I set the release date for the “We are Family” documentary for March 23, 2019. While work on the movie is progressing well, I have had to swallow my pride and accept the fact that I could deliver a finished movie on that that release date off. Here’s why.
THE SHEER AMOUNT OF WORK
Making a movie is a lot of work. There are a myriad of moving pieces – from video editing, to getting release forms for people we’ve interviewed, to lining up a venue, to communicating with our musicians.
For example, last week I spent time going through video footage providing feedback to David Lichty who is doing video production. There was 1 hour and 17 minutes of video footage that just covers the lead up to the 2013-2014 season.
The sheer amount of work, plus the fact that for both David and I this is not our full-time jobs and that we are both finding time to work on this labor of love in our off-work hours means that it just is taking longer than I hoped and planned.
COMPLICATIONS, COSTS AND DECISIONS
I shared in my February update that I had run into some complications and new costs that I had not anticipated. For example, to get permission to use Indiana High School Athletic Association video, we need to have Movie Insurance. I should be getting a bid on the cost of that shortly. I did not anticipate these complications and costs when I set March 23 as the release date for the movie.
CREATIVE FEEDBACK
We have a number of people who will be viewing the “uncut” version of the movie to provide technical, artistic, creative and factual feedback. Their feedback is valuable and necessary for us to make the best possible movie.
David Lichty, Tremayne Reed and I will be taking that feedback and cutting and crafting the final documentary. I don’t want to rush that important process of feedback so that we can make the best possible movie we can.
We also need to receive permission to use footage from both individuals and agencies, and so we when get the “uncut” and “final” versions wrapped up, this will be part of the process.
It is disappointing not to hit the March 23 target date. But there are good reasons to push that date back. My hope is that we will be able to have an exclusive screening of the movie in May. But no promise. I’ve learned my lesson.
Until that screening, you can be sure that I will be grinding away to tell this important story of an inner city basketball team that against all odds won the State Championship and inspired a city in doing so.
