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The Slice of Americana Barbershop is Not Dead

Wednesday, February 8th, 2012

-Take a ride with Sid Kali! “>The Slice of Americana barbershop is not dead. Through the course of my life I have had one main barber since my grandfather took me into the place when I was kid. It only has two chairs and the regulars are grandfathers, fathers, and sons that know who you are related to going back to the 40’s. The Slice of Americana barbershop is not dead in the era of fast and faster. Both barbers are over 65 years young and take their time to shoot the breeze, tell stories, and talk about life in general. It is not a rush cut. This week I was in the chair over an hour taking in life and getting a simple clipper cut.
This place always reminds to slow down and take time to enjoy the simple pleasures of life like good conversation and a haircut. Nobody is talking on the phone, texting, or checking emails when they come in the door and sit down. It is an unwritten rule that when your there for a haircut you leave that outside. Life slows down, which I like. Viewers that have watched the gangster film “In with Thieves” know the scene I wrote about talking on a phone when shopping. I get many great emails from people that love that scene because it has happened to them. A scene like that won’t ever happen in this barbershop.
As I am getting a neat trim (clipper #3 blended) a regular nicknamed Loco Lolo goes into a story about the night he got drunk on hobo juice, jumped a freight train from Texas to Los Angeles, and ended up getting shot by a zip gun over a woman. His real life snapshot was a true “Slice of Americana” from a man that has lived a hard life. Loco Lolo has a wicked sense of humor. After showing the scar from the belly shot he made a joke that the woman was not even fine, so he didn’t get why a man would be jealous enough to shoot over here. He only went back to her place because he had no money for a motel.
The events and people around inspire most of my writing and movies. I like to draw from real life energy and experiences that touch my life. Every script I write I strive to make it honest and accurate in depicting the subject matter. The language and images are not always politically correct, but it is based on the closest realism I can share with audiences. The people that have lived life on the fringe and have experienced harsh realities get a lot of the lines and scenes in my movies. Those viewers understand the differences between a studio budget film on urban life and a more organic approach.
Like any filmmaker I get my fair share of negative emails and posts on my movies over the content. I do appreciate constructive comments from viewers and make note of how I can improve a movie for the next time. Where I won’t change is censoring the language, even words that people find offensive. The street has its own language and rhythm that should be respected and shown with realism. I will always deliver that to movie audiences.
Financing for independent film projects has slowed down. While I wait for it to pick back up I have finally committed to writing a series of fiction books based on screenplays I have written. It is cool because usually scripts and movies are adapted from books. I am taking a different approach. The New Year will see Crazy Love Story, Stash Spot, and Elbow published. This is indie filmmaker Sid Kali typing FADE OUT
The Slice of Americana Films approach to making movies has been covered in MovieMaker and Indie Slate magazines -Take a ride with Sid Kali!

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