So it’s been just shy of a week since I watched a mere ten minutes of Daye’s JROTC footage. And though she’d given me permission to blog about the footage here days ago (Daye’s ago… lol), life has caught up with me and my private blog-o-go-round has been put on a brief hiatus. Finding a bit of time to get some fresh air here in Chicago (very cold air), I thought I’d begin rambling over my thoughts. Though it probably doesn’t need to be said, the thoughts here are sketches of ideas and things I’m trying to flesh out. The nature of blogging – at least for me – is something of mild contention as I figure out what I want to use this space here, but for now I feel it necessary to use this space for proverbial throat clearing and brick laying.

So the actual footage looks absolutely (insert expletives times 1,000) amazing. There’s a shot of students jogging in morning fog that is truly priceless. The footage being spoken of, I feel like Daye (is it OK if I address you directly?), you need to get over the partner adoration thing and take a stronger ownership of this film. I mean that in the most flattering of terms; this is a strong idea with strong visual cues for emotion naturally embedded – make it more than an idea and an individualized statement. I know your partner (with the two contrasting consonants next to each other that only Europeans can get away with) has strong feelings about the film and wants to contrast his notions of schooling and the role of military with what he has seen at Manual. However, yours is an opinion and ideology that is nuanced and – to me – more balanced based on childhood military experience.

Additionally, I feel like you know your editing. If I’m allowed to expand on the fact that you said you feel insecure in editing compared to your peers, I think that too is something that needs to simply be confronted. I don’t know how such a thing occurs, but sooner or later it will happen.

Aside from those issues I’ve mainly got a couple of questions. For one, what is the role of the filmmaker in the film? It seemed like you and your filmmaker are of conflicting minds in regards to the presence of you in the film – I’m thinking specifically of the awesome shot of the instructor speaking to you from a distance with that phantom shadow caught in the frame. Like your distaste for narration, I understand that perhaps your physical absence in the film can be viewed analytically. However, as far as creating a compelling, informed narrative, I wonder how much is being sacrificed by your absence.

Another question I have is about the issue of creating a fair and balanced film. It’s funny that my initial concern was about how the film could be overly negative in its view of JROTC. Now, however, after looking at the footage, I continue to be impressed with what JROTC is doing. I realize this is a conversation we’ve had before, and one that we’ve both shared with others, but it still is going to be the most immediate issue brought up as far as the direction of the film. Not that this needs to be a treatise in either direction, but I’d hope this is a film that could inform both sides of the coin; you have positive aspects of JROTC covered, I know you wanted to capture students being critical of the program, but is that going to be the most effective way of conveying a critique of the film?

I feel like I haven’t covered all of the questions I’ve had built up, but I should have written this up as soon as I left your apartment. Perhaps as I stay informed about the film’s state I’ll be allowed to continue reflecting on your film craft. Again, if any of these comments are invasive to you, please let me know and they will be properly edited.