Palm Springs International Film Festival

This film festival has always been dear to my heart. The energy in which Sony Bono founded it still remains to this day (boy was Sony a nice guy). I have seen some amazing films and met some talented, lovely people, at this festival, over the years (some of which have remained valued friends). One film, that still stands out in my mind, is the documentary on the impact that China's crimes have had on the people of Tibet titled 'What Remains of Us.' If you get the opportunity to experience this film it's worth the time.

This year I was very impressed with the black tie gala awards. The tribute reels were well produced and the evening moved at a good, smooth pace. Among the honorees this year were

Ron Howard, Dustin Hoffman, Clint Eastwood, Anne Hathaway, Gus Van Sant, Sean Penn and others. I was most touched by the Ron Howard tribute... it's clear that this guy is allowing his light to shine. Ever kind, understanding, patient and caring his genuine heart shows

in his work. Ron is a clear example of someone living their purpose, their passion. He loves what he does and does it well, thoughtfully and throughly. He has touched so many in the most positive way, a joy to work with.

Client Eastwood also touched me. Though he often plays the though guy he clearly has a sensitive side. I have always found him to be kind, taking time for most everyone. I was standing backstage, just to his right, as he was watching the tribute reel play prior to being brought on stage. When the clip of his late mother came on screen, her says "I fell in love with him the moment they handed him to me," his eyes welled up with tears.

I felt the sentimental energy and connected to his sensitivity.

I enjoyed this evening and this year's festival. I must say that I have felt a profound shift in the way I approach such events. What's important has shifted and I see things in a very different light. It's easy to iden

tify substance and authenticity now and it's clear that renown should follow substance rather than fame waging the dog.

I did not know Josh Brolin before this evening but I got'a say he was a class act... a nice guy. Gus Van Sant is also worth mentioning... clearly a man that runs deep... quite, deep. Gus was a friend of the late River Phoenix (River was an animal rights supporter and proponent of plant based diets long before it was cool... He paved the way in Hollywood for where we are today... River was a sweet soul, the first person to introduce me to gourmet vegetarian food and explain to me the impacts of meat consumption on our environment and health.

Thank you to all that had a hand in hosting us in the most elegant way.

Deepak Chopra Webcast Series - "Jesus and the Awakening to God-Consciousness"

I am deeply grateful to be a part of this free six week series. This is powerful stuff! We are fast moving toward oneness and unity.

Join best-selling author and renowned spiritual leader Deepak Chopra along with leading Unity minister Wendy Craig-Purcell for a bold upcoming six-part video Webcast series on “Jesus and the Awakening to God-Consciousness,” based on Chopra’s recent book “The Third Jesus: The Christ We Cannot Ignore.”

The Web series contends that Jesus was not trying to start a new religion, nor was he aiming his teachings at

some people and not others. He was pointing the way for all of us to experience the awakening that he himself had experienced.

The Web series explores each phase in the journey to God-consciousness and how you can apply the wisdom of Jesus on your own path to enlightenment. We’re not trying to change anyone’s mind or beliefs. We’re just offering an alternative view.”
Chopra sees Jesus' teachings as unive

rsal, even though a particular religion – Christianity – was created around him.
One of my favorite excerpts from the series, quoting Deepak Chopra, is...

"We have amazing modern capacities to destroy ourselves..." "...there is an urgency...." "The same modern capacity to bring the diabolical also brings the divine... we have the ability to connect with each other, to share our ideas, to share love, to share our caring, to share our compassion... an unprecedente

d capacity that we did not have before."

The free six week series, with Deepak Chopra, begins on Wednesday, October 15th 2008 and continues every Wednesday through November 19th. Tune in at www.unity.fm

Oct. 15: Who Is Jesus and Why Does It Matter?
Oct. 22: Opening to the Path
Oct. 29: A New Way of Being
Nov. 5: When the Rubber Hits the Road
Nov. 12: What to Expect When You're Expecting Enlightenment
Nov. 19: Jesus Without Dogma

Please feel free to blog about this event, post it to your calendar or pass it on to friends.
People have even been organizing group viewing parties at homes, bookstores and community centers.
We have study guides available for groups or individuals.
Register at unityonline.org/deepak for this free web series.

I'm happy to e-mail you a press release, photos, or video links if you contact me.

John Raatz & Randy Olsen seen, here, at the series taping. Randy is shooting behind the scenes footage while John directs...

Chris Hillman captured us both while photographing on set.

SOS International Climate Change Conference

Recently our core team participated in the International Climate Change Conference held in Los Angeles, at West Hollywood's Pacific Design Center. It was a powerful day of collaboration, education and discussion between world experts, who had come together, to discus solutions for immediate attention and action that is crucial for our ecological existence. The event was webcasted live and covered by the press. The four of us are pictured here with, vegan activist, Howard Lyman (L to R, Bennett Freed, Randy Olsen, Howard Lyman [center], Chris Hillman, & John Raatz).

I am so glad that we attended and participated in this event! When I first learned of the conference, thanks to friend and keynote speaker Scott Badenoch, I could just feel it was one not to miss. And that clearly proved to be true. (Pictured here and below, L to R, Randy Olsen & John Raatz being interviewed on the Green Carpet)

This powerful exchange of ideas, insights and wisdom resulted in significant inspiration for action and change. I was particularly touched when business partner, friend and music manager, Bennett Freed, called me the following day to say how deeply moved and motivated he was to take action from what he learned at the gathering. This continued as person after person expressed how impacted they were from the events of the day. You could feel a genuine desire to make a difference, to change the course of things, to wake up to being more in harmony with nature and our world.

The event was well organized and we were treated with warm hospitality. Pamela Millar of the Green Technology Institute, and her caring team, clearly put a great deal of effort and detail into the planning of the conference hosted by Master Ching Hai.

Dr. Gabriel Cousens (seen here being interviewed on the green carpet) decided to accept the speaking invitation, in spite of his strenuous travel schedule, after I shared that I felt this would be rare and timely opportunity for these world experts to be in one place at one time. Gabriel ended up staying at my home, in West Hollywood, and we shared a delightful, uplifting, insightful conversation on our walk to the conference. It set the tone for an amazing day that would prove to be packed with wonder and enlightenment, concluding with a lovely reception at the nearby Tea Garden on Melrose Avenue where we all had an opportunity for exceptional exchange and socializing.

Dr. Gabriel Cousens is author of the books Spiritual Nutrition; Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine; Conscious Eating; Depression-Free for Life; Sevenfold Peace; Spiritual Nutrition and the Rainbow Diet; Creating Peace by Being Peace, and There Is a Cure for Diabetes. He is a holistic physician, medical researcher, world-recognized live-food nutritionist, ecological leader, Reiki master, internationally celebrated spiritual teacher, lecturer, culture-bridger, and world peaceworker.

Business partner and friend John Raatz also accepted the keynote invite and shared a panel with Dr. Cousens and Scott Badenoch. Though the day was filled with amazing souls, sharing their insights and wisdom, the panel with John, Gabriel and Scott generated particular enthusiasm from the distinguished audience. (Pictured here, L to R, Scott Badenoch, John Raatz, Gabriel Cousens)

Our own John Raatz has been championing transformational and Enlightened Media longer than just about anyone - having promoted enlightened films like MindWalk, Baraka, A Brief History of Time, What the BLEEP, the Secret, The Celestine Prophecy, Peaceful Warrior, The 11th hour, and now Eckhart Tolle’s upcoming film, Oprah’s webcast with Eckhart Tolle for A New Earth and producing the upcoming webcast for Unity with Deepak Chopra themed to new book, The Third Jesus.

Scott Badenoch, dedicated social entrepreneur, business strategist, legal analysis, green community leader, is Chief Executive Officer of Creative Citizen, an online source for sharing creative solutions to achieve global effects.

It was a delight to meet Dr. Gurminder Singh seen in photos here with John Raatz and our other business partner and friend Chris Hillman below. Dr. Singh is Co-Chairman of Green Technology Institute, an initiative of the Tom Bradley Legacy Foundation at UCLA. It seems clear we will surly collaborate with Dr. Singh on mutual visions yet to come. (L to R, Dr. Singh & John Raatz, then Dr. Singh & Chris Hillman).


Howard Lyman, rancher turned vegan and activist, was sued by the Cattleman's Association along with Oprah Winfrey when he was on her show telling the truth about Mad Cow Disease... they both won the case. His book, Mad Cowboy, is a bestseller.

Howard appears in the first photo, at the top of this post, with our team of core partners from The Visioneering Group and Celebrity International Entertainment, now merging together in harmony with one mission.

The live broadcast of the SOS International Climate Change Conference was presided over by anchor woman Jane Velez-Mitchell of CNN & MSNBC, (L to R, below, Jane Velez-Mitchell & Randy Olsen, in a photo by Leslie Goldman - Tea Garden reception photo, above, also by Leslie Goldman).

Delightful Green Shop on Melrose

I just happened to be strolling down Melrose, after having lunched nearby with a friend, when a sidewalk sign saying "Eco Chic," caught my eye, when I read on to see "Earth Day, Every Day" I just had to go in and see if they lived up to their claims. I love Earth Day and the all the well-intended souls that are out in abundance teaching you new planet friendly things and introducing innovative green products. Well this store lived up to its claims capturing the spirit of Earth Day, clearly coming from an authentic place of wanting to be more mindful of the place we live and the impact we make. This delightful store, with a diverse range of products for all ages, was a joy to visit. The merchandise is stylish, quality, and thoughtfully selected. I must say this is one of the best green shops I've experienced. The real deal.

Treat yourself and stop by the Visionary Boutique on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood. It's just down the street from the lovely Tea Garden and near the Bodhi Tree Book Store. If you're not in LA many of their adorable products are available on their website.

Visionary Boutique
8568 1/2 Melrose Avenue
West Hollywood, CA 90069
310-659-1177

www.visionaryboutique.com

Trees for the Future

I am profoundly and passionately touched by the work, from the heart, of Dave & Grace Deppner and the kind, caring folks at Trees for the Future.

They have planted 50 million trees around the world!

10 cents plants a tree. Over half-a-billion trees could be planted around the world. It's possible. Imagine the impact...

hey have an idea called the "forest garden" which combines the best attributes of both, producing a great amount of product, sustainably, on a very small piece of land. With this you are sending millions of roots down into the ground which are guiding water back into underground aqua firs, you have a return of diversity, you've cooled the land, cleared the air a bit, and improved the quality of life just by planing some seeds (as Dave tells it).The results are incredible! Their work is simple, clear and inclusive. Their success comes from involving communities, teaching proper stewardship and harmony with nature.
After having volunteered in developing countries around the world in the 1970s the Deppners' saw the increasing human tragedy brought on by illegal logging and unsustainable land management. They started to take action to help the families who could no longer sustain themselves and struggled to put food on the table.

Working with community leaders, the Deppners began to find ways to offer hope to villagers by reestablishing productive lands - with their families and culture intact. They renewed degraded lands by providing farmers with beneficial tree seed, technical training, and on-site planning assistance. People responded enthusiastically. Entire villages joined in, making great sacrifices to save their homes and way of life.

Visit Trees for the Future website to learn how easy it is to support their efforts that benefit us all, globally.

Book Expo and Slash

There are dozens, maybe hundreds, of stories I can tell you about my recent days at Book Expo American, the largest gathering in the literary industry. But of the countless conversations I had at BEA one which stands out the most is my chat with Slash from rock band Guns N' Roses. We bumped into each other back stage in the author signing area and Slash said to me "I know you right? ...yeah, we've met before." Though we could not place the exact events and times we accepted that we were meeting up again. I've been in the entertainment and media business for so long I can't always recall all of my numerous adventures, though you'd think I remember the events around prior encounters with Slash.

None the less we had a lovely, and for me, unexpected conversation about kindness. It made my day. I'm thinking to myself, now here I am talking with "tough guy", "rock n' roller", Slash, about how we'd all be better off if we were just kinder, more considerate and respectful to each other. It just shows you the diverse range of folks who are thinking like this... it's time to be kinder, more understanding of others and respectful of all. You can be cool and kind!

This chat held more synchronistic relevance for me as I was in the middle of reading Perro Furrucci's delightful book 'The Power of Kindness.'

I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music...I get most joy in life out of music. - Albert Einstein
(found on Slash's official fan site)

May Pang's 'Instamatic Karma' event

When my business partner John Raatz told me to meet him at May Pang's book release party in Santa Monica I had a feeling it would be a special evening, and it was. First off I fell in love with May's book, 'Instamatic Karma,' a collection of never before seen photos showing a side of John Lennon seldom seem. May Pang took these photos of John, and many of his friends, during their 18 month "lost weekend" relationship. The photos, tucked aways in a shoebox in May's closet, captured John in relaxed, candid ways that no one else did (as May tells it). The book is very interesting, well laid out and designed. Worth having, I must say. I purchased a couple of copies which May thoughtfully signed for me. One copy will be a gift for my dear brother Walter who is a Beatles fan (if he's reading this I'm blowing the surprise).

I captured May continuing the presidence of her candid photography as she snapped this self-portrait of her and Jack Oliver, former president of the Beatles' Apple Records corporation, in the wake of their joyful reunion. I liked Jack the moment I met him... he's a genuinely nice guy and clearly coming from a place of passion.

It's worth noting that May also designs a line of Fug Shui jewelry and furniture. Her 'Instamatic Karma' book tour continues around the country and her photos will be on exhibit, along with Nancy Lee Andrews 'A Dose of Rock-n-Roll' book photos, at the June Kelly Gallery in SoHo, NYC during the summer.