Red Carpet and Screening -- Awareness Film Festival 2012

pretty nice time @ the 3rd annual Awareness Film Festival yesterday.
gorgeous woman by my side -- Annika (stand-by for more pix).
my documentary "The Academic Front," screened.
met some interesting folks.
interesting films.
free booze.
free oatmeal chocolate-chip cookies.
and did i mention the free booze?

the red carpet; 3rd Annual Awareness Festival 2012

 reppin' Operation in Their Boots on the red carpet

@ the Regent Showcase Theater in West Hollywood

'twas a mad house I tells ya...

some of the features

 and my good buddy, former Devil Dog, Aaron Huffman on the big screen

3rd Annual Awareness Film Festival

some free time this THURS/FRI?

swing up to the Awareness Film Festival and a screening of my documentary "The Academic Front," part of Operation in Their Boots and Brave New Films/Foundation on Friday, May 4 @ 1pm.

should be a smashing good time!

A Review of Operation In Their Boots, Pt. 2 - On Violence

A Review of Operation In Their Boots, Pt. 2 - On Violence
tiny little review of my docuementry, 'the academic front.'

tribune article

interesting article care of the san diego union tribune:

click here

kyle, clint, mandia

The Academic Front

several months -- nose to the grindstone.
great team -- on the ball.
two badass Vets -- Aaron Huffman & Daniel Wong.

take a gander.

my first real deal documentary.

standby for PBS!

THE ACADEMIC FRONT

directed by Chris Mandia

produced by Brave New Foundation

Huff and Operation In Their Boots!

on Veterans Day...

regret to inform

i won't be attending the Operation In Their Boots premiere tomorrow night.

and i truly hope everyone who was planning on seeing it, see's it.

we did some great work.

i'll spare you the intimate details of this malady, because well, they're just plain ridiculous.

the Doc's over @ the Long Beach VA suggested i stay put.

least for two weeks. then the pack goes back on.

crooked smile n' all.

figure sometimes you're swimming, pushing along and up comes a big ole' white shark.

and she takes a bite.

no real rhyme or reason, but she takes a bite.

how is your heart?

by charles bukowski

during my worst times

on the park benches

in the jails

or living with

whores

I always had this certain

contentment-

I wouldn't call it

happiness-

it was more of an inner

balance

that settled for

whatever was occurring

and it helped in the

factories

and when relationships

went wrong

with the

girls.

it helped

through the

wars and the

hangovers

the backalley fights

the

hospitals.

to awaken in a cheap room

in a strange city and

pull up the shade-

this was the craziest kind of

contentment

and to walk across the floor

to an old dresser with a

cracked mirror-

see myself, ugly,

grinning at it all.

what matters most is

how well you

walk through the

fire.

Operation In Their Boots, Premiere!

long days.

nights.

time.

effort.

the premiere of OITB is here.

click for details.

Vanguard Shoot -- 10 JULY 10

for all those interested -- check out my latest blog update @ Operation In Their Boots.

DP and I -- trying to frame Aaron's shot

in Daniel's boots - 08 june 10

for those interested - a lil' update on Operation in Their Boots & our shoot @ El Camino Junior College w/student Veteran Daniel Wong. even managed to interview some of his fellow classmates.

Christopher's OITB Blog

(el camino's student body president, joshua casper, expounding)

Sit Down Shoot w/Clarence Hatcherson

as i recline on my pleather lazy boy; attempting to ease the pain surging up my spine, i'd like to recount a successful "Operation in Their Boots," shoot today @ the Harbor Worksource Center in San Pedro, CA. nothing too complicated, but you know how things are - Murphy's Law and such. nevertheless, it went great.

here's couple shots for ya:

pissedoff christoff in San Pedro Today Magazine

very cool - San Pedro Today Magazine and Margrete Sharpe were kind enough to write up a little ditty about me. had a great time…and I even managed to mention Operation In Their Boots…ooo-rah

check it out:

“BATTLEGROUNDS TO CLASSROOMS”

monday's shoot, shooting...

some pix from Monday's shoot, care of Lizette from "operation in their boots."

apologies for the odd stances and awkward gestures - it was just one of those arms akimbo days, you know?

enjoy.

hey it's chris...and he's talking

off Culver Boulevard

and a stone's throw from Sony Pictures, you'll find Brave New Films.

here's a couple pix of myself and fellow combat Vets turned filmmakers while soaking in a weeklong production bootcamp.

oo-rah tape striping, release forms, and shooting scripts...

go ahead - live vicariously through me, i don't mind.

just don't go giving me an infectious disease - i'm single and looking...

wink, wink

Operation In Their Boots, Production Bootcamp

Wow.

Just Wow.

The people @ Brave New Films hosted a production bootcamp for five Veterans aspiring to be professional filmakers last week - myself included.

and i gotta say, this has been one of the best experiences in my life.

these men, women didn't just give us lip service; kudos, a yellow ribbon and a pat on the back.

NO.

these men, women @ Brave New Films actually invested money, time, and a wealth of knowledge in a tangible effort to empower Veterans.

in essence, granting us an insiders view of the Industry.

no more assumptions on how it's done - because they showed us how it's done.

and the Veterans themselves -

truly talented individuals.

truly good guys.

and i consider them my friends.

now, it's time to work. time to make a documentary.

and hopefully we'll leave our mark on history.

something that youngins' hundreds of years from now can look back @.

these Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, who fought in the middle-east so many years ago.

WHO WERE THEY?

The Adventures of OITB Filmmaker Christopher Mandia

eyy look!

pissed-off christoff's got an official blog:

Christopher's OITB Blog

anderson cooper, CNN

hey how cool for "Operation In Their Boots."

profiled by Anderson Cooper of CNN.

check it out...good stuff.

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2010/01/29/in-their-boots/

writer/director mandia

so i got the job!

won;

accepted;

hired;

etc.

going to write and direct a half-hour documentary for the series, "operation in their boots."

produced by Brave New Foundation, and it can be seen on various public broadcasting stations across the country.

that's right, real television.

in short, i'll be telling the stories of returning warriors and their struggle to get educated.

and i'm damn lucky to get this gig.

well, can't sit around here and shoot the shit, work's to be done.

in their boots

just found out about, "operation in their boots."

'...a documentary series about the impact the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are having on people here at home.'

sounds like an excellent opportunity to tell a story, hone your film-making skills.

only caveat - you gotta be a OIF/OEF Vet.

good shit.

glad to see someone's interested.