Fortress Of Freedom Board

Maurice Ali · Posted: Fri Sep 16, 2005 9:26 pm Post subject:

Feels like the eave of battle.....

I reluctantly have agreed to "hold the hands" with you that have come here. The Fortress TV Show is a test. The contract was only finalized a few days ago. We have to see if the show plays as contracted at the time specified on our home page. Frankly, I never thought the show would show from the start......the present situation is actually a surprise. I was fully prepared to have applied for a broadcast licence by this time. However the Global deal meant that substantial amounts of money and time were spent to get it to their standards and secure the contract. I have to be fair and treat this like an experiment, I have tried everything in my power to get this show on a broadcaster, I had to do this to convince myself before I act. I spent more energy than anyone else ever would to get my baby on the air, if it does not air - then there are major problems with Canadian broadcasting and I will endeavor to correct this. If the the agreement is not fulfilled, then I will have all I need to start my "crusade" as others call it! The broadcasting licence is ready to be submitted within the next five business days and full disclosure will be the order of the day along with possible legal remedies. I put this course of action at eight percent at the present time as I can't imagine Global not airing the show at this point in time, it just does not make good tactical sense.

Stranger things happen in this life. If the show does not air; I want you guys to remember what it felt like, how disappointed you felt, the wasted energy, and why I will move with haste to obtain our first broadcasting licence! I could tell you what I would prefer to happen when the show is supposed to air, but then I reach for the stars.....

Maurice Ali · Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2005 2:20 am Post subject:

Success! The Fortress TV Show aired on time, complete and in vivid video and the best lead-in with Sting on Saturday Night Live! More later!

meggen · Joined: 30 Sep 2004 Posts: 25 Location: TORONTO

Maurice Ali · Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 5:50 am Post subject:

I guess I have been rather quiet around here, one cause was the incredible fatigue from no sleep and such, but the main reason is trying to figure out how to summarize all that toil and emotion into one statement. I will try to do it tonight, there was so much material archived when the show aired - this is a larger task than I thought.

When I was in final editing at a broadcast production house, I told the people there that I would never do this again! They said that producting a TV show is like giving birth, and that I would soon be over it and ready to go again. I guess they were right as I am now working on the variety show and Michael has signed up for this production also.....

Anyways I have to deal with some tax issues today and get the newspaper ready to print and start looking for another camera.....

Maurice Ali · Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 5:57 am Post subject:

Maurice Ali · Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 12:52 pm Post subject:

Here is the moment before our show started, from SNL and commercials to us:

http://fortressoffreedom.com/TVShowStart.wmv

Maurice Ali · Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 7:21 pm Post subject:

Finally trying to express that moment and sort-of getting there:

http://fortressoffreedom.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=817

In practical terms the show makes me a TV producer at the bottom of that "food chain". Nevertheless, this allows us to try to get money from those organizations that do that sort of thing, and getting on Global TV is as good as it gets..... I always get into that "funk" after an experience like this and I am slowly getting back to normal.

Maurice Ali · Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 5:35 pm Post subject:

The newspaper should go to the printers tomorrow. The rest is taxes. I have to file seven tax returns this year! Six are for the companies I run..... Don't make the mistake I made.....

Maurice Ali · Posted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 12:32 pm Post subject:

Taxes and the paper. In a nut shell - that is what I am doing. Editing the paper is a thankless job and it is mine.....the thrill of seeing my name as editor is long gone. My big thrill is the front page - one photo!

Maurice Ali · Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 1:40 am Post subject:

We have a new member at FOF. Check her out here:

http://fortressoffreedom.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=819

Model/Performer and Fashion Designer, perfect for our music video production!

Maurice Ali · Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 10:37 pm Post subject:

The tax crises is over! That is how I spent my vacation.....

We are sorting out the companies and learning as we go. My next vacation will be for me as I have to sort myself out in a little while..... Laughing

This weekend will be filing and cleaning and Delila will make her first attempt at journalism, so should be interesting.

We are bringing in new members from all diciplines as that is our lifeblood. Any thought about parking an expensive large ENG camcorder in my basement have be put on hold. That money is needed to help our members fulfill thier ambitions, not my ego. The Word On The Street was tough last year as I had to lug the PD170 around, what would a larger camcorder be like. Most people can't tell the difference between a large super VHS and todays digital video comcorders, so why bother.....

Traffic has eased down after the airing of the show. Traffic was up about twelve hundred percent for the last three months to get the search engines to put us at the top and this has now worked. We have moved up another notch on the food chain. Things get harder and more complicated now, and I have to start addressing the money issue for continued growth. Nothing urgent here, but part of the development of our organization, just development going on. I may actually take a breather and enjoy life for a change... Twisted Evil

Maurice Ali · Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2005 6:46 pm Post subject:

I bought a professional Eilchrom flash unit on sale used from a pro photography store today. Not cheap but the first professional flash we have and compliments the prosumer 320 watt unit for front work with the punny 100 watt consumer unit stuck with the small softbox on the boom. We will continue to use our studio for all photography needs as we are legitimately equipped for all types of work. Types of work that we would be involved in; macro work and stuff like that is outside the realm of our needs. Nevertheless, I am in that buyers remorse about the purchase - even though it was the logical choice. I bought the newest most powerful one as opposed to an older model but with less dents. Minor dents are visual , but worn components are terminal.....still I must say I like undented material.....

Money is the thing on my mind now. We are trophy building and when the albums are released, FOF will look really good on paper to apply for grants and the like. We can go it alone if we must, but some extra help is always helpful. I could rant on, maybe I just need to get pissed drunk for a change or just get laid and get out of this mood. However, this mood rides on some major success and really is the weight of the reckoning that we may have created something here that may get somewhere, and I don't want to screw that up. So I fret about all purchases. The professional flash in the end is a good one, and the Manfrotto stand is also a good purchase to go with the flash. A bit pricy but in the end we need it and that sale is not on-going.....

Tonight I take stock of our financial situation (it actually is pretty good for what we are accomplishing), and come back to reality. Tomorrow I should vault Dalila into the ranks of journalism. Always something happening around here.....

Maurice Ali · Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2005 4:53 am Post subject:

The office and studio are now presentable, more filing later, but I can do business there now. It got lived in as I did the newspaper and fixed up the tax mess. The financess are about where I figured they would be. The only thing that bothered me was that impulse purchase yesterday, just that solid used equipment only shows up occasionally and so I had to act. The stand could have waited but I am going on an abstinence deal again with these photo stores, so I picked one up anyway. I will pay for that by collating and folding all the newspapers as I had promised myself that I would pay to have them done this time! Really, the cost of that setup was not cheap, but it was not that expensive.....it just bothers me anyway. I have to make do with a fourteen year old cell phone and twenty five year old brief case - even Dan commented on that! I got some money on my birthday to buy a new suit and that is where that money will go.

Perhaps the best thing is to just forget about it and concentrate on the projects we are involved with. I have to work around the house and take car of my car. We are treading on uncertain ground now and I want this organization to have the best possible chance to survive. I was single minded getting the show on the air and had to play catchup this week to get everything done and up to date. Money was no object to get the show on the air at that late stage, and the money I spent fixing the problems to get the show up to Global TV standards could have bought me a first class AVID NLE, but I did not have the time and still had to participate in editing the final copy..... Nonetheless, seeing that logo finally appear on the "air" after that "struggle" over the last year.....was one of the highlights of my life so I guess it was worth it. That really was a strange moment.....priceless! I asked the others what they felt at that moment and the overriding response was "surprise!". You can probably tell by my ranting that I am back to normal and set to take on the music industry with our next in-depth analysis of all the areas musicians must involve themselves to get their creation on the air. For the last little while my head was in the clouds and the "goal" meant everything, now it is back to counting nickles and dimes.....and doing those mundane things that have to be done. Back to earth!

The bought equipment is needed, having my camera flash substitute as a studio flash is possible but not professional, the purchase was a correct one.

Time to run off some cue cards for Dalila; if she makes it into our organization we may change her life for the better. Funny to think this is actually possible from something I created, but there it is..... And.....there is no price for that.....not to me anyway.....

Maurice Ali · Posted: Tue Sep 27, 2005 5:41 am Post subject:

I took a day off, so sue me.....

Dalilal has her first story in our exclusive reports - so you may want to read up on that.....

Maurice Ali · Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2005 1:57 am Post subject:

Go here:

http://fortressoffreedom.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=3027#3027