"ARTIFACT SCREENING - PARIS"
17.2.2014 - Paris, France
February 17th was my first day back on the MARS tour circuit after over 2 years off. This was the first chance I had to get out of Australia and to a show so I was pretty excited. Yesterday was interesting with Jared turning us away after bumping into him in the street whilst out for dinner, but I put it behind me and prepared myself for the start of this new chapter in my MARS journey.
The morning started with the Artifact screening at Palais de Tokyo. I arrived about an hour before check in and got talking with a few Echelon who arrived around the same time. I participated in an Echelon project and handed out stickers and bars of my ‘MARS chocolate’ to some of the Echelon waiting.
At around midday we went into the venue – almost a hidden cinema room at the back of this gorgeous building, the inside with a graffiti-esque/industrial look. I checked in with Reni and received the Artifact DVD signed by Jared. A nice surprise as I’d forgotten the first 50 people to buy tickets would receive one – and I certainly didn’t expect it to be signed! Once inside, we took our seats and helped ourselves to popcorn and drinks that Adventures In Wonderland had put on for us.
Artifact is a really great documentary... even if you aren't a fan of Thirty Seconds To Mars I think you would appreciate the story and the battle the guys had to go through. Of course it's extra special for the Echelon who already love the guys in front of the camera... anyway...
After the movie, we had a little time to chill out before Jared finally arrived – seemingly like he had just gotten out of bed. Hair pulled back, looking a little sleepy and in his oversized jacket with fur on the hood. ‘You ever had jet lag?’ he asked us before telling us about how he was laying there at 7am begging God to let him sleep. He sat in his chair and thanked us for coming, for supporting Artifact and then he spoke about the movie and a few other things before starting the Q&A. Many people raised their hands, with about 10 questions being answered – though answered in a lot of detail. As most of the people who managed to get their questions out stated they were from somewhere other than Paris, Jared asked "Who here is actually from Paris?" to which about 4 people raised their hands. Jared laughed and said “It’s like the fucking United Nations in here!!”
Once the Q&A was over, we went row by row, front to back to take our photo with Jared. The first row went up then waited outside the room, so if you were at the front everyone saw your photo being taken. I was pretty happy that I sat about 5 rows back so only had a few rows of people watching me... not that it's embarrassing or anything, but I'd still prefer to not have an audience.
The line moved quickly, with Emma saying Hello and guiding us into Jared for the photo when it was our turn. It was very, very fast, but there was at least 100 people there if not more so I’m not really surprised. As I got to Emma she said Hello and I said Hi back to her and a second later I was stepping into the photo. As I took the step toward Jared I looked at him and simply said “Hi stranger”. My left arm went around his back and my right arm went into his jacket so I squeezed him tight and he wrapped his arms around me and squeezed back. He was so freakin' warm! I remember it so vividly. After the photo was taken he said “It’s good to see you again” and I let go and smiled at him. I walked off happily but completely unsure of if I’d even smiled for the photo as it was taken so quickly!
We all waited outside in the lobby until everyone had finished their photos... everyone buzzing about meeting Jared, then I went back into the room - now Jared free - to get my stuff and make my way to Le Zenith for my first MARS show in 2 years.