CJ Arrives at base of Mt Luna

CJ Arrives at the base if Mt Luna. He comes upon a small screen and stops for a bite before his ascent. Everything seems to be far too lush and different than the barren wasteland he just came out of.

CJ gets his portrait taken

On his way to Mount Luna CJ encounters a fortune teller who tells him she can take a photo of his aura. He takes he rip on the offer and gets a ohotograoh taken. But his face is scrambled.

Talking fire

As CJ slept slipped into the dream world, the fire burned low. The embers continued to glow and flicker in the moonlight. His slumber was interrupted by a voice. It was coming from the embers! At first, he thought it was all a dream, but the voice grew louder and clearer.

"CJ, wake up," the voice said.

CJ rubbed his eyes and sat up, bewildered. His eyes focused on the flames which had erupted from the glowing embers.

“There is no end to this game CJ," the fire said. "It’s just a big loop."

CJ was still trying to get his bearings. He looked over at Nightmare, who was deep asleep.

"Your journey begins at the base of Mt Luna" the fire said. "There you will be shown what you are looking for."

CJ shook his head, still not understanding.

With that the fire puffed up and then blew itself out. Leaving a small cloud of smoke illuminated by the moon.

As the embers faded away, CJ lay back down, his mind racing. He coilsn’t fall asleep, but he felt excitement in the fact that at least now he knew where it was he had to go.

Cj ate some beans by a campfire

As the sun disappeared beyond the horizon, CJ and Nightmare made camp for the night. CJ found a suitable spot protected from the wind and threw out his sleeping bag and made a small fire pit. He saw a dead tree stuck in between two craggy rocks and made his way to it. He tore the limbs from the tree and plopped them down near the fire pit. The fire started quickly from a tumbleweed he jammed under gnarled wind dried wood. The air was cold and the warmth was immediately soothing. The flickering flames danced around, casting eerie shadows on the rocks and ground.

CJ dug out a can of beans, and a pot from his saddlebag and placed it on a rock near the fire. In between stirring the beans he would pause and gaze at the stars. Thinking about the bone, and his own life, and where he was headed. He didn't even have a destination, yet he felt as though he did.

When the beans were hot and ready, CJ sat down near the fire to eat. Nightmare let out a noise resembling a sigh. She also didn’t have the easiest day walking through a land renown for their inpassabikity. CJ enjoyed every bite, he watched the stars twinkle above, and listened to the sound of the night. He felt content, surrounded by the silence and the vastness of the landscape which was quickly being engulfed by the darkness. Upon finishing his meal he wiggled into his sleeping bag. The gentle sound of Nightmare's breathing and the crackling of the fire lulled him to sleep.

Cj and his horse Nightmare

CJ was not an ordinary cowboy. He wandered the Badlands in search of a purpose, but he rarely found one. He walked alongside his trusty steed, Nightmare, who had grown tired from traversing the rocky and desolate land since sunrise. CJ's eyes scanned the landscape in search of something, but he had no idea what it was. Suddenly, something white and sun-bleached caught his eye - a bone, seemingly from a human and cartoonishly bone-like.

He thought about what most people do when they see a bone, especially a human one - that it was once a part of a person's body that had a life of work. But now, it was just made up of calcium and minerals like everything else. Holding the bone in his hand made CJ contemplate his own mortality and purpose.

The thought of death was never far from his mind, but seeing the bone made it all too real. Fortunately, Nightmare nuzzled up to him, providing comfort. CJ knew that death would eventually come for him, but for now, he took a moment to be grateful for what he had - a horse, some beans in his saddlebag, and a sunset. He found solace in the company of Nightmare and scanned the area for a good place to set up camp.

Kris

Why dont big directors make low budget movies?

I've often thought of my process and practice as it relates to painting as being akin to that of a b movie film director. There’s an unnecessarily short amount of time I give myself to make a work (I’m trying to change this this year). I always feel like i’m on the clock and have a deadline. Even though I’ve got none. Anyway. The allure of the big badass painting does loom in my mind. The James Cameron of paintings, with all the right characters and planning, etc. The thing is. That’s just not how I work. I’m perfectly comfortable to churn out independent features that are short and sweet. This is quite similar to my favorite films. Most of which are made by Cannon films. Ninja III. maximum Overdrive, Runaway Train, Delta Force, Missing in Action, etc. These films were created out of sheer determination and a tight timeline and bedgetary constraint. But this doesn’t just pertain to low budget cannon films. Many directors are loved for their “early work” Sam Raimi making Evil Dead, or George Lucas’ THX 1138. We love the fact that they made due with what they had and there’s a certain charm in these films which can’t be reproduced. One thing I’ve always wondered, is why after a ton of success don’t these directors who have an endless amount of cash waiting to fund their projects do ten small films instead of one big one? Surely five will be trash, but there would probably be one masterpiece in the midst. In the current climate we’ve got films written by committee that hit on all the right notes that a film is supposed to have, but they still fall flat. Ninja III is still a far more interesting film than JJ Abrams star wars.

Anyway, since nobody is reading this I can use it as a place to take notes about my own process and how I make paintings. Yes, I do make them en masse, and work consistently with very basic materials, but there’s some good ones that come out as well. Many times people think success should be quality over quantity, but I think the way I find the keepers is through making consistently. I wish all artists would take this approach. Musicians included. Where’s LADY gagas acoustic album she recorded on her bedroom and released on SoundCloud? Just her and a guitar. That’s all you need.