Kitchen demo and more

Sorry for being such an infrequent blogger...

Here's a quick rundown of what I've been doing and thinking about.

1) Home renovations continue. See photos (below) of empty kitchen ready for demolition. Even though I'm not actually swinging the hammer, it is almost a full time job planning, researching and negotiating with contractors. Next up: find the perfect low flow toilet within our budget.

2) Working a freelance gig at Comic Con - a massive gathering of comic book fans and the industry that caters to them. Paid work is good.

3) Wishing I could be working on PRODUCING PAMOJA. Still have not had the chance to look at my footage since returning from Kenya. But even if I found the time, I'd also like to find some money so that I can hire my editor, Pallas Weber, to work with me. Meanwhile, the Financial Times recently published Stirrings in Kenya's Slums an article that describes sentiments similar to those of the cast and crew that I captured during production.

4) While trying to figure out how to move forward with PRODUCING PAMOJA, I'm applying for a grant to make the 3 minute pilot episode for the TRADING FACES series. Also a stand alone mini documentary, the story would follow a soccer ball from the Pakistani woman who stitches it, to the Seattle couple who sells it online, to the striker on a youth soccer team who uses it to score a goal!

5) Thinking about applying to Pixel Pitch at POWER TO THE PIXEL. I'd like to explore the possibility of using the Ushahidi platform to make TRADING FACES into an online, interactive, and participatory project that connects producers and consumers around the world....

6) And, finally, feeling frustrated at American apathy. We will not get the health care overhaul we need if the masses stay silent. We need to manufacture the political will.

Back to Blogging

This is a long overdue update: I apologize for the long stint of silence.

The truth is that nothing much has transpired since my return from Kenya...except that major renovations on my house are in full swing (see photo of missing wall below) and the house has diverted much of my energy and attention. The other major diversion is our precarious financial position and my focus on bringing in some immediate and needed income. Which leaves me with little time to devote to PRODUCING PAMOJA...

I have submitted applications to both Cinereach and Chicken & Egg Pictures for funding to cover initial editing costs. Fingers crossed!

UPDATE: Cinereach received over 600 letters of inquiry and, sadly, PRODUCING PAMOJA is not one of the lucky projects that they will support...

Kwa Heri means Goodbye

I still have one day left in Nairobi but today was my last on the set of TOGETHERNESS SUPREME. I underestimated how hard it would be to say goodbye to my new friends in Kibera.

Shoot Schedule

Here's the shoot schedule for my last two days in Nairobi:

WED

1pm Shoot Scene at ODM office (downtown) and grab quick interview with actor playing the role of Raila Odinga and other behind the scenes footage

2pm Taxi to Kibera to reshoot an interview with Geofrey (Otieno) and a woman who lives in "Mwangi's Compound" where many scenes were filmed on the set that was built there

3:30pm Shoot an interview with the Pastor and Elder of a church that was nearly burned to the ground during the post-election violence and was a location for the film

4:30pm Shoot behind the scenes of the final scene in the film!

5:30pm Shoot Collins, a set runner, showing us a development project in Kibera sponsored by his youth group and interivew his mother about her salon being burned during the post election violence

7:00pm Wrap

THURS

1pm Meet Martha, who plays Alice, the love interest of Otieno and Kamau, at her home in Kibera then document her youth group rehearsing an "edu-tainment" performance about the issue of HIV / AIDS

WRAP!!!!

(Then digitize footage for translation here in Kenya, pack bags, leave for airport at 6am on Friday morning. Layover in London with fab filmmaker Minou and home with hubby on Sat!!!)

Working Hard

Some highlights from the past few days:

Shooting the sunrise in Kibera - the opening shot of the doc? Faith, a Kibera trainee, visiting her former home and getting swarmed by neighborhood children. Jahill, another trainee, winding us thru a maze of dirt pathways in Kibera on his way home. Hanging out with Geofrey -- who plays Luo lead Otieno -- and his friends near Dandora. Chris -- who plays a thug named Masher -- reenacting the scene when he was shot by the police years ago. Finally getting an interview with Wilson who plays the Kikuyu star Kamau. Documenting a scene at a church that was nearly burned down during the post-election violence.

And some photos (top to bottom):

Silliness on the set, Wilson (Kamau) at home in Embakasi, Chris (Masher) near the scene where he was shot, Geofrey (Otieno) in front of his childhood home, Jahill at the start of the maze of footpaths in Kibera

No Blogger Support

i wanted to share a clip of music i recorded in kibera but keep getting an error message from blogger when i try to upload the quicktime file that says:

contact blogger support and reference
Blog Id:1061129650221052587
Video Id:e5fb0e0384132f32

but then it turns out there is no way to contact blogger support! i've spent hours in a vicious circle trying to figure it out to no avail. will try to post a video clip of the musician when i'm back in the states...

Catching my breath

What a whirlwind the past several weeks have been. From the moment I decided to document production of the feature film TOGETHERNESS SUPREME my life has been turbocharged. With only two weeks to prepare I had to make a leap of faith and hope I would hit the ground in Kenya running.

And I did. Tripped a couple times but I somehow managed to stay on my feet despite lack of funds to hire a fulltime cameraman, bringing the wrong tapestock, my phone getting stolen, exposure problems, scheduling unknowns and all the usual challenges of life in Africa. There's no way that I could have done it without the generous support of friends, family and even complete strangers. Thanks again and again.

Happily, the past several days I've actually had the chance to catch my breath and get some much needed rest. I've logged and digitized most of the footage we've shot so far, and I have a much better sense of the story we've been able to capture. I'm even starting to visualize the film from beginning to end. And one of the biggest benefits is that I can now anticipate what I need to shoot in my last week here. It's gonna be a challenge to get it all done but with a little luck I should leave here with the footage I need.

And then as soon as I get home I'll need to start looking for enough funding to edit a short fundraising sample. If you meant to contribute previously via but missed your chance via The Point, please consider making a donation via PayPal (link above right). Up to now I've been producing this project on the thread of a shoestring and not paying myself anything. But I can't sustain myself or the film without securing completion funds to cover future costs. My goal is to complete a rough cut by the time of the world premiere of TOGETHERNESS SUPREME in Kibera next January. Ideally, I'd like to return to document the event and discover what has transpired in the lives of the cast and crew.

But for now I'm focused on the week ahead. I depart in 8 days, 21 hrs, 24 mins!

PS: There's only a few hours left to vote on which product makes the best story (see previous post)

short and sweet

Very quick update - since it's been a week.

Last Sunday we went far behind the scenes to meet the families of the three main characters in the film. We met the wife and three adorable kids of Chris, Geofrey's street family of lifelong friends, and Wilson's aging grandmother.

Early this week I digitized all the footage I've shot so far (over 20 hours). Now I have a better idea of the structure of the story I'm hoping to tell and what footage I need in order to complete the film. I've decided to extend my stay so that I can capture the rest of the story.

I must admit that making this film has been much much tougher than I imagined. I'm facing all the usual challenges of making a documentary plus an extremely limited budget and a schedule that I can't define because it is dependent on the feature film. The feature itself has double the normal challenges of an indie film because over half the crew are trainees that have never worked on a film before and they are the first Kenyan crew to shoot on the RED camera. So they've had lots of surprises and troubles with scheduling as well. But somehow both the feature and doc are getting made...and I think both films will be a success.

Finally, I have not mentioned my role as mentor yet and just wanted to say that I've been enjoying working with the feature film's "behind-the-scenes" crew who are three youth from Kibera: Wilfred and Victor on camera and Julius editing.

I promise a longer post soon.

Derailed

In my last post I mentioned getting back on track, but today the production was totally derailed. The shoot was called off, and a meeting was held with all the department heads. Nobody said it would be easy. The good news is that the spirit of "togetherness" has prevailed, and we will resume shooting on Monday.

Meanwhile, I've been able to a capture more incredible footage:

A local musician playing an improvised hybrid drum and guitar shared a song he wrote called "Tushirikiane" which means Together We Unite. I'm hoping to rerecord it and use it in the doc. (will post an audio clip and photo soon)

During the climatic scene of the film that recreates the post-election violence in Kibera we captured raw emotions from both Luo and Kikuyu actors. Chris, a Luo playing a youth campaigner who incites a riot, was so in character as he brandished his panga (machete) in front of our camera that I felt a tremor of real fear. Witnessing the scene, Wilson, the lead Kikuyu actor, sank into deep sadness as he was reminded of his painful past.

The last scene of the day they shot the set catching fire (with mostly controlled special effects)!

The next day we were able to shoot a ton of establishing and slice of life shots of Kibera. Plus a young kid named Felix performed a rap about Kibera on camera.

Today we arrived early to capture the behind-the-scenes set up for the opening scene of the film when a fat businessman hits a street kid with his Mercedes. One of the crew members compared the scene to Kenyan politics saying that -- just like the fat businessman -- politicians in this country do not want to take responsibility for their actions unless they are forced to do the right thing.

We're off tomorrow and then Sunday is a big day where we are following the lead actors home and meeting their family and friends.

Tipped!!!

I'm so thrilled to report that my fundraising campaign tipped today - meaning that I reached my goal of $2000 and the funds will be dispersed. This means I can continue to capture the stories of the youth of Kibera and their efforts to make the film TOGETHERNESS SUPREME! My sincere gratitude to all who have supported this project so far.

But the fundraising is not over. I still need to raise additional funds to edit a short sample from the footage. So, for anyone who considered making a contribution but did not have the chance, you can still donate on the point for a few more days, or you can use the paypal link below.

Otherwise, I'm busy with challenges like getting my phone number active again after my Blackberry was stolen two days ago. (Nothing to do with the shoot - was by myself in a shared taxi and several people were working together to take it). You would never believe how valuable a tool my Blackberry was and how much more challenging everything is without it.

Connectivity = Productivity
Disconnection = Disabled

Meanwhile in Kibera, they have had to reshoot some scenes yesterday and today. Hoping we are all be back on track tomorrow!

Rain and other challenges

The rain woke me this morning, and it has continued off and on today. On one hand it is a relief from the unusually hot weather here, but if the rainy season settles in it may make the shoot just that much more challenging. And there certainly are some challenges! TOGETHERNESS SUPREME is shooting on the RED camera, and it is only the second time the camera has been used in Kenya. Not surprisingly, they are experiencing some technical difficulties, and we have the day off today. We will resume shooting on Monday.

Meanwhile, I've changed the working title of the documentary to PRODUCING PAMOJA. Pamoja means "together" in Swahili and the title is inspired by the local cast and crew -- from different ethnic and economic backgrounds -- who have shown a deep dedication toward working together not only to produce of the film but also to give Kenya a brighter future. They have made a huge impression on me, and today I want to share some of their stories.

Collins is a set runner (production assistant) who is from Kibera, and this is his first time working on a film. My first few days, he went everywhere with me. One day in search of a cold Coca-Cola (I NEVER drink soda except in Africa where I crave it for inexplicable reasons) we passed a salon where he introduced me to his mother, Beatrice. Together, they explained to me that this part of Kibera was burned to the ground in the post-election violence. She lost everything. One year later she has managed to rebuild, but the new salon is smaller and she cannot afford equipment like hair dryers.

Nick is the 2nd Assistant Director and also a trainee from Kibera. When asked why he is working on the film he described the opening scene where a fat businessman hits a street kid with his car. The businessman refuses to pay for the child's medical expenses until Otieno pushes him to the ground and forces him to pay. Nick says that all the politicians in Kenya are the same: they won't take responsibility for their actions and they must be forced to do the right thing. He thinks the films sends an important message.

Wilson plays the film’s Kikuyu star, Kamau. A Kikuyu himself, he was raised by his grandmother in Kibera. Like his father, Mwangi, in the film, Wilson's grandmother was a landlord in Kibera. Like Mwangi, her life was threatened during the riots. She was forced out of Kibera permanently, but Wilson, like his character Kamau, believes that tribal conflict must end in order to create equal opportunities for future generations in Kenya.

Chris is a Luo who plays the role of Masher, an ODM campaigner. The characters of Masher and Otieno are friends just as the actors Chris and Geofrey are friends who know each from Dandora, another slum outside Nairobi. In the script, Masher is an anti-Kikuyu thug, and he incites the mob that burns Kamau's father's home. In real life, Chris admits to robbing people as part of a gang in Dandora, but he changed his life after an incident when he was shot by police. He turned his life around, and now, in addition to acting, he thinks he would make a good politician!

One final challenge for today: in order to continue filming I need to raise an additional $2000 immediately. I'm grateful for all my friends, family and strangers who have donated already, but I need another $679 pledges in order to tip the campaign. Please consider making a contribution here and help spread the word.

From dawn to dusk - photos above from the shoot in Kibera yesterday.

Actually, my day started way before dawn as we needed to leave for the shoot at 5:30am. When we arrived on location the first stop was the caterer for breakfast and a sweet cup of chai tea. As the crew set up for the first scene, I introduced myself to Geofrey, one of the lead actors who plays the part of Otieno.

Talking with Geofrey reaffirmed all of my reasons for being here. He shared his personal story and how he relates to the character he plays: they both had absent mothers, irresponsible fathers, and they both want a better life. Otieno uses politics while Geofrey feels that acting is his path. He also described the violence that he personally witnessed during the post election rioting here and he voiced his anger at the political leaders of Kenya who he blames for inciting tribal tension. Geofrey (and the rest of the cast and crew working on TOGETHERNESS SUPREME) feels that Kenyan youth can overcome tribal divisions and change their country in the future. In fact, he says that is why he is doing this film.

I waited out the heat of the day -- it's unusually hot here for this time of year -- talking politics with several members of the cast and crew while chasing the shifting shade under a lonely tree. My cameraman, Shravan, arrived in the late afternoon. I'm so grateful that Shravan is lending his talents to the documentary. He showed me that he has a trained eye and a solid sense of story. I thought we made a great team, and I'm looking forward to working with him over the next few weeks.

After shooting an on-camera interview with Geofrey (Otieno) we were setting up for another shot when we were interrupted by a piercing squeal. Turns out the pigs for the next scene had just arrived in the back of a pickup. This is Africa, so there's no such thing as an animal trainer on set and these pigs were protesting loudly. Now I understand the phrase "scream like a pig." But once they found their way to the fresh heap of food scraps set out for them, they were grunting happily and twitching their curly pink tails.

We ended our day documenting the scene where Otieno cooks a special meal for his younger brother Peter over a charcoal stove (see the photos above). As the sun dipped toward the horizon, and the crew worked to set lights, it felt like a dream to be shooting on a set in the middle of Kibera at magic hour...

Photos from top to bottom: Meeting with camera department trainees and professionals, Mercy delegating to trainees at Hot Sun offices , Evans on Mwangi set, Otiento set exterior, Mwangi set exterior,

Faith and Jahill at Hot Sun Offices in Kibera

Halfway There

I'm at Heathrow airport in the UK, halfway to Nairobi. It has been such a whirlwind getting to this point - just one week ago I decided to throw caution to the wind and embrace this amazing opportunity. A little over two weeks ago, I had never even heard of the Kibera Kids short film or the Hot Sun Foundation, and certainly I had not heard about TOGETHERNESS SUPREME, the feature film I will be documenting.

So why am I doing it? Since I first embraced the medium of documentary film, my mission was to tell stories that are otherwise not shared. Particularly, I wanted to share stories that -- in stark contrast to mainstream media depictions of famine, disease, ethnic war, poverty and endangered wildlife -- showed the creativity, ingenuity, generosity, resourcefulness and proud spirit of the Africans I had encountered during my time on the continent. But I felt an awkwardness about reaping their stories for Western consumption and wanted to find a way to nurture indigenous voices as well. I imagined a hybrid production of a feature film and a documentary shot simultaneously. And somehow, almost two decades later, this vision has become manifest. I hope that this documentary will amplify the voices of the kids and youth of Kibera and help to bring their stories to audiences around the world.

Also, I'm grateful for Shravan Vidyarthi a talented Kenyan filmmaker who is generously helping me to capture this story. We start shooting Monday.

Finally, in addition to being halfway to Nairobi, I'm also halfway toward reaching my fundraising goal of $2K matching funds. These funds are crucial for me to be able to continue working with Shravan, purchase additional tape stock, and cut the footage into a trailer. Please, consider contributing using the link in the previous post.

AND HUGE THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HAS CONTRIBUTED SO FAR!!!!

Kibera Kids documentary

I'm off to Nairobi to document the making of a fictional feature film being produced in the slums outside Nairobi, Kenya, with a cast of local kids and a crew of local youth. The doc will stand alone from the fictional film and tell the real stories of the kids from Kibera involved in the production.

The feature was born out of a short film called Kibera Kid. Kibera Kid is a 2006 award winning fictional short film set in the Kibera slums in Nairobi, Kenya, one of the largest slums in Africa. It was written, directed and co-produced by Nathan Collett in collaboration with the youth of Kibera. This twelve minute film features Kibera actors in all the principle roles. It has played at film festivals worldwide including the Berlin Film Festival and it won a Student EMMY from Hollywood. It has been profiled by BBC, Reuters, Al Jazeera English and many others.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kibera_Kid)

After the success of Kibera Kid, the Kibera Youth wanted more, and the Kibera Kid Feature Film was born. They are currently in Pre-Prod, and they start filming on 23rd March. The cast is from Kibera, with with little or no screen exprience. Apart from the Heads of Departments, the rest of the crew are youth from Kibera. Most of them have never worked in production before, double the challenge!

The documentary will follow the kids from Kibera, working as cast and crew, both on and off the set to see how the fictional story and their real lives are intertwined. I want to show their aspirations for making the film against the background of the real life challenges they face. I think the doc has the potential to transcend the fictional film in terms of it's emotional power and resonance.

I just found out about the story within the past week, so we're scrambling to make it happen. Shine Global, the producers of the Oscar-nominated documentary WAR / DANCE are providing small seed funding to help us get the project off the ground, but we are seeking to match their contribution to double our chances for success...please consider contributing here:

Setback or Solution?

Today I'm reminded that sometimes a setback is just what is needed to move forward.

...and don't forget to vote for your fave product from the post below in the poll on the right (or add your own product suggestion in the comments section. i've been thinking a surfboard would make a great story)

Trading Faces

Today I want to share an idea I've had for ages and ages. It has morphed many times over the years: originally it was conceived as a feature documentary interweaving four stories about coffee growers and coffee drinkers and in it's current incarnation it is a series of stylized mini-docs called TRADING FACES. Here's how it goes:

TRADING FACES mirrors the lives of producers and consumers in order to suggest the human relationships behind the complex system of global trade. Each 3 minute episode is a visual palindrome: one character reflects the other’s actions on a split screen. Music fuses their worlds together. We are aware of both the distance between them and their common bonds, their separate lives and their inherent connection through global trade.

With countless products produced and consumed daily around the world, the possibilities are truly endless, but potential episodes include:

- Coffee harvested in Nicaragua fuels a poet’s reading in Savannah
- Sneakers made in Pakistan are sported by a hipster teen in Boston
- Cocoa gathered in Ghana becomes a sweet treat for a Belgian boy
- A tree logged in Brazil is crafted into eco-flooring for a Seattle couple
- Spices grown in India flavor a chef's soul food dish in New Orleans
- Cotton from Mali is manufactured into a toy for a tiny tot in Paris
- Diamonds mined in Canada glitter as a lucky girl in London says I do!

So the question is, if I can only produce one, which one would you watch? Or share your suggetions about people connected by other products!

Beginning

Every story has a beginning, middle and end. It is so simple when the story unfolds as you are living it, but when you want to share the story with others, it is trickier. If you want to engage your audience, you sometimes need to reconstruct the story, choose where to begin, which twists and how many turns to follow. The ending is easy if the story happened in the past. But if you stand at the beginning of a story as yet untold, conjuring the ending requires imagination.

This story begins here: immersed in the view from an open boxcar on a freight train carving itself through a monumental landscape somewhere in the American West. Here, drenched in an intoxicating freedom, absorbing the iconic experience of hopping freight trains, I am inspired to make my first feature length documentary, CATCHING OUT .

And now many years later I find myself facing the challenge of finding a new subject and making a new film. The story of my search for ideas, my efforts to find funding, and eventually shoot and edit will unfold here in this blog.

The ending that I imagine is simple: bringing a new film to fruition.