Sunday, June 15, 1997 - "They call it the Land of Enchantment you know..."

Is it really Sunday? Every day blends with the previous one and the next. Only realize that it's an actual day of the week from noticing people engaged in particular activity; going to church on a Sunday, getting drunk on a Saturday evening, going to work every other sad and twisted day. But we've been working round the clock. Always filmmaking, always doing something the same, something different.

We really busted it out today. Shot the girls' scenes in the morning (School Bus) and did Julie and Kristy's scene in the afternoon. The driving scene was fun and was not nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. Good thing the school bus fell through. The van worked out much better. I should rely on my instincts more. The framing was perfect and I think the cutting will work more in the way I initially conceived it so many years ago.

It's funny. You come up with this stuff and fret about all of the specifics for so long. Then one day you get it on film and boom it's frozen. No more worries about how it might look. What's in the can is what you've got, live with it. It's always going to be a little different. Sometimes a miracle happens and it comes out even better than you conceived it. You have to plan carefully then go with the punches and deal with what fate has dealt. It's really liberating, actually.

Scene 27 is quite special. I think it's going to come across a little weird in the finished product, which is good. Carol looks straight to the camera delivering her first line, then off to the side to address Rosella. Rosella on the other hand gives her entire monologue full on to the camera. Who is she talking to? Obviously not Carol. I love that kind of stuff. Uh, huh huh huh, filmmaking is cool.

I've been thinking a lot about next week's shooting. It's looking more and more like I might try to shoot in New Mexico. Financially it's kind of pricey, but why stop now? A few NM moutains in the distance will make all the difference in the world.

The question is who should go?

-George