From: jittlov@gumby.cs.caltech.edu (Mike Jittlov)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.mike-jittlov
Subject: WIZARD's Songs and Music
Date: 19 Nov 1992 12:00:24 GMT
Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
NNTP-Posting-Host: gumby.cs.caltech.edu

nelson@sun.soe.clarkson.edu (Russ Nelson) writes:

>What are the words to the cynical story of life in Hollywood, sung
>during Mike's first bike ride to Hollywood Studios?  Anybody have them
>transcribed?

*groan*

The cheerily-ironic Bikeride Song is but one of many things
that was meddled upon by my esteamed business partner (who
also acted as the slimey, embezzling, sociopathic producer 
in the feature).  A former samba dancer (and used-car salesman),
RKaye felt he knew the rhythms of this movie better than anyone,
and... (gads, this is making me urp-up my Budget Gourmet).

The songs were a satire, on movie-musicals that always had
singing coming out of nowhere.  In this case, my character
had an occasional chorus of psychic voices that would sing his
praises and moods - until he eventually told them to shut up.
There were heavenly choirs for the dream-bordered images, and
the psychic-touches/impressions, leading up to the finale march
(AKA, the "Mike Jittlov Praise Song" - with subtitled lyrics
all at odds with what was being sung - this WAS supposed to be
a COMEDY-spoof on exactly this kind of ego-tripping).  And it
all would have made sense.

I am the only one who knows what this film is supposed to
look and sound like.  Very little of the music is what the
film was edited and designed for.  You can see a lot of 
phantom cuts and edits that don't match the music - or if
they do, it's usually a lucky accident.

I edited the entire movie to my mental score.  Not an easy
thing.  Imagine making a music video like that, editing
all the visuals to the 24th of a frame, for a really rousing
soundtrack that exists only in your thoughts and tapping 
fingers.  And that joy is finally the only thing that is
keeping you going, slaving away without income for several
years, just knowing you're going to create something that
looks and sounds really terrific, pleasing, and right.

Now imagine doing the score for an entire feature film, with
wall-to-wall music, orchestration, and professional singers,
on a budget of just $25,000.  (Bear in mind that John Williams
had a budget of $500,000 for STAR WARS - a comparatively low-
budget movie in 1977, at $7.9 million.)

Now imagine that you have only 2.5 months to score, prep,
and orchestrate everything (Williams had half a year).

Now find out that your e.b.p. says the music budget money
doesn't seem to exist anymore, and all you have is $3000,
and he's already made a deal of some kind with a well-known
music library for their famous stock music - the same used in
Hanna-Barbera cartoons.  Because, after all, music is just
music, and you've managed to make everything else somehow
work despite every hurdle he's thrown in your path.

It's been a rough nightmare, but you can't leave, or your
e.b.p. will completely take over, somehow hire an editor,
and scream directives to recut the film and spotlight his
over-acting.  Stay with it, all your futures depend on it...

Next, imagine a song session, where you've gotten any friends
who can sing to help for free.  And then your e.b.p. visits,
tries to comandeer, and his arguments with everyone leave
your voices rasping and hoarse from the retakes.  No small
miracle we were still on key.

The Bikeride Song was supposed to be "brighter", with a 
stronger beat, to match the zing of the bike-pedalling.  In
the theatrical version, it's on the slow side.  When SGE said
they were dumping WIZARD immediately to video (pulling our
film from the theater which had patrons lined up down the block),
I was able to wrangle two nights of video console time and 
edit the film down - as well as speed up the bikeride song about
8% (increased the visuals too - oh well..), and edit in many
more minutes of music.

Both John Massari and Steve Mann (seen in the movie, holding the
boom microphone) generously gave recordings of their music, and
I was able to edit in instrumental backgrounds of some of the
songs.  The WIZARD RUN is a major music-kludging job.  

In short, the movie is far from done.  Everything you like is
wrong.  Etcetera, grumblemumblekvetchcomplain.

I'm told George Lucas feels the same about STAR WARS.

                                              ... Nahhhhhhh..

I'd STILL love to complete this movie.  It's a family trait and
motto, inextricably ingrained in the Jittlov genetic code - I
even calligraphed it on a large sign for my mother's classrooms:

   "If a job is once begun,   Never leave it `til it's done,
    Be the labor great or small,   Do it well, or not at all."

Could probably complete everything, with a good video set-up,
Toaster, synthesizer..  (dream on) 

________________________________________ ___._`.*.'_._ ________
 Mike Jittlov - Wizard, etc       .   . +  * .o   o.* `.`. +.  
  Hollywood, CA 90026-2714       '   *  . ' ' |\^/|  `. * .  *
jittlov@gumby.cs.caltech.edu  (: May All Your  \V/  Good Dreams
  <& alt.fan.mike-jittlov>    and Fine Wishes  /_\  Come True:)
============================================= _/ \_ ===========


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