Exhausted

I am completely exhausted from this weekend. I'm starting to negatively think if something is wrong with me physically... which i still haven't really got checked out and if my sister ever found out she'd get mad at me. that's another subject. but everything went well at the reading.

catharsis...
i didn't have any feeling after the reading. numb. not happy, sad, excited... nothing. it was over. something i've wanted to do. my goal. my dramatic action - and wala. totally tired i guess. i left work a little early, but this morning i told my boss about my plans. you'll have to go over to my other blog to find out what those plans are, but i made this decision after talking to a dear friend last night.

ok. just wanted to chime in before turning in... at 5:02pm :O

----------------
Now playing: Gary Valenciano - Break Me 2
via FoxyTunes

Just being... real?

Howdy, I'm learning more and more. About what you ask? SO MUCH. Like today, I learned how to target certain .as files from flash. I'm learning that just by reading another person's blog what I really admire is how 'fearless' I want to be with my own writing. 'Ya hear that, Bitches!' I'm learning more and more about the craft of playwriting. (conrad's playspace) I'm defining what my goals are with respect to my second career. Since using google reader for the last week, while subscribing to the sfgate feed, every post's title lends itself to an awesome story idea.



Oh, I pulled this Blog's title from a suggestion given to one of my favorite bloggers on the net, Prince Gomolvilas. This cat kicks ass and his essays and writing style are truly an inspiration for this hopeful playwright! C'mon who can hate on someone who writes an article saying that 'High School Musical is GAY! Literally!' Oh, yeah, the title. Prince was at the last Asian American Theater conference in LA where Philip Kan Gotanda was giving the keynote, which is a hilarious story, but when he asked Mr. Gotanda, "What should I do with the rest of my life?" Philip just said for him to "be Real." Can't wait to see Prince next week at APATURE by KSW. Check out his blog!



I'm also digging on this really amazing writer from the PI by the name of Lauren. Her voice is fresh, and like the title, REAL. Fearless is also a good word to use for her. Too bad I'm too chickenshit to write her... but I should. Why the fuck not, di ba? And everytime I use di ba, I hear this voice in my head sounding like perez... hehe. Digressing... please check out her blog here.

Anyways, I gotta put together some binders for Saturday as well as finding some sound FX and a couple of songs.

nyt!

Getting more difficult

It's getting harder for me at work to concentrate on doing my job. I pray that this is only a phase I'm going through. Please! I'm pretty sure that I've already mentioned that I've never been at a job for 3 years and i'm hovering at 2 1/2. but that's so not an excuse for me to be feeling like this. I also feel like a total buzz-kill. So, I just have to suck it up, put on a happy face, and remember how it was like when I first started. I was a go-getter. Always asking for what projects to work on. Coming in early and was the last one out. I need to get back into that mode! basically putting as much energy into work as I do with my pursuit of being a playwright.

Last one left

I've been at my job for now 2 years and 4 months. the LONGEST I've ever been at a job. I've been so good until i took some time off to go to SD for a wedding... now. Now, i'm spent. I just about have no more motivation left to do anything. Saving grace is that I have an AWESOME co-worker! she's done everything needed for this position and then some. kinda reminds me of me when i first came in. when i first got here, i just through myself into everything. a couple of months here, i started calling my own meetings. i jumped into doing flash work without too much knowledge about flash and actionscript.

there's been two determining factors of why i feel like this: 1) i'm bored. i feel like i've topped out. 2) i miss the people that i started with within my brand. since bpr... i'm the only one left who started in a position and have stayed there. hmmm... i wonder if that's it. i'm the last one left. thinking about it more, i started feeling like this ever since jane left. wait... most of the designers are still here... but, not really the same since i don't really work with them on a daily basis.

MS - she hired me. gone w/ baby
RL - left to go to east w/ hubby & family
CR - at apple
HY - left to go freelance
AY - moved to another brand
KC - moved to la
KG - went to another company
MA - nike
ML - went to another company
JC - moved to another state

*sigh*

The plays have been packed up...

The plays have been packed up and have been moved to my new blogspace, Conrad's Playspace. I needed to do that because, the more I'm using this blog to house my scripts, the less it's becoming of my personal journal - which I still want to keep as a reminder of this journey i'm taking through life. Also, the scripts were taking way too much space.

But this new blog is perfect since it'll serve as my Personal Journal of my Playwriting Chapter of my life. As I've said, I've really dived headfirst into this. I'm reading a whole lot of plays now. Right now, is Aaron Sorkin's 'A Few Good Men' - which I'll post a review of on the new blog as soon as I've finished it. I've also watched a play called HYSTERIA at the Aurora Theater in Berkeley. A review will be posted there as well as soon as I get to typing my scratch marks on paper after watching it.

I'll won't delete the scripts I've already posted here, to keep the flow of my entries intact, but cruise on over to my new blog when you get a chance to see NEW STUFF that's been floating in my noodle.

Thanks!

Gabriella in the Hood

Gabriella in the Hood
by conrad panganiban

Mac G - early 20's
Gabriella - mid 30's

Setting: Sidewalk. East Oakland. Present.


GABRIELLA
What? You're cutting out. I said that I'm in East Oakland. It's near San Francisco. I'll be fine. What? Research. I'll see you soon. Love you. Hello? Hello?

MAC G
Nice phone.

GABRIELLA
Thanks.

MAC G
Looks expensive.

GABRIELLA
Not really.

MAC G
Give it to me.

GABRIELLA
What?

MAC G
I said give it to me and your bag!

GABRIELLA
Are you in a gang?

MAC G
What?

GABRIELLA
Are you in the 12th Street Crew?

MAC G
Bitch! I ain't playin'! Does this look like a toy?

GABRIELLA
Crap. Hold up. Can you say that again?

MAC G
What?

GABRIELLA
Start off with 'bitch'! I like how you said that.

MAC G
Fo realz, I ain't playin'! Get that tape recorder out of my face.

GABRIELLA
Biatch!

MAC G
What you call me?

GABRIELLA
No. Can you say that again and add 'Biatch' to the end of that.

MAC G
What the fuck? Nobody says biatch.

GABRIELLA
What about 'bizzle mah nizzle'?

MAC G
Just give me your shit! Damn, this bag's heavy! What the fuck you got in here?

GABRIELLA
Just some books and paper.

MAC G
That's it?

GABRIELLA
Yeah.

MAC G
Then give me that too.

GABRIELLA
You can take everything but this. I have all my notes recorded on this.

MAC G
Imma bust a cap in yo ass if you don't give that to me!

GABRIELLA
Good stuff! 'Bust a cap in your ass!'

MAC G
In YO ass!

GABRIELLA
Right. 'In YO ass!'

MAC G
What the hell are you doin'?

GABRIELLA
Research. I'm writing a script about girl from the rich suburbs kidnapped by a gang and then chooses to become one of them to spite her over-protective parents. It's going to be called, "Chloe in the Hood."

MAC G
What? That story's hella wack!

GABRIELLA
Why? Because your gang wouldn't kidnap anyone, right?

MAC G
Stupid cuz no one chooses to be in a gang.

GABRIELLA
But it's to spite her parents.

MAC G
I'm just sayin' that shit ain't real.

GABRIELLA
Then what is?

MAC G
I'm warning you! Get that shit out of my face.

GABRIELLA
Research. I need to know what you know about the gritty life in the innercity.

MAC G
Told you this ain't a game out here! Shut that recorder off, before I permanently shut you off!

GABRIELLA
Oooo... that's good! What's your name?

MAC G
Fuck it! You're pissing me off.

GABRIELLA
Hey! Where are you going with my stuff?

MAC G
You wanted life in the innercity? Think of me as Ashton Kutcher of the hood. You just got JACKED!

GABRIELLA
I need your name for the movie.

MAC G
Movie?

GABRIELLA
I might not give a shit about my things, but I believe in being fair. Do you want to help me out?

MAC G
With the movie thang?

GABRIELLA
I need to fly out to L.A. in a couple of days, but I can't leave without a story - a Real story. And I don't think I can do that without your help. So, are you interested?

MAC G
Marcus Gardley, but everyone calls me Mac G.

GABRIELLA
Gabriella Montez.

MAC G
Like from High School Musical? Uh... I mean. Yeah. Fuck. My lil sister watches that shit.

GABRIELLA
My husband Troy wrote the screenplay. So, do we have a deal?

MAC G
Will I get paid?

GABRIELLA
As a consultant.

MAC G
Fuck yeah, I'm interested! I mean. Yeah. S'all good.

GABRIELLA
Great! Thanks. Take my card from my bag.

MAC G
Oh shit. Sorry. Here's your shit back.

GABRIELLA
As I said, take this card and call me tomorrow and we'll make this story work.

MAC G
Coo! Hey, do you think that you can hook me up with that Montez girl from that movie? I mean, so I can get an autograph for my lil sister.

GABRIELLA
Consider it done.

MAC G
Coo... I mean, Thanks!

GABRIELLA
Fo sho.


THE END

NOTE: This is written as an exercise for my Playwriting Workshop. The workshop is offered through Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco for their Stories High Program. The assignment: Write a scene with two characters. Character A wants something tangible from character B, and character B wants something intangible from character A.

Michael Jordan Killed the Fil-Am Mullet

Michael Jordan Killed the Fil-Am Mullet
by conrad panganiban

Will - Early 20's
Theo - Early 20's
Lisa - Early 20's

Setting: Theo's kitchen. Early 1990's.

WILL
Hey Theo. Theo! Lemme in fool! Open up! Hey... Waaasssuuup?!

THEO
Hey. 'Sup Will?

WILL
What's wrong with you?

THEO
Shhh... not too loud.

WILL
That'll teach you to get drunk for the 3rd time this week.

THEO
It's Spring Break... It's what we're supposed to do. Speaking of which, where the hell was your ass last night? I kept paging you. Jocelyn Enriquez performed at DV8.

WILL
I'll catch her next week at the Fiesta, but last night, I was busy.

THEO
Too busy for (singing and dancing) I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT YOU, AND I DON'T Ouch! My head...

WILL
Where do you keep the aspirin? Take this. I was talking to Lisa last night.

THEO
If you're not talking about Lisa Lisa from the Cult Jam, I'm not listening.

WILL
No. Lisa from Chicago.

THEO
Oh, yeah (yawns) that girl you met at your cousin's debut.

WILL
No, she's my sister's College roommate.

THEO
Same thing. Hey, can we hook up a little later? I need my beauty rest.

WILL
I don't have forever to wait for your beauty to come around. She's on her way here and I need your skills.

THEO
Not now, man. I can't even think straight.

WILL
C'mon. She'll be here soon. My sister's picking her up from the airport and I can't have her seeing me with my hair looking like this!

THEO
Just put on a hat!

WILL
I want to impress her.

THEO
If you want to do that, why don't you just take her to the Warriors' game against the Bulls tonight?

WILL
Duh. That's why she's flying in. C'mon, Theo. Hook a brotha up.

THEO
You coulda hooked me up with a ticket to the game too.

WILL
One step ahead of you, Bro.

THEO
Sit down.

WILL
Thanks, man. Wait 'til you meet her. She's great!

THEO
Yeah. Yeah.

WILL
Remember the way I like it. Short on the sides...

THEO
And long in the back. I know.

WILL
We talked for hours last night about everything. Like the new BoyzIIMen CD and even the OJ thing in the Ford Bronco. You'll love her, Theo. Theo!

THEO
What?

WILL
Dude, you were falling asleep! I heard a snore!

THEO
If your story about Lisa wasn't so damn boring, I'd be awake.

WILL
Shut up and cut. She even told me that Filipinos are different out here than in the Midwest.

THEO
Yeah? (yawn)

WILL
Yup yup. She says that she's never even heard the word 'hella' before.

THEO
Yeah. (yawn) Hella interesting.

WILL
Remember. Keep in long in the back. Hey. Do you still have any more spray in the Aquanet can? I wanna spike my hair in front.

THEO
Yeah... I got.... .... Oh shit!

WILL
What?

THEO
Nothing. Nothing! I'm awake. I'm awake. You said that she's flyin' in just for the game?

WILL
Hopefully not just for the game, if you know what I mean. But, yeah, she got mad knowledge about basketball. Well, duh, she's from Chicago. Home of the greatest basketball player to ever live.

THEO
Bill Weddington?

WILL
No, fool! Michael Jordan. That's her favorite player.

THEO
Yeah. That's cool.

WILL
Are you done yet? Where's the mirror?

THEO
Not yet!!! Uh, almost done.

WILL
Everything okay?

THEO
Of course! Why'd you ask? Everything's fine. Perfect even. You just haven't... had a hair cut in a long while. Yeah. Lots of hair. Lots of it...

WILL
Dude. I'm a guy. I don't have that much hair... which is all on the... floor?! What the hell?! Where's the mirror?!! Where's the... What the hell did you do to my head?!

THEO
I told you I was tired... besides it's the new thang?

WILL
Short on the sides - not all the way around!

THEO
The Fil-Am mullet is going out of style anyways.

WILL
Then let me get rid of yours!

THEO
Now, let's not talk crazy!

WILL
I'll kill you! Where's the knife? You're dead! Come back here!

(Enter LISA)

LISA
Uh, Hi. I'm Lisa. Will's sister found a note saying that Will would be here. But I can come back later...

WILL
Lisa. Hi! It's me. Will!

LISA
I didn't recognize you without your...

THEO
Mullet?

LISA
I was going to say hair.

WILL
Uh, yeah. My EX-best friend and next door neighbor got a little carried away with the clippers, and...

LISA
No need to explain. I kinda like it. The shape of your head looks a lot like Michael Jordan's. I really like it. Especially, how it feels...

WILL
You do?

LISA
Hella.


THE END

NOTE: This is written as an exercise for my Playwriting Workshop. The workshop is offered through Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco for their Stories High Program. The assignment: Write a scene with two characters in which character A wants something from B, and gets it or doesn't get it, but in getting/not getting it, gets a third, unexpected thing.

Subliminal Devices of Microscopic Marketing

Subliminal Devices of Microscopic Marketing
by conrad panganiban

Harrison - early 20's
Marié (Mah-ree-yay) - early 20's
Mirabella - early 20's

Setting: Harrison and Marié's apartment

MARI´E
Looks like they got you good, Harrison.

HARRISON
Shh... you don't have to yell. How bad does it look, Marié?

MARI´E
Lemme see. I don't think that a penis on your forehead will come into fashion soon. Luckily, markers aren't too permanent.

HARRISON
Fuckin' Squiggy! He's always carrying around a Sharpie. Oh, my head. I swear I'll never drink again.

MARI´E
Sure you won't. Hey, I was wondering, didn't you have a class with Professor Lee?

HARRISON
Yeah. I'm glad I got that class out of the way.

MARI´E
Who'd of ever figured that a class called Business 319: Subliminal Devices of Microscopic Marketing would be so hard?

HARRISON
It really wasn't that bad.

MARI´E
Wasn't that bad? Did you hear about that one student a couple of semesters ago?

HARRISON
Jeremiah Splat?

MARI´E
That wasn't his name.

HARRISON
What else do you call someone who jumps off the fifth story of the Business building after failing one of Professor Lee's tests?

MARI´E
It wasn't just a test. It was a final. Not only that, it was the Final Final. The one all marketing majors need to pass to graduate. And you're saying that it wasn't that bad?

HARRISON
Eh...

MARI´E
So, what'd you do get through it?

HARRISON
I'm just naturally gifted. What? What? Okay, fine... with... where is that thing? Bingo! With this.

MARI´E
Big whoop. Everybody needs that for the course.

HARRISON
Open it.

MARI´E
What the...? Where'd you get this?

HARRISON
And you said that the only benefit for joining Zeta Omega Psi was the Raging Keggers!

MARI´E
Isn't it?

HARRISON
Well, yeah. But another thing is hookups from frat brothers. Squiggy gave it to me.

MARI´E
I love you, Harrison! The notes in here will so get me through to graduation.

HARRISON
Sorry. I'm giving this to Mirabella.

MARI´E
But you know how much I need this to graduate!

HARRISON
You can buy one from the bookstore.

MARI´E
Hello? I can't buy the Teacher's Edition at the store.

HARRISON
Sorry, muchacha. Yo no can-oh do-oh.

MARI´E
My dad will kill me if I don't graduate!

HARRISON
I already promised her.

MARI´E
I'm your roommate.

HARRISON
But you don't sleep with me.

MARI´E
I will if you give me the book.

HARRISON
Ew... you're like my sister.

MARI´E
You're right. I think I just threw up in my mouth. Okay. Okay. I'll pay your share of next month's rent.

HARRISON
You don't have to do that.

MARI´E
I'll also take care of the cleaning duties for the rest of the semester... including your bathroom.

HARRISON
The whole semester... No. I can't do it. I'm in love with Mirabella. She needs it to graduate too. And when she does, we'll both get good jobs at marketing firms, get married, and live happily ever after.

MARI´E
Don't forget to visit my rotting corpse at the cemetary with your wife, kids, and minivan after my dad kills me for failing that class because you didn't give me that book.

HARRISON
Guilt won't work on me, cuz you're not my mom. Besides, he's not going to kill you.

MARI´E
Yes, he will! When we went to the Philippines last summer, he did things with a bolo knife to a pig that would make Jeffery Dahmer proud of him.

HARRISON
Speaking of which, is there any lechon left in the fridge?

MARI´E
Didn't you even listen to a word I said? And No. Don't you remember what you did to it after the party?

HARRISON
Why? Did I do something inappropriate with it?

MARI´E
You kinda blew chunks all over it. You really don't remember anything from last night?

HARRISON
The last thing I remember was falling into the tub filled with Jello shots.

MARI´E
What about what happened after that?

HARRISON
I woke up naked in the laundry room. Don't tell me that you took a picture of me in there. What's that?

MARI´E
Squiggy borrowed this to take some pictures of ya! What else do we have here? Whoa. Uh...

HARRISON
What? Who is...? Give me that! Oh my God... Erase those picts, Marié!

MARI´E
Do you even know her name?

HARRISON
I don't even know her.

MARI´E
Looks like she got to know you very well.

HARRISON
Oh my God. What did I do?

MARI´E
I know what you will do and that's to give me the book.

HARRISON
That's blackmail.

MARI´E
And this is cheating on your girlfriend.

HARRISON
You wouldn't.

MARI´E
Apparently, you did.

HARRISON
What did I do?

MARI´E
You can start by giving me the book.

HARRISON
Here. Keep it. Crap! What am I gonna do?

MARI´E
Harrison. I was kidding. Look. I'm deleting these. You know that I wasn't really going to show Mirabella these.

(Enter MIRABELLA)

MIRABELLA
Show me what? Hey, babe? Why's there a penis drawn on your forehead?


THE END


NOTE: This is written as an exercise for my Playwriting Workshop. The workshop is offered through Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco for their Stories High Program. The assignment: Write a scene with two characters. Character A wants a book from character B.

constance

deep. real. still going on. why?

my new full-length play

my new full-length play will be about Filipinos in the US Navy. That's my subject, but i have no idea about what the story will be, YET! i'm hoping that by brainstorming here, something will come out.

so this started from going to a wedding this past weekend down in san diego. the wedding was on a naval base, and the daughter for one of my dad's closest friends was the one getting hitched. anyways, it made me start to think about these men. what made these men join the navy and provide for their families? i just found out that the US started granting filipinos to join the us navy in order to have a military base in the pi. just everything about this subject is very personal and add onto that... i miss my dad. we never really talked about anything, well except when he'd yell or nag at me about something. but being at this wedding... seeing his compadres. all navy retired men.

so, as i said this is my subject. i have no story. i'm almost finished reading a screenwriting book by this guy named syd field. at first i was very weary of picking up this book for the simple fact that i'm going to be a PLAYWRIGHT, and i was feeling pretty stuck up. but i had to put that aside and tell myself that at the core of ALL OF THIS is that i just want to be a storyteller. this book, "Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting" has totally opened my eyes and really made me aware of a story/films structure. something that i never really thought about, but something that i definitely needed.

so here a couple of story ideas that are floating in my noggin':
- a group of navy retirees get together to honor someone who's died and there's a hidden treasure involved
- something to do with a navy family
- more things...

anyways, i'll write more later.

btw, i had a lot of fun just getting away! very much needed!