing evolution

Shortly after “the fall”, I hopped on a plane to Las Vegas to meet Hayley and all her beautiful friends for an amazing stagette. They all kindly pushed me around in a wheelchair and dumped me into the pool whenever necessary. After Vegas, we hopped in a couple cars and drove to Carmel, CA for the wedding. Hayley and Ryan Neimy are simply two of the most wonderful people you will ever meet and I was honoured to be there. The wedding was stunning and touching and unbelievably fun.

We drove into LAX only to fly out (a heartbreaking task), but, thankfully, upon my return, Vancouver continued its year-long (mostly) warm and sunny streak.

vancouver beaut 4

About a week after I was fully back on my feet, sans crutches, Bonnie and Erik fly in from San Francisco for a visit and solidified their place in my heart as two of my favourite people of all time. I showed them as much of Vancouver as I could and as quickly as they arrived they were off.

bonnie and erik

I think in 2013 I cooked and baked more than I ever have before. Perhaps it was a necessity of being a broke student, but more likely, it’s my growing enjoyment of all things kitchen-related. (Even cleaning. But, like, on a much smaller scale.) I ate far more pizza than necessary, but it was often topped with kale, making it acceptable. I made eggs benedict, pecan tarts, curries, all things Mexican, cinnamon buns, pad thai, baked squash, and all sorts of other dishes with varying degrees of success.

food

Oh yeah, the writing and the reading and the brainstorming; a lot of that was happening.

reading and writing

Sometime in the summer this crazy kook moved in. She brought with her approximately one thousand DVDs and the repeated, welcome presence of the lovely Farran. I have lived with dozens of people over the years — including almost all of my best friends — but Nisha just might be the best roommate ever. Together we’ve consumed more television, boxed wine, and homemade hummus than any doctor would recommend, but I’ve loved every minute of it.

nishafarran

Last summer was amazing (fireworks, BBQs, beach days and nights), but the Illuminares Festival was my highlight. Do whatever you can to get there next year; it’s incredibly beautiful.

public dreams

At the end of August we had a short break from school. My wonderful parents drove in from the Okanagan and took my brother and I to the Sunshine Coast. Gibsons has to be one of my favourite places in the world. While we were there I also fell madly in love with Davis Bay. Life goal: own a cottage there.

sunshine coast

And Vancouver continued to be stunningly beautiful.

Vancouver beaut 1

There were many other fun times. Some even, gasp, not captured by a camera.

fun times

One of the coolest parts of 2013 was seeing my brother break into the music world. He is hands down the hardest working person I know and deserves every ounce of success he achieves. He inspires me to chase after my dreams. (Cheesy; I know. But sorry I’m not sorry, it’s true!) I know 2014 is going to be huge for him; (after closing 2013 out DJing at BC Place, how could it not?) I can’t wait to watch him rise to the top.

sleepy tom

And, yes, Vancouver was still very pretty.

vancouver beaut 3

Save the best for last, right? 2013 would be nothing without all the incredible people I met at VFS.

42s

For the first time in my life I was completely surrounded by people who wanted nothing more than to talk about film and television for hours and hours on end. I owe my year to everyone on that 4th floor. To the teachers, admin, my classmates, and all the other students wandering around, thank you. 2013 was more than I could have ever asked for and that’s thanks to all of you.

I could not be more thrilled for 2014. And, I think, a year from now when I do my next “Year in Review” I’ll be floored at how much things have changed. I’m ready 2014. Bring it on!