Currently the project is in the "preparation for post production phase". And for me that's meant transcribing interviews, getting people to help transcribe interviews (Thanks Zoe, Julia and Gen!) printing out all 200+ pages of them, putting them in a binder, tabbing them, then going through everything with a Hi-Liter.
I've recently finished the Hi-Liter deal, and now I am working on the "Paper-edit" which is pretty much trying to take everything I selected from the transcripts, and trim and arrange until they make sense! That may sound easy, but my process is constantly interupted by *gasp* thinking! I always seem to just stare off at times, trying to piece everything together in my head. How I'm going to present the story, arrange everything, how to order it so it makes sense. What's going to be the perfect order!
I did recently though, read a pretty good article in the "Total Chaos" Hip Hop Aesthetics reader, written by DJ Spooky, kept talking about arranging and remixing film as a DJ. Pretty interesting... and it got me to thinking about how I like to edit stories and present them... I like to tell stories like I DJ. Often I like to blend. Other times I just scratch it in, and drop the record in a the right time. But there's always a rhythm, a feel for it. On top of it, song selection is important, you have to juxtapose and blend the right songs with each other! Sometimes I order songs with each other because of a certain similar element in them, whether it's a certain instrument, the way the drums work together... and other times I put them together for their contrast, and the meaning that can be drawn by the two together. My film will hopefully flow and blend, stop, go, smoothly at the right places and abrupt at certain points, but always with the "feel" in mind. Just like how I like to tell stories in some of my mixes. Check them out for yourself!
It seems like production has gone on since forever. Ever since one fateful day, late 2003, probably around December, I walked into the office of Visual Communications (VC) in Los Angeles. Hungry, looking for some food, and someone to help me through the job search process, VC exectutive director Leslie Ito asked me if I wanted to submit to the Armed With a Camera (AWC) Fellowship. I submitted a proposal for a project about Hmong B-Boys.
On this Los Angeles "winter" afternoon, I had no idea where this film would take me, who I would meet, and least of all how difficult it is to make a documentary film. From Merced with Velocity, to Long Beach with Mpact and Villn, to Fresno with Vang, to Oklahoma with the new Soul Rivals, to Sacramento, and finally back to Fresno with Climax. It has been an epic journey for an epic film... one of fun, struggle, patience, eagerness, frustration, mistakes, joy, and real connections.
The past two months have been grunt work, filled with lots of transcriptions. Once that's done come editing. But before all that happened, I needed to complete my final interviews: a reshoot because of sound issues with Mpact and Villn in Sacramento and interviews with Flip and Goku (Charles) of Climax/Soul Control in Fresno and Kingsburg.
The shoot in Sacramento went even better than the first time and I'm hoping to be able to use both sets of interviews with just a little bit of sound restoration and filtering. This time, with the first round under their belt, they've had an opportunity already to think about a lot of the concepts and stories they they talked about this time around. I found their answers to be more concise and perhaps more articulate this time around. The only disappointment was this time was the lack of Horses/Donkeys/Livestock in the background of their interviews. Check out Steven looking like Villn: Masai Warrior in the picture!
In Fresno with Charles and Flip... I already had somewhat of an idea from speaking with Charles over the phone, of how much of an asset he would be to this film, as one of Fresno's stalwart B-Boys. Charismatic, big HEART, HUGE CHIP ON HIS SHOULDER. But more about that in a later posting... I'm hoping to write a complete posting on his interview soon. With this last interview on Sunday, July 15, 2007, I hope this will fill in the earlier histories of the previous generations of Hmong B-Boys, especially in Fresno. Also, get ready for some surprises too.
So there it is... that's it, IT'S A WRAP!!! And although this definitely doesn't exclude the possibility of having to get pickup shots, pickup interviews, reshots (hopefully not...), but it marks the beginning of the next part of this journey into really constructing, weaving and connecting all these stories that I've captured, together and creating a vision through them. Wish me luck on this new journey! Though I know I will miss the interview process and the experiences I've had in production (and I know RJ will too), I can't help but believe these are just the beginnings, to many new lasting friendships.
Unfortunately I haven't come across many Hmong B-Girls. Actually, only one, in Merced, I think her name was Alice? Hopefully someone can do Among B-Girls one day. More posts, and the Charles interview article on its way, check out this clip I found of B-Girl Peppa on YouTube. My homegirl Wen-Rock is also in this clip... enjoy!
I was trying to figure out ways to raise money for the film... currently my best bet is to finish a rough cut and use it to help fundraise. Anyone want to join my fundraising team??? I'm working on some strategies, but could always use help... know any young professionals with disposable income that love Hip Hop and interested in Asian American issues? I also need transcribers too.. But anyways, I was trying to think of where I can get money, so I dumped out some change out of my basket, that I empty out my pockets into, and came up with about $58!!! score!!! maybe I should have a change drive? everybody come to my house and empty out your pockets... quarters, dimes, nickels, casino chips, welcome... no game tokens please...
posts coming soon: look for excerpts from my interview with Goku aka Charles, of Climax/Soul Control last Friday, and a posting about my last interview with the Twins, Mpact and Villn of Underground Flow.
