days go by

Seven days later: I wish I could say that I've been too knee-deep in preproduction to have any time to write or update, but that would be 60% lying... 30% exaggeration... and the last 10%... I guess would fall into the 'wishful-thinking' category.

I did however manage to get in a little homework over the past few days. I rented 'Gerry' by Gus Van Sant, I had read in the reviews that a majority of the shots were very long-winded steadicam shots, often lasting up to five minutes without cutting. I mention that because for a while now I've been debating one of the first shots of the documentary, or I guess the length of one of the first shots. And although the end of Gerry dragged a considerable amount, the opening sequence was mesmerizing, it was a very simple shot following their car down a windy desert road, and it lasted for five minutes without cutting... it just followed from forty feet behind. There is something about long [longer than usual] shots that, I believe, hypnotizes an audience, we [the mtv generation] are conditioned to almost expect certain cuts in films after so many moments or beats in the script, and because of it we often pay less attention when the pacing of the editing stays well between the lines. But drag a shot out, hold it for much longer than expected and people start to look closer at the frame and at least on a semi-conscious level, we start to ask, "what are they trying to show me?"

Lately I've been getting very exciting about the trip and it's documentary, I don't know why exactly, maybe some of the anxiety of the project is starting to wear off and I'm remembering the feeling that, "everything will be okay". As corny as it might sound... I found it always seems to hold true, if you just put your foot down and tell yourself, "this is what I want to do and it's time I stick my neck out there and do it", then, in my experience, things generally come together... sometimes a little more last minute than usual, but in the end, they work out if you have a 'stubborn-determination'. Knock on wood.