Onward and Upward: Reflections of a Joyful Life

by Michael Wiese

Overview

From humble beginnings in a small Midwestern town to being an integral part of the underground film scene of San Francisco in the ’60s. From studying with Balinese shadow puppet masters to presenting documentary screenings for the Dalai Lama. From producing the best parody ever of Star Wars to documenting the spiritual healing powers of Ayahuasca in the Peruvian jungle. From the hustle and bustle of film production in Hollywood to running the biggest “how-to” filmmaking press in the world, Michael has lived a life accompanied by countless paradigm thinkers such as Buckminster Fuller and Salvador Dalí, and he puts his heart and soul in every chapter to show you what the journey to true success, on every level of life, looks like.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781615931392
Publisher:	Wiese, Michael Productions
Publication date:	06/01/2013
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Michael Wiese, visionary founder of MWP with over five decades of experience in film, television and book publishing, has inspired the work of countless independent filmmakers with over 200 books on filmmaking dedicated to bringing clarity and transparency to the creative community. Director, author, producer and publisher, Michael has been instrumental in supporting the work of our talented authors who bring to life unforgettable classics and have touched the hearts of audiences worldwide. HIs unwavering dedication to making life easier and better for independent filmmakers and creative minds worldwide, has earned him a reputation as a true champion of the arts.

Read an Excerpt

MY FIRST DEAL Summer is coming to an end in two weeks and I have a plan. I make an appointment to meet with the directors of the Champaign High School Board after their monthly meeting. I tell them I have a great band (we know dozens of songs now) and we want to play “The Howdy Hop.” This is Champaign High’s first dance of the new school year. If we can play at that event, everyone will know who we are. The School Board asks our price. I say, “$75.” They negotiate by saying that this is too much. I say, “that’s our standard rate.” They rebut, “anyway, we don’t expect a big turnout. I say, “all right then, we’ll play for free and if anyone shows up we’ll take 75% of the gate.” They agree. My Dad, who has a law degree but never practiced, always says to ‘write it down’. So I get their promise in writing.

Table of Contents

Prologue

OBSERVING – Champaign, Illinois
Bright Lights, Toes, Baby Jeff, Wabbits, Dough Boy Elm Street, Encounter with Death,The Paddle, Big Chief Al’s, Johnny Disappears, First Grade Candy, The Cheater, A Close One, Miami, Reading Club, King of the Wild Frontier, Lake of the Weeds, Killing, I Get It From My Dad, Treasure, Softies, New House,The Secret of Life, Park Here, The Kuhns and The Wieses, Darkroom, Music, Puny Uni, Initiation, First Jobs, My First Deal, The Sterlings, Bad Art, Driving, The News Gazette, Film Bug, Doc Unit, Rochester

OPENING – San Francisco – Summer of Love
Jade Muse, Underground Movies, Messages  Messages, Naked Ambition, A Party for Fellini

QUESTING – Japan and Beyond
Japan, Road to Bali, Bali, Return to Corn Country, Japan – Take Two, Kathmandu, East Africa, Egypt, Santorini

RETURNING - America
Saddhu in New York, San Francisco Redux, Asian Refuge, An Aquatic Future, Living in the Avenues, Silver Box, est, Extraordinary Powers, Bucky, San Anselmo, Enter Kaskafayet, An Experience of Light, Hardware Wars, Ketamine, Finding Joe, Dolphin Bliss, People Who Live in Glass Houses, First Book

WORKING – The Entertainment Industry
Robot Wars, New York, New York, My First Real Book, Pay Cable – The Movie Channel, The Budget Book, Vestron, The Beach Boys, Life After Vestron, Goin’ Hollywood, End of A Life Cycle

SOWING – The Spirit
Shirley, Pacific Arts, The Great Ken Lee, She (Who Knows All, Sees All) Shows Up, The Test, Diet for a New America, Vigil, Julia Bronwyn, What Our  Children Eat, Knoxville, One Month Birthday, The Merry Maidens, Studio City, Shake Rattle and Roll, You Have to Tell the Spirits, Cashing In

ENJOYING – Cornwall
First Year in Cornwall, Brother Jeff, Permanent  Residence, MWP, Dolphin Girl, St Loy Today, My New Best Friend, The Extension, Bali Brothers, Sacred Sites, The One in Your Garage, Stem Cell Adventure

KNOWING – Other Realms
Mother Ayahuasca, First Journey, The Second Journey, The Birth of Divine Arts

TRANSFORMING
The Parkinson Journey

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Like some of the best things in life, Onward and Upward was a joy I wasn't expecting. An autobiography of author, filmmaker, producer and entrepreneur Michael Wiese, this book craftily outlines a life well lived, weaving in wide-angle historical sketches with an intimate close ups on the movie making and distribution business. The cast is studded with luminaries like Salvador Dali, Buckminster Fuller, Shirley MacLaine, and a host of Hollywood movers-and-shakers, as well as Wiese's family and teachers. But the real star is Wiese himself, and the strange, intoxicating journey of his own spiritual path –from Bali to the jungles of the Amazon. Wiese peels back theme and story to remind us why we make films, and books, and love – and like Balinese shadow puppets, he reveals the hand of something greater in the drama of life.”
 
Rak Razam, author, Aya: A Shamanic Odyssey

“Michael Wiese has written a unique memoir, the inspiring story of a courageous individual born at a time of huge cultural change who has followed his heart and made a genuine contribution to consciousness. From small town America, to Haight Ashbury at its peak, to the world of New York and Hollywood media, to deep spiritual exploration in the jungles of Peru and beyond, Michael has trusted his inner being and taken risks that would have daunted a lesser person. His book is an emotionally honest, entirely unpredictable adventure. It tells the compelling tale of a gifted and resourceful person who stays true to his values, always chooses the spiritual and the compassionate, never forsakes his deepest values and is often willing to head into the unknown. The result has been a joyful life, permeated increasingly by spiritual wisdom. This is a book that readers will cherish. It imparts the immense value of staying true to one's convictions and visions, and demonstrates the inwardly rich life that results when integrity is maintained despite the circumstances. One puts this book down with a sense of a life well-lived, and a feeling of gratitude that the author has chosen to give us such a candid record of his impressive journey to wholeness.”    

Ralph White, Co-Founder and Creative Director, New York Open Center

“Onward and Upward was a pleasure from start to finish. Michael's way of only telling the interesting parts of his life, skipping the tedious details, and maintaining the same light touch for successes and failures makes this book a genuinely engaging autobiography. The fact that he is the only person I've ever heard of who was thrown out of school for not sleeping with a girl, that he was pivotal in bringing the first underwater concert to Dolphins and the most successful years of his career was when he was most lost gives his narrative enough twists and turns to have kept my attention to the very magical end. I'm so glad that he wrote it. You will be too.”

James Fadiman, Ph.D., author, The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide

Editorial Reviews

Like some of the best things in life, Onward and Upward was a joy I wasn't expecting. An autobiography of author, filmmaker, producer and entrepreneur Michael Wiese, this book craftily outlines a life well lived, weaving in wide-angle historical sketches with an intimate close ups on the movie making and distribution business. The cast is studded with luminaries like Salvador Dali, Buckminster Fuller, Shirley MacLaine, and a host of Hollywood movers-and-shakers, as well as Wiese's family and teachers. But the real star is Wiese himself, and the strange, intoxicating journey of his own spiritual path –from Bali to the jungles of the Amazon. Wiese peels back theme and story to remind us why we make films, and books, and love – and like Balinese shadow puppets, he reveals the hand of something greater in the drama of life.”
 
Rak Razam, author, Aya: A Shamanic Odyssey

From the Publisher