A month ago, Ryan contacted me and said he was possibly looking for a filmmaker to accompany him to Ethiopia to do a short film about clean water and the improvement it can make to people’s lifestyle who have not had access to clean water.
At the time I wasn’t sure if it would work with my schedule. … I was excited to participate but I didn’t want to compromise any of the follow-through for my film Pure, which was due to premiere just five days before I would depart for Africa with Ryan.
Needless to say, we sorted out the scheduling and I’m excited about the trip ahead and the prospect of effecting some tangible change with my video camera.
Making climbing films and granola bar advertisements is rewarding, don’t get me wrong, but ultimately it’s a very selfish pursuit, and at this point in my life I’m unattached and willing to work on behalf of others.
The project in Ethiopia (and I’ll learn more as I go) is simple: I’ll make a short film about the effect clean water can have on a village of people who do not currently have access to clean water. This film will be used in a variety of ways, mostly to gain support for the wells and other needed infrastructure to bring the clean water to the villages we will visit. If all goes well, the villages will be receiving new wells and related equipment soon. But there’s no guarantee things will go as planned. From my perspective, we have several challenges facing us:
Restrictions. We may not be able to bring any / all of our camera gear into the country. The Ethiopian government has a reputation for locking up camera equipment and not giving it back until the owners leave the country. The government fears any media that may make them out to be corrupt or irresponsible. Our proposed film really has little to do with the government, but it’s going to be hard to convince the customs agents of that fact if they decide to cause a problem. I’ve broken up my gear across my duffel bags and carry-ons, but it’s still a shit ton of gear, and if they stack it all next to each other in a pile it’s going to be hard to hide the fact that I’m a professional.
The unforeseen. There are a lot of unknowns about this place and any time I go into a film shoot without a clear idea of what the end product will be I get a little nervous. My preferred style is a combination of planning and run&gun documentary, so this project should be a good fit for me. I have some stylistic ideas I’d like to implement but we’ll have to see how practical they are when we actually set foot in the country and figure out exactly how much creative freedom (read: time) I can have to try and get artsy. Ultimately I would like to maintain a high level of cinematic appeal with this project in addition to conveying the information we need to convey.
I’m looking forward to the chance to see a new landscape, meet some new people, and try to accomplish some good with my camera. Simply being able to shoot without having to worry about sponsorship conflicts and logo placements and industry politics will be a relief. If we accomplish our goal and we are able to bring clean water to the ten villages we will visit, then this will likely be the most meaningful project I’ve ever shot.
(For the complete list of Challenges, as well as impressions from Cloudveil athlete Chuck Fryberger’s journals and first few days in Ethiopia, visit his blog: Straight Outta Lenslam.)