A Post-Workout Film for the 2-Minute Fitness Challenge #EndHomeFires #SoundTheAlarm

Long before opening The Madlab Post studio, I crewed, wrote, produced and directed several short films including the urban romantic drama, Abyss: The Greatest Proposal Ever. This film is a candid glimpse into the wild adventures of a U.S. Army officer who gets stranded at an inner-city bus stop when a botched TV audition shakes up his wedding plans.

Abyss: The Greatest Proposal Ever had its World Premiere at a movie theater in New York City. Yet, getting this film ready for its theatrical debut was a long journey with seemingly no end in sight when a massive fire destroyed the home of my Associate Producer on New Year's Day.

Since that tragic morning, I have provided emergency relief for more than 20 veterans and civilians displaced by home fires by donating proceeds from my short film's DVD sales to the American Red Cross and this month, I'm taking on their 2-Minute Fitness Challenge while helping families install smoke alarms, create escape plans and practice two-minute fire drills.

Home fires kill more people each year than all natural disasters combined, yet most of us don’t realize we only have two minutes to escape safely. You have the power to change that as I wrap up this year's 2-Minute Fitness Challenge with an online stream of my film to save lives!

To raise awareness and funds for home fire relief, I am completing as many reps of exercise as I can (jumping jacks, planks, squats, crunches, lunges, burpees, sit-ups, push-ups, jump rope, etc) in 2 minutes everyday leading up to a 72-hour online stream of my film, Abyss: The Greatest Proposal Ever as part of "Sound the Alarm," a nationwide Red Cross initiative with fire safety events taking place throughout May and early June.

Grab your ticket(s) to stream Abyss: The Greatest Proposal Ever as we raise critical funds and support for the American Red Cross in their goal to prevent fire-related deaths, injuries and severe property damage in the U.S. by going door-to-door to install 50,000 free smoke alarms in high-risk communities around the country.

Another way you can support is by purchasing a group of tickets in the quantity of your choice, to Sponsor free screenings for firefighters and Red Cross volunteers.

Every ticket purchase counts as you join me in making an impact and supporting this lifesaving work!

Introducing The William Penn Project, A Home Movie Day Exhibit

To mark the World Day of Audiovisual Heritage, as part of of American Archives Month, I'm here to announce The William Penn Project, my Home Movie Day exhibit sponsored by the Leeway Foundation. Featuring home videos that document traditions, triumphs and tribulations that make up the cultural heritage of what began as a state-of-the-art educational facility in Yorktown, this project will be on view through March 31, 2021 at The Madlab Post studio in Philadelphia's historic BOK building. 

Come see exclusive, never before seen digital and VHS video footage, 35mm film photographs, mementos and firsthand accounts illustrating the promise, carefully orchestrated negligence, and destruction of student life at William Penn High School on North Broad street from the 1990s through 2009.

As a former member of the Coalition for the Revitalization of William Penn High School, who testified in favor of redevelopment of the building -- before the School Reform Commission and then superintendent Dr. Arlene C. Ackerman -- I am appalled that the City of Philadelphia abandoned this school building and the students it served; only to later profit from it's demolition to make way for Temple University's athletics field expansion, using 9 acres of land formerly occupied by William Penn High School.

In this modern age of short attention spans and digital obsolescence, this Home Movie Day exhibit aims to teach Philadelphia residents why media preservation is a vital way to document our history, culture and lived experiences.

Through the memory of a school that was once a valuable educational resource for African-American children, I also want local parents, teachers and the "leaders" of this city, to understand how their actions, ignorance and/or negligent behavior toward the condition of William Penn High School contributed to the demise of access to quality education for African-American children in North Philadelphia and surrounding areas.

Tours of The William Penn Project are Free. At this time, all visitors must register online in advance for timed entry to see the exhibit. For more information or to register for this exhibit, send your request here.

Cocktails, Volcanoes and Top Gun: A Note on Special Effects with AmorSui Clothing's Adult Science Fair

There's been a lot happening offline in the Madlab Post universe. Expect a few big announcements coming soon as the final screening of 2018 gets underway, along with a crazy fun project that I've never done before.

In the meantime, let's discuss how I learned a neat little tidbit about the special effects in Top Gun at an adult science fair for a clothing line. The quick look back at this U.S. Naval aviation movie began with PhD chemist Beau Wangtrakuldee who created AmorSui -- a line of chemical, fire and stain resistant apparel -- after being burned in the laboratory.

Wangtrakuldee, who is currently taking pre-orders for the Marie Curie dress and Rosalind Franklin pants, hosted a Fall party called "Cocktails and Volcanoes" to celebrate the launch of her Chimie line at WeWork in Philadelphia. There she performed a series of fabric testings with acid and fire to highlight how the protective materials in her garments differ significantly from the quickly absorbing and corrosive nature of standard, everday apparel. These testings illustrated the common risks women scientists without protective clothing have of being injured on the job.

AmorSui CEO & Founder Beau Wangtrakuldee, Ph.D.The AmorSui founder mentioned that scientists usually don't wear lab coats because these garments don't fit well, often getting in the way of their tasks in the labratory; not to mention having a thinly constructed layer of unsafe fabric.

She also pointed out that although protective clothing is available, the current garments in today's marketplace are made to suit the male body shape; which makes it much easier (and safer) for men to perform their duties.

I also ran into a few familiar faces in Philly's performing arts scene including Christina May who was the emcee for the night. Yet as one could imagine, the room was brimming with scientists. Among them was a woman I met who is currently working on a medical project to improve lung function in premature babies. How cool! Just a few feet away from Wangtrakuldee's fabric testing table stood Craig Marlatt, who can be found on most other days flexing his science genius in making sure cosmetics meet safety regulations.

On this particular evening, Marlatt was doing science experiment demos using household products such as baking soda, highlighters, flood lamps and yeast. Among his demos were an erupting volcano and flourescein demonstration that had me thinking I was in an episode of CSI. Marlatt showed us how to extract liquids from highlighters and mix them with water for an illuminating effect.

He also explained why the mixture appears clear at first until placed under a black light. That's when Marlatt brought up the jet wash scene in Top Gun; and the glowing engine fuel floating in the water during the aerial dogfighting sequence with Goose (Anthony Edwards) and Maverick (Tom Cruise) became a point of reference for attendees as Marlatt showed us his homemade method to the madness behind it all.

Christina May got in on the action soon thereafter, adding a strip of the flourescein water mixture to her chin. The Na'vi characters in the Avatar came to mind almost immediately when I saw her having fun with the glowing water at the demonstration table. Following a brief discussion about tracking people, and a rocket launch experiment that had WeWork smelling funny for a few minutes, Wangtrakuldee came over and put the finishing touches on one of the most anticipated science experiments of the night -- a Volcano demonstration.

Christina May, Craig Marlatt and WeWork party goers watch as Beau Wangtrakuldee finishes a volcano science experiment in her AmorSui "Marie Curie" dress at the Adult Science Fair.May led the crowd in a game of finish-that-sentence with "My Volcano is Like...." which garnered a lot of participation and interesting responses. It was quite a party, in honor of Wangtrakuldee, who turned an accident into a business.

What I admire most about Beau Wangtrakuldee is that she noticed a problem in her industry and created a solution that can make the workplace safer for women in science.

For her AmorSui clothing to function as womens' first line of defense against accidental spills and related occurrences is a great invention that will come in handy for many people.

Gary Gutierrez, an Emmy nominated VFX Supervisor known for his work on Top Gun, once said "All movie-making is illusion-making. Special effects is part of it." Given all of the fashion world's many illusion-making garments on the market (Spanx, anyone?), it's nice to see companies like AmorSui add a versatile effect to our wardrobe styling options; and with some extra special benefits. I raise my glass to Wangtrakuldee and women like her who are working to make the world a better place to live, work and play.

What are some of the most memorable special effects YOU'VE noticed in a movie? Who are some women YOU know of doing cool things at work or in their community? How important is wearing protective gear in YOUR line of work?