JASON vs eHARMony

Our latest short written, directed and starring Jeremy Kirk can be seen on the our You Tube site. Jason Voorhees tackles internet dating, but first has to slash through all of the red tape...

To view, click on the link... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcr6ZwknUP0

THE NEW CUPIC SERIES!!!!

A new CUPIC series is now in the works. The program will be a series of webisodes that will consist of investigations of unexplained phenomenon by various CUPIC members. This series will be a sort of departure from the original series with a new creative twist and a different perspective on the organization. Our CUPIC website will reflect this new viewpoint. Stay tuned for dates and web showtimes. Click Here for more news and info...

ATTACK OF THE COTTONMOUTH VIPER

A routine laundry evening turns into a nightmare for one middle class family. What will happen when articles of clothing feel abandoned and neglected? This short was written by Jeremy Kirk. Directed By Rod Washington. See it on on YouTube!!!!

THE MESSENGER

Our short, THE MESSENGER, can be viewed on YouTube. The story involves Mike and Paige, a married couple on a well-deserved vacation at a Southern California resort. A few obstacles stand in the way of their quest for total bliss; one is Donna, a broken hearted friend, and the other is a sudden threat from nature. THE MESSENGER stars Mike Sliwa, Katrina Reyes, Kacey Richards, Alan Potts and April Espinoza. This story is based on a true event that actually happened to Mike. Visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XImhlVNVJ4 to see this short.

CLOUD 9

CLOUD 9
You can now view CLOUD 9 on our new website at LIVE VIDEO.com. We will be posting our videos there as well as our YouTube and Myspace sites. Visit the site at http://www.livevideo.com/Cactuspix

PERFECTION REFLECTION

As we enter a sort of new renaissance here at Cactus Pix and new projects are in production, I can’t help but reflect on how the choices that we make, no matter how small or how you think will effect only you, can change a whole entire timeline.

Back in 2004, we had a serious momentum going for us that created various opportunities; Cloud 9 entry into the Phoenix Film Festival, the acquisition of long awaited equipment and software upgrades, improvement in our production quality, and other shorts that reflect all that we have learned, including Attack of the Cottonmouth Viper and others. They say that you cannot go home again; this is a true statement. Nevertheless, that will not stop me from wondering how things might have been if I had not let life distract me and stayed the course.

I believe that we would have continued to produce the three to five minute shorts, further perfecting production savvy. Major shorts such as Fourth Kind and No Man’s Land would have been produced back in ’05. The CUPIC Documentary would have been produced a year earlier as well. Our productions were moving closer and closer to the technical perfection that we desired. We were actually building a solid infrastructure, possibly with our own distribution company. Our goal was always to diversify our company, hence the reason why we created Cactus Pix to begin with.

Right now, I am very happy that we are continuing to make films… and we are looking forward to learning as we take this journey. We have a ton of new ideas and new project that are under way. Sometimes it does not hurt to face the big what if, but continue to live and thrive today…

GENDER KNIGHT “THE ULTIMATE BATTLE OF THE SEXES”

“The fact is, women are in chains, and their servitude is all the more debasing because they do not realize it.” -Susan B. Anthony

Gender Knight will explore gender oppression. Our program will consist of teachers, students, alumni, community members, social justice facilitators, and activists presenting, discussing, and performing on topics that involve domestic violence, homophobia, gender privilege, high school relationships, eating disorders, gender roles, and abuse. Please join us for this historic event.

The Hosts of Gender Knight...The Bubble Gum Boys

The Bubble Gum Boys started simply as an act in a high school faculty follies show. Four years later, they are social justice advocates promoting peace and tolerance. Ending all oppression is the mission of BGB. Will you join us? You can start by attending GENDER KNIGHT this December.

The Event:
Gender Knight "The Ultimate Battle of the Sexes"
December 14, 2007 @ 6:00-9p.m
10850 W. Garden Lakes Parkway Avondale, AZ
West View High School Auditorium

"Nobody ever said it was simple to be a man. If it were, more guys would try it." Henry Miller

Visit: http://www.myspace.com/genderknight

SHOWCASING OUR PROJECTS

Okay, we have a new website on You Tube to showcase our short films. For a while we were looking for such a venue, there were also talks of bringing back Fiction Theater. The FT project was sidelined after our local Public Access TV station was discontinued and taken off the air. We worked on other projects, mothballing this venture.

I have to admit that in the early days of You Tube, I was skeptical of the direction that it would take. The videos that I saw where similar to those amateur videos that were spoofed on recent Geico commercials with the guy making faces in the camera, the other with a pair of puppet eyes on his chin, chewing celery, and the college dorm hallway mattress duel. Such videos are still there, but there are also real programs. It is the return of public access, but ten times better.

We have a few of shorts online right now; CLOUD 9, ATTACK OF THE COTTONMOUTH VIPER, and BRIGHT IDEAS. THE MESSENGER will be coming soon.

Visit our site @ http://www.youtube.com/RCWMediaWorks

We are also working on a new Cactus Pix MySpace page as companion to our RCW MediaWorks and Cactus Pix main pages… Visit http://myspace.com/cactuspix

Visit the new sites and we will keep you updated.

ANTI-VICTIM

I am about to make quite a few people angry… There two categories of people whom I have no respect for; victims, and the people who create them.

In this blog entry, I will concentrate on the victims…

Let me clarify what I mean when I say “victim.” People who wallow in negativity, or want you to feel sorry for them for the hand that society has dealt them. Do not confuse them with the people who were involved in an incident or accident that caused them to suffer physical or psychological damage. Mostly, this group does not want to be a victim, but rather have their life return to a sense of normalcy.

Let me further clarify my thoughts, we all have issues that we are dealing with, in some fashion and at some level, might not be a serious problem for some and may be for others. We all want to find others who have the same issue, to find a commonality with that group. It is better to suffer with some, than alone. Healing can begin.

As an African-American into his forties, I have observed a ton of life. I like to meet different groups of people, to learn and grow. In my childhood, I lived in both a mainly black and Hispanic neighborhood, then moved to a predominately white neighborhood, two extremes. It seemed like barely a year went by before that neighborhood became racially mixed and even at that young age, I knew that I was getting a new perspective on things. I had a new group of multi-racial friends.. My parents kept me well grounded, and taught me about their experiences growing up in the turbulent times of segregation. I am proud that I have a strong heritage, and proud of the cultural and social contribution to American society.

I admire those who strive to uplift and better themselves, to rise above the trials and tribulations that are put upon them, and then in turn, they give back to the community to help others strive.

However, my eyes are wide open. Self-victimization is damaging. I do believe that there is a portion of society cultivates this aspect by perpetuating stereotypes and false assumptions regarding race. There was a time, and in many aspects it still exists, where every time you would turn on the news and hear about a crime, they were looking for some black person. I can remember frequently hearing about the many diseases and ailments that are prevalent in the black race. But I did believe that the stats on high blood pressure and the black race were true…. “Continuously hearing how a group is supposedly more susceptible to certain diseases would stress anyone out.”

With all of the stereotyping and profiling, we should not allow ourselves to be put into a mindset that would allow self-victimization. We should not let any person to steal another’s joy and dreams. Example; When a young person says that he wants to be a doctor, do not tell him that he has to play for the NBA. I like the NBA, and if you have talent for it do it. You should not have to do it because society feels that you should. I cringe when I hear certain people say that they would not do a certain thing, "because I am being held back by society." Be a solution, do not add to the problem.... You are not a victim.

That’s one man's opinion…

CASTING ALERT!!!!

CASTING ALERT!!!!!!
CASTING CALL FOR CUPIC DOCUMENTARYProduction is moving along rather nicely on our long awaited CUPIC project. We are constantly looking for on-screen talent. We need the important role of Cynthia Young filled. Visit our CASTING CALL PAGE for details...The production of our latest feature, CUPIC: DIARY OF AN INVESTIGATOR is in mid-stride. We are taking a totally different approach to this project. We are looking for talent to use in a photo montage for a character profile. There may be possible dialog, but we mainly need talent for the photo montage over narration detailing biographic description.Cynthia Young: Ph.D. An African American woman, mid to late 30s, aeronautical engineer, professor at Pacific Tech. Los Angeles, California. Joined CUPIC in 1987, recommended by Doctor Harold Niven. Child prodigy.Talent will receive a copy of the project, credit and the opportunity to receive speaking role in future CUPIC projects...

Send us (via email) résumés, photos or link(s) to a website or web page to casting@cactuspix.com.

US postal service: mail all headshots and resumes to:

RCW MEDIAWORKS
Attn: Rod Washington
P.O. Box 55463
Phoenix, AZ 85078-5463

Thanks for your interest in Cactus Pix/ RCW MediaWorks projects

THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY!!!

Well, it is about time for me to rant once again… My observations as I work in the field of video production and at my part time job, both allow me to work with the public at large. Listening and watching people allows for great character development, and as a writer of literary short stories and screenplays, this is important.

I met quite a few people out there from different corners of the globe, and I have learned from my experience.

THE GOOD…

I like people who want to learn from you, which in turn, you want to learn from them. People, who have their own opinion about things and are not afraid to share them, yet do not alienate you for disagreeing with some or all aspects of these ideas and opinions.

I met a bunch of good, honest, open people, who have strong convictions and opinions and I believe that such diversity is a powerful thing.

THE BAD…

I was shooting a wedding a few months ago with Mike, my business partner, a beautiful affair at a local resort. A lovely brunch was served; we were seated with the photographer and two couples. It was hot that day and the ceremony was outdoors, it was extremely good to be finally indoors and sitting for a change. It was great until one of them started talking, sparking a table wide conversation.

First was the response from the photographer when I said that I have been here in Phoenix for nearly fifteen years, and I jokingly said that I was practically a native, and I got a stern… NO, YOU ARE NOT! Then I heard from one of the other geniuses at the table, “ I’M NOT A NATIVE BECAUSE I REFUSE TO WEAR THE FEATHERS! Wow! How prolific.

Then they went on rambling about how the freeway system in Phoenix are poorly designed and wondering why it took them thirty years to build it.

Then we moved into the next topic, light rail. Being a person that is really into trains and looking at everyone other than Mike at the table, I was not very confident with the outcome. Then I heard from the photographer, “Phil Gordon was a really genius pushing that waste of tax payer dollars.” In addition, wow! I heard more idiotic responses. “ Nobody wants it, only the homeless are going to ride it… The dufus who made the earlier feather comment talks about the short run test that they performed on the system back in the spring and that it only got up to 3 miles an hour, when I know for a fact that it went much faster… Then some of the proposals that from the group that seemed like it was directly from the Acme Book of Bad Ideas… like a monorail from Phoenix to Tucson… Why not build a Trekkie transporter to get you from point A to B; it would be just as pricey… talk about a waste of taxpayer dollars.

THE UGLY…

I watched the coarse of the conversation and new where it was going to lead, GLOBAL WARMING. The photographer did not believe in it. He remembers when it was thought that we would be an ice age. After the reception, I saw this person get into the biggest Hummer that they make. The only people who should drive a vehicle that big should have the first and middle initials of G and I, with the last name of Joe.

What a great day for making up fictional characters with extreme ideas…. Sadly, this was reality….

CUPIC DOC IS BACK IN PRODUCTION

Yes, you heard it right, the project is back on after a six month delay. The scope of the project has changed and will not be the elaborate feature project first envisioned, well not at first. The new production will be a short film that will be between twenty and thirty minutes.

The story will have the same concept as the original idea, introducing background material on the main characters. There will be fewer re-enactment scenes. It will be a challenge working the CUPIC background into this shorter project and keeping the style and flow that we want to convey to the audience, but we are up to it.

THE CUPIC DELAY

Yes, our production of the CUPIC documentary has been delayed. The show will go on. We are determined to produce this project. The whole idea about this project was for it to be a chronology of the organizations past and the present, visiting the new characters and cases with the original characters and revisiting the old cases that started it all. We will continue production soon…

Sadly…

Bob Williams and his wife Ella were really looking forward to participating in our production by lending us their acting skills. They were set to fill the roles of the Arnold and Marcella characters, a married couple who had a ghostly encounter in their home. Sadly, Robert Williams passed on August 30, 2006. Bob was a decorated soldier in the US Army, served in Europe, Asia, and was involved in Operation Desert Storm. He was a man to be remembered, being of great character and personality. Bob enjoyed of life, leaving a lasting impression on me and everyone else. Bob is survived by his wife Ella, his three children, and four grandchildren.

THE MESSENGER

We have just completed our latest short titled, THE MESSENGER. The story involves Mike and Paige, a married couple on a well-deserved vacation at a Southern California resort. A few obstacles stand in the way of their quest for total bliss; one is Donna, a broken hearted friend, and the other is a sudden threat from nature. THE MESSENGER stars Mike Sliwa, Katrina Reyes, Kacey Richards, Alan Potts and April Espinoza. This story is based on a true event that actually happened to Mike. Visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XImhlVNVJ4 to see this short.

CLOUD 9 CONTINUES

Hey, it’s good to be back making shorts. Although we are finishing up our latest project, The Messenger, our 2003 short, Cloud 9, is still alive and kicking. Cloud 9 is now playing on IFC’s Media Lab, where, with enough positive votes, can air on IFC tv uncut. To view and vote, visit http://medialab.ifc.com/film_detail.jsp?film_id=2612 Thank you for your support.

RE THE MESSENGER

THE MESSENGER

Hello Everyone,

Yes, we have been very busy working on RCW MediaWorks and the many projects that we are currently working on.

Well, I am glad to say that we are on the verge of wrapping up our latest short project, “THE MESSENGER.” It has been nearly two years since our last festival ready production and it feels good to work on our indie productions once again.

Now, we are heading into post-production where the real fun begins. As the post process begins and runs it’s course, we will continue work on other indie productions. Production on the CUPIC documentary has begun and we are working hard to keep it on track. We have a few shorts that will start production soon, including our long delayed projects such as “NO MAN’S LAND,” and “FOURTH KIND.”

We will keep you posted on the updates and shooting schedules.

RANTING? WHO, ME?

Okay, we'll I'm fed up... I saw five near accidents on my drive today, all due to cell phone use. The first was a woman who was in her huge Excursion was looking at her phone (probably sending a text message) and came inches from rear-ending me. The second and third were two cars, one on my left and the other on my right lane changing without checking. And quess what? They were both more interested in their cell conversation than driving. The fourth incident happened two miles later when I was attempting to make a left turn at a major intersection. A distracted driver decided to enter the left turn lane in the opposite direction, distracted by his call.... yeah... can we say head on... The last was almost a multicar collision at an intersection a few blocks later when the driver of a huge Dodge Ram decided to concentrate on his phone call instead of paying attention to traffic and ran the red light. Luckily, the drivers saw him in time and slammed on their brakes. No accidents... This was like an over the top action/ disaster film, but the truly sad part is that it was reality. Look, I know we all do it. But some of us forget that we are on the road and driving is, believe it or not, a challenging enoungh task by itself. Unless it's a call from the white house and only you can overt WWIII, your wife is in labor and you have to talk her through it, or your phone call will stop an alien invasion, let your voicemail kick in and take your call in the Fry's parking lot after you set the parking brake.

http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/08/16/cell.phone.driving/

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=570222

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6895319/

A FILM REVIEW FROM ROD?

Yes, that's right. But I am no critic. I will be vocal about the movies that I see and am inspired by. United 93 is one of those films. I recently had the opportunity to view this picture and am glad that I did. I realized by the end that I barely took my eyes off the screen. It was shot documentary style, as if someone was merely holding a camcorder capturing the events as they unfolded. I like that, in this case, because it really got me more into the story than fancy camera angles and dolly shots, etc. The movie is also in realtime, closely following the events of that pivotal morning in American history as they unfold.

Strong in my memory, the events that unfolded that day. I remember doing my morning pre-work ritual that included making breakfast and getting caught up with the news. I remember turning on the TV in my room and saw CNN reporting that a small plane had hit the World Trade Center. Oddly enough, days before this incident, I watched a show on the history channel about a bomber that accidentally hit the Empire State Building in the 40s and the newscaster made that comparison as well. I was thinking about how odd it was that something like that could happen in this day and age. I ran out to the livingroom and turned on the set, my roommate at the time walked and asked me, "Are you watching this? How could a pilot not see those buildings?" After a few quick back and fourth comments between us we were off to work. Neither one of us realized what was unfolding in front of us until we got to work. I could pinpoint the spot in the movie where I came in with that viewing of CNN, so I was felt attached to the characters for that reason.

As a passenger, you are already in a situation that is not in your control and your trust is in the guy in pilots seat. For some of us, there is a little comfort knowing that there is someone who is trained to be there is there with confidence. Imagine that bit of comfort was taken away in such a violent manner. I watched as I remembered the events of that day.

As the movie ended, I found myself sitting there in silence. It was an emotional rollercoaster, I felt anger, dismay, and was just downright uncomfortable. The movie did it's job... It was a film that was not meant to entertain you, not full of special effects, but to visually tell the story of the people who took a stand and didn't let the madness of the day continue. They were headed for the capitol and they couldn't let that happen. It was a job well done... I would recommend this film to everyone.

CUPIC FEATURE PROJECT

The CUPIC feature project is moving right along. We haven’t produced an indie project in almost two years and we are excited to get back into it. We actually postponed a few projects to work on projects related to our business services. They will be back on track soon. The two projects that will see production soon are “NO MAN’S LAND,” and “FOURTH KIND.” The ACADEMY OF THE MIND trilogy will go into production in the near future.

What we are up to...

Okay, it has been a whole month since I posted on this blog. Here’s what we’ve up to as of late.

1. Still working on the CUPIC project. We are already getting acting inquiries and we are not posting until later March/ early April. This looks promising to us. This is turning out to be our biggest film project since The Gathering.


2. We are going ahead with the Fiction Theater project. Making time in our busy schedule to work on it. Staying busy isn’t anything new to us…


3. We will also be producing several short projects including a few from our good friend Jeremy Kirk.


4. The RCW MediaWorks website is being updated. The Services site is being redesigned, the same with The Shoppe. Tons of content will be added to both.


5. And much, much, more…

Yes indeed we are still busy…