Pick up the Beat

Life has been consumed by music lately. Ellysa finished recording 10 songs in Nashville with producer William Gawley and FaceSpace Music. It was an enlightening experience and one we will never forget. The studio musicians were amazing to work with and being surrounded by such talent was an inspiration.

Recording the album led to shooting a music video. We were blessed to work with Harry Jarvis out of Nashville and lots of talented people from right here in LA. More than 400 actors submitted to work on the project so it was a tough job to cast the video but we chose some amazing people in the end.

Filming began a couple of weeks ago with an afternoon of just Ellysa which segued into the evening concert performance footage. Everyone there had lots of energy and had a great time and some even went home with a custom Ellysa Rose TShirt! The concert was held at Amplyfi...if you haven't checked them out yet, you should. www.amplyfi.com ...they are all about indie artists, especially the younger ones that can't play at other venues. Their venue is all ages and alcohol free so it's a great space to see some up and coming artists. Word of advice...they don't sell tickets at the door. You must buy one online or you won't get in.

After Amplyfi, the week continued with shots at Venice Beach and Santa Monica Pier. We spent the morning and afternoon with the "younger versions" of Ellysa and her Male co-star, Matt, filming "back story" shots. It was a very nice day to be at the beach. Once we finished with the littles (as we called them) Matt and Ellysa filmed some shots at the beach and then we headed to the pier for some carnival shots and dinner.

The next few days included shooting Ellysa driving a beautiful blue Jeep Wrangler...which just happened to be a manual transmission. Did I mention Ellysa had never driven a stick before? IT was quite an adventure to say the least but she persevered and got it done! We also had some more fun with the littlest of the littles at the park.

The final big scene shooting day was the party. Again, a very fun day of shooting with some great actors, some of whom we are lucky to call friends, and a great crew. It was an extremely hot day on set but we stayed hydrated and well fed so we braved it well. Our good friend Karen was on hand to take pics (as well as at the concert) so look for an online photo album coming soon.

Filming wrapped last week and the video is now in Post Production. Ellysa and I were able to see a few seconds of the intro and it looks amazing! We are so excited to be able to share it with all of you. Once we have a release date, we will let you know! Meanwhile, we are going to enjoy a few days off and then it's back to the grindstone. Two concerts are upcoming...one at Rusty's at Santa Monica Pier and another at the Burbank Olde Time Country Fair where she is opening the fair so come out and see her!

Fondly,
A Reluctant Stage Mom

Time to GoGo...

Many of you probably know by now that my 11 year old son, Kieran, is running a crowd funding campaign on IndieGoGo to raise funds to make a music video for his sister, Ellysa. I didn't have much knowledge of IndieGoGo before this so I was surprised to find a whole array of fundraising events happening on here.  It is amazing what people are doing to make their dreams a reality.  I have always taught my kids that if you work hard and believe in yourself, you can do anything so I think it is important to support these individuals and groups as they pursue their dreams.  I am pasting some links below for some of the film category projects I came across. They are all unique and what I love is that they are doing them independently like Ellysa. You can view Ellysa's campaign on indiegogo (http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ellysa-s-first-music-video) as well as directly from her website - www.EllysaRose.com . And, if you have a chance, check out these aspiring filmmakers too! (I plan to look at the other categories and give you some other things to check out too so check back tomorrow!)

·        Social Media Stole My Kidney | Indiegogo

·        Changeover | Indiegogo

·        HUMAN SUPPLY - a New Original and Interactive Dramatic Series | Indiegogo

·        Half-Life Live Action Web Series - The Freeman Chronicles | Indiegogo

·        Facing the Mirror | Indiegogo

·        Lights Out Saga | Indiegogo

·        The Hunter's Head | Indiegogo

·        The Other One | Indiegogo

·        Altered | Indiegogo

·        From the Back of the Line | Indiegogo

·        G.B.F. - Gay Best Friend - a new feature-length comedy | Indiegogo

·        TWO DOGS | Indiegogo

·        Citizen Heroes | Indiegogo

·        Operation: Elephant Ears | Indiegogo

·        I Am Not My Body - a documentary | Indiegogo

·        Wild Horses | Indiegogo

·        North Blvd | Indiegogo

·        THIS IS NORMAL - A short film about being Deaf, being hearing, & being human | Indiegogo

·        Under Her Skin | Indiegogo

·        Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me | Indiegogo

·        WHEN MY SORROW DIED: The Legend of Armen Ra & the Theremin | Indiegogo

·       Malcolm Darrell Takes Culture Connection to the UK | Indiegogo

2013...the year of abundant blessings.

I am back...sorry for the lack of posts lately. The end of 2012 was quite busy. Ellysa graduated from high school just before we left for Michigan and Indiana for the Christmas holiday. The holidays came and went without much fanfare. Ellysa and I spent a lot of time to-ing and fro-ing to doctors and hospitals. She with kidney stones and I with a suspicious mammogram. Both have since resolved themselves but not without a lot of worry and concern first. Ellysa spent Christmas to NYE in pain but was able to get through it with just some pain meds and has started the new year off pain & kidney stone free. I, after thousands of dollars of diagnostic testing, have been given the thumbs up and told to just check back in 6 months as a precaution. Having had a dear friend just go through Breast Cancer and having lost one several years ago to the disease, it was a little too close for comfort!

Times like these can make us stronger. The give us pause and help us to reflect upon our lives. I have to say, I am a very lucky person. I have a great family, comfortable life and wonderful friends. God has blessed me in more ways than I can count and one of the biggest blessings he has given me was to lead me along this path, albeit reluctantly, to enjoy the journey with Ellysa.

Since we have been back in LA this January, so many wonderful things have happened that we have to be thankful for. First of all, Ellysa performed 4 concerts in the past two weeks (three of which were this past week!) and met lots of new fans and a few promoters, record producers and even a scout from a record label in the process. She did all of this while also taking an intensive acting class, her regular acting class, workshops, as well as a headshot session and vocal clinics. Oh, and did I mention the countless hours she devotes to volunteering as a leader with the Burbank Wyldlife youth group? She has been one busy girl!

I know some people are superstitious about the number 13 but 2013 has started out with a bang and promises to be a lucky year for us. Since the first of the year, several exciting opportunities have crossed our path which we aren't at liberty to disclose at the moment. All I can say is that God is showing us that when he gives you a gift and you fully embrace it by working hard, devoting yourself fully and having faith, he will reward you in many ways. Sorry to leave you with a bit of a teaser...we will fill you in as soon as we can...I promise. Until then, please pray that, as we come closer to choosing the right direction to take, we can clearly see the way through God's guidance. Meanwhile, here's a sneak peak at one of the photos from Ellysa's recent photo shoot. :)