# What’s LA like at the moment?



## jononotbono (Sep 20, 2020)

I’ve been wondering what LA is like at the minute. Since Covid, the world of Film, TV and Videogame music has changed dramatically (Live concerts, gigs, performances, recording sessions, working in numbers, clients not travelling, the list goes on). Who even knows if life will ever truly go back to how it was.

With that being said and done, I’m still wondering what LA is like for a film, TV or Videogame composer? Is it a case of only the rich and powerful surviving through this or is there actually a lot of work still and it’s just a new approach of remote work that is now more essential than ever before?

How are composer assistants and assistant composers dealing with all of this? Do you still have jobs? How are people finding work? I’m guessing nobody can network or meet people as nobody is going outside anymore?

I ask all this because I’ve heard a few people say it’s really bad in LA and that it’s just not worth someone hoping to work there to move there not now and not in the future. But as with everything on the internet, it’s hard to know who to listen to if I’ve never met them before. I’m also probably deluded as I’m hopeful that this will all blow over after a few pints in the Winchester 😂


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## Jeremy Gillam (Sep 20, 2020)

I can't speak to the business side -- my lack of career remains unchanged! I too am curious to hear reports on that front.

One thing I would mention is that the effects of climate change are really palpable here. Even for those not in the direct path of the fires, the smoke from them has lead to terrible air quality across California, and LA is no exception. It has cleared up right now where I am near Hollywood, but for the past week or so the sky was blanketed with smoke that blocked out the sun, and air quality readings were in the 150-200 range. I and others I talked to experienced symptoms like shortness of breath, coughing, and headaches, even following the guidance to stay inside with windows and doors closed and running an AC on recirculate mode and a portable HEPA air purifier. My apartment is old and poorly insulated, but it is concerning that the recommended precautions seemed to have so little effect. It was noticeable last year too, and only likely to get worse in the future.

One potential benefit of the pandemic for someone thinking of moving here is that there is more vacancy and rents have come down a bit, or a least stabilized. But it's still expensive!


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## Gerhard Westphalen (Sep 20, 2020)

Many of the composers I know and work with there are seemingly doing fine now. Scoring sessions are happening. Assistants working (largely from home or going into the studio later in the day). 

I think there will be a larger wave of cancelled or postponed work for composers later on from everything that was supposed to be shot now. Everything that got shot beforehand is moving forward as usual. No telling how many films got cancelled which would've created work next year or the year after that.


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## Rasoul Morteza (Sep 20, 2020)

Jeremy Gillam said:


> I can't speak to the business side -- my lack of career remains unchanged! I too am curious to hear reports on that front.
> 
> One thing I would mention is that the effects of climate change are really palpable here. Even for those not in the direct path of the fires, the smoke from them has lead to terrible air quality across California, and LA is no exception. It has cleared up right now where I am near Hollywood, but for the past week or so the sky was blanketed with smoke that blocked out the sun, and air quality readings were in the 150-200 range. I and others I talked to experienced symptoms like shortness of breath, coughing, and headaches, even following the guidance to stay inside with windows and doors closed and running an AC on recirculate mode and a portable HEPA air purifier. My apartment is old and poorly insulated, but it is concerning that the recommended precautions seemed to have so little effect. It was noticeable last year too, and only likely to get worse in the future.
> 
> One potential benefit of the pandemic for someone thinking of moving here is that there is more vacancy and rents have come down a bit, or a least stabilized. But it's still expensive!


That is disturbing, thank you for the heads up.


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## classified_the_x (Sep 20, 2020)

Jeremy Gillam said:


> I can't speak to the business side -- my lack of career remains unchanged! I too am curious to hear reports on that front.
> 
> One thing I would mention is that the effects of climate change are really palpable here. Even for those not in the direct path of the fires, the smoke from them has lead to terrible air quality across California, and LA is no exception. It has cleared up right now where I am near Hollywood, but for the past week or so the sky was blanketed with smoke that blocked out the sun, and air quality readings were in the 150-200 range. I and others I talked to experienced symptoms like shortness of breath, coughing, and headaches, even following the guidance to stay inside with windows and doors closed and running an AC on recirculate mode and a portable HEPA air purifier. My apartment is old and poorly insulated, but it is concerning that the recommended precautions seemed to have so little effect. It was noticeable last year too, and only likely to get worse in the future.
> 
> One potential benefit of the pandemic for someone thinking of moving here is that there is more vacancy and rents have come down a bit, or a least stabilized. But it's still expensive!



Seems like LA is burning. I did intend to go to LA in the near future, but it's burning right now. A job in a studio or music corporation is well, a job in one of these places, and still hard to get IMHO. Didn't you say you were in NY in one of your previous posts, OP? NY is cool for whatever you wanna do... whatever difficulty you find in NY to get a music job, you might find in LA IMO.


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## Geoff Grace (Sep 21, 2020)

Production has slowly begun resuming; but it's at the mercy of Covid-19, which as we've seen, can quickly get out of hand.

There was a moderate earthquake recently too.

Best,

Geoff


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## chillbot (Sep 21, 2020)

I'm without any work for the first time in 20 years!


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## jononotbono (Sep 21, 2020)

chillbot said:


> I'm without any work for the first time in 20 years!



Ah man, I’m sorry to hear this!


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## chillbot (Sep 21, 2020)

Do you need a composer?


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## Kent (Sep 21, 2020)

chillbot said:


> Do you need a composer?


still waiting on DYNAC merch


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## Dave Connor (Sep 21, 2020)

A film I just wrote and orchestrated for: Yes Day - Netflix, made it in just under the covid wire for composer Mike Andrews. What was interesting was the open question of whether we were going to record with orchestra or use our mockups. It ended up being the latter which was a disappointment. I’m not aware of any large orchestral dates in town but I have no idea. We’re all hoping.

A TV show I do re-records for (normally working at home studio and then pro studio) has found a way to do their work from home for the most part. So, every company that _can _manage to stay in production _is_ obviously. It’s the gathering together in large groups that‘s still verboten.


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## dylanmixer (Sep 21, 2020)

Is LA still really considered the "hub" for a working composer? Does the idea of a working composer even really exist anymore?


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## Nick Batzdorf (Sep 21, 2020)

Jeremy Gillam said:


> I can't speak to the business side -- my lack of career remains unchanged! I too am curious to hear reports on that front.
> 
> One thing I would mention is that the effects of climate change are really palpable here. Even for those not in the direct path of the fires, the smoke from them has lead to terrible air quality across California, and LA is no exception. It has cleared up right now where I am near Hollywood, but for the past week or so the sky was blanketed with smoke that blocked out the sun, and air quality readings were in the 150-200 range. I and others I talked to experienced symptoms like shortness of breath, coughing, and headaches, even following the guidance to stay inside with windows and doors closed and running an AC on recirculate mode and a portable HEPA air purifier. My apartment is old and poorly insulated, but it is concerning that the recommended precautions seemed to have so little effect. It was noticeable last year too, and only likely to get worse in the future.
> 
> One potential benefit of the pandemic for someone thinking of moving here is that there is more vacancy and rents have come down a bit, or a least stabilized. But it's still expensive!




All true, but when we're not having historic wildfires the air is way better than it used to be. We adopted catalytic converters in the '70s, and we have gas formulations that are much better.

It used to sting your eyes and hurt to breathe on smoggy days, and you could rarely see the mountains.

Climate change is going to affect most places. Siberia will be a winner, I guess.

To me the biggest deterrent to moving here is that housing is so ridiculously expensive because there's a shortage of it. If there's anything good about this pandemic it's that more people working remotely will result in commercial real estate being converted into living space, which might help with the housing shortage.


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## Stephen Limbaugh (Sep 21, 2020)

The winners are still winning. 

Others are on Redfin scanning properties in Nashville.


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## classified_the_x (Sep 21, 2020)

Stephen Limbaugh said:


> The winners are still winning.
> 
> Others are on Redfin scanning properties in Nashville.



I don't care about winners winning, I care about them making me lose tbh


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## chillbot (Sep 21, 2020)

dylanmixer said:


> Does the idea of a working composer even really exist anymore?


Curious what you mean by this... what do you call people who make their living writing music?


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## Stephen Limbaugh (Sep 21, 2020)

chillbot said:


> what do you call people who make their living writing music?



Winners! 💪🏻


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## Stephen Limbaugh (Sep 21, 2020)

Nick Batzdorf said:


> It used to sting your eyes and hurt to breathe on smoggy days, and you could rarely see the mountains.



I just heard this story while playing golf at De Bell in Burbank. The gentleman I was playing with said 35 years ago you could not _see_ _Burbank_ from the course!


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## JohnG (Sep 21, 2020)

there's tremendous uncertainty everywhere. I doubt Los Angeles has lots of problems or advantages today that differ materially from the past. The music / concert business world wide is in free fall and Los Angeles is too, on that metric.

I like that there's close to zero interest in what your parents did / do, close to zero interest in where or if you went to university, and close to zero interest in what you look like or whom you prefer as a romantic partner.

Los Angeles does, however, operate on the somewhat merciless premise that if you aren't useful, you don't exist. I don't think that's actually so different in most big cities, but it's pretty blatant here.


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## jononotbono (Sep 21, 2020)

JohnG said:


> I like that there's close to zero interest in what your parents did / do, close to zero interest in where or if you went to university, and close to zero interest in what you look like or who you prefer as a romantic partner.



All of that sounds good to me!


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## Geoff Grace (Sep 21, 2020)

I remember not being able to see more than a few car lengths ahead on the freeway. I agree, other than exceptions that happen during fire season, the air is generally much better now.

Best,

Geof


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## chillbot (Sep 21, 2020)

Stephen Limbaugh said:


> playing golf at De Bell in Burbank.


Do you regularly whip yourself as well. I can't imagine why anyone would put themselves through this by choice.


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## Stephen Limbaugh (Sep 21, 2020)

chillbot said:


> Do you regularly whip yourself as well. I can't imagine why anyone would put themselves through this by choice.



...maybe it’s preferable to some to spend 7 hours at Griffith? Not me! 😂

Ideally, I’d buy Korngold’s old property and do Lakeside.😉


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## JJP (Sep 21, 2020)

Recording is still happening here, but it's different, less frequent... and perhaps changing again with new rules. Overall work is down, and I already know some industry folk (not just music) who have left LA because they can't afford to stay. The same has happened with musicians leaving NYC. I shudder to think what may be left of the Metropolitan Opera after this is over.

Social distancing means you can fit fewer people in the studios and striping has to happen to create large ensembles. Plus the protocols for Covid slow everything down, increase costs, and some people aren't comfortable taking any risk of transmission of the disease. At least on union jobs people know that there will be enforcement of safety protocols. Some people don't want to go near non-union jobs because there are no guarantees safety protocols will be adhered. It all makes people question whether the reduction of quality made by striping plus the added difficulties are worth doing big ensembles for their project.

There were some initial thoughts that everyone could record from home and send in their parts. A few films and TV shows have done that. Almost all of late-night TV has been doing that. Some composers saw this as a dream come true, but most experienced people know that the results are of lower quality even with the best people and tools. Sure enough, for soundtracks to be played in big theaters the limitations became apparent.

I had a video chat a few days ago with some music editor friends in LA, NYC, and London. A London friend had a composer who really wanted to record a large orchestra without striping. They went to the Synchron Stage in Vienna because the room was large enough to allow the necessary distance between musicians.

In retrospect the editor and mixer didn't feel the trip was worth the money. There was so much space between the musicians that it caused problems with the large ensemble. It was extremely hard for some sections of the orchestra to play tightly in time. They were telling people to tacet parts because they were phasing with people so far away across the giant room. I joked that it reminded me of marching band problems, and he said that was exactly what it was like.

Then there was the issue of the mic tree. One would think that when you spread people out raising the tree would be the best solution. Instead they were finding that while it balances a bit better, the sound gets too diffuse. The better solution seems to be lowering the tree in some instances. Then another colleague piped up and said, "Yeah, but I've been getting stems recorded that way and you lose the inner string voices."

So things are happening, but is reduced and there are lots of tradeoffs. I saw a halt in my animation work earlier in the year as everything was being sorted to the new protocols, then a bounce as things that were previously stuck in the pipeline starting moving again. Now it's slowed again because there's not much new production. I think a lot of people are or may soon be hitting the point of running out of work that was already in the production pipeline.

I'm hearing of shooting schedules and productions being pushed or cancelled because of problems getting production insurance. Some insurers are even refusing to write policies for some productions. Other productions are trying to get crews and musicians to sign wavers. (Uh, no!) Meanwhile some live TV shows are back in the studio without audiences because they have smaller bands and crews, but it's still being worked out on a show-by-show basis.

Overall work is light or or has stopped for a lot of people. There is a sense that it will come back in spades whenever we get through Covid. The question is whether people have the resources to hold out until that unknown time in a city where real estate is still ludicrously expensive.


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## whinecellar (Sep 21, 2020)

Stephen Limbaugh said:


> The winners are still winning.
> 
> Others are on Redfin scanning properties in Nashville.



Don’t bother - we’re all filled up here. And it’s hot and humid half the year. You’d hate it. 😁


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## jmauz (Sep 21, 2020)

I started building a new home studio when Covid hit and thankfully that's kept me busy as I haven't had much work. I've scored 2 commercials and written maybe a dozen cues over the past 6 months. Thank goodness for royalties and a wife with a great day gig!

P.S. Construction projects are a nightmare during a pandemic and record-breaking wildfires. Not recommended. 

P.P.S The earthquake we had a few nights ago wasn't anything worth mentioning. A good rule of thumb is to ignore the fear-mongering news unless it's at least a 5.5 on the richter scale.


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## Geoff Grace (Sep 21, 2020)

jmauz said:


> P.P.S The earthquake we had a few nights ago wasn't anything worth mentioning. A good rule of thumb is to ignore the fear-mongering news unless it's at least a 5.5 on the richter scale.


In and of itself, I agree that the earthquake wasn't worth mentioning. I also agree that the media often sensationalizes disasters. I only brought the recent quake up as a reminder to factor that in when considering a move to LA.

The big one hasn't hit yet; but speaking as someone who lived in the valley during the Northridge earthquake, that one alone was bad enough. Thankfully, it happened in the middle of the night when the shopping mall it flattened was closed. I shudder to think how different the outcome would have been if it had happened in the middle of the day, a month earlier during the peak of Christmas shopping. As it was, the main loss was in property damage, which was considerable.

A Northridge friend of ours got trapped in her apartment as water from a broken pipe filled it up. She was rescued before she drowned, but she was so traumatized that she fled LA never to return. As renters in Burbank, we only had $1,000 or so worth of property damage; but our landlords had to replace the fence that fell apart. A few nights after the quake, I had to rush to the studio I worked at to help rescue gear in Studio B as rain streamed on the SSL through the crack of the roof; but I digress...

The bottom line is that it's a real threat. Most of the time, it's not a problem—until it is.

Best,

Geoff


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## JJP (Sep 21, 2020)

jmauz said:


> I started building a new home studio when Covid hit and thankfully that's kept me busy as I haven't had much work.



I did the exact opposite. When the pandemic hit and work took a nosedive I decided to wait and see where we were after this was over. It was disappointing, but seemed live the prudent move given the amount of money we were sinking into it.


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## JohnG (Sep 22, 2020)

nobody knows what's going to happen, but maybe it's a good time for musicians to hold on to savings.


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## Babaghanoush (Sep 22, 2020)

JohnG said:


> nobody knows what's going to happen, but maybe it's a good time for musicians to hold on to savings.



ALWAYS a good idea and not just for musicians.


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## christianobermaier (Sep 22, 2020)

Savings. Yeah, I've heard of these....I wonder what they are.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Sep 22, 2020)

JohnG said:


> nobody knows what's going to happen, but maybe it's a good time for musicians to hold on to savings.



Perennial comment.

But there's also the paradox of thrift - if everyone does that, everyone suffers.


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## dzilizzi (Sep 22, 2020)

jmauz said:


> The earthquake we had a few nights ago wasn't anything worth mentioning. A good rule of thumb is to ignore the fear-mongering news unless it's at least a 5.5 on the richter scale.


You're wrong. It was a BIG earthquake. Yes, very very BIG. 

I remember how many people left after the Northridge quake. I could actually drive on the 405 again. It was nice. 

Was there a recent earthquake?


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## Nick Batzdorf (Sep 22, 2020)

We ate 5.X aftershocks for breakfast after the Northridge earthquake.

A 4.X doesn't typically do any damage, and more importantly it's unlikely to kill anyone. What it does do is scare the bejesus out of one's wife.


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## Geoff Grace (Sep 22, 2020)

dzilizzi said:


> I remember how many people left after the Northridge quake. I could actually drive on the 405 again. It was nice.


The upside for me was a trip to New York to work for Michael Jackson, who left LA for a year or two after the quake. I remember that _Mix_ magazine credited MJ for single-handedly lifting the New York studio scene out of a slump during that period. He booked most of Hit Factory and all of Sony.

Every cloud has a silver lining...

Best,

Geoff


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## Dave Connor (Sep 22, 2020)

Nick Batzdorf said:


> We ate 5.X aftershocks for breakfast after the Northridge earthquake.
> 
> A 4.X doesn't typically do any damage, and more importantly it's unlikely to kill anyone. What it does do is scare the bejesus out of one's wife.


I was renting the bottom floor of a nice house in the hills of Tarzana CA. Meaning behind my bedroom wall was earth. This place was literally in the ground. When the quake hit it came roaring on with the sound of a freight train. The vibrations, cross vibrations, side bands at every kind of frequency were all happening at once and gaining. I remember marveling at the tightness of the frequencies and that such a thing existed in nature. Truly frightening. I gathered myself out of bed and bolted outside, standing bent over, winded and in shock.

It’s called the Northridge Quake. What most people don’t know is that the true epicenter was later pinpointed and moved south, a mile from where I lived. On my cross street Reseda Blvd. Never had any trouble believing that last bit.


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## dzilizzi (Sep 22, 2020)

Dave Connor said:


> I was renting the bottom floor of a nice house in the hills of Tarzana CA. Meaning behind my bedroom wall was earth. This place was literally in the ground. When the quake hit it came roaring on with the sound of a freight train. The vibrations, cross vibrations, side bands at every kind of frequency were all happening at once and gaining. I remember marveling at the tightness of the frequencies and that such a thing existed in nature. Truly frightening. I gathered myself out of bed and bolted outside, standing bent over, winded and in shock.
> 
> It’s called the Northridge Quake. What most people don’t know is that the true epicenter was later pinpointed and moved south, a mile from where I lived. On my cross street Reseda Blvd. Never had any trouble believing that last bit.


I was living in a pool house also in Tarzana. I slept through most of the initial quake, but I do admit I was feeling a little seasick during the next 24 hours. The aftershocks seemed like they were 20 minutes apart. 

If I remember correctly, it was on a thrust fault rather than a transform (sliding) fault. They tend to have a different feel and the vibrations are more boom then up and down than a building shakey motion.


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## Geoff Grace (Sep 22, 2020)

Dave Connor said:


> It’s called the Northridge Quake. What most people don’t know is that the true epicenter was later pinpointed and moved south, a mile from where I lived. On my cross street Reseda Blvd. Never had any trouble believing that last bit.


Yeah, if you call it the Reseda quake, few people will know what you're talking about.

As for the exodus that happened, the quake came on the heels of the Rodney King riots and a spate of fires and floods. I remember people being air lifted off of the tops of their submerged cars on Burbank Blvd. Oh, and let's not forget the freeway shootings.

It wasn't a hospitable period to live in LA. Remember those "Welcome to California, now go home" bumper stickers?

Best,

Geoff


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## Mike Fox (Sep 22, 2020)

SO many people from Cali are moving here to Salt Lake, and it's really driving up home prices at a rapid rate. 

There used to be a ton of really nice homes for around $350K. Those homes are now 500K. It'll continue to rise. 

Obviously it's not just Californians flocking here. People from New York and Nevada are also coming in droves, especially since thousands of people from Vegas have lost their jobs due to the covid situation. 

It also doesn't help that Amazon, Adobe, Facebook, eBay, etc., are here. People are predicting Salt Lake to be the next Silicon Valley. 

It's also kinda funny when i tell people from Cali that we're sitting on a major fault line that's long over due for total destruction. 

...just when they thought they were safe from earthquakes.


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## dzilizzi (Sep 22, 2020)

Other than Alaska, the biggest quakes in the continental US have occurred along the New Madrid fault (Missouri along the Mississippi River), though the last big one was in 1812. It was felt all the way to NYC. 

I always think it is funny people move to the Midwest to get away from quakes.


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## Wally Garten (Sep 22, 2020)

JohnG said:


> I like that there's close to zero interest in what your parents did / do, close to zero interest in where or if you went to university, and close to zero interest in what you look like or who you prefer as a romantic partner.



Different take: in my experience, L.A. is _much_ more looksist than many other places. If you don't have above-average looks and dress with above-average flair/fashion sense, it's very hard to get people to take you seriously, at least in certain environments. (I don't know if this includes in composing, but it definitely applies in most other parts of the film/TV industry.)


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## José Herring (Sep 22, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> Different take: in my experience, L.A. is _much_ more looksist than many other places. If you don't have above-average looks and dress with above-average flair/fashion sense, it's very hard to get people to take you seriously, at least in certain environments. (I don't know if this includes in composing, but it definitely applies in most other parts of the film/TV industry.)


I don't think it's too unreasonable to dress well, keep yourself up and try and look the best you can. It's just professional to do so. 

Problem with LA is the most people dress like slobs. So putting on a clean shirt that isn't 10 years old, some good casual slacks and combing your hair with a fresh haircut gets noticed. It's actually unfortunate really.

It's worse in other cities. I arrived in Rochester NY looking all LA a while back. Bushy hair, t-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes staying at a nice hotel. Nobody even paid one bit of attention to me. I realized that my west coast look wasn't going to fly on the east coast so I cut my hair and changed into more upscale clothing, kind of revived my look that I used when I lived in NYC. After that strangers were falling over themselves to find out what I did for a living and were I worked, ect.. It was interesting. I thought people in LA were more uptight about that shit, but nah, the east coast is way more business oriented and if you don't look the part you're nobody.


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## Stephen Limbaugh (Sep 22, 2020)

Dave Connor said:


> The vibrations, cross vibrations, side bands at every kind of frequency were all happening at once and gaining. I remember marveling at the tightness of the frequencies and that such a thing existed in nature.



lol... near death experience and the composer/sound engineer is marveling at the sound frequencies.


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## gsilbers (Sep 22, 2020)

Everyone is waiting for that real estate to come down. half a million for a 500sq/ft shack for a decade now its getting poeple crazy.

but peeps keep graduating film school and music school and pack their bags to find oportunitioes in LA.
amd somehow paying rent and bills.

it be great If LA had a relocation program that would work with other states and cities im sure someone who bought a house for $330k around 2009 or before and can now sell it for $800-1.5mill can easily buy a new house in any other state for $330k, and open a different type of business.

anyways, im also part of different FB groups for filmmakers and they are also slow. A lot of talk about covid lead production consultant to oversee everyone is doing the proper rules to not catch it.
Yet, every big studio might be very reluctant to go too fast and later get sued but someones family member who died catching covid in a shoot.


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## Shad0wLandsUK (Sep 22, 2020)

José Herring said:


> I don't think it's too unreasonable to dress well, keep yourself up and try and look the best you can. It's just professional to do so.
> 
> Problem with LA is the most people dress like slobs. So putting on a clean shirt that isn't 10 years old, some good casual slacks and combing your hair with a fresh haircut gets noticed. It's actually unfortunate really.
> 
> It's worse in other cities. I arrived in Rochester NY looking all LA a while back. Bushy hair, t-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes staying at a nice hotel. Nobody even paid one bit of attention to me. I realized that my west coast look wasn't going to fly on the east coast so I cut my hair and changed into more upscale clothing, kind of revived my look that I used when I lived in NYC. After that strangers were falling over themselves to find out what I did for a living and were I worked, ect.. It was interesting. I thought people in LA were more uptight about that shit, but nah, the east coast is way more business oriented and if you don't look the part you're nobody.


I do think there is something to be said to that. If you don't take yourself seriously, it cannot be expect that others would take you seriously either. Now in some cases people are taking themselves seriously, but they are dressing like they are in College or just left home. I do see the importance in that myself, since I been take myself differently when I wear a suit and tie.

As a member of my Church, some people say dressing this way is too much, but more than anything is about presentation and respect for the environment you are in. You don't have to go full suit, but as said here, making the effort to be presentable and wear newer clothes is certainly advisable.

Companies won't hire based on this premise either. I know it applies in the field of IT, especially at the interview stage.


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## gsilbers (Sep 22, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> Different take: in my experience, L.A. is _much_ more looksist than many other places. If you don't have above-average looks and dress with above-average flair/fashion sense, it's very hard to get people to take you seriously, at least in certain environments. (I don't know if this includes in composing, but it definitely applies in most other parts of the film/TV industry.)



that explain Brian tyler 

that guy is made for magazine fashion cover.


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## Wally Garten (Sep 22, 2020)

José Herring said:


> Problem with LA is the most people dress like slobs.



Holy cow, that is just not my experience at all. My experience is that people in L.A. are not dressed like slobs at all, compared to other cities I've lived in. Instead, even where the dress code is casual, people are dressed "pretend casual," where it's _extremely important_ to have the right kind of "casual" shirt or slacks, the right all-organic-fiber fair-trade sneakers, and an expensive haircut. 

YMMV, of course.


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## gsilbers (Sep 22, 2020)

jmauz said:


> P.P.S The earthquake we had a few nights ago wasn't anything worth mentioning. A good rule of thumb is to ignore the fear-mongering news unless it's at least a 5.5 on the richter scale.




LA has a wierd collective memory about history. I always was curious why the 110 arroyo and the LA river was so big for such a small stream and made entirley from cement. And its due to some pretty nasty rains that fall every decade or two. googling some history and it was amazing to see the mountain slides in altadena and san gabriel mountains that killed folks. 
No one seems to care anymore. its about fires now. 

but earthquake is similar. everyone is afraid of the big one that strikes every 100 years aso and we are overdo etc etc but rarely do anything about it except not build taller family buildings that would help with housing prices and public transportation.. and yet, so many of the small building are not retrofitted. 
just standing in a parking lot of a 4 story building in any west LA city and its obvious its going down like in northridge. how in the hell does anyone think 3 metal poles will be able to resist a medium prolonged earthquake?! 

for a chilean its 7 and above is when its time to worry. but they have 6 and above all the time and you should google the videos about chileans in an earthquake... those guys barely move or do anything.
its just one more ... every few months they get one. so its funny to see a chilean reaction vs foreigners in the same place.


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## Traz (Sep 22, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> Holy cow, that is just not my experience at all. My experience is that people in L.A. are not dressed like slobs at all, compared to other cities I've lived in. Instead, even where the dress code is casual, people are dressed "pretend casual," where it's _extremely important_ to have the right kind of "casual" shirt or slacks, the right all-organic-fiber fair-trade sneakers, and an expensive haircut.
> 
> YMMV, of course.


I've lived here all my life and I don't know what part of LA you're talking about. (jk)

Also, I'm guilty of dressing like a slob 99% of the time.. 

I recently realized, when my band went on tour late last year through the south and east coast, that those of us from LA definitely have a 'look' that stands out to other people outside of California.
Definitely got a lot of nasty looks and attitudes, and I would definitely say we looked a bit more grungier than everyone else.

Good times though!


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## Stephen Limbaugh (Sep 22, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> that explain Brian tyler
> 
> that guy is made for magazine fashion cover.



.... if it was 1998 and Limp Bizkit is topping the charts with cover songs. 😆


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## gsilbers (Sep 22, 2020)

Traz said:


> I've lived here all my life and I don't know what part of LA you're talking about. (jk)
> 
> Also, I'm guilty of dressing like a slob 99% of the time..
> 
> ...



google "vanderpump rules" thats basically what jose is talking about. 

santa monica, venice, west la, beverly hills.

its the same as i mentioned with brian tyler. check his intagram.

its $300 white t shirts with a red logo saying supreme. along with broken $500 jeans.
and special nike shoes ranging from $300-1000 a pair. and rarley repeat using the same pair.
and latest smartphone and a very fancy car.
have a scruffy look hair and beard but still have paid $100+ for the highligths etc.
have expensive watches or apple watch. and jewels. and maybe a sport coat thats also $600+ to put over that supreme white shirt and skinny trashed jeans.
yes its "grungy" but also expensive and somewhat specific. and most likley bought in one of the many boutique stores in west LA. 


thats what producers are also wearing in that area where all streaming companies and prodcution houses in west LA are wearing. therefore, fake till you make it does apply but have to figure out the correct "dressed down" wordrobe. lol.

more towards the east and the valley is more regular grungy.


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## gsilbers (Sep 22, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> Holy cow, that is just not my experience at all. My experience is that people in L.A. are not dressed like slobs at all, compared to other cities I've lived in. Instead, even where the dress code is casual, people are dressed "pretend casual," where it's _extremely important_ to have the right kind of "casual" shirt or slacks, the right all-organic-fiber fair-trade sneakers, and an expensive haircut.
> 
> YMMV, of course.




ha.. i like pretend casual .


but yeah.. thats specific to certain areas. sometimes poeple dont realize "LA" is a collection of 23 cities or more. and east LA or el sereno is very different to westwood and compton.

everyone in the entertinament biz rather be in the west, west side. santa monica, venice , mar vista etc.
or burbank/studio city.
those are some very very very expensive to live in. being a composer there must be so nerve inducing having to rely on "gigs" to pay those mortages or rent plus other bills. plus studio rent if renting a place. 
except for the big boys at remote contorl of course.


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## Greg (Sep 22, 2020)

Came for the jobs, didn't really find any good ones. But I did find the Sierras and that made it 100000% worth it.


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## Wally Garten (Sep 22, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> thats specific to certain areas. sometimes poeple dont realize "LA" is a collection of 23 cities or more



Yeah, that's totally fair. And certain businesses, too!


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## Rex282 (Sep 22, 2020)

The 9-18 quake.... a wake up shaker
The dress code ...who gives a fuck....shorts t shirt flip flops Bed head
The rent ....bring gold or know someone kind..hehe
The gigs....when Covid clears up..a flood of backlog
The girls....oooo Lala!!!


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## classified_the_x (Sep 22, 2020)

real estate is much more expensive in NYC... I don't even live there but I've been into the business.

you like to hype LA. It's like I'm living in a fancy condo in my city and that makes me a star, when in reality, it doesn't... if I was in California I'd look into a coastal city or Palo Alto or something... don't know it that well, but it's not jaw dropping prices like NY


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## gsilbers (Sep 22, 2020)

classified_the_x said:


> real estate is much more expensive in NYC... I don't even live there but I've been into the business.
> 
> you like to hype LA. It's like I'm living in a fancy condo in my city and that makes me a star, when in reality, it doesn't... if I was in California I'd look into a coastal city or Palo Alto or something... don't know it that well, but it's not jaw dropping prices like NY



After the housing crash there was little development in big cities in general so now any big city has become unbearable price wise. 
Nyc is just more dense and square feet is more valuable. Or basically get less for the price. 
Price wise is about the same but depends 
Median Rent for a 1BR Apartment: Expensive Either Way

New York City: $2,550
Los Angeles: $2,444
Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment is only $106 per month higher in NYC than it is in Los Angeles, according to Zillow. Neither city is at all cheap, but they’re pretty comparable.


Having lived in nyc I’d say it’s not the price but how crappy those apt are. It’s next level reality. It’s candid camera type scenario you can’t be thinking the bathroom in an apt is the closet of the kitchen and the shower in the living room.


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## classified_the_x (Sep 22, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> After the housing crash there was little development in big cities in general so now any big city has become unbearable price wise.
> Nyc is just more dense and square feet is more valuable. Or basically get less for the price.
> Price wise is about the same but depends
> Median Rent for a 1BR Apartment: Expensive Either Way
> ...



I guess rent is expensive... houses are always cheaper too, so I had the impression that houses in LA were cheaper than NY. With Covid prices been falling in both places, but I'm talking about peak prices... It was unbearable to buy anything in NYC 6 months ago...read an article today stating that NY is in a depression, and Texas for instance, is not... prices are spiralling down in NY atm

candid camera comment is gold


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## jononotbono (Sep 22, 2020)

JohnG said:


> nobody knows what's going to happen, but maybe it's a good time for musicians to hold on to savings.



Musicians have savings? That’s awesome humour man! 😂


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## Dave Connor (Sep 22, 2020)

Stephen Limbaugh said:


> lol... near death experience and the composer/sound engineer is marveling at the sound frequencies.


Laughed pretty hard at this.


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## jmauz (Sep 22, 2020)

Nick Batzdorf said:


> What it does do is scare the bejesus out of one's wife.



HAH! This is EXACTLY what happened the other night. She ran out of the bedroom all freaked out, I laughed at her, she flipped me off and went back to bed. 

True love.


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## jononotbono (Sep 22, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> Different take: in my experience, L.A. is _much_ more looksist than many other places. If you don't have above-average looks and dress with above-average flair/fashion sense, it's very hard to get people to take you seriously, at least in certain environments. (I don't know if this includes in composing, but it definitely applies in most other parts of the film/TV industry.)



So do successful LA based composers go to Botox clinics and get ass implants? Just trying to gauge the place.


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## José Herring (Sep 22, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> Holy cow, that is just not my experience at all. My experience is that people in L.A. are not dressed like slobs at all, compared to other cities I've lived in. Instead, even where the dress code is casual, people are dressed "pretend casual," where it's _extremely important_ to have the right kind of "casual" shirt or slacks, the right all-organic-fiber fair-trade sneakers, and an expensive haircut.
> 
> YMMV, of course.


Have you ever taken the subway in LA? Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. Not hanging in Beverly Hills. Get down with the real people of LA. So I found that anything you do that distinguishes you from the masses, is a good thing.


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## Wally Garten (Sep 22, 2020)

jononotbono said:


> So do successful LA based composers go to Botox clinics and get ass implants? Just trying to gauge the place.



I mean... couldn't hurt.


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## Jeremy Gillam (Sep 23, 2020)

jononotbono said:


> So do successful LA based composers go to Botox clinics and get ass implants? Just trying to gauge the place.


I know you're joking, but it wouldn't surprise me if our womxn colleagues feel a lot of pressure to conform to "LA beauty standards." Which is something I hate about this town.



José Herring said:


> Have you ever taken the subway in LA? Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. Not hanging in Beverly Hills. Get down with the real people of LA. So I found that anything you do that distinguishes you from the masses, is a good thing.



A ride on the subway (which I sometimes take and is great if it takes you where you're trying to go), or better yet a trip to Dodger Stadium, are wonderful reminders that LA is much more than a show business city.


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## José Herring (Sep 23, 2020)

Jeremy Gillam said:


> I know you're joking, but it wouldn't surprise me if our womxn colleagues feel a lot of pressure to conform to "LA beauty standards." Which is something I hate about this town.
> 
> 
> 
> A ride on the subway (which I sometimes take and is great if it takes you where you're trying to go), or better yet a trip to Dodger Stadium, are wonderful reminders that LA is much more than a show business city.


Coming from NYC. I actually love the subway here. But that makes me a commoner. 

Truth, I wish this place had better public transportation. I'd be taking it all the time.


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## ryst (Sep 23, 2020)

This is the first year of living in LA that I thought about moving. I've been here since 2010 but man, 2020 just made me re-think everything. And it has nothing to do with work. In fact, I'm busier than ever. I just don't know what the future holds for this town. I'm not at all optimistic that we will ever actually get out of this current pandemic. I can see a lot of the covid restrictions becoming permanent. 

I also don't see housing prices ever going down. In fact, rent only went down a little when they somewhat extended the eviction protections. Rent will start going back up soon, I would bet. 

But hey, at least I can still poop on the sidewalk and feel normal for just a little bit.


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## gsilbers (Sep 23, 2020)

ryst said:


> This is the first year of living in LA that I thought about moving. I've been here since 2010 but man, 2020 just made me re-think everything. And it has nothing to do with work. In fact, I'm busier than ever. I just don't know what the future holds for this town. I'm not at all optimistic that we will ever actually get out of this current pandemic. I can see a lot of the covid restrictions becoming permanent.
> 
> I also don't see housing prices ever going down. In fact, rent only went down a little when they somewhat extended the eviction protections. Rent will start going back up soon, I would bet.
> 
> But hey, at least I can still poop on the sidewalk and feel normal for just a little bit.



The virus situation will definitely get better. Might take a little longer after a vaccine. So maybe July 2021-dec2021.

But yeah, the housing prices defenitly will not get better. Simply because there is no more space and people in LA have a long standing history of complaining about housing and traffic yet no one wants taller buildings or buy an apt instead of house like the rest of worlds cities.

There will be a backlog of work. A lot of productions are on hold. 
Maybe a few shows will get canceled and a few more get started.

Maybe this pandemic will help everyone see that there should be a reset button on society where one dude has two billion dollars but all his hundred thousand workers cannot skip work if they feel sick becuase there is no time off and can not pay rent. 
And in the entertainment business see a way to unionize or have a better way to deal with so many people be i employees for so long.

If you have the connections and you can work from home/studio then I’d say jump town. Paying rent in salt lake or any other town but getting paid la money is neat


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## Karl Feuerstake (Sep 23, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> After the housing crash there was little development in big cities in general so now any big city has become unbearable price wise.
> Nyc is just more dense and square feet is more valuable. Or basically get less for the price.
> Price wise is about the same but depends
> Median Rent for a 1BR Apartment: Expensive Either Way
> ...



I was able to locate various apartments in decent locations in LA for $800-1000 a month just searching a few days ago, which looked pretty nice on the inside - and are a far cry from $2,400. Did I find some bad information here? Seems a rather stark price difference!


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## InLight-Tone (Sep 23, 2020)

jononotbono said:


> Musicians have savings? That’s awesome humour man! 😂


Bust that stereotype Bono!


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## Altauria (Sep 23, 2020)

Karl Feuerstake said:


> I was able to locate various apartments in decent locations in LA for $800-1000 a month just searching a few days ago, which looked pretty nice on the inside - and are a far cry from $2,400. Did I find some bad information here? Seems a rather stark price difference!



Best-case scenario they're most likely just (small) rooms, in a multi-bedroom apartment. Even that's surprisingly low, however rent seems to have _slightly_ decreased lately.


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## gsilbers (Sep 23, 2020)

Karl Feuerstake said:


> I was able to locate various apartments in decent locations in LA for $800-1000 a month just searching a few days ago, which looked pretty nice on the inside - and are a far cry from $2,400. Did I find some bad information here? Seems a rather stark price difference!



The average outside the hot zones are about $1100.

But around Venice, mar vista Santa Monica Burbank near Disney, then that’s more like 2000 for a decent place. 

LA is like 20-40 cities depending on how u count them. Living in el sereno will be about $600-800 but the school system will be 1 out of 10 in the National school rate. And petty crime will be an issue. And everyone will speak Spanish.

Finding a place is only Half the story. Commute is the other half. Cool that u can find a $1k place but will a 1hr commute one way and 1.5 back be a deal breaker? 
In la the places where there is entertainment work is the same places costing $2k a month. 
Of course every situation is different and u could find a deal and a place to work that’s nearby. But just looking at a traffic map it’s easy to see how everyone goes west in the morning and East/south/valley in the afternoon. 
Basically los angles turned into an entertainment Mecca and city officials where fine with all the work being in the Santa Monica/Culver City area, not build public transport and not raise buildings floors in the zone it needs it.


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## Wally Garten (Sep 23, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> The average outside the hot zones are about $1100.
> 
> But around Venice, mar vista Santa Monica Burbank near Disney, then that’s more like 2000 for a decent place.
> 
> ...



Yeah -- anything close to the west side (Santa Monica, Culver, Century City) is gonna be expensive. In entertainment maybe the best you can do is working at one of the studios in the Valley and living in Glendale/Highland Park, or maybe further out the Valley.

You could also work at Paramount and live in some of the grungier parts of Hollywood/East Hollywood. It wouldn't be my first choice.

But realistically, this is why so many people live with roommates/family in L.A. 2 or 3 bedrooms is much less expensive per person. So it's easier to get close to work plus live in a pleasant-ish neighborhood.


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## jononotbono (Sep 23, 2020)

I've recently got healthcare out here as well. Needless to say, paying over $900 a month is making me feel a little ill. Rent for me is currently about $1000. It's a dump but I guess my Green Screens make it feel a little more homely. 

Are many people here that live in LA without Healthcare? It's a huge chunk of change for a nobody like me!


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## JohnG (Sep 23, 2020)

jononotbono said:


> So do successful LA based composers go to Botox clinics and get ass implants? Just trying to gauge the place.



Duh.

Before:






After:


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## jononotbono (Sep 23, 2020)

JohnG said:


> Duh.
> 
> Before:
> 
> ...



Looking good man! It’s a bit of catch 22 isn’t it! The best lunchtime surgery is in LA but you have to be able to afford LA to get the work done.

Life is tricky.

I just spent my last few bucks on a new family friendly Covid facemask so the surgery fund will have to wait temporarily. Perhaps wearing it will make people mistake me for someone famous and important instead 😂


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## gsilbers (Sep 23, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> Yeah -- anything close to the west side (Santa Monica, Culver, Century City) is gonna be expensive. In entertainment maybe the best you can do is working at one of the studios in the Valley and living in Glendale/Highland Park, or maybe further out the Valley.
> 
> You could also work at Paramount and live in some of the grungier parts of Hollywood/East Hollywood. It wouldn't be my first choice.
> 
> But realistically, this is why so many people live with roommates/family in L.A. 2 or 3 bedrooms is much less expensive per person. So it's easier to get close to work plus live in a pleasant-ish neighborhood.



Yep.. pasadena commute to fox lot for 5 years over here :/


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## jononotbono (Sep 23, 2020)

ka00 said:


> Wow. Maybe the grass is always greener elsewhere, but *this* beautiful place you're from could also house those green screens of yours. And then maybe you can take over the composing world remotely? And would health care not be free over there? Sorry, I know nothing about your life, but $900 a month for healthcare sounds dystopian to me.
> 
> PS: again, none of my business. I mean no offence offering my unsolicited comments.



You have caused no offence at all.

I'm too far down the weird Rabbit/Black/K hole to consider going back to the Shire at this point. It's like falling up the stairs with a Cup of Tea in your hand. There's no point in fighting it. You just have to fall into the situation and embrace it.


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## Kent (Sep 23, 2020)

jononotbono said:


> You have caused no offence at all.
> 
> I'm too far down the weird Rabbit/Black/K hole to consider going back to the Shire at this point. It's like falling up the stairs with a Cup of Tea in your hand. There's no point in fighting it. You just have to fall into the situation and embrace it.


What is tea


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## PuerAzaelis (Sep 23, 2020)

kmaster said:


> What is tea


I think it's like beer.


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## jononotbono (Sep 23, 2020)

kmaster said:


> What is tea



The source of life.

I am an expert Coffee Drinker now though. Even got given one of those Keurig machines so I can always be buzzing!


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## Traz (Sep 23, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> Finding a place is only Half the story. Commute is the other half.


I technically live fairly close to Hollywood. When I had to drive there everyday, If I left at about 5am I could get there in 30-35 min. If I left any later than that it could take me up to 2 hours. A few times it took 3 hours...


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## Nick Batzdorf (Sep 23, 2020)

jononotbono said:


> So do successful LA based composers go to Botox clinics and get ass implants? Just trying to gauge the place.



That's preposterass.

We go to ass implant clinics for that. And it's not just successful composers.


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## Kent (Sep 23, 2020)

Nick Batzdorf said:


> That's preposterass.
> 
> We go to ass implant clinics for that. And it's not just successful composers.


it helps when you're sitting in the same chair 15 hours a day 7 days a week


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## jononotbono (Sep 23, 2020)

kmaster said:


> it helps when you're sitting in the same chair 15 hours a day 7 days a week



This is true!

It's probably not time to go into Anal Bleaching yet but that's definitely an LA thing nobody talks about publicly. 

I better get back to today's MIDI massaging.


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## gsilbers (Sep 23, 2020)

Traz said:


> I technically live fairly close to Hollywood. When I had to drive there everyday, If I left at about 5am I could get there in 30-35 min. If I left any later than that it could take me up to 2 hours. A few times it took 3 hours...



lol.. same here! the cutoff time was exactly 5:23am having passed downtown to be able to make it at 1hr mark. a few minutes later would add about 15-30 min to the commute. 
it makes no sense why exactly that specific time... after a few years i got it to that exact number for any day of the week.


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## Wally Garten (Sep 23, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> Yep.. pasadena commute to fox lot for 5 years over here :/



Oof.


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## JohnG (Sep 23, 2020)

Also, why in Los Angeles, of all places, does anyone need this:


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## ALittleNightMusic (Sep 23, 2020)

JohnG said:


> Also, why in Los Angeles, of all places, does anyone need this:



Because you can’t let June Gloom dampen your tan.


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## ryst (Sep 23, 2020)

gsilbers said:


> The virus situation will definitely get better. Might take a little longer after a vaccine. So maybe July 2021-dec2021.
> 
> But yeah, the housing prices defenitly will not get better. Simply because there is no more space and people in LA have a long standing history of complaining about housing and traffic yet no one wants taller buildings or buy an apt instead of house like the rest of worlds cities.
> 
> ...




I will admit, I was unseasonably negative in my last post. And it really had nothing to do with LA. Although I certainly don't share your outlook on the virus. 

I'm very lucky to be able to work from home in a good location between Santa Monica Blvd and Melrose Ave. We've been in the same spot since 2010 so our rent is at least $500 less than comparable most places in my area. So I'm actually really happy being here. I don't see moving out anytime soon because every year things improve for my wife and I financially and in more money made and more money saved. I really just need to keep the negative demons away right now.


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## jononotbono (Sep 24, 2020)

ryst said:


> I really just need to keep the negative demons away right now.



Yes, stay away from negative demons. Perhaps this post will help. Spent all night making a thumbnail image instead of doing the actual video!


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