Chapter Six: A Rabbit, a Reflection and a New Decade
The end to 2019 felt much more definitive than others before it.
Not only was this the end of a year where I had graduated University with a First – also being the first in my family to do so. It was also a year in which I achieved a childhood fantasy of playing on the Stamford Bridge turf and scoring. Rounded off in November by asking Kevin Smith a question on being a Director, which in response Kevin forced me to put on an American accent in front of a sold out crowd.
Though after uni life had radically changed again – it was the end of a decade, a 10-year-period where I had gone from a chubby introverted kid, to a slightly less chubby and introverted kid – quite the three-act transformation.
In 2010, at the age of 12, my eyes were blessed to witness the masterpiece that was Edgar Wright's Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World at the Cineworld in Chichester. When we came out of the multiplex to a quintessentially British summer downpour, my eyes were wider than ever, imagination going wild. I couldn't care less about the fact water was bursting out of a manhole cover and everyone around me was sprinting for shelter, I had just seen the greatest film ever.
Scott Pilgrim changed my life – I always had a love for films and storytelling but seeing that film directed me (wink, wink) onto a defined path into filmmaking. It would feel apt by the end of the decade I would be walking out of that same cinema, eyes as wide, imagination going wild after witnessing Avengers: Endgame.
From 2010-19 I left school, then got home-schooled for one year, then to College for two –where I made my first short film. Then to Chichester for three years of University and a degree in Film and Screenwriting. University was likely the most life-changing experience within that period, but when sipping on a cold Moretti with my Dad on New Year's Eve chatting about the year that was, it truly made me appreciative at a defining, emotional and successful period within my life.
The new decade started as all should, with a trip to Brighton to watch my beloved Chelsea play – I won't bore you with all the semantics.
Like most diets, my new year would properly start the following Monday. An early wake-up call – a special blend of my favourite F*ckoffee and Chris Jericho's "No is A Four Letter Word: How I Failed Spelling But Succeeded in Life" to keep me company. Then it was time to shake off my cardio cobwebs with an intense HIIT session, which saw me seeing stars.
Monday would also see my first film of 2020 – Taika Waititi's Jojo Rabbit – described as an Anti-Hate satire on Nazi Germany. A ludicrous as this sentence is, I didn't know a film about Nazi's could bring such joy, but that was the brilliance of Jojo Rabbit and the craftsmanship of Waititi's vision. The slapstick, farcical comedy demonstrated in the film's trailer is all there and masterfully executed – but what makes Jojo stand out is its ability to lure you into its satirical world and then slowly wipe away the boundless laughs for a heart wrenching tale. Accusations that Jojo Rabbit doesn't take its subject matter seriously or sensitively enough for me are misguided and left a lasting imprint on me long after leaving the cinema.
The rest of the week saw me gradually get back into the right routines, lots of H20, weightlifting and typing – putting plans in place to make 2020 a year of crushing goals. A list of 10 which I have written down and marked on the wall. I will likely revisit that list at the end of December to see how many I was able to live up to.
My aim with this blog is to update it EVERY Sunday and reflect on the seven days previously, what I accomplished – where I'm going, what I've seen and maybe wider issues I need to get off my chest as a creator. I hope you can join me on my rambles of the next 12 months and maybe find some enjoyment and inspiration in my words.
Keep Moving Forward,
Daniel