What does Japan have to do with the price of eggs in Prussia? (By Josh Waterman)

There is a quiet, hushed fear in the Los Angeleno air right now. After the devastating events in Japan last night, there is the smallest chance that the largest tectonic plate in the world- the one that borders Japan and Los Angeles- could act up again. I already have a solid list of things I've seen in Los Angeles, and do not want that list to include an earthquake. I doubt anyone was worrying, but in case you were.. We should be fine. There is that tiny chance, and if a tsunami should come... Well I can see the ocean from my desk, so that wouldn't be good either.

Natural disasters aside, I've had a busy couple of days! I've taken on the role of driver, and I drive the producing partners where they need to go. Earlier this week I took a producer who works here, Jordan, to a meeting at International Creative Management- the fourth biggest entertainment company in the world. I've been to the airport at least half a dozen times... I've driven all over! Driving with these producers is an invaluable resource that any amount of reading could not match. I've found that it's easier to converse in a car, where the producer has no option but to respond to the intern's line of questioning.

I've also spoken with the big boss here, Chris Hanley, about arranging some interviews (He had dinner with the guy who directed The Notebook this week... twice.) He's very well connected in the LA film industry, and should be able to put me in touch with some people who can provide insight to my topic.

As far as other duties around here, it's been a good mixture. I've been taking care of a lot of projects that require logistics and planning. For example, how to bring a 117in x 99in painting into a house? Obviously, the best solution is to obtain a city permit, rent a crane, remove the south facing window, lift the painting in, replace the window, and then have the installers frame the painting, and hang it on the wall. This requires a lot of coordination, and I've been working on getting that done. I'm also still digging through our terabytes of hard drives to find video footage and turn it into short clips. You can see them here.

One thing I will say is that it's always busy here. Even when there aren't tasks to do, there are things to work on. My day can be very strange sometimes- Get in around 9:30, work casually, make some copies, answer phones... Take lunch at 2, and then at 4, I immediately need to print out 500 pages of scripts and bind and collate them, all while I have to buy a plane ticket for a return flight to LAX in 15 minutes, and while I have to entertain a client waiting to meet with someone. Basically, it can be a crazy juggling act sometimes. Some hours feel long, with the warm California ocean air hanging around, and some hours can fly by as I run around doing a million things at once. It can be intense, exhilarating, and exhausting. But always rewarding. This is the industry for people who talk quickly and have a lot of great ideas.

As far as my reading, I've been very interested by a book I'm reading now, called Valuation of the Arts. The author proposes seven potential theories for why art is valuable (e.g. because it simulates real life, because it has a price, etc). My favorite, though, and as of now, the basis of my thesis, is that art is valuable because it has an intrinsic value. And if you read through that statement, yes, I'm saying "art is valuable because it has a value." But yes! It is! Money is valuable because we give it a value and like to buy things; diamonds are valuable because we give them a value and like to look at them. Art is valuable because it affects us. The sensation of art can not be put into monetary terms, because it exceeds the limitations of finance. There can not be an arbitrary dollar amount assigned to a particular work of art. While it can't be defined by money, it has everything to do with economics. Thank you game theory, as I examine the payoffs and the utility.

If I go on too much longer, I won't have anything exciting left for my paper.

I have many ideas flowing around, and within a month and a half, they will have taken the form of a paper and a presentation.

Until then, we'll be in touch. I'm actually coming home in 10 days or so, and I'm sure I'll see many of you my classmates in good time.