The home stretch

The chaos of it all slowly subsiding slightly, I thought I'd take this chance to note some of the significant individuals who were involved in the creation of it all, and thank them.

But first a little news update. We've found an editor. Which is a huge relief. A pro editor from Magic Hour Productions, who has thankfully agreed to get involved in the project pro bono. But we've chatted quite a bit, and I've got a good feeling, so...needless to say, am getting very excited to see what the rough cut will look like. What's almost equally exciting, is our desire to do quite a thorough grade in the new Apple application, Colour. And no, I'm not being paid to say this. Wish I was...Anyhow, have seen the creative potential of colour grading (i.e. specific adjustments, creating a tone and temperature for key moments and scenes in the film), and am excited to see the results we create for Commando. So, basically, the rough cut will be done before the 2nd Nov. The 2nd is the provisional date for when the commissioning editor is flying down from Mnet to watch a rough cut! So...ticking clock to get it all organised.

Basically, from there, we'll have to get working parallel on the foley and sound design, in the meanwhile, Cobus and myself will be working on the score and sound track. I'll fly down after my first exam to C.T. to sit in on locking the final cut, having seen the rough cut on the 2nd. That should be about the 15th Nov. Then, we'll lock the edit, work on the grade, integrate animation and credit sequences, lay the sound track, integrate the score, do the final mix, slap on titles, export the film to tape, do a conversion to BetaSP for broadcasting...and send it off to Joburg to be judged and screened..., I'll fly back in time to write my last exam (pass and graduate...I hope) or so the plan goes. The final deadline for submission is the 20th Nov...so...yes..ticking clock. But it should all go smoothly.

Anyhow, that's the news re Commando. But importantly, I just wanted to mention and thank the people who have given significant help and contribution to the project.

They are, in no particular order:

Sarah Dawson, my source of sanity and solace through preproduction, who fulfilled her duties as Production Manager with fantastic passion and enthusiasm.

Janet van Eeden, the project supervisor, for her continued support and belief, in both me and the story. And for wisdom and general encouragement.

My parents, Dave and Clodagh de Villiers. For not only entertaining and putting up with my mad ideals of filmmaking, but for actively encouraging me. Not to mention for helping out financially with cash flow and in a sense saving the project! And for accommodating and feeding all the crew that took over the home for a while.

Jacobus van Heerden. For internalising Reitz, for becoming a product of that time. For letting us throw freezing water on you in gale force winds and for making the film what it is going to be!

David Willert. As usual, for taking the project on board, for believing in me, and sacrificing so much to ensure the project's success. Not to mention for your visual creativity and experience as DOP, and for making the footage look so darn good!

Nik Kostic, my voice on set, my creative counsel, for containing and providing order and sanity when it all looks like it's going downhill. Not to mention, for validating the entire mad ordeal with fantastic, reassuring humour.

Christoph Hagen, for awesome work as (super)steadycam operator. Nice work man, and for "Autobahn".

Ant Delport, for trekking ridiculous miles as we explored and discovered the world of the film together, when it was all in its infancy.

Mbo Mtshali, and Kerryn Poole, for hard work and instant solutions in the costuming department...not to mention hot chocolate...thanks.

Luke Pallett. For more energy and commitment than I've ever seen. And for being two steps ahead of us all at every stage.

Ryan Maine. For Running back to camp to get the boots...wow! And an awesome death! Nice man!

Tom Hart, for carrying the mixer, fighting cables, and filming Sarah in the "making of". Nice.

My other parents, Marigold de Villiers and Tony Welch. For the usual support and for putting up with the usual angst, jubilation's and tribulations.

Sally Swart. Your experience and control over the horses made this film a possibility. You were utterly invaluable on set. Thank you for all the hard work.

Kate and Rowean Aldos. For great logistical coordination and for Kate's great make up skills. Super authentic...nice.

Gavin Sleyter. For making it possible to have the Dundee Diehards on set. You guys looked great. And for your historical advice not to mention saving it all in so many ways by generously providing the odd props we were needing.

Leon Bruitenbach, for coming on to set, making the trip and giving us the time, and for really exciting Special Effects. Always a pleasure working with you.

Jeff Gaisford, from KZN Wildlife, for giving us permission to shoot in the really epic locations we found at Loteni, and for understanding our budgetary constraints, but accommodating us anyway!

Jonathan Aldous, for likewise understanding how tight our budget was, but for making making it possible to stay at Sani Top Chalet. It was all awesome...and shooting in Lesotho, makes this film pretty special.

And to Chris Hurst, Dave Burch and Bhoyi Ngema, for likewise entertaining this mad filmmaker and his vision, and for inhabiting your roles so professionally. It was really a pleasure working with you both. I trust there will be more in the future.

And to Ian Roberts. For making the time and the trip to work on this relatively humble film. It was a fantastic having you on set, and again, I hope there will be more opportunities in the future.

If there's anyone I haven't mentioned at this stage, apologies. The credit list in the film itself will be fully comprehensive. However, your contribution was in all cases greatly appreciated.

So, that's that essentially, but on a different note, I began this blog with mention to my other film "Three Cigarettes", which is likewise in post production, but, given its entirely independent nature, and the advent of Commando, I had to put it on a back burner. However, just this last week, I essentially finished the rough cut to a semi-decent screening level. So, now what remains to be done is to finalise the sound track, work on the grade, tweak the edit, and get the film out there! Really exciting having two films coming out at similar times.

Post Shoot Blues

So, it's been a month since my last blog entry. I've been meaning to write and update for a few days now, as some of the most interesting emotional moments have been going on now, as the largely overwhelming experience of shooting begins to get processed and internalised. But, again, given the enormity of trying to encapsulate such metaphysical and transcendent, fleeting moments into words, or this blog, proves too daunting to begin, even an attempt. Beyond that, I've once again been, simply too busy and preoccupied to devote time and energy to writing.



But here I am, and am somewhat freed up, even though I'm thoroughly preoccupied trying to salvage my degree in the last two weeks of semester, and pending my passing, my degree. Which is exciting... I say freed up, as, in a sense I've now given the project over to new creativity, and to new collaboration. Which is both terrifying and relieving. Suddenly, for the first time in the projects life, I'm no longer carrying the majority of the responsibility. Well, I am. As producer, you're always first one on, last one off...so to speak. But, as of this morning, I've couriered the tape duplicates off to C.T. so the editor can get cracking on the rough cut ASAP. This is in some ways a little what the work flow system is like in the big budget world, i imagine. Wherein, post wrapping, the director takes a much needed 2 week holiday, and by the time he's back in the real world, the editor has a rough cut ready, and they can tweak the final edit together. So, in about 2 weeks, I plan on heading down to C.T. to do just that.




But, I guess the real news of the hour, is the shoot, and how that all went down. I don't know where to begin. Any words I write here will sound trite and be meaningless. The photos are quite nice, and give a sense of the adventure, the magical ride we all went on. But otherwise, I'm stuck as what to write. I could use adjectives, saying it was "epic", which it was, but you'll never know what it was like, being on set on day one, having very nearly not left Maritzburg, almost calling off the whole production because of major set backs that morning. How being up there, with Reitz in costume, a Mauser and bandoleer habitually and casually strung across his back, on horseback, with his felt hat somewhat arrogantly turned up on one side, I looked at him, with late afternoon sunlight streaming through patches of charcoal-grey, recently depleted rain clouds, casting a most beautiful backlight, and I realised....shit...we're making a Boer war film.



Or if I told you it was frustrating, could you comprehend what it was like having had a generator fail on us, with the result being that we had to leave for set with semi-charged batteries, as our schedule simply didn't allow for waiting around as they charged. The consequence of this being that when the batteries did eventually die, and the back-ups which were left on charge back at camp, didn't arrive at the arranged time, and the camp being out of walkie talkie range, and the whole shoot being brought to a destroying halt as we sent someone, the 4 km's back to camp to see what the situation was. And in terms of frustration, I could spend hours talking about what it was like working with untrained horses, and trying to cover and block already tricky scenes, with horses that refused to hit and stay on their mark.




But any narration of the shoot would be incomplete without stories of collaborative creativity, and comradeship because of, not in spite of the arduous and antagonistic environmental conditions we were dealing with, the lack of sleep, the lack of sustenance and depletion of emotional stability. I could speak of the times when people, sensing what was needed, slipped away, and brought a much needed flask of coffee on to set, during a particularly cold and wet night shoot in Lesotho. Or about the particularly heavy containers and equipment which were tirelessly and thanklessly trekked the 4km's in and out of set in Loteni everyday. Not to mention the incredible generosity of the staff at the various locations, both in Loteni, and in Lesotho, who not only contained and tolerated these mad filmmakers, but went the extra mile to help.





This is truly the magic of film. The manner in which individuals focus their energies to create a singular vision. To bring forth the intangible. The manner in which people adopt a project and combine collaboratively, their efforts, to make manifest a moment, which, and here's the crunch, existed and had its genesis in my head. That I find quite overwhelming...



There were fantastic moments. Moments when there are about 25 people, all focused on executing the next shot. I must admit, it's addictive. There is nothing quite like the experience of being totally "in the zone", when you're focusing everything you've got to execute the next shot. It's like conducting an orchestra, but not. It's like captaining a ship, but also not. It's impossible to describe, I think you just have to experience it. And it's such a good feeling that it keeps you wanting more, which is why you become mad enough to attempt this crazy business of filmmaking in the first instant.



There were moments of tension, of conflict, naturally. But you deal with these. There were moments of intense unity, where everyone is giving their all. Predominantly, it was an incredibly successful shoot. Amazingly so. So many things could have gone badly. But in total, very few did. We could have used more planning. I knew this. I would have loved an extra week, but who knows, even then I might have said we could have used another week. The thing is, to commit, and stick to it, and as I mentioned in my first post, then providence moves to. And, the doubting skeptic that I am, I really believe the execution of this shoot was miraculous. So we stuck by it, and pushed through the worst of it. And here, now, I sit, warm, showered, in front of a keyboard, a universe away from the cold, wet, dripping rocky interior of the stone hut in Lesotho, and the footage looks fantastic. Surpassing expectation. The weather was inconsistent, the lighting was all over the show, and like I said, the horses didn't behave themselves. But having said that, I thoroughly loved working with the animals. Somehow, they brought a validity and authenticity which was magical to behold. Cobus did a fantastic job as Reitz, his performance is awesome, the camera department did an awesome job under less than ideal circumstances, the management and co-ordination was executed professionally, and I brought through the vision as best I could.





Now, what remains to be seen is if we can rediscover and best represent the story that is contained in the material we've created. So, no doubt I'll have more to discuss and explore as we enter properly into the beautiful, but somewhat equally taxing period of post production...



I haven't done a very good job of encapsulating the shoot, but that was never my intention. To attempt so would be a naive and impossible undertaking. But, needless to say, for many involved it was a life changing experience. Which is arguably the best, most validating gift I, as author of the film and indeed process, could be given. To view more photos, you can check out the facebook site here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=24942&l=584f9&id=709961927 and here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=25006&l=cf88e&id=709961927 with more to follow.

There and back again

I braved reading the first line of the previous post; definitely not my strongest, most bold hour...but, I am pleased to say that things are looking up! Since then, last week sometime, much has transpired. The highlight must have been a pretty intense 36 hours, including a somewhat spontaneous trip us Sani Pass, and an overnight location recce in Loteni.

Sani Top was magical. The place has an ethereal quality, which I now more than ever cannot wait to capture on camera. What is exciting me most is how the contrast between the two worlds, that of the "Low Lands" (literally Loteni) and the "Highland Plateaux" (Lesotho), will read so strongly on screen. Furthermore, I think that shooting up there will truly create the mythical, archetypal energies I was always wanting to explore in this film. So, in essence then, we've found our "Old Man's Hut", which was always going to be a crucial location to secure, and there has been no compromise on securing this one.

The following day, which was Wednesday 12th September, we re-scouted Loteni, securing and consolidating the locations I'd already set down as potentials. Shooting on location as we will be, is going to provide many new challenges. But I also feel it will free us up in some ways, as the shoot will become a "shoot of essence". We can only use what we can carry with us over a distance of roughly 3km's (the average distance to most of the locations), and as such will very often be shooting almost on the way to another location. Nonetheless, being there at first light (we stayed over there), was fantastic, as the hills literally "come alive" for the first hour after sunrise, with a stunning, intense contrast being created by the long shadows, never mind the usual richness in terms of colour, provided by golden hour. So, much of the shooting will be done at these times, which will mean a very early call time for the crew....sorry guys!

Otherwise, we're at that stage when the final consolidation of all the planning needs to happen. Quotes are still coming back, (much to my dismay, as I tally figures), so now all remains is a few more rehearsals, collecting the gear, collecting the catering, heading off, and shooting the movie! HA! I make it sound so easy.

Perhaps one cause for my current optimistic disposition, is the rehearsal I had today. I met with Cobus and Bohyi, playing Reitz (the protagonist) and "The Old Black Man", respectively. It was really awesome to see the script take on life. It was suddenly real. No longer a concept in my head, or ink on a page. There before me were living, breathing people, undergoing real lived experiences. Now all that remains, in this magical process that is filmmaking, is to capture it on camera. But an additional element to the excitement, is that I'm finally beginning to do some of the creative work. Well, that's not entirely true, the entire process is creative. Even the "producer-like-deal-getting" phone calls are all a part of the process of turning the intangible into the tangible. But the point being, in a more specific sense, my creative choices were called into play, as we approached the scene from varying angles, trying different adjustments, working through motivation, etc, etc. Fantastic fun.

So, 9 days to go...but I now know we'll get there. Exciting.

The compromise consumes

Well, with 17 days to go before the shoot. Things aren't looking fantastic. Had a real "moment of truth" ...moment tonight. It was a real tense day today, not the kind of day you can cope with too often. Yet I say that, some hours after the panic has subsided (marginally), and realise what an incredible rush the whole thing is. I must say, this is a little novel, just processing it now, but I think half the attraction of filmmaking (low budget, guerrilla, as I've come to understand it), is the beyond intense risk and fear it involves. In an adrenaline junkie, somewhat masochistic sense, embarking on the filmmakers journey is arguably one of the most extreme things an individual can do.

It's funny though, it seems that in every film I've made (and possibly will make), there is this black, engulfing moment where you lose all hope and think "what was I thinking!!! This is so much bigger than me!?" And you just lie in the bath, with the water getting cold and a lonely moth causing frantic, ethereal shadows to play games of cat and mouse on your already plummeting constitutional strength. And you have a choice. It seems all directing is really, is a series of choices, in fact, that's really all that life is. Either you stay there, in the vain hope that somehow, you'll close your eye's one last time, and open them, somewhere nice. Somewhere removed and liberated. In a sublimely crafted Eden, a Paradise Found. Or, and it's a big "OR", you get up, release the self indulgence, and do something about your situation...

It's interesting, during a flurry of panicky phone calls to various crew members, to update them on the latest set-backs, I spoke to a team member who expressed nearly as much anxiety as me. Interestingly, this was the catalyst for my "recovery". Hearing his reservations and fears, caused me to resume my function as "team leader" in the sense that I really need to be the one holding it together and motivating the others. I immediately started explaining how things would be OK, and how I saw the contingency plans falling into place. This positivity really helped me to adopt some positivity, I guess it's true...you are (create) what you think about.

Anyway, enough of all this. Part of the reason for the low today, no doubt has something to do with the fact that I've been averaging 4 hours sleep for the last week. I've been getting 2am moments of (mini) truth...tonight being the culmination of these - I trust. The point being, I should quit the verbosity and GO TO SLEEP!

But, to update: Received the quote from the armourer (who was bringing 4 additional British soldiers in uniform). The quote was nearly half the budget!!! (No exaggeration), so am going to have to seriously rethink some things. Received the quote for the accommodation in Loteni. Basically the other half of the budget! So, again...going to have to do a hard sell, and try secure a discount. Evidently my proposal sent through, was not enough. Compounding that, I very nearly lost the location! In terms of the accommodation. The tricky thing is, we're shooting during the school vacation, so, it's getting relatively busy now, which makes getting a discount tricky. I luckily managed to book (at the expensive rate) the last of the accommodation! Would have been really shit if we'd lost that!!! I've also been really stressing about securing the transport for everyone...but think I've finally decided on the cheapest (if not most comfortable) scenario.

Let me stop there, before these realities slap me like a cold wet fish, and the magnitude of it all reemerges. Am adopting a seriously optimistically naive attitude, reminding myself "that it'll all work out for the best"...after all, it really always does.

The compromise begins

Over the last few days, when people in the crew have been asking me questions like "what colour should Reitz' horse be?", I've been responding somewhat facetiously, that "as long as it has 4 legs and a pulse, I'm happy!" While I'm not (entirely) serious, the fact remains, that as I am forced to think more and more with my producer's hat on, I find myself making statements like "it doesn't matter", or, "we'll trick it", or the dreaded "we'll fix it in the grading"! These statements should really be reserved for 2am, at the (hopefully, near) end of a 16 hour day, when your actress is nearly having a breakdown and her co-star is nowhere to be found! Luckily this scenario is purely fictional, but, these things happen...

So, to safeguard us all from such a situation, much much pre-production has been done, and still needs to be done!

I've been slack with regards to updating the blog, but let that not be an indication of general tardiness, rather, the opposite. The "overall to-do list" is extensive and daunting, and contains items such as " Secure 2 very similar mules/ass’/Basuto ponies, one for Lesotho, one for S.A." These are the kind of nightmarish challenges facing us all. Yet, I write this, and feel a very distanced ambivalence. Like, I'm unable to process the enormity of how extreme the requirement is. Not necessarily getting the ponies, but the myriad of other script requirements that need sourcing. Perhaps it's a survival mechanism. One can't invest emotionally in what you need to do, rather, simply, just to get on with it. Pick up the phone, make a few phone calls, do some detective work, etc.

With pre-prod, which has actually been going very well, it is very often a case of 2 steps forward, 1 step back...on a good day. But the trick is just to keep going, make another phone call, when you hit a dead horse, I mean end...Speaking of which...I spoke to the wrangler I'm hoping to use (pending her quote!) and the horse she initially suggested might be able to lie down on command, as the script requires, has been sold, and her plan B is dead...I think...so...the compromise begins. I suggested that even if we can find a horse that will droop it's head on command...which, I'm told, is easier to find.

So, in essence then, I feel like we're in a good place. The schedule is basically locked, the locations are finally decided on!!! The crew is pretty much set, the film is basically cast, accommodation is sorted (kind of), and we've got 29 day's till we start shooting. We still need to source all props, source all costumes, negotiate about a million deals (if we're to bring the film in under budget). I need to rehearse, need to make a dent into the storyboard (which I've been putting off), and clarify the vision. I wander if you can ever get the vision clear enough...at least to the level that I hope for it to be...

Ending the old location debate...On the weekend, myself and Ant Delport, who is on board as location co-ordinator/P.A./Stills/Assistant Producer (Yes, we're all wearing too many hats!) took a 2 hour drive into the Drakensberg on Sunday (26/08/07), and found some of the most sublime locations which will ever be captured on film (or Video in my case)! We went to Loteni, and it fitted the vision perfectly! We were basically able to scout all the major needed locations within a 3.5 km walk. Which is still a 45 minute walk from camp, and will present some interesting challenges in terms of the shoot, but it's stunning! Am very excited to tell the story there. Quite a challenge actually. Representing that magnificence and weaving it seamlessly into the narrative so that it serves the STORY most efficiently.

Just one of many challenges. No one said it would be easy...but hell it's exciting!

Images of the past or sleepless nights

I couldn't decide what to call this blog, and in a somewhat noncommittal fashion, went with both options.

As it turns out, in a decidedly inconvenient manner, my imagination is spinning nearly out of control. Inconvenient in the sense that it is currently 1:47 in the am. Compounding this situation is the reality that in the morning the supreme creativity I feel to be in current possession of, will no doubt have vanished, or worse still, linger but the morning light will illuminate it for what it is, that is, somewhat less supreme than I gage it to be.

Be that as it may, I have been running the film in my head, playing it over in slow-mo, in black and white different characters, with no characters, as freely and fruitfully as my imagination will allow. I feel like I've transcended the initiatory, introductory stage with the film, forging rapidly an excitingly consuming relationship with the story. I was pondering it earlier today, and it struck me how there is this definite moment in pre-production when it strikes you that you ARE making this movie. Till then, it is a surreal, disjointed reality, and all sorts of other Life gets in the way. But past that "threshold" there is no going back, and it is your energy, your commitment and passion that holds the entire process together. Your energy seems to radiate with an electric magnetism, attracting and manifesting the most remarkable occurrences as you charge wholeheartedly toward the shoot.

I was reading, more enlighteningly than I had at first suspected, a book on directing, "The Directors Journey", by Mark Travis. Thin, paper back, badly designed cover, I didn't expect ground breaking realisations, but he unpacks the whole process in a truly supportive, systematic manner. Anyhow, the point being, I was reading a section on "the Script Breakdown". Not in a literal, producing manner, i.e. "we need 12 horses, 3 midgets, 7 explosions, and something to transport them all in - tomorrow!" Rather, the section deals with the need for the Director to come to terms with the story at a functional, narrative level. He reminds the reader how utterly crucial it is for the director to understand why a scene is in the movie, what the movie would be like without the scene, and what the Director needs to achieve with this particular scene in order to maintain the integrity of the plot, as well as to progress the narrative. These seem like fairly rudimentary questions, indeed they are rudimentary, but all to often, in the chaos of it all, they can get overlooked, or brushed aside, or (fatally) ignored. So, I started going through each scene, each moment within the scene, how these tie into the sequence they are in, and how this moves us through the story. It was pretty illuminating realising just how much of the story is still superfluous! So, I feel quite confident, indeed relieved, knowing what can now be cut! And importantly, what can't.

I feel I've solved the issue of the location, rather the setting of the film. After having yet more devastatingly enticing options of the Karoo dangled in front of my nose, I've set my sights firmly on the Drakensberg. Indeed, how the story is existing in my mind's eye at the moment, I could tell this story no place else. I know, I know, you're thinking..."But he said the same thing about the Karoo?". Maybe you're right, but I don't have all the answers, certainly not at 2am, but this just feels right.

This resolution has freed up some pretty awesome visualisation, and as the narrative is turning in my mind now, the film is taking on a much more mythic quality. Truly, a Hero's Journey. Whether I have thus hijacked a true life tale, and a sensitive segment of South Africa's complex past, I'm not sure. I don't think so...

The image at the top of the blog came to me as I was sitting down to write this, hence the hybrid title. While one of the more "popular" images from the war, it nonetheless has a haunting quality which I think serves to remind me one of the reasons as to Why, I'm making this film, and, importantly, telling it in the context I'm telling it in. What so few people realise, is that every able bodied Boer was called up for commando duty. They were a Volk, with a national identity forged through blood shed in the veld. Then there is that quite poignant image of 3 generations of Boer, going off to fight for their country, from the grandfather to the grandson. There seems to exist these images and the tales that are passed down, an incredible honesty, a transparency and a total lack of pretense or agenda. This war, and by extension, those (Boers) involved in it seemed to be fought and revolve around core values. Well, perhaps not. There was the Lord Milner's and the Cecil Rhodes', serving to remind us that perhaps mankind never does change. Whether it's the gold of the Witwatersrand, or the "Black gold" of the middle east, the enticement is enough to push those with ambition to send innocent young men to die. However, the imperialists aside, and believe me, I'm not proclaiming all Boers to be innocent, perhaps the majority of Boers fought and died, so that they may have a place to call home. Perhaps I'm wrong. Perhaps it was a foolish, unnecessary, bloody campaign on both fronts, but the history books tell a story which elicits my sympathies. Not 70 years after leaving the Cape Colony in search of a place to call their own, away from the uninvited crown, the Boers were fronted with Imperialists casting a very intrigued look at the worlds richest gold mines on their Rand, not to mention ideals of painting the African continent red. And if some of that hue had to be drawn from Boer blood, then so be it....

Dealing with Writers Blog

Well, it's been another couple of eventful days. The long weekend has been a joy, affording me some much needed time away from campus, lectures, and so on. But unfortunately, every second that slips by seems to push me closer to those (at this stage dreaded) shooting dates. I really question how/if we'll get ready on time! You can never have enough pre-production, but this time, with the somewhat mad deadline from Mnet's side, and the fact that I'm effectively forced to shoot during the September vac, as a producer, I've had very little freedom in the scheduling and setting of the production dates. But, less moaning and more action. Besides, until you're actually committed, nothing will ever get done. So...

Yesterday I took a drive around the outskirts of Maritzburg, to the Bisely Nature reserve, seeing once and for all if it will be possible to shoot locally. And whilst there were some awesome spots (the pic above was taken there, yesterday evening), I'm still not entirely convinced it will be possible. Well, it will be possible, but it's just a question of how big a compromise it will be.

Over the last couple of days it has really been my priority to try and get the new draft on the script done, and hopefully be ready to "lock" it, and begin pre-production in earnest. But, as I've mentioned in previous blog's, I've been in this weird tug-of-war tension. Unable, it seems to rid myself of my first visualisation of the story, i.e. set in the vastness of the Karoo. So, rethinking it all has been an interesting learning curve in terms of my writing, and how it is to have to do a major rewrite, as opposed to the general tweaking of dialogue that constitutes most other rewriting.

Shifting the narrative to another context, i.e. away from the factual setting of the true life Reitz adventure, has seemed like a serious betrayal of the honesty of the plot. At the best of times I've been struggling with how to maintain the integrity of the "Novel" (I've extracted a scene from Deneys Reitz' journal on the Boer War, entitled Commando - not sure if I've ever stated that). So, it's always been difficult. Not only from plot and structure point of view (how do you either condense a section of the tale into 15 mins, or chose which section to extract), but also, interestingly, from an ethical moral point of view. I've based my character on a real person, borrowing his name, age, and general adventure, but just how much "creative license" is OK? How much tweaking and upping the drama for convenience and structure's sake, is allowed? I was watching a very poignant documentary on the Boer War the other night, "Scorched Earth", dealing with Kitchener's nefarious farm burning policy and the subsequent detaining of Boer women and children, in the concentration camps. And it struck me that, when you narrate an historical tale, you are somehow given a lot of responsibility. There is perhaps the expectation the viewer may have that you will narrate the tale in line with their ideology, that their agenda will be matched. Perhaps I'm blowing it out of proportion? But, it seemed almost criminal for me to piggy back on Reitz' hardships, and infuse his adventures with what is arguably a very modern (postmodern???) character arc; that of a character coming to terms with his identity in the face of the senseless death and destruction that surrounds him. Even then, this line of questioning opens up a whole new can of worms. Is that my theme? If so, is it easily communicated? Can I pull that off in 15 minutes? Can I pull that off full-stop?

Enough questioning. I have, I suppose hit some sort of a breakthrough with the script. I managed to rewrite the opening that I was struggling so much on. And in so doing, I feel I'm creating a new setting and landscape which I hope will carry through organically into the rest of the tale. This setting is very much located in what I imagine to be the Drakensberg. I trust that the magnificence of these mountains will bring with them a new dynamic and element to the story that, whilst not suggesting what the barrenness of the Karoo would, will nonetheless resonate with the transformational arc of the character.

The picture below was the catalyst for the new found mental imagery I'm giving to the script, and whilst it will probably be impossible to get to where this is, I'm hoping to capture some similar scenes. Shooting in the Drakensberg will present a myriad of complications, but it's good to have mostly decided on this place. Now it's a question of preempting and overcoming the problems as and when they arise.

I've uploaded a video of some of the locations visited so far. It's viewable at this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWmEYSaw3r4 How I have time to edit videos as well, is a mystery...well, truth is I don't. But...what can you do?!