Musings

Preparedness

Recently I have had the privilege of helping with the New Mexico Emergency Management Conference held in Ruidoso.

Throughout the conference I listened to Emergency Managers share their resilience, preparedness, and determination. Their admirable strength, courage and foresight is inspiring to me.

On the surface it would seem incongruent that I, a filmmaker, would use my spare time to help out with emergency services. But truth is, I have always considered helping my community a precious gift.

I have been an eyewitness to natural disasters, such as earthquakes, wildfires and tornadoes. As I began to truly understand the real needs in my community it occurred to me that I was either equipped or crazy enough to be a part of the solution, and became more deeply certified in community emergency response, wildland fire, and the most challenging training of all – becoming a licensed EMT.

Looking back on the convergence of being both a filmmaker and a first responder, there is something to be said for embracing all of your skills, not just the ones used in your day job. Experiences from one enrich the other. And in the intimate space of people on their worst day, you begin to shed judgement and disagreement. Humanity and compassion shine through. For me, this is a refreshing gift from my service. So what about you? What are you called to do? What is that one thing you’ve been curious about trying, but logically doesn’t fit into your current paradigm.  Take just one step towards it – whatever that IT may be for you today.

Resilience = The 3 Ps

Early in my career I had the honor of working with the great Robert Wise, director of The Sound of Music, and editor of Citizen Kane.

He personally shared with me, his three Ps: Passion, Patience, and Perseverance. Little did I realize that these three Ps are some of the most quotes memories from Bob. He followed with, “You have to do this if you’ve got to be a filmmaker.”

I didn’t fully understand what he meant until this week. I turned in a project that I’ve been a part of for five long years. This journey has been met with every kind of hurdle and roadblock. As I turn the corner to completion, I remember Bob’s kind smile, and gentle voice. Now I finally get it.

Stay tuned, as we await to hear the fate for this sweet labor of love.

Everyday Overland

Submitted to two festivals – Inspired by the experiences of living full-time in a National Forest, I’m proud to share the first short film in a new series in collaboration with @‌sheepdog.overland: Everyday Overland 🚙🌲☕️

“Coffee Run” captures the beauty and complexity of a simple act, transforming it into a dreamlike experience amidst daily life in the mountains.

A huge shoutout to Andrew Kitzman for making his directorial debut with this project!

Know Your Road

There is a great quote attributed to Lewis Carroll, “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” And while some dispute that is not exactly what Mr. Carroll said, it’s the spirit of the message I draw to. 

Oftentimes in my career I have simply ricocheted. One time I took a job as a Set PA on a home improvement show and had to clean toilets; another time I took several jobs on a true crime show and had nightmares for weeks!

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY YES TO.

I once heard a fellow producer say, “THAT DOESN’T ALIGN WITH WHO I AM.” SNAP!  So that path is the path I am on – saying yes to projects that are aligned with who I am.

If you are also on this path, here is some food for thought for you.

THREE STEPPING-STONE ROLES:

  1. BE A LOCAL STORYTELLER FOR NEW LOCAL BUSINESSES.  You don’t necessarily need to think macro.  How about micro?  Who do you have in your circle of friends who might need help with their new local business?  Consider joining the neighboring city chamber of commerce.  They may need help sharing their story.
  2. BE A STORYTELLER FOR YOUR OWN SHORT DOCUMENTARY STORIES which lead to longform stories… How about you stop working on side projects that aren’t meaningful to you, and carve out some time on your own passion projects?  Granted, we aren’t always in a financial position to do that, but when that door opens seize the day!
  3. OFFER YOUR STORYTELLING SKILLS TO PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY INSPIRE YOU.  If you are going to work for other people, why not hand-pick people who you think are amazing or who you’ve always wanted to work with?

For you and your path, it will require you to literally step out. Be intentional. Be purposeful. Enjoy the journey!

My Faves

My list of favorite films is lengthy and far-reaching. I hate leaving off masterpieces like Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings, but looking through the lens of the films that have significantly shaped and defined my tastes as a documentary filmmaker, here are my five:

  • The Secret of Roan Inish (1994/John Sayles/Jones Entertainment)
  • It’s a Wonderful Life (1946/Frank Capra/Republic Pictures)
  • 20 Feet from Stardom (2013/Morgan Neville/Radius TWC)
  • The Act of Killing (2012/Joshua Oppenheimer/Drafthouse Films)
  • This is Spinaltap (1984/Rob Reiner/Embassy Pictures)

I am who I say I am

The first time I edited was well into my tv/film career as a producer.  

In 2009, the TV station I worked at needed me to rough edit the stories I was producing, to help in their post-production process. But because producing was engrained in me, I never considered myself an editor, that is until 2012. It was 10 PM and I was working late at the station. I was editing some incredibly powerful interviews with Holocaust survivors and their descendants. As I played the string-out of stories, they all started to sound repetitive, which weakened them and was the opposite of what I needed to accomplish. These were incredibly personal stories that deserved to be told with honor and reverence… I truly had no clue what I was doing, or why, but I went on instinct alone and began to weave their stories together so that they were one “voice” – one person would finish another’s sentence, another would build on it. I still am not sure why, but it made it so much more powerful, because it made the problem of what the Holocaust was much bigger. I think in many ways it was the most incredible thing I have ever had the privilege to edit, and it was the moment I gave myself permission to quietly call myself an editor.

Feel More Like You

In 2019, Walgreens, a US national pharmacy chain joined forces with its European branch, Boots, to come up with ideas to engage customers through their health journeys.  Their “Feel More Like You” campaign included a target to oncology patients and survivors who went through physical changes during their cancer treatment, and they wanted to underscore that a patient’s journey is individual, not formulaic.

This commercial targets women going through breast cancer.

When I first saw this video, I was losing both my mom, and my best friend to cancer, and shortly after it came out, my other best friend began her courageous battle conquering stage 4 Breast Cancer.

By the grace of God I have never had cancer, but this commercial made me think and feel so much about what a woman must go through as she faces chemo, losing hair, and possibly having a mastectomy. 

It put me in the shoes of the cancer patients seeing the world through their eyes.

It made me want to stand up for cancer even more.  It made me want to make sure everyone woman feels beautiful no matter what she is going through.