Think about the documentaries you've seen.  You know all of those great photographs that give you a view into times long gone, times that you couldn't be there for but want to know about now as the story unfolds?  Aren't they wonderful?

Filming Golden Positions 1970

 

Images like this play a crucial role in every documentary, and it turns out, take an enormous amount of work (and sometimes money) to procure.

Every single image in the movie (fortunately, we have over 1,000 to choose from) needs to be be vetted.  We have to know who is in the image (of course) but also who shot it, and who now owns the rights to it.  And then we need permission from all of the parties involved in order to use the image.  Sometimes that means tracking down the family of the deceased photographer and getting their permission to use an image taken decades earlier. All of this for a single photo!

Papers shuffle, emails zap, phone calls ring, signatures are secured, dollars negotiated.  It takes time!  And money.  Some people and companies charge a lot for a single image or second of film.  Thankfully there are also those who are generous with these photos and film clips and give them to us.  (Thanks!)

There's also insurance!  To release a film like this you have to have what's called Errors and Omissions Insurance-- that means your covered in case you make a mistake.  Of course we're not planning on making any of those, but interestingly it's almost a full time job just to get all of the paperwork in order for our photo archives.

We're not complaining.  It's worth it.  And we think you'll agree when you see the film.  A window into the past is still a precious thing, even if sometimes you have to pay an arm and a leg for it. 

   

  

  

We love this part of our newsletter.  We love reporting on our successes. 

First we are pleased to say that IFP (Independent Film Project) chose us as one of only ten documentaries to participate in their 2012 Documentary Labs.  That means we'll make three trips to New York--this spring, fall, and winter.  During the visits, we'll be paired with a filmmaking mentor.  We'll get studio time and feedback from experienced filmmakers on our rough cut.  Then they will teach us the ins and outs of marketing and distributing our film.  We feel honored to be one of the few chosen and are really excited about learning from the experience of folks who have been at this for a long time.  (IFP doesn't pay for travel or expenses, so contributions of cash or miles are welcomed and appreciated.)

Next we want to give a shout out to those who have recently contributed to our film, and especially those who have given above and beyond to help make our film's musical score happen.  We've raised $2,500 of the $5,000 we need right now to make this happen.  You know who you are-- thank you!

And finally, you may be familiar with Christa by now.  She's our fundraising-by-phone-woman-extraordinaire.  If you've gotten a phone call from her and contributed because of it we thank you.  If you haven't-- you're next! 

In this newsletter we are making a special offer!  If you donate now (or soon!) you can skip the phone call and just cut right to the "Thanks."  :)

Raising the funds to make a movie is one of the most challenging parts of the project.  We're proud of the work we've done so far... and we still have a ways to go. 

Please help by contributing to our project--your money will be put to good use to pay the artisans who are helping us create this visual work of art, which we hope will be an inspiration to all.  We still need another $150,000 to move through the rest of the filmmaking and into the distribution stage.