Reflections On God’s Grace Video
Only four months into my new & exciting endeavor of cinematography, my twin brother (Tyson) asks me to help him create a film illustrating his recently released track God’s Grace off of his debut album Heyoka. As a rookie with video, but a master of photography composition I knew this is something we could create. Both of us were moved by the idea of manifesting a unique creative project neither of us had even attempted before. It gave us vibrant energy filled with enthusiasm & hope. I am under the impression that impactful ideas are gifts from the Universe, & it’s our choice to bring them into fruition, or simply let them fade into nothing. Driven by the fear of not untapping our potential, & pulled by the desire to positively impact the trajectory of not only our own lives, but our culture at large, we devised a plan for the idea’s birth into the world. Due to Tyson’s busy schedule which consumes nearly every afternoon & evening, we decided to begin the film at sunrise with the intention to use this free block of time & the twilight colors to produce beautiful visuals.
Before creating this film, I was (& still am) in the process of creating my own project that requires me to travel all across the area within a 100 mile radius to capture scenes I perceive to be majestic. So with this exploration experience, Tyson asked “Do you have any places in mind to shoot? Somewhere outside with a good view?”. I thought for a moment, & said “High Rock”. “What’s that?” , “It looks like this” as I showed him images of the area & we both agreed this was the place to create the project for its phenomenal overlook which reveals the Earth’s horizon. “When can we get this done?” , “Why not this weekend?” , “I don’t see why not”. So we settled on that point in time, having no idea what would be there waiting for us then.
When Friday arises, I check the forecast hoping to see sunny weather, & see exactly the opposite: rainy overcast. “Do you still want to film this tomorrow? It looks like it’s going to be cloudy” I asked Tyson with a tone indicating this isn’t a good idea. I’ve disciplined myself to only film on bright, sunny days to capture the highest clarity of details possible through my camera. “Yea it could look cinematic.” I pause & imagine for a moment what the project may look like. The simulations in my mind calculate there is a minute chance this will look good. “Alright, we’ll see what we can work with when we get there” I say reluctantly. Luckily one of us is more open to “poor” conditions than the other, because Tyson ended up being exactly right. I learned at times the mind of an expert can miss possibilities the beginner can spot. Information does indeed shroud attention if you allow it to.
We both awakened the next morning around 4:30 AM to catch a sunrise two hours away. We’re both half asleep, but the energy of this idea continues to energize our spirit, though our bodies were lagging. I double check my camera bag to ensure my equipment is all there, & we head out into the night. There’s something incredibly serene about coming awake & traveling when most people are sound asleep. The usually heightened stimulation which happens when everyone is awake during the day is nonexistent during its counterpart. We’ve all trained to wake up, & go to sleep around certain times of the Earth’s rotation. But when you consciously break this pattern another dimension of Life’s space opens up to you. Along the entire two hour journey, there’s almost nothing but a clear passage between us, & our destiny. The clarity allowed me to relax along the road, a necessity for open minded creativity.
The closer we approached the shooting location, the more an urban environment transformed into more of a rural one as I made out through the jet black atmosphere. I also notice how the weather has yet to “improve” & my expert thoughts of the event being less than idyllic were replaced by a fatigue which simply gave into the flow. Eventually, my mind released into openness. I no longer cared whether the cinema worked or not, I was just, there. As children are. & just like a child, I was soon in awe at what we encountered after driving up a windy road with fog so thick we couldn’t see three feet in front of us. I was more curious about the unique weather conditions itself than completing the project.
As we cut through the fog in Tyson’s 2010 Honda Civic, we reach our destined land. A scenery unpopulated by any others & filled with an elegant, ominous blue light sourced by the early Sun; refracted by the ground cloud of fog. Upon stepping out of the vehicle, we immediately understood we were in the exact right place at the exact right time. The sounds of wind interacting with leaves, the symphony of bugs in the distance, the company of quietness, & the hazy indigo light indicated deeply to my senses that this was a sacred space. We arrived when only our eyes, not the camera, could perceive the surroundings. We waited in that serenity for almost 45 minutes enjoying the unique mystical play of the Earth.
Eventually, the day began to break, but the fog was still present. As any cameraman (or woman) knows, these rare conditions are what we live for! As I looked down the road from which we came, with its swinging trees & vanishing viewpoint, immediately a vision of Tyson riding up the road from the fog into & out of the frame entered my mind. This psychic gift was quickly executed to create the first frame which set the tone. The entire event, visions appeared in my mind of what to capture & exactly how it would appear within the camera. The entire shoot was influenced by these visions which continually appeared & disappeared from my vision that I identify as God’s Grace. In this fashion for the next two days throughout the editing process, I remained focused on these visions until the film’s completion, barely finding time to sleep. I was filled with a childlike excitement not necessarily for others to view the project, but simply to manifest what were merely ephemeral images in my psyche into a phenomena within the 3D world.
This process of creation for this piece of art, along with other recent happenings & insights in my life have taught me that experience is of far greater significance than logic. Meaning the power of a human being's ability to perceive & respond sensibly to life’s situations is accessed only in the moment. Logical streams of thought produced by digital facts are important to consider for strategic purposes. However, nature has the consistent behavior of not following our man made schematics we predict will occur in the future. It’s truly a humbling experience when arrogance of the intellect is proven wrong by truth.
I will end this with a Yiddish proverb: “Man plans, & God laughs”.
