The Long Weekend
Well, the first weekend of editing wasn't as successful as I would have liked. But I am now set up in the basement of Campion editing up a storm on some very very good equipment, so things should be heating up.
More to come
G Night and G Luck
The Editing Monster Begins
Well, I'm back from Washington with 20 tapes of pure activism and ready to get to work in the film dungeons of BC. Sadly, I have hit a couple of snags. Today, I could not figure out how to put my narration on to my project, so I have to wait until tomorrow. However, I have the documentary roughly planned out and it looks good. I did get the opening segment edited and it looks great. Here is to hopefully a short period of editing(:cross fingers and wish on shooting star:)
More details to follow, till then, Good Night and Good Luck
Getting the Finishing Touches - Day 20 in The District
Well. Today is Sunday and I am beginning the last week for putting the finishing touches on filming. I got my last bits of White House Saturday yesterday. Tonight, I plan on attending Code Pink's White House protest where they are having a music slam. This whole experience has been really great. I've seen a number of different protests with diverse groups of people. Good luck to the Red Sox today, I am watching right now. I still don't know how the Yankees are scoring runs.
Until later
Good Night and Good Luck
Alot Has Happened - Day 18 In The District
Hello All
Well, much has happened in my last post. However, I have been tired at the end of each day or distracted by various things to get a good post. So, now as I sit and watch 20/20, I am relaxed and ready to write.
Anyways, sorry for the little prologue, but here is the report.
First off, the
Pentagon situation. I have still been stonewalled for getting
"clearance" to take photos outside the Pentagon for the
Catholic Worker Peace Vigil(DC Chapter). However, I was told by a Mr. John Lenger, director of publications of Harvard University, that my right is there and likely if I went to take pictures of the peace vigil. However, due to that it's my last week and I don't want to provoke any conflict, even if I am in the right, I will likely not be going back on Monday. I also got footage of the same group infront of the white house yesterday. I will present this issue in my documentary, I am not sure where or how, but it will be addressed that I was put through such a bureaucratic mess to try to see the peace vigil infront of the bus stop and parking lot.
Second, I attended a
DC Anti-War Network(DAWN) meeting on tuesday. After suffering such a bureaucratic defeat on Monday, I was exhausted and was hoping to get some interviews and interact in a open planning meeting. However, when I arrived. The group was very inclusive and I couldn't take any film until everyone showed up and that I was authorized by the entire group. Normally, I'd be fine with this. But they did such a process through a exhausting bureaucratic process that would be seen in a UN or Congressional hearing, not a protest planning meeting. Honestly, I thought this process hurt the meeting because it was just so unnecessary. I got footage of the meeting so I can use it when I site the group, but after about 15 minutes I left knowing that I wasn't going to get interviews very soon, and having already been exhausted from the day before, I wasn't ready for that meeting.
I would like to point out I understand the need for much of the bureaucracy and practice in the US and international groups. I just simply believe that same strict policy was a little much for such a small network at the DAWN meeting.
Wednesday was a tourist day and I saw "Roving Mars", an IMAX picture at the
National Air and Space Museum (NASM), and it was inspirational and provided some good hope for the future. I also got a good look at
Smithsonian American Art Gallery and was happy to see so much in one building.
Thursday, I spent the entire morning at the Capitol. I then headed for the White House to cover a DAWN scheduled peace protest at 12, but when I got there, I found out I had lost my microphone. After searching and getting a much needed lunch, I realized I left it at the room where DAWN holds their meetings, so I went there and luckily someone from the main office was there and I retrieved it. I went back to the Capitol and made the most of my day covering the
Operation House Call(Boots Demonstration) organized by
Military Famlies Speak Out. I found out that later that day, members of
CodePink where also at the Capitol earlier that day in a conference about the Iraq War. Two members, one being Father Louis Vitale(I interviewed him on the third), were arrested for causing a disturbance. They did get featured in the Post today.
Today, I covered
CodePink and the Catholic Worker at the White House. I went in search of a DAWN protest infront of VP Cheney's house, but I could not find anyone. So I left to cover the
Walter Reed Peace Vigil. This was my second time to the vigil, and it was even more interesting then the first. I was glad to be back because I had much more confidence in dealing with both sides and getting more of my questions answers better. I won't explain the whole backstory of the vigil, because you can find it at my
earlier post. However, the vigil was larger on the Code Pink side this time(15 compared to 10), and the
Freepers had about 15-20 spread on four corners. Once I got to the site, I set camp in the Code Pink side because I knew I could leave my stuff there with the other assorted bags. Also, because I was going to cover them last.
In any case, I went to Camp Freep and talked with more of the supporters. I got some good material that spoke to their message. There were two particular things that troubled me most. One, they spoke that Code Pink gave $ 650,000 to terrorists in Fallujah, Iraq. Here is what I found after speaking with Code Pink about the accusation and cross checking on the internet using Lexis Nexis to confirm the news source. If you read this article by the
San Francisco Chronicle, you will get a good breif introduction to what happened. Now, for detailed information, Code Pink was among many peace organizations who assisted Mrs. McCaffrey and Ms. Avila raise $100,000 dollars to buy medical supplies, blankets, food, and etc and a group called
Operation U.S.A. provided another $500,000 for additional supplies to Fallujahn refugees. Operation USA has many
sponsors including Ernst & Young, Target, Tyco, Disney, and Warner Bros. Clearly, according to the Freepers, many of our most successful companies are aiding terrorists. Even our hospitals with St. Jude Medical Center on that list.
The Freepers also had new signs on their cars that were lined up on the side of the road headed in the direction of Code Pink's vigil. There were four cars with four pink signs that say the following in order:
Sign 1:
DON'T BE FOOLEDSign 2:
BY THEIR FLAGSSign 3:
UP AHEADSign 4:
PINKO HAGSNevermind the subliminal messaging, but this did appear strange to me considering they said their principled purpose was to hold a rally in support of the troops. I asked the question to one of the Freepers who chose not to give me his real name and instead of answering the question, he talked about how Code Pink aids terrorists.
Anyways, that was my experience on that side. I then headed for Code Pink and met more of the same activists I described in my first post. I did have an interesting encounter with a soldier, who will remain unidentified, but he was younger than myself, and had originally lived in a state far away of D.C. He appreciated Code Pink's concern and told me how his family has moved to D.C. One problem fact, although he has enrolled in college, he may be redeployed. I talked to him about young people in the army and he said that
"it was the young guys who were getting killed". It was one of my most difficult conversations because he had been through so much, and I could hardly emphasize having not served a minute in the service. I do respect all I talked with him about and am proud that men and women like him who serve. My only hope is we can bring everyone else home soon.
Finally,
I want to note, I have said alot of partisan stuff in this post particularly. My documentary is not aimed to be partisan. I am going to approach that objectively, I give my opinions here because it's a blog and it's the place for my opinions. However, you can follow my links and anything I confirm is fact. With my interviews, I take what people say and find out if they are exaggerating. Now, some people may not consider the Freepers for lying, because in their sense they're not. They consider all citizens of Iraq to be terrorists considering what they said. But I simply wanted to clarify that it wasn't money sent over their, but humanitarian aid. Anyways, again, please don't assume that my documentary will be as partisan as this blog. My documentary has yet to be organized and will
look at things as objectively as humanly possible.
First Amendment in Crisis? - Day 14 In the District
Well, I have passed the halfway point in my journey through D.C. Today was a very interesting thing for many reasons, and it all began quite early at 7am at the Pentagon.
I woke up before the crack of dawn this morning to document a peace vigil run by the Catholic Worker at the Pentagon. I have gained alot of experience from this visit. Upon arriving, I learned that there was a restriction on photography of any kind and that I would need clearance. I was not surprised about that. So, I spoke with the officer who was very polite and we talked and he gave me a number. I called it. It was the Police Force Department Ctr. for the Pentagon. They didn't have the authority to give me clearance, but they transferred me to the building mgr's office. There I talked with a head person in the office who was in that early who was very helpful and polite in finding out how I, as a member of the press, needed to get the clearance I was looking for. He spoke with Pentagon lawyers who told him that I needed to go through the Press Dept. So, I called the Press Dept and knew I was right on track. However, that is where I hit my speedbump. The woman at the Press Dept for some reason was very short with me, she claimed because I was a university student she didn't have to talk to me about clearance and said she only dealt with the commercial media. I would like to point out that although University media is non-profit, we still are members of the press like any other. I tried to ask her if I could send over credentials and proof that I was with Boston College on the project but she coldly refused. She said I had to talk to the Public Inquiry office. The Public Inquiry office is simply the information booth of the Pentagon but doesn't really have any authority to give me clearance to take photos and video of the demonstration. But I gave the Press Dept the benefit of the doubt, particularly because I don't want to argue with the Pentagon, I'm not here to burn any bridges. So I call up and leave a few messages with Public Inquiry, they get back to me and let me know that they don't really have any authority to help me and refer me back to the
Building Manager. Oh Boy. I've just taken a ride on the US Bureaucratic Merry Go Round. So, I was back at square one. I did e-mail the professor who is assisting me with the film logistics of the project. He has offered to write a letter as credentials on my behalf. However, it was too late in the day today to call the press department back. I will call again tomorrow and hopefully be able to communicate better, otherwise, I'm not going to push this one, it's not that critical. But what is critical is whether or not I am allowed to record the video and for what reason. More on this as it develops.
On a much brighter note, I took a great tour of the State Dept Diplomatic meeting rooms and it was a fantastic tour. I got to see where the US hosts some of its most prodigious guests and was pleased to see how rooted the rooms are in the American independence movement. I was also able to learn alot of history about many paintings and artifacts. It was an intriguing tour.
Also, later in the day, I covered
Operation: House Call (the boots demonstration infront of the Cannon bldg. down by the Capitol building. The demonstration is run by
Military Families Speak Out. They are simply put, military families who have, had, or have lost loved ones in the military, many members particularly concerning the War in Iraq. You remember, the war that was
"Mission Accomplished" a little over
3 years ago. Anyways, since the House voted to press on with the Iraqi conflict in the last week of June, they have been out there placing a pair of boots for every soldier that died since then. They currently have
43 boots as of the count yesterday. They also have shoes representing the Iraqi civilians who have died. It was a very powerful demonstration and I was able to get alot of good footage and had some good dialogue with passing observers.
So that was my day today. I didn't expect to be as busy or gain so much experience. But I guess this is what learning is about. Just as my boss at home said earlier to me today,
"Today was a great learning experience. Now you'll be prepared next time. " And I will, and I hope to continue to go out there and get better at this every day. In any case, this has truly been a unique experience where I have been able to see a tremendously diverse amount of people who have thoughts, be it for or against this war, and why, and what they choose to do or not to do.
Also, one more thing concerning the Pentagon section.
I respect all those that I talked to and that work in that building. I know the job is hard, probably particularly on the press dept who has to do alot of sorting. My only reason for being upset is that it was hard for me to explain myself before being quickly dismissed. I think because it was so early and I was talking to various people that the woman may have been overwhelmed. I will make contact tomorrow seeking a little more dialogue. The rest of those I talked to were very respectful of me and what I was doing and they did what they could to direct me to the best available person. Sadly, there is alot of red tape that causes confusion.
Thank you for reading,
Good Night and Good Luck
NEW VIDEOS - Day 12 in the District
Well,
I went to the White House and got my daily dose of protests. Some really interesting people, some I was familiar, some not. I also got to talk to several passers by which was good.
Saw the end of the Red Sox win against Chicago. Papelbon and Ortiz, along witht the rest of the team, I salute you.
Now, on to the main reason for my post. I had been tinkering with premiere and images these past couple of weeks. Took a little longer to do than I thought, but here is a new video. It's basically a glorified slideshow. It should make you smile.
Where Do They Make Balloons?Good Night and Good Luck
Lazy Days - Day 11 in the District
Well, I haven't posted in awhile mostly because there hasn't been much to post. I have been going over all the footage I collected on the 3rd and 4th which have about 12 interviews and lots of protest footage of about 5 and a half hours. I really have enjoyed this trip thus far, being part-journalist and part-tourist. I will be going back to the front of the White House tomorrow to explore what is apparently the most popular day for protesting there. I will look to get some more protest footage but also interviews from more regular people. I have alot of activist interviews, now I need to find more non-active views. Also, this week, I will tour the Capitol building and State Department which look to be very exciting. Today, I visited Arlington which is a profound experience knowing the immensity of emotion that can be found in one relatively small area. The day before that I visited the American History Museum and National Zoo. The American History museum was good, but I am not surprised it is being renovated. It is fairly in need of some new way of updating the building and bringing more exhibits. The Zoo was great and the Smithsonian people appear to do a great job even though they can not free range their animals.
Aside from that, I have certainly slowed down my pace since Tuesday. I enjoyed watching Jon Lester pitch agains the World Champion White Sox tonight in Chicago and hold them to two runs. Hopefully, we don't wear him out. I will hopefully not have too long of a day that I won't catch some of tomorrow's game, but I will probably miss alot of Josh Beckett. Finally, I saw Pirates today and was not dissatisfied, although I was perturbed that the series has not ended and that there will be a third movie. Please, don't see any more third movies of a trilogy unless they rhyme with Wars or Rings. It is the only way Hollywood will learn! Anyways, I also give props to those who applauded the great Transformer's teaser trailer in the 2:45pm show at the Gallery Place Regal Cinemas, I can't wait either. 7.4.7 here we come.
Until next time
Good Night and Good Luck
America's Birthday - Day 8 in the District
Well, it has been exciting these past 2 days. I have 6 full DV tapes of Codepink's
TROOPS HOME FAST demonstration complete with interviews of Cindy Sheehan,
Michael Berg,
Daniel Ellsberg,
Dick Gregory, and
Diane Wilson. I also got more footage of the
FReepers. I also saw many various activists delivering their message of peace in their own unique ways including a human puppet of G.W. Bush, a tibetan monk, a whole gang of grannies, and former veterans just being there for their country. Truly, activism was alive these past two days, and hopefully, this will garner more attentions from the President and his staffm, etc. Again, it was amazing to document and actually see the different personalities of a single protest. I was astonished by the diversity that I saw and the hopeful spirit. It was a good thing to see. It was also very amusing to see a protest for the legalization of Marijuana. Although, it quickly disorganized and fell apart. Somehow I think that's ironic.
Anyways, there are threats of thunderstorms but after watching the sox on Gameday(sigh), I hope to go and see the fireworks show from the feet of Honest Abe.
Until later,
Good Night and Good Luck
Activism is Alive on Both Sides - Day 5 in the District
Yesterday was an amazing day. I began it early when I arrived at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank group where I met
Carol Moore who was a sole protester against a War on Iran. Her, fear was that it could lead to a nuclear war with Russia. Although, I don't agree with many of her points here, she did provide a look at how one person perserveres through such opposition. She was greeted with late arrivals, but they arrived too late. It was certainly interesting to watch. In the mid day, I interviewed some various people on their opinions about what and why people protest.
The night got even more interesting. I attended the weekly
Walter Reed peace vigil in support of the troops and of their safe return soon. This vigil was very sound and had a collection of many other people, not just
Code Pink. It also had a
counter demonstration. The counter demonstration was led by a group called the
free republicans or as they called themselves, "FReepers". They were more agressive, by that I mean, their mission was not only to spread a message of love and support of the troops, but it was made clear, especially from visiting their
website, that they have the intent of obstructing and stopping the vigil. They also took pictures of their demonstration and the vigil. Meanwhile, the people in the vigil just try to keep their distance and stay away. I learned alot about the history of both groups and some dark sides of both. I don't want to say alot here because I am still researching both groups and I want to be as objective as possible with my documentary. Needless to say, I learned alot going to the site and it was a exciting experience. I was happy to see that evening that activism is still alive, on both sides.
Also, today was a day for some downtime. I planned to watch the launch at the National Air and Space museum, but it got scrubbed, than I saw Adam Sandler and Christopher Walken in "Click". Not a bad movie, got a little long, but it was funny. Also, I discovered Noodles and Co where I will likely have many, many dinners. And as I finish typing, the Red Sox won tonight 11-5 although ended their record breaking error streak.
Good Night and Good Luck
