Project: Fading

Writer's room

I’ve talked a lot about wanting to create personal work. To see my working time as an expression of the deeper values I hold. Creativity, collaboration, art and expression, my emotional connection with nature, my emotional connection with myself. Stacie Sells, a collaborator from my previous job, came to me with a script.

I love stories about people yearning to transcend. The stories that have protagonists confused but reaching. Needing something they cannot define. A subconscious hunger than drives them out of where they know, into some place dangerous, wild, uncharted, and transformative. The last film I directed was this: Girl in the Grass. It was about the fear and wonder I feel in wild, desolate places. Places that civilization has turned its back on.

Pre-vis for Fading

“Fading” is short script about a woman who is a consummate writer - but is blocked. She has everything in control - a room of her own, a way of working, the tools, the talent. But she has lost her voice. Searching for inspiration she sets out onto the suburban streets that surround her. She looks for something that might mean something to her. But she fails. By accident, she comes across a trail opening - going into a rough, dark, and unmaintained wilderness. Close to her home, but far, far away. She goes in. Her wonder turns to fear. 

To me it’s a journey to connect the conscious with the subconscious mind. A journey to reconnect with creativity, with hope, with her voice. A journey to touch the wilderness, which is both chaos and inspiration. Out of control, ripe with truth. This is my cup of tea. 

Location Scout

For me personally this is the first step in a larger journey. I’ve done a lot of soul searching in the last months. My dream has become clear: to direct feature films. Films that explore my emotional connection to nature, my quest and yearning to understand my place, myself, desire, love, humanity, mistakes, the group and the outsider. Dependence and self-reliance. My deep love of the human being and my doubt of the human being. The work leading up to this - my old jobs, my other projects - has been to fine tune my craft, my sense of quality, my sense of leadership, collaboration. Now it is time to climb the mountain itself.

I’m bringing together many of my beloved collaborators from my old job to begin. Scaling up to something larger, something grander, something that can be shown on the mountain top. Something to give all of my creative energy to.

Stacie has given a beautiful script to explore these themes. I’ve cast a lovely actor I met on another of Stacie’s projects. I’ve been bringing on more and more people I want to work with and want to remain connected with as friends and colleagues. A group. Talented, enthusiastic, creative, curious. Excited to work on something creative. I am excited and feel that there is something really special here. A potential about to be tapped. Beauty merged with idea. Quality merged with meaning. Art with action. Personal work with vocation. 

channeling Ted Hope on producing

We begin shooting on Sunday. The project will be a haiku - asking to delve deeply with only a few short lines. Asking us to move a great distance in a short time: An inner journey as well as an outer one. 

I can’t wait to share it. #fading

Fading

When her steps take her

far away from her writing room

hope awakens, darkly