Alan Cohen Newsletter May 2008

How to Produce

a Classic Scene

What would you say are the three most memorable movie scenes in cinematic history? My answer would be: (1) The chariot race in Ben Hur; (2) Moses parting the Red Sea in The Ten Commandments; and (3) Meg Ryan’s faked orgasm in When Harry Met Sally.

When I recently re-viewed these classic films on DVD I watched some of the special features accompanying the films and did some research on the Internet Movie Database (imdb.com). In the process I learned some fascinating facts about these famous scenes:

(1) The Ben Hur chariot race occupied about twelve minutes of the movie, but required five weeks to shoot. The scene holds the record for film-shot-to-film-used ratio: 268:1. For every 268 feet of celluloid used to shoot the scene, only one foot of film was included in the final cut.

(2) Over 300,000 gallons of water were poured into a tank to create the special effects for The Ten Commandments Red Sea parting scene. Then the film was played in reverse to create the illusion.

(3) Although the When Harry Met Sally orgasm scene occupied but three minutes of the movie, it took an entire day to film until director Rob Reiner felt it was just right.

These facts tell me that sometimes it takes lots of tries and angles before you get something right ― but when you eventually do get what you want, the final product is awesome.

Let's take relationships, for example. Many of us have gone through a bunch of them. Some of us might be critical of ourselves for not getting it right the first (or the tenth) time. You might think there is something wrong with you for not being able to stick it out "until death do us part." Or you might think you have a faulty "picker." Or the universe suffers from lack and is unable to provide you with a sufficient supply of healthy or available partners. ("The odds are good but the goods are odd." Or, "All the good ones are taken or gay.")

Yet if you look at your relationships, or similarly your career path, as a journey rather than a destination, you can see that every experience has served to build your consciousness to the point where you can attract more and more of what you want. And if you create a relationship or career that really works, you can thank all of those that didn’t work for contributing to your learning curve toward what ultimately serves you.

So it is that greatness is built ― not overnight or in a flash, but through the steady development of skill, consciousness, and heart. If you want to produce a great scene in your life, whether it's a movie, a marriage, a business, or spiritual mastery, you may have to walk through many takes to get there. But when you do, what a scene it will be!

Alan

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My, How Times

Have Changed

During the 1980's I participated in three citizen diplomacy missions to the Soviet Union. Our goal was to build bridges of friendship and trust between the Soviet and American peoples and diffuse the fear and separation that had perpetuated the cold war. Many groups like ours made the long voyage with the same intentions, and I sincerely believe that the consciousness that was developed contributed to the end of Communism there and the inception of a new relationship between the east and west.

The country we found, although in the midst of budding glasnost, was still grey, dreary, and oppressed. I remember walking through streets below massive concrete structures with no color or artistic expression. Clothing on downtrodden pedestrians was muted and drab. Soldiers were serious and suspicious.

Fast forward about 20 years. The Soviet Union is no more, Moscow is alive with color, culture, and entrepreneurship, and celebration has replaced depression. When I received the link to the YouTube video below, I was floored.

A motley Finnish rock band, The Leningrad Cowboys, offers a spirited rendition of none other than Sweet Home Alabama. But now for the real kicker: The backup band for the Leningrad Cowboys is - hold onto your vodka glass - the Russian Army band. The scene, as the person who sent it to me described it, is "not something you could make up."

While I found this video humorous at first, I later appreciated its poignancy. To me is demonstrates that real change is possible even on planet earth; that fear and oppression can (and must) eventually give way to color and creativity; and that everyone - even staunch Russian soldiers - just wanna have fun.

Click here to watch video

Your world is as big as your vision.