MissCommunication

This short film, created in 24 hours, may be the most important project I’ve ever worked on.  I had just come off of, or was in the middle of, shooting an independent film.  A film where everyone volunteered their time for well over a year.  While good times were had, it still wasn’t a project of my own.  Up until this point, so much of my time had been devoted to THINKING or TALKING about doing projects, but never actually DOING them.  Well, while working on the independent film mentioned above, I met my now dear friend Kevin Ely.

When Living Arts Gallery in Tulsa, Oklahoma rolled out it’s first annual 24 Hour Video Race in 2006, I called up Kevin and we decided to put aside all thinking and talking, and just do it.  It almost didn’t happen, but I’m thankful it did.  Teams had no more than 24 hours to write, shoot, and edit a short film based on three criteria announced at midnight.  The finished product was due 24 hours later.

It felt great. No more talking about shooting something, but actually really shooting something.  MissCommunication was a catalyst in our creative careers to follow.  After taking home the grand prize for the 24 Hour video race, we were asked to create a series of openers with our friend and cohort Matthew Alvin Brown, who also starred in MissCommunication, for the deadCENTER Film Festival in Oklahoma City.  During this time, we also created a short for a local alternative magazine which they proudly featured on their website for months.  From there, we couldn’t stop.  By late fall of 2006, we were shooting our first feature film, Rainbow Around the Sun.

I cannot stress enough how important it is to simply get out there and create.  A dear friend of mine once told me that the minute you say it out loud without actually doing it, it begins to dissipate.  I am now a firm believer in that wisdom.  Create.  Share.  Grow.

Living Arts Gallery in Tulsa holds their 24 Hour Video Race every February.  Various other cities hold similar races as well.  For more information, visit www.livingarts.org, or create your own race in your town.