After months of writing, shooting, (panicking), and editing, the documentary project that I’ve been pursuing over the course of this summer is finally taking shape. There’s still work to be done, but seeing your effort pay off is a feeling like no other. It’s been an exciting, hectic, educational experience that I’m grateful to have had, and I’m definitely coming out of this fellowship a more well-rounded artist and researcher.

My understanding of exactly what kind of project I wanted to do changed rather heavily over the course of this summer. I knew I wanted to pursue something more experimental in nature, heavily inspired by filmmakers my mentor introduced me to (Sky Hopinka, Jonas Mekas, Laurie Anderson, Alan Berliner, etc.). However, it became harder and harder to pin down a concrete structure, and actually understand what this film was going to look like. I came up with a few different concepts, but in the end, I was becoming more concerned with the artifice than the story. I had to deconstruct my idea, understand the themes I wanted to present, do some writing of my own, and talk with my family before I was able to come up with a plan I was satisfied with. Though my final structure isn’t as grand, complicated, or revolutionary as I had once wished, its essence is much closer to the heart of my project than any previous idea could’ve been. I’m happy with what I’ve created thus far, and the learning curve, though steep, has been nothing short of invaluable. 

I found the opportunity to pursue a funded project over the summer the most valuable part of this experience. Though that may sound shallow, the reality is that students receive very little opportunity to passionately pursue their work while in school. Academics, work, internships, and numerous other challenges at this stage of life often delay the serious pursuit of one’s passion until after graduation. And this is made all the worse by the fact that college is a perfect time to engage in work you truly care about- you find yourself in a supportive environment, surrounded by experts in your field, with access to resources far above your personal means. Funding, or any kind of financial support, is really the first (and often most important) step to pursuing research as a student. It affords you the chance to pursue opportunities previously thought unachievable, and removes the usual and constant worry of rent, groceries, gas, etc. So though this project was valuable in many ways, the opportunity to receive funding as a student to pursue my own passion was invaluable, and truly a once-in-a-lifetime chance. 

I hope to continue practicing and perfecting my art, implementing all that I learned into future films that I make, and bringing a new sense of collaborative research to all the teams I’ll continue to be a part of. With my film specifically, I hope to complete it by the end of August and submit it to film festivals. The Ann Arbor Film Festival is one of my top choices, and with luck, I’ll submit to a few local festivals as well. Whether or not my film is accepted, I’ll just be happy to have a finished project. More immediate plans include holding a screening for friends and family! Making this film has helped me realize how important such personal stories are to me, and I definitely want to implement that feeling into all my work. I’ll continue to create projects with a very strong personal connection to myself, because that’s the kind of art I’ve found myself to be most passionate about. And though that may sound obvious, it’s the kind of fact that doesn’t strike you until you’ve experience it firsthand. I’m grateful for the opportunity this Fellowship has afforded me to pursue work I care about, and create art that means something to me.

Featured image: A still from the archival footage used in my project (sourced from my family’s home video collection).