From the moment we got to the airport to the second we landed back in Long Beach, our trip was nothing less than a frenzy. It began with Colle assuring us, as he took his third smoke break, that we had plenty of time to make it through security and onto our flight. As you may have seen in Sharon's post, he was wrong. Sleep deprived and panic stricken, we decided that we should stay with the film equipment (worth more than Sharon and I combined). Fortunately, Colle caught another flight (that somehow managed to break every known time and space barrier), and ended up getting to Nashville about a half hour after we did (which slightly repressed the nagging ulcers that were an inevitability for both Sharon and myself on this trip).
We met up with Brandon, a grad student and LGBT leader on campus, who had asked Colle to come speak at this "Hate Crimes Week" event at Mid-Tennessee State University (MTSU). Brandon was so kind and welcoming, he really epitomized the role of the "Southern Gentlemen". He showed us around Nashville a little, and took us to a really cool cafe where we were shocked at the friendliness and hospitality of everyone around us. Pretty much everyone we met was this way, and everything we ate was double-fried and smothered in cheese, giving the South what I thought of as a kind of grandma-who-always-stuffs-you-full-of-cookies-and-tells-you-you're-special-kind-of-feeling.
Sharon wanted to make an attempt at shooting a little footage from the car, but I don't think we had much success. That said, our crash course in camera work was very beneficial. I think I might challenge James to a tri-pod centering dual, as I can now get that awful bubble dead center in less than ten seconds. Great success! We got some sub-par footage at a mall before Colle's speech that consisted of really great material and really crappy traffic sounds possibly ruining precious emotional moments that could have made for great footage.
Colle's actual speech gave us a pretty great set-up from a film standpoint. The room was quiet and well-lit, and we were able to stay really close to Colle. Sharon was pretty upset about the mic on Colle's shirt being visible, but I think she's not giving herself enough credit. With only two of us to set-up and film, and the very limited amount of time we had to make all of this happen, it is nothing short of a miracle that we got so much done. Sharon's organization and unparalleled mothering skills (which I cannot even begin to praise in terms of getting Colle to walk away from his kitten-friend and actually go where he needed to be to give us usable shots) made everything so much easier. I think we complimented each other really well on this trip. Sharon's scheduling and attention to detail kept us moving in the right direction (and constantly moving, at that), and while she was making everything happen, I (moving at a much slower pace) was able to pull in all the different directions and ideas that she had, and focus them on relating all our footage back to Colle's story and speech. Now, we're just hoping that the end result will be some really great footage! I got to do the camera work and visuals, which I really loved, and Sharon did all of the sound and mic work, which I hope she loved!
In the end, we got to meet and interview some really amazing people who told us about what it was like to be openly gay in the "buckle of the Bible Belt" and what Colle's experience meant to each of them. I wish we had had more time to set up those shots and talk to them, but we didn't start their interviews until about five hours before we were supposed to be back at the airport. And I really don't mean to sound cliche, but their experiences really made me realize how badly these stories need to be told. All of these wonderful, smart, friendly, kids were constantly surrounded by WWJD? billboards and messages of hate and disgust. It was hard to hear, but it made me even more excited about what we're doing and all of the possibilities that we have to say something really special with this film.
Sorry this was so long, it really doesn't even do the trip justice. More to come!
Thanks, Em
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