high-priced gurus, whatever, etc.

went to newcastle today and visited with kristen's family. finally met grandma helen, nathan and her dad. plus: we watched some old home movies.

we ate at a "pizza and grinders" place called mancino's, which i'd never heard of before. it's apparently a small local chain. they had really good pizza and they gave out generous portions of their dipping sauces, unlike so many major chains (i'm talking about you, papa j's and little seizures!).

with our bellies full of greasy pizza and nacho cheese, we walked around the local cemetery. saw a lot of unusual names and names too real that you could not make them up. i think that if i ever decide to take fiction-writing seriously, i'll scout the cemeteries for character names. a: because they sound good and b: they already sound like good names for fictional characters: they sound real, they ring real, because they are real. they are names that belonged to real people. also: why create names to immortalize when i can give pre-existing and now-deceased people a second shot at infamy?

i've been watching a lot of russian animation and czech new wave stuff recently. i think i've found my artistic niche. i love the way every frame mirrors the blood-stuff of my soul--so loose, grotesque and so cluttered together, not unlike schizophrenic art. i feel like i'm finally starting to think for myself rather than watch things because i know they're supposed to be great--not that i didn't enjoy the stuff i watched before but i feel like i've finally stumbled upon something so close to home, so in line with the way i see the world. i've finally found a suitable filter--i'm looking at the world through the right artistic prescription and it's so gratifying.

so far i've watched:

tale of tales
hedgehog in the fog
the cameraman's revenge
winnie pooh (the russian version)

and

story of a (one) crime

in my research i also came across the work of lotte reiniger, who is notable for producing the oldest surviving cartoon, brilliant silhouettes animated against a color-shifting background. though: reiniger is german. not russian.

i'm trying to take it slow though i feel compelled to devour as much content as possible. i have to resist this urge because i want to remember and retain and absorb as much of it as i can. i burn through things too quickly and i feel like i trivialize them in the process.

i'd like to use this influence to create more nuanced art (visual and otherwise). anything i can do to enrich my fairly lackluster output thus far would be great.