I mean, it’s an honor, is what it is. This is it! I feel good. I do. To be honest, I’ve been offered to do this kind of work before but I really just wasn’t ready for it. You know, a lot of brains out there jump into this sort of work early on because it’s exciting and you hear so much about it, but I think doing it too early can be troublesome for your career. Those are the kind of brains that reach their peak of popularity in high school or early on and then just kind of fall off the radar afterward. But, hey, I’m not gonna sit here and talk shit. That’s not what I’m paid to do. I’m gonna embrace my big chance to direct this once-in-a-lifetime hallucination.
The business side of the industry sucks because it all depends on what you’re after. There are so many hack brains out there that go for the cheap, simple job offer and they get it done as quickly as they can, take their paycheck, and leave. Everyone’s doing it, and the industry is faltering because of it. But if you do the research, and you study up, you’ll find that every good, successful brain has their own story of how they got into this business. There’s no formula for it; it’s all about what you bring to the table.
Oh, yeah, and it’s about who you know. Definitely.
I don’t like to list influences, because there are so many brains who have inspired me. Sure, of course there are the greats: I mean [Jimi] Hendrix—c’mon, no contest. Supposedly, he had a brain that could just invent new colors. Yeah, just totally, completely new colors. How would you even describe that to someone? [Pink] Floyd, too, I mean, you don’t get brains like that every day. You don’t get LSD like that every day, either, but it’s that combination, that chemistry, that makes the final product work so well.
I’m a little nervous, because you can prepare and prepare and prepare and, as soon as you get out there to start working, something goes wrong. A nerve blows out or a muscle isn’t responding; it could be anything, and it’s just about being organized and ready to adapt to those kinds of situations.
I want to direct my own hallucination, because I’ve always admired the medium. I got my start in dreams, and I really love doing them. I did this one where I combined the memories of Dan’s mother with his girlfriend. Really freaky stuff. It’s been in and around his mind for years. That’s what got me noticed for the job to direct this hallucination. And I can top that kind of work, but it takes time. So many brains think that kind of thing just happens, but it takes a lot of work to get there.
A good hallucination can be in development for up to five years—a lot of brains don’t know that. The thing that’s good about dreams is that the work is there when you need it. A lot of brains don’t agree; they say it’s not fulfilling, that it’s too easy. Well, I don’t agree with that. I think if you go with the right attitude to make a new, original dream every night, then you’re accomplishing something. You’re creating something new, and that’s what this life is all about.
Heavy visual and sound effects, definitely. Dan’s putting a lot of funds into this project, so we have a big budget to work with.
I don’t want to give away too much, but let’s just say [Dan is going to] flip his shit.