The plan was to enjoy two weeks off – after riding the non-stop production carousel since summer of 2014, stepping away from prep and post and scripts and notes to just, finally, get away from it all for a modest 14 days before jumping back into it. A simple 2 out of 150 weeks to relax, recharge, and refresh. You know? A hard-earned rest after two seasons, 12 scripts, 5 major rewrites, and the plotting of another 13? But this would appear to be easier said than done as, even halfway across the world, I can’t escape the seemingly endless production-related concerns.
Oh, but I’ll try anyway.
Today was our last day in Tokyo – for now – as we’re catching the bullet train to Osaka to spend time with Akemi’s family. I was, admittedly, a little leery about what Akemi had planned for the day – a four hour chocolate-making course in Japanese – but I made it work because, hey, I’m all about collaboration. I’m a freakin’ team player, right?
We arrive at a little before 10:30 a.m. for the start of production. Chocolate production that is. Our hosts are the Tokyo branch of San Francisco’s Dandelion Chocolate.
I kill time by ordering one of my many chocolate-themed snacks of the day. In this case, a spicy hot chocolate. Akemi ate my cookie and marshmallow.
The plan, not unlike a production prep schedule, complete with timings, structured progressions, and random chocolate tastings.
My impeccable Japanese penmanship on display. The name tag says simply “Joe”. “Creator/Executive Producer/Showrunner” would have taken most of the afternoon.
Your final product is only as good as your starting ingredients like, say, the best raw cacao beans or best written scripts.
But before you use ’em, make sure to sort through them, removing problematic elements like feathers, nails, and ridiculous plot points.
After that, it’s into the roaster where that amazing base ingredient acquires another level of characters – aroma, flavor, and special guest star casting.
Once that’s done, it’s on to the winnowing where the heavier nib is separated from lighter, inedible skin. The nibs are like really great script moments like the Android speaking in varied accents or THREE reducing FIVE to tears when he tells her he doesn’t care for her, not because she thinks he DOESN’T care for her but because, in so doing, it make her realizes how much he truly DOES. The skin is like those suspect creative intrusions that get cast off in prep week. Hey, how about making the corporate guard an oboe?
Producing chocolate is not unlike producing television. It’s the ingredients that make the final product. In this case, we elect to go with a delightful Belize/Trinidad 75% blend, sort of like marrying phenomenal director Ron Murphy with a script written by the talented Paul Mullie.
And into the processor it goes. Day 1! Scene 1! Interior Raza Bridge!
Blitz! Melissa O’Neil wants to tweak a line of dialogue. Anthony wants to ad-lib a little at the end. You say yes and the end result surpasses what you’d originally envisioned because your cast is awesome and totally in sync with the material, their characters.
From the food processor to the melanger, segueing from prep week to production. The nibs are ground, transformed from their humble script-like beginnings to something completely different and, hopefully, wonderful.
Before getting right into it, whether it be chocolate-making, production oversight, or 11th hour issues, it’s always best to be prepared. I imagine that this is how the cast and crew see me whenever I show up on set. The reaction: “Oh, shit!”.
Snack break #2 as the grinding process takes time. 20 minutes in the case of chocolate; about 8-10 days for an episode of Dark Matter. A sweet and salty dulce de leche dessert accompanied by a bittersweet European hot chocolate that was pretty damn close to pudding.
Next, Akemi adds the sugar – 25% of the total package leaving us with a 75% dark chocolate blend – or, in production terms: directed by Ron Murphy, written by Paul Mullie, guest starring sweet, sweet Marc Bendavid.
Then, we have to step away and allow the sugar and cacao to melange, usually 2-4 days. This is like delivering the dailies to the editor who then spends days assembling his/her edit. While this is happening, we go out for ramen. I order clam broth and pork with an egg, a side of cod roe on ice, and a request to really let those awesome VFX beats breathe.
And snack #3: dessert smore with a dark chocolate center and a weird but uniquely tasty drink made from the fruit of the cacao plant.
Oh yeah. Almost there! Check out the liquid gold director’s cut. And send in those notes.
Hopefully, it doesn’t get too messy.
Alright. Ready to head into battle once again. Put on your battle armor.
Temper your chocolate – and expectations – as you complete post-production. Lose the air. Add sound effects and music.
And color correct! Akemi reminds us to color correct!
And there you have it – roughly 30 bars of chocolate, or 13 episodes of television.
Mariko-san and Masaaki-san, the chocolate-making equivalents of Executive Producer Vanessa Piazza and Supervising Producer Ivon Bartok.
Ah, the satisfaction of a job well done. But don’t get too comfortable! Work begins immediately for the next (chocolate) season!
Joe, you REALLY need a break!
Great blog … dispite the photos I was seeing TV production all the way. Brilliant!
Wow! When you said you were making chocolate I didn’t realise you’d be doing the roasting, nibbing and conching! That’s impressive! I usually just buy the pre-made stuff from Valrhona or Cacao Barry and then do the tempering from there.
You’ll be ready to come home for a nice relaxing Season 3 Production at this rate!
How fun! I know it’s a long time, but I’d love to do a chocolate making class one day.
Enjoy the train ride!!
Hmm, I see you’re doing a great job of leaving work behind. 😀 Amazing class and thanks for sharing!
“Joey and the Chocolate Factory”
Sounds like a great time, but you may want to pick a few hours a day to just leave the phone/laptop off!
Myself, I’m on the way home, sitting in the Montreal airport waiting for my connection after getting about 10 mins sleep on the flight from Vanc. Bleh!
I’m thinking your issues of “getting away” are self-inflicted. But, conversely, I love how you immerse yourself in your work (both DM and chocolate)!
Simply put: Yummy! Oh, and, to pull an O’Neill: Tell whoever calls from home, “Agghhh, ______, I’m on vacation! I’ll deal with it when I get home.” Just don’t throw the battery away and give the phone to Akemi!
MMMMMMM, Chocolate….
I’ve heard that busy people get refreshed by a busy change of scene. Also, your life seems longer, in a good way.
I’m curious, since normally one should “allow the sugar and cacao to melange, usually 2-4 days”… and you only took a lunch break — did your chocolate turn out well? Did it make a significant difference?
Sorry about the punctuation. Sometimes it happens that way.
Kalimera me fellow foodies! Hope everyone is having a super chocolicious day!
Well, Joe gotta say
-really wasn’t sure how you were going to endure a 4 hour chocolate making class spoken entirely in Japanese. Albeit, seems it was good for you as it hast indeed inspired the glorious return of your quick brilliant sense of humor.
What a truly wonderful way to start my day! I don’t think I’ve spontaneously laughed so hard out loud at one of your blog postings since the day you decided to let cookie monster do the movie reviews!
And might i dare add – that wide-eyed solo photo of you is probably the best Mel Brooks imitation I’ve seen in quite a long while! 😀 😀 😀
Cant wait to see what dreams and stories your train ride inspires! <3
( and how all the little bits and pieces, and not so little bits n pieces, – somehow manage to weave their way into various episodes of DM's season 3.
I had a nightmare last night about that giant fish head chasing me on land!).
Guess I should have been a bit more specific when I requested the food porn eh?! 😀
Sorry to hear your snow monkeys are starting out poorly again this season.
Maybe you should feed them some of the chocolate you and Akemi made to perk up their performance!?
I’m going to get a cup of hot chocolate now to clear my palate of the taste of those big scary fishy thoughts before curling up for my morning kitty nap.
XOXO
Brilliant post! I love the parallels. Awesome. But you really need a spa day with no phones to just relax, melt, sleep and recharge (you, not your phone). 🙂
Nice show running lesson, short and sweet yet explains really well how a show comes together. I want all those snack breaks, so cocoa-y. That little s’more has me hypnotized. I splurged on a brownie at lunch that I’ve been hoarding, now I know what for, I am prepped for all post-blog chocolate cravings. Say hi for me to Akemi’s lovely family, taking the train to Osaka sounds so James Bondish, thanks for sharing your awesome vacation with us again!
That’s so cool.
I vote myself to be your official taster, so if you send a bar (or two….) my way……
….and it’ll help me get over the emotional trauma from last night’s episode! Those scenes with Three and Five – awesome! 😊
I covet those chocolate snacks! Yum! Thanks for the look into both processes, interesting.
I’ve been away from your blog until I caught up with DM, and with life post-Burning Man. Whew. Still covered in dust.
Just watched episodes 9~12. Wow. Excellent. Yesss, okay, uh-huh, yeah. Wait, what? And visually luscious overall. I covet the hooded jackets as well as the aforementioned snacks. Nice.
In personal news, Burning Man was great as usual, even though I kept it low key. Lots of amazing art, reunions with old friends, and good times. Only got smashingly drunk once, with friends. Was the Crim in RHPS, I have no neck!
On my return, I found my much needed surgery is pushed back to the 21st. Gah. This is moving from uncomfortable, to irritating, to downright painful. Wish me luck, and patience.
Looks like you guys are having a blast there in Japan, as usual! Just stay away from the 7-11 chocolate eclairs, or at least don’t hit the sake so hard this time. 😉
Been away for a few weeks again as I had missed the airings of a couple episodes and didn’t want to read any spoilers of any kind. I got caught up on episodes the other day, and now I’m caught up on the blog, too.
Sadly, I was also away from just about everything this past week. Last Sunday, my father died. He suffered an aortic dissection and while they were able to catch it pretty quick and get him into surgery, the repairs they tried to make ultimately failed. He was actually in great health for a 74 year old, sure he was a bit overweight, but nothing outlandish. There was no way for him, or anyone of us, to have seen this coming. It has been a rough week and a half for me and my family. The memorial service we had for him was beautiful and it was so great to see so many old friends and family and to know that he touched so many lives. As I said in the service, I never knew how much of a piece of my heart he had, until he died. He was extremely generous with his time and his love for us and I am so glad he was that way with us. My brother and I could never even come close to showing him the love we had for him compared to how he loved us. Now he knows how much we love him. It’s going to be tough going on without him. I’m really not looking forward to the holidays, either.
When you ultimately get to Toronto, I’m sure you’re going to make the trip over to your mom’s for Christmas or at least to visit at some point. Give her an extra hug and a kiss, from you.
Same goes to all you other blog regulars here that read all the comments, too. Go give your kids an extra hug and a kiss, then go do the same to your parents, if they’re still with you.
-Mike A.
Mike A.: Sending prayers on the loss of your father….
You write so lovingly of your father Mike, please accept my condolences. He will always live in you.
Hang in there maggiemayday we are here.
Very nice and insightful post Joe. But please don’t run around like crazy, take the good advice offered here and take time to truly “relax”.
As for me, lots of layoffs announced at work today, I and my team are safe, but scary times…
I welcome autumn’s amazing colors and cooler temps, but it is sad to know only 1 ep of S2 left, then a lo-o-o-n-n-g wait for S3 of Dark Matter. I shall have to keep my Netflix active so I can enjoy re-watching both seasons again and again and again.
2cats
@ Mike A – So sorry to hear of your father’s death. Your dad was very young. My dad is 91 and I get emotional just thinking about that day that will come. Thoughts and prayers for you and your entire family.
Joe, I remember in a past Tokyo trip you getting an expressed package from work with a script to look over and comment on. Face it. You’re an important guy, Mr. Creator.
“I was, admittedly, a little leery about what Akemi had planned for the day – a four hour chocolate-making course in Japanese – but I made it work because, hey, I’m all about collaboration. I’m a freakin’ team player, right?”
BS! You are a choco-halic. Plain and simple. Addicted! Addicted to chocolate. It’s just another excuse to eat all you want.
“Next, Akemi adds the sugar – 25% of the total package leaving us with a 75% dark chocolate blend – or, in production terms: directed by Ron Murphy, written by Paul Mullie, guest starring sweet, sweet Marc Bendavid.”
No. How can that be? Because… YOU KILLED HIM OFF!!!!!!! Dammit Joe!! 🙂
Well, I can tell your mind was not totally on making chocolate. But look at those beautiful chocolate bars you made. Job well done… like another episode of Dark Matter.
(see, I can play that game too) 🙂
Thank you, Tam.
@Mike A Deepest sympathies and hugs on the loss of your father. Please remember we are always here and will always listen if you need to talk to help you get through this extraordinarily difficult time.
Speaking of chocolate.
https://nestle.jp/brand/kit/inbound/en/chocolatory/store.html
The Kit Kat Fruits selection tastes amazing. I think this is probably my first chocolate suggestion on your blog Joe, but worth checking out if you’re in the area. If you’re not, not a huge deal.
@Maggiemayday: Glad to hear you had a good time at the fest! Hang in there beautiful. Sending warm positive healing energy your way.
By the way: A bunch of us have set up a celebration for Joe’s 10 yr blog anniversary. Send me an email via NewScience101@gmail.com and I’ll send ya the details. ❤
I now have Type II Diabetes thanks to your recent posting!! That’s what I’d call some crazy fun!! The end result looks delicious, how does it taste and is there any left?
I bet you and Akemi are having a “chocolicious blast”, though stay away from chocolate rivers!
@Mike A: My deepest condolences on the passing of your father
@maggiemayday: hope you feel better
Way to get your mind off work, Joe. 😉 That was a fun post. I think I learned more about producing a tv show than how to make chocolate, but that’s a good thing. Both “classes” were truly enjoyable. 🙂
@Mike A. My condolences on the loss of your father. Your tribute to him was very touching.
My condolences to you Mike A. and your family.
I lost my father in 2005 and my mother in 2009. While you learn to deal with the pain of the loss, you never really get over it.
To this day I regret not listening more when they spoke about their childhood.
Be strong. And you are right, never miss a chance to tell your family how much they mean to you.
in regards to the chocolate-themed snacks of the day, is that included in the price of the class? or is it extra?
(& still not seeing my usual monster avatar. yesterday it posted with something else. i wonder if it’s because i changed operating systems)
On a completely different subject, Joseph:
I was watching Stargate Universe Awakenings just now when I noticed this:
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pLzEwnE7iaA/V9juwlWw4VI/AAAAAAAAD1w/TcS3V1DiAEkkzVrLa3EHds8vEbrJj1orACJoC/w692-h432-p/screenshot.80.jpg
A large muffin fan on an alien (Ancient Seed) spaceship!
Very amusing. Very alieny.
I don’t know how many of you guys will see this so I’ll post it on the most recent entry as well, too.
Thank you all for you kind words. Knowing that some of you have gone through this as well and reading your words of experience and encouragement help more than you’ll ever know.
-Mike A.
Look how happy you guys are together. It means me feel all happy inside. But wow! I never realized how difficult it is to make chocolate from scratch. I’ll appreciate those who come before me and give me my base product without me ever knowing (up until now) how much goes into it.
@maggiemayday Postponed surgery dates are MOST aggravating!!
Oh @MikeA I am shedding tears for you. It is never an easy process. Be kind with yourself. It will creep up on you when you least expect it. And there is no timetable on it. Jeff, Patrick and I are sending you and all of your family great big bear hugs and love and sympathy.