The Brave, The Few, The Movie Makers

I just came from a lunch meeting with a young budding film maker who makes me seriously consider slinking back into my work-a-day world and forgetting about this silly dream of being a movie maker. Why? Because this kid was way smarter than me, he's a stone's throw from getting his MFA in film, he's talented with a camera, has a good eye, has great ideas for smart, earthy stories, is gaining experience every day, and he's a kid! And what's most amazing, at lunch, he was asking me for advice since I have written one - count 'em - one screenplay and directed as many movies. He was looking to me as an expert on the basis of that meager experience. I, of course, cleared my constricting throat and tried my best to sound erudite in my stammering responses, all the while feeling like a complete phony. This isn't the first time either. I have been asked to speak to groups, some in other towns, as a movie producer/director as though I had something important to say simply because I was the guy who said "Action" for a few weeks. Surely these people know down deep that I'm really just a regular schmo who was blessed with a really great opportunity. If anything, they should be asking, "How in the world did you get to do something so fun? It's not fair."

As I think about it though, if we who have been so blessed as to have made a movie will just turn the shiny privilege over, we'll discover a responsibility attached to it. In persevering from pre-production to premier, we have in fact ventured where most have only dreamed of going. It is not nothing. It makes us members of an elite family, and our experience, however mundane and understandable in our honest hindsight, is in fact valuable to those who still dream of the journey. In fact, most will only dream and state intentions, but never venture out of the safety of the coffee shop debate. So, to all who find ourselves looking back at the journey, kudos, my daring comrades! Know that the journey is the value you have to offer. Offer it humbly, because you know how blessed you are, but offer it confidently, because you have bested its perils and completed it. Encourage everyone, knowing that only a few will actually follow.