Life of Brian

Ewan McGregor Quits Smoking with Hypnosis

Ewan McGregor, movie star and international heart throb, says he is having a generally better life after quitting smoking because of the peace of just relaxing and not having to hunt for cigarettes, ashtrays and lighters.

A number of news sites reports that he quit a little more than a year ago through hypnotherapy and is happy.  See here and here.

He said: "The idea of life without cigarettes is terrifying, but it's so much better... and it's so easy - you just don't smoke. I found the most annoying thing about cigarettes - apart from the fact that they give you emphysema and cancer and it makes you stink and not have any money, and you have to stand outside in the snow, and all of those things - is that you couldn't do anything without them.

"I couldn't stand the fact that I couldn't just sit down - I'd have to go and find my cigarettes and, 'Where's my ashtray and my lighter?' I'd always be looking for things... Now I can just sit down."

McGregor is confident that others can also quit smoking since he has been able to and added, "I did it as a second profession; I used to act and smoke."

While success rates vary between sixty to eighty percent from peer reviewed studies on the use of hypnosis to stop smoking, it is very clear from the research that hypnosis is the single most effective method to kick the habit, far higher than everything else, including cold turkey, willpower, nicotine replacement gum, and other methods.

If you are in Taiwan, I do offer hypnosis sessions to help folks in their journey to stop smoking.  I also have audio CDs available.  Just go to my webpages at http://www.briandavidphillips.com and take a look around.

All the best,
Brian

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Brian David Phillips, PhD, CH [brian@briandavidphillips.com]
Certified Hypnotherapist
President, Society of Experiential Trance
Associate Professor, NCCU, Taipei, Taiwan
http://www.BrianDavidPhillips.com

Myth and Legend into Film . . .. . . Literature and Film Projects

These are a short film projects in which students were asked to adapt a literary work into a short film. This project was completed by students in my Literature and Film class at National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan, as part of a classroom project.

The Girl Who Changed Her Fate

Candy House

Cupid and Psyche

Little Sparkler Girl

MomoTaro-San

Three Genjias

Three Sons of Fortune

Troy

And now for something completely different . . . not by my students but very kool anyway . . .

Batman Dead End

That's what I've got so far . . . a couple groups still haven't handed in their assignments . . . hopefully they will get them in before the Jan. 16 deadline. After that, have a great Winter Vacation and Happy Chinese New Year!

All the best
Dr. Phillips

I Am Legend . . . the last man on Earth

I AM LEGEND is a novel by Richard Mattheson (who also wrote STIR OF ECHOES and SOMEWHERE IN TIME) . . . the novel has been made into four films . . . the latest of which with Will Smith opens this month . . . here is the 1964 film which you can watch streaming online . . .

Mattheson wrote the screenplay which was altered and so his name was eventually changed to pseudonym.  OMEGA MAN and I AM OMEGA are also based upon Mattheson's I AM LEGEND.  Note that films such as RESIDENT EVIL and 28 DAYS LATER and 28 WEEKS LATER are inspired by this novel as well.  The novel EARTH ABIDES is also very much worth reading, albeit there are no zombies or vampires in it.

The wikipedia piece on I AM LEGEND has more information . . .

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_Legend

Off Topic: I hope to see some of you at the show this weekend . . . either way, please do pass the flyer around to all the appropriate online forums and your friends . . . show info can be found at http://www.comedy.com.tw/node/127 for the Comedy Club, Taipei's only live comedy performance club.

All the best,
Brian

Sign Up NOW!HYPNOTICON
http://www.hypnoticon.org
WALKABOUT TRANCE BEACH RESORT GETAWAY
http://walkabouttrancebeachresortgetaway.blogspot.comHypnosis Shows, Sessions, Training . . . and MORE!
See http://www.BrianDavidPhillips.com for details!

Brian David Phillips, PhD, CH [phillips@nccu.edu.tw]
Certified Hypnotherapist
President, Society of Experiential Trance
Associate Professor, NCCU, Taipei, Taiwan
http://www.BrianDavidPhillips.com

Student Film Adaptation Projects . . .. . . past examples

So, my Literature and Film students at the university are now beginning their leg of the original film adaptation of a folk tale, legend, myth, or short short fantasy story.  In order to help them, here are some example videos from students past:

WILDEST DREAMS TRAILER ONE

WILDEST DREAMS TRAILER TWO

WILDEST DREAMS BTS

THE FALL OF FRODO

RUMPLESTILTSKIN

THE GREEK PRINCESS

THE FROG KING

ONE EYE, TWO EYES, AND THREE EYES

Obviously, the current student projects will be even better . . . well, at least more technically savvy given their lead time.  We should see some very interesting bits this year.

Currently, the students should be posting their story choices to the course Facebook page and from there we should begin seeing some interesting work.

All the best,
Brian

Sign Up NOW!HYPNOTICON
http://www.hypnoticon.org
WALKABOUT TRANCE BEACH RESORT GETAWAY
http://walkabouttrancebeachresortgetaway.blogspot.comHypnosis Shows, Sessions, Training . . . and MORE!
See http://www.BrianDavidPhillips.com for details!

Brian David Phillips, PhD, CH [phillips@nccu.edu.tw]
Certified Hypnotherapist
President, Society of Experiential Trance
Associate Professor, NCCU, Taipei, Taiwan
http://www.BrianDavidPhillips.com

Doe this REALLY happen to a LOT of people?

I must be living in a cave 'cuz I didn't know this was quite so common as Brett Ratner says it is . . . Revelations: Open-Minded Brett Ratner Amused By Prankster Tranny Who Blew Him.

Princess Bride turns Twenty . . .

Wow . . . Princess Bride: 20 Yrs. Later . . . take a look at the photogallery. William Goldman's abridgement of S. Morgenstern's classic "The Princess Bride" has been one of my favorite novels since I first read it a very many number of years before there was a movie. The movie was a wonderfully delightful adaptation. My how those folks have changed. I guess life kind of does that to us all.

100 Movies, 100 Quotes, 100 Numbers

Snarfed from David as this is most snarfable indeed.

Stranger Than Fiction . . .. . . wow, wow, triple wow!

Lorraine and I took Kaye to see Stranger Than Fiction today. Wow, wow, triple wow! That movie is amazing on so many levels. If you haven't seen it, see it . . . real soon. Best Screenplay nomination makes perfect sense, the writing is beautifully done. Will Ferrell's nomination for Best Actor also makes sense, it's his best film.

Wildest Dreams . . .. . . coming soon

Check out one of the "trailers" for the upcoming performance of Wildest Dreams, the senior graduation play for my students in the English Department at National Chengchi University to be performed Dec. 14 and Dec. 15 at the university (be there!) . . . the play is about a group of friends who play role playing games (RPGs) to the point of the games becoming their escape from reality . . .

The students have gone all out and created a film that will be used in conjunction with the on-stage drama . . . the characters on stage will "play" the table top game with their fantasy personae manifested within the film. I am the faculty advisor of the play for which I am quite qualified (my doctoral dissertation is in interactive drama (live RPGs), I have advanced degrees in theatre, I deal with reality levels in my hypnosis work, and I played more RPGs than a human really should play).

See the official blog for the play here and the fullsize versions of the trailers here (download links for the mov files are below the embedded player).  Venue information is on the blog.

Koolness.

All the best,
Brian

The Radar Poll . . .

Radar sent their undercover operatives to talk to fifty of Hollywood's mos powerful for the Radar Poll to ask questions like "who's the most difficult actor?" "who's the most tyrannical director?" "who's the nicest director?" and more. Fun and interesting read.