documentary film

Stick With It!

I helped cut a trailer for a documentary film for the first time yesterday and I didn’t flinch once!

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Planning the documentary trailer.

In all seriousness, though, I didn’t appreciate the growth process of the past two years of my life until I sat down and watched that trailer.  I’ve branched out into a whole other skill set, something I never really formally trained for or planned for.

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Armin Nasseri edits a preview trailer for “George Hobbs:  Stick Figure Wisdom”

Armin Nasseri and I are working on a documentary about George Hobbs, a lifelong prop master in the movie business, who’s pursuing his passion for art.  We put a preview trailer together today for distributors.

Frankly, I didn’t know what to expect.  When you do fictional narrative, you have a script.  You know what’s coming!  With a doc, it seems, it’s a lot more like picking from beauteous fragments, because you just don’t know or can’t guarantee what will be said or not said.

I was pleasantly surprised!

I just started doing interviews two years ago and the opportunity to do in-depth interviews with George has been amazing.  We’re still shooting this amazing project.  Expect it to come out in 2020!

 

Land of the Free?

“land of the free and the home of the brave…”

aspire posterAm I brave enough?  I ask myself this question constantly.  Am I taking the path of least resistance because it’s more convenient?  I see and hear from so many angsty people daily, in person, on my social feeds.  And sometimes, I’ve taken the primrose path of least resistance or sat on the sidelines or decided to be above the fray.

This week, I started questioning what would have happened if George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and the other Founders had taken the path of least resistance.  Would I be here today, enjoying (for now) my freedom of speech and freedom of the press which enables me to have a Hollywood livelihood?

I was saddened by the shootings at the Capital Gazette, but it’s not enough to be saddened.  It’s not enough to have prayers and thoughts.  Almost everyone has thoughts.  It’s what you do with those thoughts that count.  What brave action have you undertaken lately?

For me, it’s been delving into an aspect of film making I know little about:  documentary.  I am currently producing and narrating “George Hobbs:  Stick Figure Wisdom“, about Los Angeles artist George Hobbs who uses his free speech to make art that pushes back against the powers that be.

There’s a swath of people in this country who are decidedly anti-journalist and anti-media, which is why those of us in fields that depend on freedom of speech, freedom of press and freedom of information must continue to offer the truth, whether it’s heard and appreciated or not.

This Fourth of July weekend, enjoy the fireworks, but make some fireworks of your own in your own life in a metaphorical sense.  Make a big bold statement.  Make a declaration.  Speak your truth AND act on your truth.

Happy Fourth!