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Topic: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS? (Read 22597 times)
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The Master of Two Worlds
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Spits Hyperbole Like Nobody's Business
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #105 on:
April 01, 2009, 10:18:05 PM »
The Beatles know Jesus Christ has returned to Earth and is in Los Angeles.
When you are getting fucked by the big corporations remember to use a condom.
There was a FISH in the perkalater!!!
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Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #106 on:
April 24, 2009, 01:38:32 AM »
Joseph Gordon-Levitt joins 'Inception'
Christopher Nolan's thriller stars Leonardo DiCaprio
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Joseph Gordon-Levitt is coming on board Christopher Nolan's "Inception," the filmmaker's thriller for Warner Bros. that stars Leonardo DiCaprio.
A veil of secrecy exists over loglines, though the project, which Nolan also wrote, is described as a contemporary sci-fi actioner set within "the architecture of the mind."
It is known that Gordon-Levitt is taking the role to have been played by James Franco, who bowed out over scheduling issues. He would play an associate of DiCaprio's character, a CEO-type.
Marion Cotillard is already on board as DiCaprio's wife, while Ellen Page is playing a grad student and DiCaprio's sidekick. Cillian Murphy is also in the cast.
Nolan and the studio are aiming for a summer shoot ahead of a 2010 release.
Nolan and Emma Thomas are producing through their Warners-based Syncopy Films shingle.
Gordon-Levitt, repped by CAA, has a big summer lined up: He stars in "500 Days of Summer," the romantic comedy that earned much buzz in Sundance and is now set for a July 17 release by Fox Searchlight, and plays the villainous Cobra Commander in Paramount tentpole "G. I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," which opens Aug. 7.
Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art. - Andy Warhol
Skeleton FilmWorks
Posts: 22985
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #107 on:
May 05, 2009, 12:31:38 AM »
Two join Nolan's 'Inception'
Ken Watanabe, Tom Hardy set for sci-fi action feature
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Ken Watanabe and Tom Hardy are boarding Christopher Nolan's "Inception" for Warner Bros.
The story, which Nolan wrote, is a contemporary sci-fi actioner set within the architecture of the mind, with Leonardo DiCaprio as a CEO type. Watanabe will play the film's villain, a man who is blackmailing DiCaprio. Hardy is a member of DiCaprio's team.
The duo join a cast that includes Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Cillian Murphy, Ellen Page and Marion Cotillard.
Watanabe's deal reunites him with Nolan, with whom he collaborated on 2005's "Batman Begins."
Nolan and the studio are aiming for a summer shoot ahead of a 2010 release. Nolan and Emma Thomas are producing through their Warners-based Syncopy Films shingle.
Watanabe next appears in the Weinstein Co.'s September release "Shanghai" with John Cusack, Chow Yun-Fat and Gong Li. He is repped by Endeavor and ROAR.
Hardy, who is in negotiations for his role, next appears in "Bronson," playing a criminal who spent 30 years in solitary confinement.
Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art. - Andy Warhol
Skeleton FilmWorks
Posts: 22985
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #108 on:
February 09, 2010, 09:53:11 AM »
It's A Bird! It's A Plane! It's Chris Nolan! He'll Mentor Superman 3.0 And Prep 3rd Batman
By NIKKI FINKE AND MIKE FLEMING; Deadline Hollywood
EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros is trying to ready its DC Comics stalwart Superman to soar again on the Big Screen, and the studio has turned to Chris Nolan to mentor development of the movie. Our insiders say that the brains behind rebooted Batman has been asked to play a "godfather" role and ensure The Man Of Steel gets off the ground after a 3 1/2-year hiatus. Nolan's leadership of the project can set it in the right direction with the critics and the fans, not to mention at the box office. Besides, Nolan is considered something of a god at Warner Bros and has a strong relationship with the studio after the success of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Though he wasnt obligated to do so, he gave the studio first crack at his spec script Inception, and Warner Bros was able to buy it before other studios even got a sniff. While Nolan completes that Leonardo DiCaprio-starrer for a July 16th release, he's also hatched an idea for Warner Bros' third Batman installment. Now his brother and frequent collaborator Jonah Nolan, and David Goyer who co-wrote Batman Begins and penned the story for The Dark Knight, are off scripting it. (See 'FlashForward' Showrunner Exits For Features).
Let us emphasize that Superman 3.0 is in the early stages of development. And we doubt Nolan would direct. This wouldn't be a sequel to Superman Returns but a completely fresh franchise. As one of our insiders reassures: It would definitely not be a followup to Superman Returns." Nolan coming on board follows a hiatus period for Superman after that 2006 reboot as the studio tried to figure out whether or not to make a sequel to that version starring Brandon Routh directed by Bryan Singer. As recently as this summer, Warner Bros was still contemplating how to proceed. We were told that "Bryan or Brandon are not completely out of it yet. But Warner Bros doesn't have a handle yet on it, either. [Producer] Jon Peters is trying to make something happen since he stands to benefit financially. But they [the studio] need to hear a great story that makes sense." Another insider explained to us, "We know what we don't want to do. But we don't know what we want to do. We learned a lot from the last movie, and we want to get it right this time."
Fans have long been yearning for Superman to finally get the big screen Nolan-ized treatment this classic superhero deserves. Warner Bros clearly has learned from its attempt to follow the mediocre 1978-1985 quartet of movies starring Christopher Reeve and produced by Ilya and Alexander Salkind, with 2006's underwhelming Superman Returns. That inbetween period was plagued by long delays and budget troubles and script misses. In 1997, original Batman director Tim Burton tried to make a Superman movie starring Nicolas Cage. Around 2004, J.J. Abrams wrote a film that was the first leg of a trilogy. Abrams wanted to direct, but had only directed episodes of his TV series (and wouldn't make his feature directing debut until 2006's Mission:Impossible III. McG and Brett Ratner separately were attached to that film. Ratner got closest, but Warner Bros was wary of a budget that swelled to $250 million, and which seemed risky after established star Josh Hartnett turned down the 3-picture deal that could have brought him $100 million in salary. After that, Warner Bros bosses didn't embrace Ratner's s choice of soap opera actor Matt Bomer to star.
Other prominent filmmakers were reportedly in the loop, but Warner Bros never pulled the trigger on the picture until Bryan Singer's involvement. Singer's Superman Returns was respectably reviewed for the genre. But it turned in only $52 million opening weekend, and $391 million worldwide gross. Problem was it cost too much (the budget was reportedly $270 million), and the promotion was lousy (Joel Silver was brought in at the last minute to inject macho into the marketing campaign). Worse, it left diehard fans only "meh" about a sequel starring Routh. Singer fared better, but it seems doubtful he'll be asked for an encore now. After all, Singer is now developing the spinoff X-Men: First Class for 20th Century Fox whose bosses were furious when he took on The Man Of Steel reboot instead of helming X-Men 3. But Singer and the studio subsequently made peace and he's back in the Fox fold and on board.
The restructuring of Warner Bros' business with DC Comics became Warner Bros Pictures Group president Jeff Robinov's first priority since having his contract reupped by Time Warner last summer. Problems have plagued the DC Comics-Warner Bros relationship for more than a decade. But the biggest failure has been to leave the most valuable DC Comics characters in movie development limbo by chaotically starting and stopping development on the high profile live action pics. Most recently, Warner Bros and DC Comics are finally getting their act together as evidenced by the progress on Green Lantern.
Superman 3.0 would test Warner Bros veteran executive Diane Nelson, the head of DC Entertainment Inc, that new company founded to fully realize and integrate the power and value of the DC Comics brand and characters across all media and platforms into Warner Bros Entertainment's content and distribution businesses. Nelson especially was charged with suping up Superman again because it's way too valuable to leave dormant like this. Besides, the clock is ticking.
Attorney Marc Toberoff, who keeps suing Warner Bros on behalf of creative rightsholders, warns that, in 2013, the Jerome Siegel heirs along with the estate of co-creator Joe Shuster will own the entire original copyright to Superman -- "and neither DC Comics nor Warner Bros will be able to exploit any new Superman works without a license from the Siegels and Shusters". He's also pointed out that, if Warner Bros does not start production on a new Superman sequel or reboot by 2011, the Siegels could sue to recover their damages on the grounds that the deal should have contained a clause in which the rights returned to the owners after a given time if no film was in development. The heirs of Siegel have already been awarded half the copyright for Superman. And in 2013 the heirs of co-creator Joe Shuster get the remaining half. After that, neither DC Comics nor Warner Bros will be able to use Superman without a financial agreement with the heirs. There are also stipulations on what parts of the origins story can be used in future Superman movies and which require re-negotiations with the creators' heirs or estates.
At first, Warner Bros felt no pressure to rush out another Superman pic. As Warner Bros chairman Alan Horn told a court hearing about rights to Superman, he hoped to make another Superman movie but no film was in development, no script had been written, and the earliest he foresaw another Superman film released would be 2012. He told the judge: "We had hopes to keep the character alive and to once again reinvent Superman. Our hope is to develop a Superman property and to try again. What hurt us is that the reviews and so on for the Superman movie did not get the kind of critical acclaim that Batman got, and we have other issues with Superman that concern us."
So Warner Bros is now bringing in Batman's saviour. What Nolan would do with the Superman character and story is intriguing to say the least. And he has the experience necessary of prepping and pepping a played-out franchise. The 2005 Batman Begins grossed $373 million worldwide on a reported $150 million budget. And of course 2008s The Dark Knight crossed the $1 billion worldwide gross mark on a reported $185 million budget (and Heath Ledger posthumously won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor).
But Batman has always been The Dark Knight. But there's a big difference between Superman's cinematic incarnation and comic-book version. Warner Brothers and DC Comics for a long time werent sure which version they liked better. The cinematic version has been squeaky clean, occasionally campy, and has more-or-less unlimited power except when confronted with Kryptonite. The comic book version has some limits on his powers, can be darker, and fights aliens a lot more. Shortly after Dark Knight hit it big, fans assumed that Superman would be taken to the dark side as well. That's because Warner Bros mogul Jeff Robinov stressed post-Dark Knight that "we have to look at how to make these movies edgier". One of our insiders interpreted this to say: "He meant more sophisticated."
A more comic-accurate Superman seems like the way to go. No need to worry: Chris Nolan knows what he's doing.
Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art. - Andy Warhol
Skeleton FilmWorks
Posts: 10821
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #109 on:
February 09, 2010, 10:06:54 AM »
Yep, this is the best news. The Batman part is best, the Superman part is nice too.
Christopher Nolan's directive was clear to everyone in the cast and crew: Use CGI only as a last resort.
The Master of Two Worlds
Posts: 1428
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #110 on:
February 09, 2010, 12:33:05 PM »
ya i'm more into the batman news. meh who cares about superman, it's an overrated franchise to begin with.
i'm kinda getting sick of comic book shit too. even if it's really good, it feels so limited by the genre. we all need a break from it so it can feel fresh again.
the one last hit that spent you...
Posts: 22985
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #111 on:
March 10, 2010, 11:43:17 AM »
Christopher Nolan takes flight with Superman: 'We have a fantastic story'
Source: Los Angeles Times
The topic at the Batcave on Monday night was the future of that other superhero you, know, the one from Metropolis. Its very exciting, we have a fantastic story, Christopher Nolan said while sipping tea in the sleek editing suite that fills the converted garage adjacent to his Hollywood home. And we feel we can do it right. We know the milieu, if you will, we know the genre and how to get it done right.
Nolan was standing next to his wife, producer Emma Thomas, his partner in all of his films including Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, the grim franchise that pulled in more than $1.3 billion at theaters worldwide and he was explaining their plan to take on a challenge that has frustrated Hollywood for two decades: Getting another Superman film franchise off the ground.
Nolan, speaking about the Superman project for the first time, is pleased with the excitement stirred but, like the magicians in his 2006 film The Prestige, sees no value in revealing all of his tricks before the curtain goes up. Still, he wanted to answer some of the early questions about his plans for Superman as well as his third visit to Gotham City.
There was a spasm of fan excitement when word leaked last month that Nolan, who is now viewed as the Hitchcock of superhero cinema after his two Batman films, would be the godfather for a reboot of the Man of Steel, acting as producer and mentor to an as-yet-unnamed-director who will be making a movie based on a story by Nolan and frequent collaborator David S. Goyer.
The Internet flurry that included reports that, according to Thomas, might be better described as fan fiction. The dispatches revealing that the film will be called Man of Steel ? and feature Lex Luthor and Brainiac? Or the one about it being a period piece with something like a low-fi version of the hero?
I dont know where this stuff comes from, Thomas said with a chuckle, although, as with any good poker player, its hard to say where the bluff starts and ends.
This much is certain: The couple are completely focused on the movie-of-the-moment, which is Inception, which opens July 19 and stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a dream thief of sorts in what may be Hollywoods first metaphysical heist film. The movie is the most complicated undertaking of Nolans career it was shot in six countries and tells a tale that flips between reality and three levels of dream-time and, well, all things considered, hed rather Superman stay in his Fortress of Solitude and off the front page for a while longer since that project is a matter for 2012 or 2013 at best.
But, of course, Superman, first superhero of them all, is an American pop culture icon on par with Mickey Mouse and Elvis. But after the close of the Christopher Reeve era with Superman IV: The Quest for Peace in 1987, the property became one of the most frustrating in Hollywood. A dozen different reboots were started through the years with names attached such as Nicolas Cage, Kevin Smith, J.J. Abrams, McG and Brett Ratner and plans were trotted out to kill Superman, strip him of his powers or pit him in battle against Batman.
Finally, director Bryan Singer, who had earned credibility with comic book fans with his two X-Men films for Fox, delivered with Superman Returns in 2006 starring Brandon Routh. But the finished product was viewed as oddly lifeless by many critics. The $200-million film finished its theatrical run with a respectable $391 million worldwide but it wasnt heroic enough to earn a sequel.
Nolan said that he admired Singers film, especially the way it connected in to director Richard Donners version of Superman and the first two movies starring Reeve. Nolan added, though, that this new movie will stand on its own.
A lot of people have approached Superman in a lot of different ways. I only know the way that has worked for us thats what I know how to do, Nolan said, emphasizing the idea that Batman exists in a world where he is the only superhero and a similar approach to the Man of Steel would assure the integrity needed for the film. Each serves to the internal logic of the story. They have nothing to do with each other.
Still, it was a frustrating moment in the Batman franchise that led to this new Superman revival. Nolan and Goyer, a key collaborator on both Batman films, were at a story impasse on the third Batman film (which is now picking up steam as well) when, as a distraction, Goyer gave the filmmaker a daydream version of how he would tackle a story about the last son of Krypton.
He basically told me, I have this thought about how you would approach Superman, Nolan recalled. I immediately got it, loved it and thought: That is a way of approaching the story Ive never seen before that makes it incredibly exciting. I wanted to get Emma and I involved in shepherding the project right away and getting it to the studio and getting it going in an exciting way.
Goyer is now writing the screenplay and Nolan is keeping it close to the vest.
Its interesting where inspirations originate. Nolan put together an especially deep cast for his Batman films the first one, for instance, featured Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, Gary Oldman and Tom Wilkinson in supporting roles. That, he said, was an idea imported from Metropolis.
I went to the studio with the analogy of I want to cast the way they did in 1978 with Superman, where they had Brando and Glenn Ford and Ned Beatty and all these fantastic actors in even small parts, which was an exotic idea for a superhero movie at the time. It really paid off, too., As a kid watching Superman it seemed enormous and I realized later by looking at it that a lot of that was actually the casting, just having these incredibly talented people and these characterizations. And Marlon Brando is the first guy up playing Supermans dad. Its incredible.
Superman, created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, was an instant success when he arrived on the publishing scene in June 1938 and he more or less created the American comic book and its signature concept, the superhero. Superman made the leap to radio in 1940 and then to the silver screen in 1948 when Kirk Alyn became the first of many actors to wear the cape. George Reeves was the face of Superman on television for 104 episodes in the 1950s while Reeve and his work in the 1970s and 1980s may be the definitive version of the hero for most fans. But the youngest fans have a view of the hero shaped more by the award-winning animated series in recent years and Smallville, the CW series that just got re-upped for a tenth season, making star Tom Welling the Clark Kent with the longest tenure.
Nolan, for the record, also wont confirm that he is actually directing the third Batman film but, well, or course he is, but Inception isnt in the can yet and its against his code. He cant be easily tricked, either. Asked if Superman as a franchise has to overcome a deficiency of truly great villains, unlike, say, Spider-Man and Batman, he wont bite. Thats a very sly way of asking a question Im not going to answer.
Nolan says he has no idea who will direct the Superman film (there has been conjecture that it may be his brother and frequent collaborator, Jonathan Nolan) but his role appears to be comparable Peter Jackson with District 9, which was directed by newcomer Neill Blomkamp but benefited greatly from imprimatur of the The Lord of the Rings auteur. Jackson is also stepping into a similar role in Middle-earth as Guillermo del Toro takes over as director for The Hobbit films.
Nolan established himself as a bold and cerebral filmmaker in 2000 with Memento, has made a specialty of rooting stories of the fantastic in a gritty reality with psychological undertones and emphasis on using practical effects and stunt work as opposed to the magical painting brushes of CG era. All of that made him an ideal filmmaker for fight-time in the brutal gutters of Gotham but it doesnt make the filmmaker the first obvious choice for flight-time amid the gleaming citadels of Metropolis. Warner Bros executives seem confident that he is -- and they need him to be the right man with the "Harry Potter" franchise -- and perhaps Batman -- nearing an expiration date.
Sitting in his edit bay, which is decorated with posters of Ledger as the Joker and has a skylight that rolls shut with mechanical screeching that adds to the Batcave ambiance, Nolan said he knows about storytelling and its difficult to dissect his work beyond that.
Were approaching it in a not dissimilar way in terms of trying to find an incredible story in a way that audiences can engage with it the way they engage with contemporary action films, Nolan continued. I think Davids approach is a very good way of doing just that.
And that third Batman film? Jonathan Nolan is now doing the hard work of writing the script based on the story by his sibling Goyer. My brother is writing a script for me and well wait to see how it turns out...hes struggling to put it together into the epic story that you want it to be.
Batman Begins was the origin and back story of the hero, while The Dark Knight found the hero reeling as his Manichean, good vs. evil world view was upended by a new villain, the Joker, who was a wild-card agent of chaos going up against order, be it a police department or the mob. The second film ends, literally, with Batman on the run, a fugitive.
So what happens next?
Without getting into specifics, the key thing that makes the third film a great possibility for us is that we want to finish our story, he said. And in viewing it as the finishing of a story rather than infinitely blowing up the balloon and expanding the story.
Nolan said the key characters from the two first films and the actors who play them will be back. We have a great ensemble, thats one of the attractions of doing another film, since weve been having a great time for years.
Perhaps. But the great challenge is to find a villain (or villains) who that can not only match up with the Caped Crusader but also with Heath Ledgers Academy Award-winning portrayal of the scabby, demented Joker. Fans have churned up the rumor mill for months now (Johnny Depp as the Riddler? Angelina Jolie as Catwoman? Philip Seymour Hoffman as the Penguin? Ben Kingsley as Hugo Strange?). But Nolan, no fan of letting cats out of the bag, declined to play along.
His villain choices to date have steered clear of strongly supernatural or super-science characters (no Man-Bat, Mr. Freeze or Poison Ivy, for instance) but he shook his head when asked if that was trajectory he would continue. He did however concede one tidbit: It wont be," he said, "Mr. Freeze.
Batman has been throwing punches in the pages of DC Comics since 1939 and as the decades passed, much of the core of the character stayed the same even as Bruce Waynes sideburns or the profile of the Batmobile changed. Not so with film.
Im very excited about the end of the film, the conclusion, and what weve done with the characters, Nolan said.My brother has come up with some pretty exciting stuff. Unlike the comics, these thing dont go on forever in film and viewing it as a story with an end is useful. Viewing it as an ending, that sets you very much on the right track about the appropriate conclusion and the essence of what tale were telling. And it hearkens back to that priority of trying to find the reality in these fantastic stories. Thats what we do.
Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art. - Andy Warhol
Skeleton FilmWorks
Posts: 10821
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #112 on:
February 02, 2011, 12:58:49 PM »
"I'm often quoted in the press talking about visual effects like an actress talks about her use of botox... I know visual effects people pride themselves on doing the impossible. I'd just like to encourage you to say no to the unreasonable..." Chris Nolan receiving the inaugural Visual Effects Society's Visionary Awardat last night. (via Deadline)
Christopher Nolan's directive was clear to everyone in the cast and crew: Use CGI only as a last resort.
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Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #113 on:
April 13, 2012, 11:00:50 PM »
The Traditionalist
Christopher Nolan prefers film to digital, shoots with one camera, and doesnt believe in 3-D. The director who resurrected Batman, made time go backward in Memento, and deconstructed dreams in Inception speaks his mind.
The movie-obsessed son of an English ad man and an American flight attendant, director Christopher Nolan burst upon the scene in 2000 with the film noir Memento. The $4 million independent film delivered the usual crime thriller tropes but with a meta twistthe heros recurring short-term memory loss was illustrated by using an intertwined pair of narratives, one moving forward in time while the other told the story backward.
With its non-linear narrative, a device Nolan would also use in later films, Memento introduced a new talent who respected hard-boiled tradition while breaking cinematic rules. After capably handling Warner Bros. 2002 psychological drama Insomnia, the studio entrusted him to resurrect its dormant Batman franchise. Nolans 2005 Batman Begins, along with its even more spectacular 2008 follow-up, The Dark Knight, brought brooding sophistication and near-Shakespearean gravitas to the familiar comic book character.
In between visits to Gotham, Nolan scaled down and directed The Prestige (2006), a period piece about rival magicians in late 19th-century London. And in 2010, he made the visually daring, labyrinthine caper film Inception, about a team of dream invaders. But behind the wild imagination that unleashed the anarchistic Joker, folded the streets of Paris like so much origami, and played out an entire story line in reverse, is a traditionalist who eschews special effects and shoots as much as he can with a single camera.
We met up with the 41-year-old Nolan as he was editing his third and final Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, working with associates out of a comfortable house a few miles below the Hollywood sign. Despite an intense deadline to pull all the myriad pieces together and complete his directors cut, Nolan was the picture of Zen-like calm, speaking softly and deliberately about his work.
JEFFREY RESSNER: When did you realize that directing was your lifes calling?
CHRISTOPHER NOLAN: To be honest, Ive always made films and I never really stopped, starting with little stop-motion experiments using my dads Super 8 camera. In my mind, its all one big continuum of filmmaking and Ive never changed. I used to noodle around with the camera but I didnt go to film school. I studied English literature at college and pursued a straight academic qualification, all the while making my own films and wanting to make more. I paid for my first feature, Following, myself and made it with friends. We were all working full-time jobs, so wed get together on weekends for a year, shooting about 15 minutes of raw stock every Saturday, one or two takes of everything, and getting maybe five minutes of finished film out of that. We went to the San Francisco Film Festival with it [in 1998] and Zeitgeist Films picked up distribution, which really helped me get Memento going. I got paid to direct it, I had millions of dollars in trucks and hundreds of people and everything, and I havent looked back since.
Q: What benefits were there in being self-taught rather than going to film school?
A: A very organic approach to understanding all the different bits of the craft. Im interested in every different bit of filmmaking because I had to do every bit of it myselffrom sound recording and ADR to editing and music. I feel very lucky to be a member of probably the last generation who cut film on a Steenbeck flatbed, physically taping it together and dropping out shots. It gave me a really good grounding in knowing overall what has to go into a film technically that was very valuable. And it meant that absolutely everything I did was simply because I was passionate and wanted to try stuff. Youre never going to learn something as profoundly as when its purely out of curiosity.
Q: Youre a longtime fan of detective novels, which often employ flashbacks and other time-shifting devices. Is that where your fascination for non-linear storytelling comes from?
A: Well, I had a couple of big influences. When I was 16 I read a Graham Swift novel, Waterland, that did incredible things with parallel timelines, and told a story in different dimensions that was extremely coherent. Around the same time, I remember Alan Parkers The Wall on television, which does a very similar thing purely with imagery, using memories and dreams crossing over to other dreams and so forth. Nicolas Roegs The Man Who Fell to Earth and Performance were also influential. Those stuck in my head, as did a lot of crime fictionJames Ellroy, Jim Thompsonand film noirs like Jacques Tourneurs Out of the Past, which was just staggering. Then, somehow, I got hold of a script to Pulp Fiction before the film came out and was fascinated with what Tarantino had done.
Q: Youve often said that your favorite film is Blade Runner. What special significance does it hold for you?
A: As a kid watching films, you go through a gradual realization of whats behind them. You start off like everyone else, thinking that actors make up the words and create the film themselves. So when I was young and looking at Alien and Blade Runner, I was going, OK, theyre different stories, different settings, really different actors, everythings differentbut theres a very strong connection between those two films, and that is the director, Ridley Scott. I remember being struck by that, and thinking thats the job I want.
The atmosphere of Blade Runner was also important, that feeling that there was this whole world outside the frame of the scene. You really felt there were things going on outside of those rooms where youve seen the film take place. Thats something Ive always tried to carry with me. Every film should have its own world, a logic and feel to it that expands beyond the exact image that the audience is seeing.
Q: In your early films you wrote, shot, edited, even designed setsthe only thing you didnt do was act. What process do you use working with actors?
A: What I try to do is give them whatever process they need. It may not be what they think they need, and indeed it may be counter to that, but I really try to be different [and adapt] for every actor, I try to make them comfortable, I try to get the best out of them. You hear stories of directors deliberately making actors uncomfortable, but I always make the actor feel that they have what they need to explore a scene. My uncle [John Nolan] is an actor and hes been in several of my films. When I came to make Following, he was teaching acting so I asked him what I would need to know. He gave me a couple of Stanislavski booksAn Actor Prepares was oneand said they would give me the basics. He also talked me through a few things and gave me an understanding of the craft.
Q: What did you pick up from working with actors on your early films?
A: I learned lots of things on Memento, but one thing Ive always adhered to since then is letting actors perform as many takes as they want. Ive come to realize that the lighting and camera setups, the technical things, take all the time, but running another take generally only adds a couple of minutes. I was shooting a very important scene with Guy Pearce in which his character is extremely upset, and its the lead-in to where Carrie-Anne Moss character takes Pearces shirt off and sees all the tattoos on his chest. That day, the financier of the film just happened to be visiting the set and was literally standing right behind me. We did a take that I thought was very good, and I knew we were out of time. So I asked Guy if he felt hed gotten it, and he said, No, we should do it again. I remember having a What do I do? moment. Do I let him do it and risk running over? Or do I insist that we move on, which Guy would have done, because hes flexible and professional? But I let him do another take, and thats the one used in the film. It was very special, beyond what he had done previously, and way beyond what I had imagined was even possible for the scene. Ive carried that with me ever since: If an actor tells me they can do something more with a scene, I give them the chance, because its not going to cost that much time. It cant all be about the technical issues.
Q: How do you accommodate actors in the same film who may have different styles of working?
A: With Insomnia, Al Pacino liked to rehearse very, very carefully, block things out, and do a lot of takes. His first take would be perfect, but he really wanted to talk about things, whereas Hilary Swank didn't want to rehearse too much. She wanted to save it, then do what she was going to do in one or two takes and no more. As a director, you have to figure out how to balance those things, because you want them both to feel that they're being given the floor in the way they need for what they're doing. What I love about great actors is that you then get them in a two-shot where you think their differences will be difficult, but it isn't, because they accommodate each others process, they feel each other out and listen to each other.
Q: What was it like moving from the $45 million budget for Insomnia to three times that for Batman Begins? How daunting was that leap?
A:I don't know if other peoples experiences mirror my own, but for me, the difference between shooting Following with a group of friends wearing our own clothes and my mum making sandwiches to spending $4 million of somebody elses money on Memento and having a crew of a hundred people is, to this day, by far the biggest leap I've ever made. It was a bit like learning to swim once you're out of your depth: It doesnt make any difference if its 2 feet or 100 feet down to the bottomyoure either going to drown, or not.
The difference from Insomnia to Batman Begins, I would say, is we had very large-scale sets. But I had found a production designer on Insomnia, Nathan Crowley, who'd done a lot of art directing on big, big builds, so he came on board and we figured it out together. Those sorts of logistics are quite challenging and it was the first time I'd done a major visual effects movie. But for me, the process itself has always been fundamentally the same: You stand there and look at what the scene is going to be and then everything else falls away, or it should if youre concentrating correctly.
Q: You dont like to shoot many takes, you only storyboard action scenes, you avoid shot lists, and you just use one camera for dramatic sequences. So how do you make directorial choices in the editing room given that you dont seem to have a lot of coverage options?
A: Well, generally with the projects I'm working on, the script is based on some form of parallel action or shifting points of view, even when the story is linear. If you look at the last couple of reels on the Batman films, for example, they're all crosscut parallel action. What that means is, even though you shoot very specifically and efficiently, you have unlimited choices in the editing suite because you don't have to shoot complete continuity for a particular action scene. You can jump timelines or locations, so you have an enormous number of variables anyway. I'm not looking to make that process even more complicated.
Q: Does that mean you can edit more quickly?
A: On a film like Memento, I had a couple of days to edit each days shootwhich probably came out to a half-hour of dailies. On The Dark Knight Rises, to make that 10-week directors cut Ive basically got one day to cut three days of shootingwhich comes to an hour or an hour and a half of footage. Just to sit there and watch it all is almost impossible, and I have massive, massive choices, even shooting in a pretty tight, efficient way. To make that more complicatedwell, I might give myself more options, but Im going to limit my editing time just to get a handle on it. I have a fantastic editor, Lee Smith, and hes assembling as we shoot. You want to be able to sit back from the shoot and then really explore the materials. So you want to have the time to do that.
Q: Why do you prefer shooting with one camera?
A: I use multi-camera for stunts; for all the dramatic action, I use single-camera. Shooting single-camera means I've already seen every frame as its gone through the gate because my attention isn't divided to multi-cameras. So I see it all and I watch dailies every night. If youre always shooting multi-camera, you shoot an enormous amount of footage, and then you have to go in and start from scratch, which is tricky time-wise.
Q: Without shot lists or storyboards, how do you keep track of everything?
A: In my head. I've always been able to visualize what I want mentally, and I can lie there at night and cut the film in my head, one shot at a time, all the way through the whole thing. Watching dailies, which everybody used to have to do but now seems to be much more of an option, is an important process for memorizing the material. After memorizing it, you can then cut it in your head as you proceed, and when you get into the edit suite you know exactly where to find things. I can say to my editor, 'You know, we shot a different angle on this' or whatever, and tell him where to find it.
Q: You and your cameraman, Wally Pfister, arealong with Steven Spielbergamong the last holdouts who shoot on film in an industry thats moved to digital. Whats your attraction to the older medium?
A: For the last 10 years, I've felt increasing pressure to stop shooting film and start shooting video, but I've never understood why. It's cheaper to work on film, it's far better looking, its the technology that's been known and understood for a hundred years, and it's extremely reliable. I think, truthfully, it boils down to the economic interest of manufacturers and [a production] industry that makes more money through change rather than through maintaining the status quo. We save a lot of money shooting on film and projecting film and not doing digital intermediates. In fact, I've never done a digital intermediate. Photochemically, you can time film with a good timer in three or four passes, which takes about 12 to 14 hours as opposed to seven or eight weeks in a DI suite. Thats the way everyone was doing it 10 years ago, and I've just carried on making films in the way that works best and waiting until theres a good reason to change. But I haven't seen that reason yet.
Q: Have you ever thought about communicating your feelings to the industry and other directors?
A: Ive kept my mouth shut about this for a long time and its fine that everyone has a choice, but for me the choice is in real danger of disappearing. So right before Christmas I brought some filmmakers together and showed them the prologue for The Dark Knight Rises that we shot on IMAX film, then cut from the original negative and printed. I wanted to give them a chance to see the potential, because I think IMAX is the best film format that was ever invented. Its the gold standard and what any other technology has to match up to, but none have, in my opinion. The message I wanted to put out there was that no one is taking anyones digital cameras away. But if we want film to continue as an option, and someone is working on a big studio movie with the resources and the power to insist [on] film, they should say so. I felt as if I didnt say anything, and then we started to lose that option, it would be a shame. When I look at a digitally acquired and projected image, it looks inferior against an original negative anamorphic print or an IMAX one.
Q: What does IMAX give you that you dont get from anamorphic 35 mm or 65 mm?
A: We shot 5-perf 65 mm for a few scenes in Inception and I liked the results a lot, plus you can use sound with it. But IMAX has three times the negative area of that format. Its such a leap up in terms of quality that if youre working on a film thats such a large-scale production you can embrace the more cumbersome technology, and allow for it and build it into your production process, then what you get in terms of quality when youre shooting is pretty extraordinary. For The Dark Knight Rises we were on Wall Street with a thousand extras, and you can see everybodys face in the frame. In some ways, I feel it takes me back almost to the silent film era, when they had those huge cameras. Trying to do things in more of a tableau fashion, it changes the way I direct a film, it changes the way I block the camera movement because of the size of the thing. The resulting image has so much power that you dont need to cut in the same way, you can frame the shot slightly differently, you wind up with a slightly different feel.
Q: Have you shot all of your big-budget films on IMAX?
A: We didnt shoot IMAX for Inception because we were trying to portray the reality of dreams rather than their extraordinary nature, so we used a handheld camera and shot it in a more spontaneous way. Whereas the operatic quality of The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises felt very well suited to IMAXs larger canvas. So its different depending on what film you want to do. But, in each case, as a filmmaker whos been given sizable budgets with which to work, I feel a responsibility to the audience to be shooting with the absolute highest quality technology that I can and make the film in a way that I want.
Q: Because of the kind of films you make, people might assume you use lots of computer-generated imagery, but you actually prefer models, mattes, and in-camera effects. When do you like to use CGI?
A: The thing with computer-generated imagery is that its an incredibly powerful tool for making better visual effects. But I believe in an absolute difference between animation and photography. However sophisticated your computer-generated imagery is, if its been created from no physical elements and you havent shot anything, its going to feel like animation. There are usually two different goals in a visual effects movie. One is to fool the audience into seeing something seamless, and thats how I try to use it. The other is to impress the audience with the amount of money spent on the spectacle of the visual effect, and that, I have no interest in. We try to enhance our stunt work and floor effects with extraordinary CGI tools like wire and rig removals. If you put a lot of time and effort into matching your original film elements, the kind of enhancements you can put into the frames can really trick the eye, offering results far beyond what was possible 20 years ago. The problem for me is if you dont first shoot something with the camera on which to base the shot, the visual effect is going to stick out if the film youre making has a realistic style or patina. I prefer films that feel more like real life, so any CGI has to be very carefully handled to fit into that.
Q: Perhaps the most famous effects scene in any of your films is the tumbling hallway sequence in Inception, which you did without green screens or computers but used an actual tumbling hallway. Why did you decide to go old school for that?
A: I grew up as a huge fan of Kubricks 2001, and was fascinated by the way in which he built that centrifugal set so that the astronauts could jog all around and upside down. I found his illusions completely convincing and mind-blowing. It was one of those rare instances that, when you find out how the trick is done, its even more impressive. So Ive always wanted to do something like that, and with Inception I had the opportunity and resources to do it within an action context. To take that trick and push it in a different direction fulfilled one of my childhood ambitions. So many techniques change in filmmaking over the years, and many of the things you grew up admiring you will never get the opportunity to do. But that large-scale physical effect was still the best way to do the sequence, and it was really fun.
Q: Speaking of technical changes, was there any pressure to do The Dark Knight Rises in 3-D?
A: Warner Bros. would have been very happy, but I said to the guys there that I wanted it to be stylistically consistent with the first two films and we were really going to push the IMAX thing to create a very high-quality image. I find stereoscopic imaging too small scale and intimate in its effect. 3-D is a misnomer. Films are 3-D. The whole point of photography is that its three-dimensional. The thing with stereoscopic imaging is it gives each audience member an individual perspective. Its well suited to video games and other immersive technologies, but if you're looking for an audience experience, stereoscopic is hard to embrace. I prefer the big canvas, looking up at an enormous screen and at an image that feels larger than life. When you treat that stereoscopically, and we've tried a lot of tests, you shrink the size so the image becomes a much smaller window in front of you. So the effect of it, and the relationship of the image to the audience, has to be very carefully considered. And I feel that in the initial wave to embrace it, that wasnt considered in the slightest.
DGA Quarterly Interview Chris Nolan The Dark Knight
Q: In terms of imagery and style, would you say there are any constants running through all your films?
A: An absolute concern with point of view. Whether in the pure camera blocking or even the writing, its all about point of view. I cant cut a scene if I havent already figured out whose point of view I'm looking at, and I cant shoot the scene in a neutral way. I've tried to use more objective camera techniquesa longer lens, flattening things out, using multi-camerabut they dont work. It's funny, you were asking about 3-D and one of the things that happened when the craze came back was various aspects of conversion. The way I shoot film is actually very conducive to converting to 3-D because I'm always thinking of the camera as a participant. I dont use zoom lenses, for example, so I don't reframe using the zoom. Instead, we always move the camera physically closer and put a different focal length on. Stylistically, something that runs through my films is the shot that walks into a room behind a character, because to me, that takes me inside the way that the character enters. I think those point-of-view issues are very important.
Q:Youve worked with the same directorial team1st AD Nilo Otero, 2nd AD Richard Graysmark, and 2nd 2nd Greg Pawlikon several of your films. What do you expect from them?
A: Im looking to the ADs to bring everything to set in a timely fashion, and make sure all the different pieces of the puzzle work. I almost never get to leave the set. I have to go pee sometimes, of course, but otherwise Im there by the camera the whole time, and so I really rely on the AD to wheel in all the different elements. Because I also like to work very fast and work single-camera, I have to keep things moving very smoothly. I rely on Nilo to keep a quiet set with no cell phones, and hopefully without making things too tense. He does a good job making people feel at ease, while also making it clear that were going to be extremely focused on the work thats going on.
Q: Another thing thats unique about your style, especially for such big films, is that you choose to work without a second unit. Why is that?
A: Let me put it this way: If I dont need to be directing the shots that go in the movie, why do I need to be there at all? The screen is the same size for every shot. The little shot of, say, a watch on someones wrist, will occupy the same screen size as the shot of a thousand people running down the street. Everything is equally weighted and needs to be considered with equal care, I really do believe that. I dont understand the criteria for parceling things off. Many action films embrace a second unit taking on all of the action. For me, thats odd because then why did you want to do an action film? Having said that, there are fantastic filmmakers who use second and third units successfully. So it all comes back to the question of defining what a director does. Each of us works in different ways. Its really helped me keep more of my personality in these big films. Theres a danger with big-action fare that the presence of the filmmaker is watered down, it can become very neutral, so Ive tried to keep my point of view in every aspect of these films.
Q: Youre known for getting down to business quickly on the set. Roughly how many setups do you like to do in a day?
A: A very large number, given the single-camera approach. On Memento I remember a day when we did 53 setups with one camera. That was born out of necessity, but it was also very inspiring, very invigorating to be able to do a lot of different bits of storytelling in one day. I do like moving fast, and I can be quite impatient in that way, but I think the energy helps the project. I dont like days on set where you dont have enough to do. It happens very rarely. Generally, you never have enough time.
Q: You also dont do re-shoots for your films. How do you avoid that?
A: Ive never done a re-shoot, knock on wood. It all comes down to editing, just craft, just hammering it with my editor every day, trying radical cuts, pulling things out, abandoning bits of exposition, saying, OK, does the audience really need to understand this? What if they dont? I always overwrite the exposition in my scripts so that Ive got multiple ways to get a point across. If you tell the audience something three times they wont understand it, but if you tell them only once, they will. Its an odd thing. So a lot of cutting for time is, for me, cutting for clarity. Its finding where you can just pull dialogue out that you have overwritten, so you can find that one simple way an audience can get the right point.
Q: What are the issues in the industry youre concerned about?
A: Copyright theft is a very important issue. While studios have been a bit late to realize that, Im pleased the Guild has taken a real lead. I think its very important that both filmmakers and studios understand the importance of protecting their copyrights. Ive worked at both ends of the spectrum and, yes, you can get a group of friends together and make a movie without spending lots of money. But if youre going to be paid and make a living, and if you employ talented craftspeople who need to make a living, its always going to be an expensive form. The only way to ever get paid for it is by controlling the sale and distribution of the copyrighted material. Anyone who profits through theft, and certainly anyone getting advertising revenue off of somebody elses copyrights, should be prosecuted, shut down, and held accountable. A lot of the laws are already in place, so its just a question of enforcing them. Judges and juries must understand what copyright theft really is.
Q: You joined the DGA after Memento. What would you tell a young director who is considering joining the Guild?
A: I got a DGA nomination for Memento, and I remember being impressed with the confidence and the values of the Guild, in that it didnt matter to them if I wasnt a member when I made that film. I joined for Insomnia, which was my first studio project. I think the protections afforded by the Guild are very important, particularly because directors are in a tricky creative relationship whenever they make a studio film. Ultimately, studios have all the power since theyre financing the picture. But having that 10-week directors cut in which youre able to work in private, without interference, and say, Let me put this together in such a way so you can see whats shot and how it was intended to be seen, is incredibly important. That alone is one of the key reasons to be part of the brotherhood.
Q: One last thing: Ive noticed that while many of your peers wear casual clothing and baseball caps to work, its not unusual for you to sport a dark suit or a white linen jacket on the set. Why get so dressed up?
A: [laughs] I went to a boarding school where we had to wear a uniform, and I got used to using all the pockets in my jacket. Its just what Im comfortable in. I dont like to think about what to wear, so I just wear the same thing every day. When I first started shooting with a crew on Memento I remember trying to pick up a sandbag and everyone was shouting at me that I wasnt allowed to do that because there were specific people for that job. As much as Id like to be able to get my hands dirty, I dont usually get to do so. So I dress the way I would for a day at the office. Its just easier that way.
Posts: 3700
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #114 on:
December 07, 2013, 03:00:54 AM »
The Road of Trials
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Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #115 on:
May 18, 2014, 03:01:50 PM »
Interstellar new trailer!
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positive energy;
Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #116 on:
May 18, 2014, 04:02:30 PM »
so wait what. christopher nolans armageddon? wtf is going on here. looks very awesome though.
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Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #117 on:
May 18, 2014, 04:03:23 PM »
Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art. - Andy Warhol
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Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #118 on:
July 09, 2014, 03:09:19 PM »
Christopher Nolan on Future of Film: Its Unthinkable That Extraordinary New Work Wont Emerge
From Variety, Dave McNary
With four months to go before Christopher Nolans sci-fi drama Interstellar comes to theaters, the director has peered hopefully into the future of cinema.
He forecasts major bumps along the way, but also plenty of opportunity for filmmakers because of the basic appeal of the medium in a column for the Wall Street Journal.
We moan about intrusive moviegoers, but most of us feel a pang of disappointment when we find ourselves in an empty theater, he notes.
The articles titled Christopher Nolan: Films of the Future Will Still Draw People to Theaters with the subtitle When Movies Can Look or Sound Like Anything, Says the Dark Knight Director, Extraordinary Work Will Emerge.
One of Nolans key points is that movies are heading for a future in which they become essentially channels on a dial those with the biggest ratings will be given more screenings and those that dont will be ditched quickly.
The distributor or theater owner (depending on the vital question of who controls the remote) would be able to change the content being played, instantly, he wrote. A movies Friday matinees would determine whether it even gets an evening screening, or whether the projector switches back to last weeks blockbuster. This process could even be automated based on ticket sales in the interests of fairness.
That would mean that smaller, more unusual films would be shut out for awhile.
Innovation would shift entirely to home-based entertainment, with the remaining theaters serving exclusively as gathering places for fan-based or branded-event titles, he added.
This bleak future is the direction the industry is pointed in, but even if it arrives it will not last, Nolan said. Once movies can no longer be defined by technology, you unmask powerful fundamentalsthe timelessness, the otherworldliness, the shared experience of these narratives.
And Nolan believes the film business will respond to the changing circumstances.
The public will lay down their money to those studios, theaters and filmmakers who value the theatrical experience and create a new distinction from home entertainment that will enthralljust as movies fought back with widescreen and multitrack sound when television first nipped at its heels, he asserted.
The theaters of the future will be bigger and more beautiful than ever before, Nolan added.
They will employ expensive presentation formats that cannot be accessed or reproduced in the home (such as, ironically, film prints), he added. And they will still enjoy exclusivity, as studios relearn the tremendous economic value of the staggered release of their products.
Nolan also predicted that new voices will emerge amid the despair that there is nothing left to be discovered.
As in the early 90s, when years of bad multiplexing had soured the public on movies, and a young director named Quentin Tarantino ripped through theaters with a profound sense of cinemas past and an instinct for reclaiming cinemas rightful place at the head of popular culture, he added.
And Nolan noted that the absence of formal standards offers tremendous opportunities.
Whether photochemical or video-based, a film can now look or sound like anything, he said. Its unthinkable that extraordinary new work wont emerge from such an open structure. Thats the part I cant wait for.
The Meeting with the Goddess
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Re: AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN IS A GENIUS?
Reply #119 on:
August 24, 2014, 01:12:28 PM »
In this interview, Nolan explains his key to success and ends up revealing many of the DIY filmmaking techniques he used to make Following.
Simple mind - simple pleasures...
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Thursday, November 29, 2012
Gentle Readers .....
I have been remiss in my writing of late. Truth be told, I had lost my job, and was fully committed to finding new gig. This left little time for writing. After about a month's worth of being unemployed, I was offered a job - a really decent job - and will be starting up there shortly. We then took a long-overdue trip to visit family in Minnesota, which is where I am as I write this. Things are settling back to a semblance of normal and I feel like I have the time and energy to write. So without further gilding of the lily ......
I take care of most of the mechanical needs for our bikes. I really enjoy the activity and feel like there are a number of benefits. You save money, become more intimate with the working of a modern bicycle and have a better riding experience overall. There is also a therapeutic value to the activity.
Bike shops are equipped to handle any problem that may arise with a bicycle, but it comes with a price. Along with the cost of parts, there are often shop fees associated with the routine maintenance, repairs and upgrades that are part-and-parcel to owning a modern bicycle. Doing this work yourself saves on shop fees, which can add up quickly and may cost ore than the parts involves. It also frees you, the consumer, to find the best price you can on the parts you want or need, So by wrenching your own bike, you can save a bit of money. For me, She Who Holds The Purse Strings really appreciates this.
It may seem kind of strange to speak of intimacy with a machine, but this is what wrenching your own bike gives you. After a while, there isn't a single part of your bike that is unfamiliar. You know very nut, bolt, screw and other bits that are on your bike. If something is going wrong, or out of adjustment, you know about it long before it becomes a problem. You also know what needs to be done to fix or correct it. Oftentimes, this level of intimacy, allows you to correct minor issues as a matter of course. The bike is almost always in peak condition as a result.
This leads us to the overall experience in riding the bike. Because you wrench it yourself you are always fully aware of your bike's condition. As a result of this, you ride with greater confidence in the machine. You ride without the worry that something may go wrong. Everything is as it should be, so you can relax and enjoy the ride.
The world, once again, spins in greased grooves.
So, there's a lot to be said for wrenching your own bike and there's really nothing much to it. Modern bicycles are relatively simple machines whose workings are easily understood and learned. You can save a buck or two, be a better cyclist, have a lot more fun and it can even help you feel better.
Feeling better is important.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Modern three bedroom semi-detached residence located in the ever popular location of Clonmore. Located walking distance of Mallow Town Centre in a private residential development. This property has been finished to the highest of standards throughout and is in turn key condition. To the front of the property you have ample parking space with cobblelock driveway, to the rear of the property is an enclosed garden with paved patio area.
Entrance Hall 6.17m x 2.3m. Coving to Ceiling. Spacious entrance Hall
Living Room 4m x 5.08m. Coving to Ceiling. Bay Window to Front. Feauture Open Fireplace(Plumbed for Gas Fire)
Dining/Family Room 3.25m x 4.06m. Patio Doors to Rear. Patio Area and Garden
Kitchen Dining Room 4.62m x 3.4m. Fully Fitted Kitchen Units. Plumbed for Washing Machine. Tiled Splashback. Door to Rear
Landing 3.4m x 2.18m. Hot Press off. Access to Attic
Bathroom 2m x 2.62m. Partly Tiled around Shower
Bedroom 1 3.5m x 4.17m. Fitted wall to wall robes
Ensuite 1.04m x 3.35m. Partly Tiled around Shower. Electric Mira Shower Fitted
Bedroom 2 4.1m x 3.18m. Fitted Robe
Bedroom 3 2.74m x 2.74m.
BER: Exempt
BER No:
Performance Indicator:
Located on the Outskirts of Mallow Town Centre
Mary O'Callaghan
Strictly by appointment with Sherry FitzGerald Mallow on 022 42651
53/54 Main Street, Mallow, Co. Cork,
Tel: 022 426 51
PSRA Licence No. 002361


text:
So, two days ago, a massive cold overtook Japan from north to south. It snowed in Hokkaido! It even snowed on a mountain nearby! And it's even cold in Kyoto! :-(
Speaking of Kyoto...so, I was there last weekend! It was fun to visit my girlfriend. On Friday, we saw the Jidai Matsuri, which was surprisingly short. It was just a parade of people in various attire from the olden days to pre-modern days. Later that evening, my girlfriend and I went to Gion, where the Geisha roam the streets. We saw one, actually! She was a Maiko, an apprentice geisha.
Finally, that night, my girlfriend had a small pot luck dinner, where she invited three of her Japanese friends over, and the four of them each had some sort of dish to share. My girl made her awesomely cheesey mac-and-cheese. There was also chirashi-zushi, hot cakes, and Ritz crackers. *nice* We also watched The Hunchback of Notre Dame; fun times.
On Saturday, I got to eat ramen at what as become my favorite ramen shop. SOOOOO GOOOOOOD. Then later that evening, we hit up Fushimi Inari, which is the famous shrine with hundreds of torii gates along the trails that lead up the mountain. My girlfriend and I walked the ENTIRE LENGTH of the trail! It took THREE HOURS. And it was COLD. And DARK. It was really, really creepy and surprisingly scary at some points. Plus, there are families that live up there, who tend to the various shrines. So sometimes we could hear them make sounds, which, in the dead of night, is damn frightening. Anyway, the whole trip with breathtaking. It was amazing. And near the top, there was a beautiful view of western Kyoto.
So yeah, Kyoto was awesome. And the cold is not.
Yesterday, Shoe came over and taught me how to use the kerosene heater. We cleaned them up (I have two) and turned them on. It is surprisingly efficient. It heats up instantly, heats the room up quickly, and is relatively inexpensive compared to the electric heaters. But the problems are that the kerosene smell is awful and the room must be ventilated every hour to insure that the toxic fumes (carbon monoxide) don't kill me. But in ventilating the room, the heat escapes. To deal with this problem, I was told that if you just keep the window a little open, the room is both ventilated and keeps the heat from escaping too quickly. Nice. But man...the smell sucks. And so does the cold.
Word of the day: 灯油 「とうゆ」 "touyu," or "kerosene."


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I wanted to give you an update- not that there is much of one- and also, take the time to thank you for praying. I realize that I didn't even give you my mom's name in my last post. Not that God needs her name- obviously He knows that- but I like to pray for people by name, so in case you do, too: Shirley is her name. :)
Audra and I spent some time with mom this afternoon. First of all, a PRAISE:
-When I saw her, she hadn't had any pain medication since the middle of the night. (Thank you, God!) However, during my visit her head was aching so badly and the nausea was returning, so they did give her something for the pain. Still, though- that was several hours where the pain wasn't so bad she felt she needed something for it, so I think we can call that an answer to prayer.
She saw the specialist this morning and he, too, is puzzled. They simply don't know what it is. They keep telling her, "It's a mystery. We're just not sure." She was pretty discouraged this morning, as he told her they wanted to do a colonoscopy and an endoscopy- but that they couldn't do either until tomorrow. Discouraged because tomorrow = one more night in the hospital, and it is hard to not have any answers at this point.
After meeting again with the radiologist, the specialist has now decided to proceed with just the endoscopy- and will try to do so sometime this evening, so that they can take a closer look at her stomach.
So the main prayer request is just that the doctors would be able to determine what is causing this pain.
Thank you so much for your prayers and concern. I am so grateful to know so many are praying, and I will keep you posted if we find anything else out.
My mom: an update
5 comments:
Thanks for the update, Stacy! God bless you and your family as you care for your mom in an uncertain time. I am praying.ReplyDelete
Glad you updatede for us Stacy.ReplyDelete
Will be praying for your sweet mom by name.
Just prayed again and will keep it up.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousApril 20, 2009 at 9:20 PM
Good to talk to you today, Stacy. Thanks for the update here, too. The boys and I will be praying!ReplyDelete
Love, Camee
Thanks for the update Stacy. Praying God would direct the doctors to the source of the pain quickly.ReplyDelete
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Following the critical and commercial drubbing that Self Portrait received, Dylan returned with New Morning, in many ways a return to form. With its sepia-coloured cover photo of a somewhat ...
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Here The Golden Girls are returning from The Virgin Tour. Aired 9 November 1985. Episode: Break In
Thursday, June 3, 2010
R.I.P. Rue McClanahan xo
Here The Golden Girls are returning from The Virgin Tour. Aired 9 November 1985. Episode: Break In
7 comments:
Such a shame. Golden Girls was one of my favourite shows growing up.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 3, 2010 at 1:39 PM
They made several references to Madonna in that show. I remember one instance where Dorthy responds to one of Rose's ridiculously stupid questions saying, "When Madonna has a hit movie, Rose."ReplyDelete
Damn, I wish that joke hadn't stood up to the test of time. :)
That Madonna reference is AWESOME! What a classic!ReplyDelete
Who would have ever thought that Betty White would outlive the cast and be bigger than ever 25 years later at age 88?!!
I love you Madonna very very much. I am brazilian.ReplyDelete
Such a shame..another Golden girl gone :(ReplyDelete
My favourite Madonna moment was actually in the spin off "Golden Palace" Where Bea was a guest star and Dorothy confided into the girls that she and her new husband did it while the lights were open. An Sophia responded
" Ladies and gentleman..Madonna!"
RIP Rue...
Yes really sad this news. :-(ReplyDelete
Golden Girls Series 1 (and 2, to some extent) are my favouite comedy of all time. Un-fucking-believably funny.
Thanks for posting that clip again Pud - even though I have it on the DVD set I haven't seen it in so long! SO CLASS!!!!
Long Live Betty White. She was always my favorite. R.I.P ladies you will go down in History like Lucy, always playing on TV somewhere in the world.ReplyDelete


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|In this Plan, unless the context otherwise requires:-
|Act means the Companies Act 1963 of Ireland.
|Allocation means a conditional promise to deliver Shares for no payment upon the terms set out in the Plan;
|Award Date means the date on which the Board makes an RSU Award;
|Board means the Board of Directors of the Company or a committee appointed by them;
|Bonus means a cash bonus or other cash incentive for which an Employee may be eligible in respect of a financial year of the Company under the Companys Annual Incentive Plan or similar annual incentive plan;
|Cause means (i) the Employees wilful and continued failure to perform his or her material duties with respect to the Company or its Subsidiaries after reasonable notice and an opportunity by the Employee to cure such conduct within ten (10) days after the Employees receipt of such notice, (i) wilful misconduct by the Employee in connection with the Employees employment which is injurious to the Company or its Subsidiaries, (iii) conviction for any criminal act (other than road traffic violations not involving imprisonment), (iv) any breach of the Employees restrictive covenants in the Employees employment agreement (if any) or any other agreement containing non-compete and/or confidentiality clauses entered into between the Employee and the Company and any of its Subsidiaries (other than an insubstantial, inadvertent and nonrecurring breach); or (v) any material violation of any written Company policy after reasonable notice and an opportunity to cure such violation within ten (10) days after the Employees receipt of such notice.
|Change in Control means (a) the acquisition of ownership, directly or indirectly, beneficially or of record, by any Person or group (within the meaning of the Exchange Act and the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission there under as in effect on the date hereof) of the common shares of the Company representing more than 50% of the aggregate voting power represented by the issued and outstanding common shares of the Company; or (b) occupation of a majority of the seats (other than vacant seats) on the Board by Persons who were neither (i) nominated by the Companys Board nor (ii) appointed by directors so nominated. For the avoidance of doubt, a transaction shall not constitute a Change in Control or other Event described in Section 8 below (i) if effected for the purpose of changing the place of incorporation or form of organization of the ultimate parent entity of the Willis Group (including where the Company is succeeded by an issuer incorporated under the laws of another state, country or foreign government for such purpose and whether or not the Company remains in existence following such transaction) and (ii) where all or substantially
|all of the Person(s) who are the beneficial owners of the outstanding voting securities of the Company immediately prior to such transaction will beneficially own, directly or indirectly, all or substantially all of the combined voting power of the outstanding voting securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors of the ultimate parent entity resulting from such transaction in substantially the same proportions as their ownership, immediately prior to such transaction, of such outstanding securities of the Company. The Board, in its sole discretion, may make an appropriate and equitable adjustment to the Shares underlying a RSU Award to take into account such transaction, including to substitute or provide for the issuance of shares of the resulting ultimate parent entity in lieu of Shares of the Company.
|Company means Willis Group Holdings Public Limited Company (a company incorporated in Ireland with registered number 475616);
|Employee means an employee or director of a Participating Company;
|Exchange Act means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 of the United States, as amended;
|Group means a group as such term is used in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act;
|Participant means a person who is granted an RSU Award or acquires Bonus Investment Shares pursuant to Rule 5 of this Plan;
|Participating Company means the Company or any Subsidiary;
|Permanent Disability means the Participant shall be deemed to have a Permanent Disability if the Participant meets the requirements of the definition of such term as defined in the Companys or Subsidiarys long-term disability plan applicable to the Participant or, if no such plan is applicable, in the event the Participant is unable by reason of physical or mental illness or other similar disability, to perform the material duties and responsibilities of his or her job for a period of 180 consecutive business days out of 270 business days or as the Board may in its discretion determine;
|Person means person as such term is used in Section 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act;
|Plan means the Willis Group Holdings 2004 Bonus and Share Plan as amended as restated on December 30, 2009 by Willis Group Holdings Limited and as amended as restated and assumed by Willis Group Holdings Public Limited Company on December 31, 2009, a sub-plan to the 2001 Plan;
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|2001 Plan means the Willis Group Holdings 2001 Share Purchase and Option Plan, as amended as restated on December 30, 2009 by Willis Group Holdings Limited and as amended as restated and assumed by Willis Group Holdings Public Limited Company on December 31, 2009.
|Retirement means the Participants termination of employment with a Participating Company where it is either provided within a Participants employment agreement or where with respect to certain classes of Participants, it is pursuant to an existing, written policy. If neither of these applies it is at age, 65 or over or such other age as applies in the applicable jurisdiction of employment, or as may be otherwise determined by the Board in its absolute discretion.
|Redundancy means the Participants termination of employment with a Participating Company where (i) the business for the purposes of which the Participant was employed ceases or is to cease to be carried on in the place where the Participant was so employed; or (ii) the requirements of the Participating Company for the Participant to carry out work of a particular kind, or for Participants to carry out work of a particular kind in the place they were so employed have ceased or diminished or are expected to cease or diminish; or (iii) as otherwise agreed by the Board in their absolute discretion.
|RSU Award means the Allocation determined by the Board pursuant to Rule 3.1 below (or such other type of award as is determined by the Board under Rule 3.3 below) and subject to the terms of the Plan;
|RSU Shares mean any Shares which are subject to an RSU Award made under this Plan and which have not been transferred or allotted or forfeited in accordance with the Rules of the Plan;
|Shares means the ordinary shares of the Company, nominal value US$0.000115;
|Subsidiary shall mean with respect to the Company, any subsidiary of the Company within the meaning of Section 155 of the Act. For purposes of granting share options or any other stock rights, within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code, an entity may not be considered a Subsidiary if granting any such stock right would result in the stock right becoming subject to Section 409A of the Code;
|Vesting Date means the date on which the RSU Award is vested and such date shall be determined by the Board at the time of the RSU Award;
|Willis Group means the Company and each of its subsidiaries.
|Any reference in the Plan to any enactment includes a reference to that enactment as from time to time modified extended or re-enacted.
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|The Plan is designed to provide the Company with the ability to grant RSU Awards to Employees in lieu of Bonuses and to allow Employees to acquire Shares using Bonuses in order to:-
|promote the long term financial interests and growth of the Willis Group by attracting and retaining personnel with the training, experience and ability to enable them to make a substantial contribution to the success of Willis Groups business;
|motivate management personnel by means of growth-related incentives to achieve long range goals; and
|further the identity of interests of Participants with those of the shareholders of the Company through opportunities for increased share, or share-based, ownership in the Company.
|The Board may grant an RSU Award to Employees or invite Employees to invest Bonuses in Shares in accordance with the terms of this Plan within the period during which awards may be granted under the Willis Group Holdings 2001 Share Purchase and Option Plan, as amended and restated on December 30, 2009 by Willis Group Holdings Limited and as amended and restated and assumed by Willis Group Holdings Public Limited Company on December 31, 2009, which expires on 3 May 2011.
|Should RSU Shares be issued on the vesting of an RSU Award that are not otherwise fully paid up, the Board may require the Participant to pay the aggregate nominal value of such RSU Shares on the basis that such RSU Shares shall then be allotted as fully paid to the Participant on the vesting of the RSU Award.
|The Board may determine that an RSU Award may take a different form from an Allocation, including:
|an immediate award of Shares, subject to forfeiture if certain specified conditions are not met;
|a bonus award payable on the Vesting Date for an amount equal to the market value of the Shares subject to an RSU Award at the time the RSU Award is made (as determined by the Board); and
|such other type of award under this Plan as the Board may determine is appropriate for the purpose of taking account of a change in legislation, exchange control or regulatory treatment or to obtain or maintain tax or social security benefits for Participants or the Willis Group;
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|and the terms of any award granted under this Rule 3.3 shall be set out in a schedule to the Plan.
|The Board may:
|decide before the Award Date that a Participant (or his or her nominee) shall be entitled to receive a benefit determined by reference to the value of all or any of the dividends (excluding the dividend tax credit unless the Board decides otherwise) that would be paid on the RSU Shares in respect of dividend record dates occurring during the period between the Award Date and the Vesting Date and may further decide that such benefit shall be provided in cash and/or Shares (the Dividend Equivalent). The Board shall decide whether the Dividend Equivalent shall be provided to the Participant during the period between the Award Date and the Vesting Date as soon as practicable following the declaration of any dividend or in full as soon as practicable after the Vesting Date. The Board may decide to exclude the value of all or part of any special dividend from the amount of the Dividend Equivalent; or
|grant an RSU Award on terms whereby the number of Shares comprised in an RSU shall increase by deeming dividends (excluding special dividends, unless the Board decides otherwise) paid on the Shares from the Award Date to the Vesting Date to have been reinvested in additional Shares on such terms as the Board shall decide.
|The Board may, in its absolute discretion, determine that an RSU Award will be granted to any Employee who will be awarded a Bonus in excess of £5,000 (or currency equivalent) or such other amount as the Board may in its absolute discretion decide from time to time (the Threshold Amount), upon the terms set out in this Plan and upon such other terms as the Board may specify at the time of award.
|Where the Board determines that an RSU Award will be granted to a particular Employee:
|the Board shall, in its absolute discretion, specify a percentage of the Employees Bonus in excess of the Threshold Amount to be paid in the form of an RSU Award rather than in cash; and
|the Employee will be notified in writing of the percentage of his or her Bonus in respect of which he will receive an RSU Award prior to the Award Date.
|Unless otherwise determined by the Board at the time of the Award, the number of Shares subject to an RSU Award shall equal the number of Shares which could have been acquired with the amount of the Bonus (before tax and other required withholdings which may be
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|applicable) in respect of which the RSU Award is made at the price per Share equal to the closing price of the Shares on the New York Stock Exchange on the Award Date.
|Where the Board determines, the grant of an RSU Award to a Participant resident in the UK will be conditional upon the execution of a joint election with his or her employing company to accept the liability for employers National Insurance Contributions arising on the Vesting Date or release of the RSU Award. In the case of Participants resident in any other country (excluding the USA), such Participant agrees that if his or her employing company incurs any social security or payroll costs or taxes on the Vesting Date or release of the RSU Award the Participant shall, if requested, reimburse the employing company in respect thereof.
|The Board may in its absolute discretion invite an Employee who receives a Bonus to acquire Shares (Bonus Investment Shares) in the Company with a percentage or a part of the proceeds of his or her Bonus (after tax and other required withholdings have been deducted) being such part and percentage as the Board may determine, on the terms set out in this Plan and such other terms as the Board may specify prior to the time of acquisition.
|Unless otherwise determined by the Board, the price of the Bonus Investment Shares which the Employee may acquire under Rule 5.1 above shall be the price per Share equal to the closing price of the Shares on the New York Stock Exchange on the Award Date, except that where the nominal value of such Share exceeds the closing price, the Board may required that the Employee pay such nominal value.
|A Participant who acquires Bonus Investment Shares in accordance with Rule 5.1 will be the legal and beneficial owner of those Shares and will not forfeit those Shares in any circumstances.
|A Participant will not be permitted to sell his or her Bonus Investment Shares until the third anniversary of the date of their acquisition or such other date as the Board may determine prior to their acquisition (the Acquisition Date) except for:-
|transfers to the Participants estate upon his or her death;
|transfers to the Participants immediate family members, a trust or other entity the primary beneficiary or holder of which is for or by Participants immediate family members; and
|other transfers permitted by the Company (e.g. financial hardship).
|The transfer restrictions in Rule 5.4 above expire upon the Participants termination of employment with the Willis Group for any reason.
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|The Board shall grant an RSU Award (Matching RSU Award) to each Participant in respect of an RSU Award granted under Rule 4.1 above and an acquisition of Bonus Investment Shares under Rule 5.1 above, on the terms set out in the Plan and such other terms as the Board may specify at the time of the award.
|The number of Shares subject to a Matching RSU Award shall be equal to 25% of the number of Shares subject to the RSU Award granted or the number of Bonus Investment Shares acquired and in respect of which the Matching RSU Award is awarded, or such other percentage as the Board may in its absolute discretion determine prior to the Award Date of the Matching RSU Award.
|The delivery of RSU Shares subject to an Allocation shall be effected in such form and manner as the Board from time to time prescribe and may be subject to such vesting conditions as the Board may in its absolute discretion determine at the time of award.
|Subject to Rules 7.3, 7.4, 7.5, 7.7 and Rule 8, RSU Shares subject to an Allocation may not be delivered prior to the Vesting Date.
|If any Participant dies before the Vesting Date and at a time when he is an Employee (or entitled to receive RSU Shares subject to Allocations by virtue of Rule 7.4 below) RSU Shares subject to any Allocation shall be delivered to his or her personal representatives as soon as practicable following his or her death.
|If any Participant ceases to be an Employee by reason of Permanent Disability, Retirement or Redundancy before the Vesting Date RSU Shares subject to any Allocation shall be delivered to him as soon as is practicable following such cessation.
|If a Participant ceases to be an Employee otherwise than as mentioned in Rules 7.3 to 7.4 above, no RSU Shares shall be delivered to him or her, unless the Board shall so permit in which event the Board may in its absolute discretion determine the number of RSU Shares which may be so acquired or delivered.
|A Participant shall not be treated for the purposes of Rules 7.4 and 7.5 as ceasing to be an Employee until such time as he or she is no longer a director or employee of any of the Participating Companies.
|The Company shall allot or procure the transfer to a Participant (or a nominee for him or her) of the RSU Shares to which he is entitled, provided that:-
|the Board considers that the allotment or transfer thereof would be lawful in all relevant jurisdictions; or
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|in any case where a Participating Company is obliged (or would suffer disadvantage if it were not to) to account for any tax (in any jurisdiction) for which the person in question is liable by virtue of the receipt of shares and/or for any social security contributions recoverable from the person in question (together, the Tax Liability), that person has either:
|made a payment to the Participating Company of an amount of equal to the Tax Liability; or
|entered into arrangements acceptable to that or another Participating Company to secure that such a payment is made (whether by authorising the sale of some or all of the Shares on his or her behalf and the payment to the Participating Company of the relevant amount out of the proceeds of sale or otherwise).
|In its absolute discretion, and on such terms and conditions as it deems appropriate, the Board may determine that any RSU Award (which throughout this Rule 8 includes a Matching RSU Award) shall lapse on a Change in Control, a merger, amalgamation pursuant to Irish law, or other consolidation of the Company or the Willis Group with or into another company, the exchange or all or substantially all of the assets of the Company or the Willis Group for the securities of another company, the acquisition by another Person or Group of 80% or more of the Company or the Willis Group then outstanding voting shares or the recapitalisation, reclassification, liquidation or dissolution of the Company or the Willis Group (Event), and if the Board so provides, it shall on such terms and conditions as it deems appropriate in its absolute discretion, determine that the Vesting Date for all RSU Awards made under the Plan shall be such date prior to the occurrence of such Event as it may decide and that upon the occurrence of such Event such RSU Award shall terminate and be of no further force or effect; provided, however, that the Board may also provide, in its absolute discretion, that even if the RSU Awards shall continue in existence following the occurrence of such Event, any such RSU Awards shall constitute an Allocation or Forfeitable Shares over the kind and amount of securities and/or other property, or the cash equivalent thereof, receivable as a result of such Event by the holder of a number of Shares in the Company which was subject to the RSU Awards prior to the occurrence of such Event.
|In the event of any variation of the share capital of the Company, the Board may adjust the number of RSU Shares as it considers appropriate. An adjustment under this Rule may have the effect of reducing the price at which RSU Shares may be acquired to less than their nominal value (the Shortfall), but only if and to the extent that the Board shall be
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|authorized to capitalize from the reserves of the Company a sum equal to the Shortfall and to apply that sum in paying up that amount on the RSU Shares; and so that on the vesting of any RSU Award in respect of which such a reduction shall have been made the Board shall capitalize such sum (if any) and apply it in paying up such amount as aforesaid.
|As soon as reasonably practicable after making any adjustment under Rule 9.1, the Company shall give notice in writing thereof to any Participant affected thereby.
|Subject to Rule 10.2 below, the Board may at any time alter any of the provisions of this Plan, or the terms of any RSU Award (including a Matching RSU) awarded under it, in any respect, provided that no alteration shall be made which conflicts with the terms of the 2001 Plan, of which this Plan forms a sub-plan.
|No alteration to the disadvantage of any Participant shall be made under Rule 10.1 unless:
|the Company shall have invited every such Participant to give an indication as to whether or not he approves the alteration; and
|the alteration is approved by a majority of those Participants who have given such an indication.
|As soon as reasonably practicable after making any alteration under Rule 10.1, the Company shall give notice in writing thereof to any Participant affected thereby.
|The Board may amend, suspend or terminate the Plan at any time.
|The rights and obligations of any individual under the terms of his or her office or employment with any Participating Company shall not be affected by his or her participation in this Plan or any right which he or she may have to participate therein, and an individual who participates therein shall waive any and all rights to compensation or damages in consequence of the termination of his or her office or employment for any reason whatsoever insofar as those rights arise or may arise from his or her ceasing to have rights under any RSU Awards (including Matching RSU Awards) under this Plan as a result of such termination.
|In the event of any dispute or disagreement as to the interpretation of this Plan, or as to any question or right arising from or related to this Plan, the decision of the Board shall be final and binding upon all persons.
|Any notice or other communication under or in connection with this Plan may be given either:
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|by personal delivery or by sending the same by post, in the case of a company to its registered office, and in the case of an individual to his or her last known address, or, where he or she is a director or employee of a Participating Company, either to his or her last known address or to the address of the place of business at which he or she performs the whole or substantially the whole of the duties of his or her office or employment; or
|in an electronic communication to an address for the time being notified for that purpose to the person giving the notice.
|This Plan shall be governed by the laws of Ireland, without regard to conflicts of laws.
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|To the extent that RSU Awards made to Participants take the form of an immediate award of RSU Shares subject to forfeiture if the conditions specified in the Rules are not met (Forfeitable Shares), the provisions of this Schedule shall apply.
|It is a condition of the award of Forfeitable Shares that the Participant may not transfer the Forfeitable Shares between the Award Date and the Vesting Date.
|Subject to Paragraphs 4, 5 and 6 below, Forfeitable Shares shall remain forfeitable until the Vesting Date.
|If any Participant who has been awarded Forfeitable Shares dies before the Vesting Date and at a time when he is an Employee, his or her Forfeitable Shares shall immediately cease to be forfeitable.
|If any Participant who has been awarded Forfeitable Shares ceases to be an Employee by reason of Permanent Disability or is terminated by the Company without Cause or is terminated as a result of Retirement before the Vesting Date, his or her Forfeitable Shares shall immediately cease to be forfeitable.
|If a Participant who has been awarded Forfeitable Shares ceases to be an Employee otherwise than as mentioned in Paragraphs 4 and 5 above, he shall forfeit his or her Forfeitable Shares immediately, unless the Board, in its absolute discretion, permits otherwise, in which event the Board may determine the number of Forfeitable Shares which shall cease to be forfeitable as at the Vesting Date and the number of Forfeitable Shares (if any) which the Participant shall forfeit immediately.
|The Participant agrees that the Forfeitable Shares shall be registered in the name of a nominee between the Award Date and the Vesting Date (or, if the Company directs that the Forfeitable Shares are registered in the name of the Participant, the Forfeitable Shares shall be deposited between the Award Date and the Vesting Date with such person as the Company may direct).
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text:
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Those of you who know me will probably find this surprising, but I spent the afternoon with Gail Dooley making a quilt. (Today is the queen of England's birthday, and we (PNG) being part of the Commonwealth of England recognize this public holiday.) Lots of folks here have recently made quilts because one of our recent volunteers, Pattie Boyes, loved to quilt and helped everyone make a quilt. When everyone else was quilting I thought it would be nice to replace the quilt that is currently on my bed (pic on left), but I didn't want to spend every afternoon for a few months doing it. While my sister was here we were talking with Gail and she mentioned that she had made a quilt in a day. I thought, I can give a day to make a quilt.
When I told Gail I wanted to replace my queen size quilt, she wasn't sure we would get it done in one day (especially since I haven't used a sewing machine since 8th grade Home Ec, and know nothing about quilting), but we gave it a try. I picked out the fabric and pattern the other night il helped a lot. She cut squares, ironed, and pinned the next segments together for me to sew. Soon the 1x2 squares became 1x4, then 1x8, and finally 1x16 before we started joining them together. We didn't finish the whole quilt today, but we did finish the top and got the back cut out. This was apparently the piecework, and next is the quilting work to hold it all together. Hopefully one more afternoon is all I need.


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303 West Hastings St Vancouver BC
5pm-11pm 7 days a week
Anadamide (= arachidonylethanolamide)- the name is derived from the Sanskrit word ananda, "bliss"- binds to the THC receptors in the brain and is the endogenous THC analog, even though the inner structure of the two are quite different. Recently, anadamide has been discovered in chocolate and cocoa beans (Theobroma cacao) as well as in red wine (cf. Vitis vinifera) (Grotenherman 1996).
"Hansen (1994) indicated that the endogenous cannabinoid anandamide (arachidonylethanolamide) may be synthesized from n-3 fatty acid precursors, especially AA. Anandamide is a neuromodulator with presumed activity on anxiety, memory and pain mechanisms in the [Central Nervous System]. It was recently demonstrated that anandamide and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) inhibit tumor necrosis factor (TNF), a mediator of inflammation. (Cabral et al. , 1995). Caughey and colleagues (1996) were able to demonstrate that flaxseed oil supplementation also inhibited TNF.
- page. 86, Handbook of Psychtropic Herbs: A Scientific Analysis of Herbal Remedies for Psychiatric Conditions by Dr. Ethan Russo, MD (2001).
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