Cutting down on scope

This is just a quick one-off this morning. I got up this morning and caught 'Matewan' on IFC. Generally, IFC is great about giving films a full presentation on TV. They go letterboxed, they use a good sound mix, the color correction is pretty good. But this morning, that's not what I got. The picture was slightly washed out. The sound was muffled. And don't get me started on the full frame mutilation of Wexler's beautiful compositions.

I was lucky enough about three years ago to see a restored print of the film at the West Virginia Filmmakers Festival in Sutton. I was told the restored print came directly from IFC. The richness of picture and quality of sound - it was so far superior to the VHS copies I had run ragged over the years. Was it the pristine Criterion restoration I person would hope for? Probably not, but it was really nice.

And here, on cable, this great film of scope and majesty - looked like the same VHS print I saw in history class in high school.

I have high hopes for my little movie. Near the top of that list is a greater appreciation for the brilliant work of John Sayles and Haskell Wexler. That appreciation only comes through when you can see a quality print of this great movie.

j.brown

Gather up the pages of my life - and read them before us all.

I met my intern yesterday. When I spoke to him on the phone beforehand he said, "Everyone I tell about this movie has seen the movie "Matewan." As the instructor in this case, "Duh" seemed like a poor retort.

So, I talked to him about how he might be able to find a VHS copy of the film in the public library. While he searched for the images we'd be working around, I knew I had to find him the words.

Sayles' book "Thinking In Pictures" was, to my knowledge, the first real "how-to" independent film guide. He talked about everything from finding actors, to finding sets, to finding the money.

It's a great book for film students. There's a nice little book wholesale werehouse in Virginia I was turned on to in college that I like to visit. (I would give it a plug if I could remember the name.) About two years ago, I walked in looking for screenplays of anything and instead found a goldmine. There was a stack of "Thinking In Pictures" for an incredibly reasonable price. I bought them all.

Since then, I give them away to students as inspiration or just information. I have since given all of those copies away; so, I need to find one more. Driving down Battleground, I turned into Edwin McCay to see what the chances were that they had the one book I was looking for. There it was tucked away beside Gilliam on Gilliam and Traufaut's book on Hitchcock.

The gift that keeps on giving.

j.brown

Who said that?

That was my first thought as I sat down Monday to talk about my documentary "Them That Work" with a nice television gentleman.

I said that?

He was quoting my blog back to me. Don't get me wrong, I love to have people run my lines back to me, but usually I'm expecting it. If someone quotes something from "The Nutz," I know where they've seen it. Here, I was in a "business" meeting expecting to spend ten minutes proving myself - who I am, where I've been, where I'm going - and he had done his research, knew who I was and had read my blog.

I have this feeling of dread come over me when some suddenly designates me as special; which is ironic due to the amount of time I spend trying to get other people's attention. It's like my neice screaming for everyone to watch her play on the swingset, only to blush the moment all eyes are upon her.

The experience also reminded me to make what I have to say worthwhile. It the end of the day, people can see your intentions, your hopes, or your desires. All that can be seen is what your actions leave behind and the impact of the words you throw to the wind. So, make them count.

They had better be good enough to hear coming back at you.

j.brown

What is fortuitous?

Every day brings you new wonders and new rewards. And when you venture out on projects that challenge you, don't be surprised at the power of each day's wonders.

I've been searching for economical (cheap) Panasonic miniDV tapes. (By the way, if you didn't know - different brands of tapes use different types of lubricants and changing between brands can affect your camera. But that's for someone else's blog.) As I'm shopping at Wal-Mart for a shower curtain liner, I notice a huge stack of Panasonic miniDV tapes on clearance. Less than I could find online, less than I could get locally with various discounts.

Things just come together. This week, the greatest wonder is always discovering that my little documentary can be something so much bigger than I ever imagined simply by telling others about my passion and letting them share theirs with me.

Share your passion. Wonders will appear before your eyes. The clearance rack of life is full of great pewter rewards.

j.brown

Details and inspiration are on the schedule for the day.

I've been listing everybody I can think of and some I didn't think of for "Them..." Lists of people, list of images, putting together all the pieces of what I'm needing for this film.

And in the background - inspiration. I've been running over and over again the docs that inspire me on the DVD player.... Riding Giants, Burden of Dreams, Crumb. I don't know that my movie is going to look like those films, but if I'm half as successful to hit the emotional element, it'll be a huge success.

The calendar is filling up for a great summer.

j.brown

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, while the single documentary idea often leads to an edit of a thousand hours.

Today is the first day of REAL pre-production on "Them That Work," my documentary about the film "Matewan" and more importantly its impact on West Virginia and the filmmakers there. I have pages filled with names of people I'm going to be interviewing and places I'll be shooting. It's very exciting.

And incredibly daunting. Having never really worked in documentary film, I remember asking Morgan Spurlock how long it took to produce "Super Size Me." Before he could even answer I suddenly realized how quickly it happened. Thanksgiving of one year to submitting to Sundance in September of the next year.

While that should be a managable timeframe, I am reminded of the other great phrase from my childhood - haste makes waste. So, instead of pushing to get into Sundance or Full Frame or anything else, I am going to shoot everything I can this summer and start the edit in August and finish when it's done.

Thank you in advance to everyone who will be helping and supporting me on this journey. I appreciate it now and I will love you for it later.

j.brown