How We Did It
- original music written and performed by scott nason & chip chilton
Chip and I spent the better part of a year working on his Route 66 bike trip, "25 Days With a Smart Mouth". It was our first project together and neither of us had any idea how it was going to turn out. I was new to digital editing and needed a vehicle for test driving the equipment. And this project fit the bill - maybe a little bit too well.
Through hours and hours of general protection faults and "your program's performed an illegal operation", we endured and grew callus to the monster machine. Upgrade after upgrade, new driver after new driver, we finally ended up with a system that was kind of okay.
But through all the turmoil, it was a lot of fun. So after it was all over, we wanted to try our hand at something new . . . a feature length, no budget film. How hard could that be? So with the trusty XL-1 in hand, we set off to shoot the raw footage. Did somebody say continuity? Lighting? "What do you mean you forgot to plug the mic in?"
Although we understood the mechanics of making a film, we didn't really have a grasp on the scope of what we were getting into. This is difficult stuff and I think we learned some painful lessons during the ordeal. Movie making is a very structured and disciplined process . . . in a free flowing and creative sort of way. That's the trouble. How to create and maintain absolute control at the same time. It's very tricky to find that balance. We're still looking.
So what's next?
We're going to try and build off of the mistakes (and hopefully the lessons learned) of the first film and try it again. We're in the process of kicking around some ideas for our next film (encounter) and when something more concrete starts to materialize, I'll post the details.