I’ve written about writer/director/producer Sean Abley’s Socket movie here before, when it first hit the festival circuit. Now the movie is out on DVD and available from TLA Video. TLA Releasing put out Socket and the TLA media empire is descended from the Theatre of the Living Arts experimental theatre group in 60’s Philadelphia.

A couple of days ago, Sean Abley and a couple hundred of his closest friends got together at MJ’s Bar in Silverlake to celebrate the release of Socket on DVD. The event was hosted by promoter Jovy Janolo and producers John Carrozza, Doug Prinzivalli, Matt Mishkoff, and of course Sean himself. The VIP goodie bags included an interesting-looking DVD of a spooky movie called Amnesia, a coupon for a discount on TLA releases, and a pass for thirty free minutes of VOD which promise to “put the HARD back in hardcore DVD.” Blue Blood’s Forrest Black had the honor of receiving the final goodie bag of the night. The doorman apologized to me and told me he guessed I’d be re-gifting because the stuff in there was for, you know, jacking off. I was expecting the DVD and such to be more like what I would get at a regular business convention for web professionals, but TLA in general and Socket and Amnesia in specific appear to be for the purposes of movie movies and not jack off vids. Then again, I couldn’t get the VOD site to load, so maybe my tender sensibilities would have been scalded. Oh, and I’m a chick, so I guess I’m expected to care whether fictional characters romance and fuck exactly who I would personally want and be able to romance and fuck. Or not. I’m a fan of quality, so you know I’m a pervert. Polite of the doorman to warn me, just in case, though.

I’ve already praised the fun story and killer funny dialog in Socket and I’ve already told y’all you should see it, so I’m just going to mention an awesome factoid about the film, which can only now be revealed. Velvet Candy Entertainment and Dark Blue Films are so resourceful that the whole flick was made for $45,000. Sean Abley says that it was very difficult to have people judging his baby like it cost many times what it did, when he and his team were really very clever about how they did things. The filmmaker says, “I’d learned through my previous producing projects that you should never reveal the budget of your film until you’ve sold it. “Well under a million dollars” is the standard response. So while Socket was making its way through the film fests and then on to the release date, being reviewed by every internet and gay rag critic on the planet, we kept our mouths shut and took the hits.”

My view of Sean Abley and Socket is that I know indie is usually just a buzz word, but this is truly what independent filmmaking and DIY are supposed to be about.

I know Blue Blood members are from all over the world, so this won’t apply to everyone. But, if you are an American, it is your patriotic and civic responsibility to vote today. Please don’t forget.

Sometimes the hardest thing about voting is figuring out where the heck to go to cast your ballot. Happily, the internet makes this all much easier. There are many resources, but one general USA source which looks good to me is Election Protection 365. I usually use the California sites, as I am located in Los Angeles. So I was pleased to find a site with such an excellent polling place locator tool for all states. The site has a political agenda. Most sites with such tools have political agendas.

According to their site, the “People For the American Way Foundation is a premier source of vital information for policymakers, scholars and activists nationwide on the Religious Right movement and its political allies. [They] also engage in legal action as needed to protect or restore the rights and liberties of Americans [and] worked to ensure that the promises enshrined in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights are made real for all Americans. [They] have provided citizens with the means to engage their friends, neighbors, and elected officials in substantive conversation about how the values of freedom, fairness, and respectful pluralism are reflected in our local communities and national policies. Since its establishment, People For the American Way Foundation has been committed to countering the forces of social discord and fragmentation with an affirmation of “the American Way:” respect for diversity; freedom of thought, expression, and religion; equal justice; and a sense of community.”

Whether or not you personally share those values, PFAW have provided a heck of a useful polling place locator tool and you can use it for free, no matter how you plan to cast your vote.

Brave people fought a revolution, and great men wrote world-changing documents, so you could have the right to representation. If people with the right to vote do not vote, then the system does not work. I’m off to drink an iced latte and review all the referendum info on my local ballot. Please, please, please take the time to vote today.