The Official Becoming Fools Movie Trailer

Drum roll, please …. After much anticipation, we are thrilled to release the official Becoming Fools Movie Trailer.

We’re not yet finished with the film, but we’re close. It’s in the final phase of post-production: coloring, music, mixing, animation, art, and credits.

After a year of pre-production and research, 6 months of production and 6 months of editing and post-production, we are rounding the turn towards the finish line. My heart has swung through all emotions imaginable over the course of this journey – from loving the story, to absolutely hating it, to loving it again.

The production phase is my favorite. It is a time when we are out in the world together, collaborating, capturing a story and experiencing the richness of community. It’s hard work, but somehow we don’t notice because we are together. You should hear the laughter at 2 AM when we’re logging footage, after a 12 hour shoot in a dirty environment … and the water is off, so you can’t take a shower before bed. It is a true joy!

Then there is the flip side. If production is a joy because of community, then editing is the Alcatraz prison of loneliness. To be honest, I often wrestle with depression while editing a film. It is a long period of isolation in the “editing cave” with only small spurts of community when we evaluate the film. And because those small doses of community are focused on critically evaluating the film, it usually results in me having to spend more time editing in isolation. Don’t get me wrong. I greatly value constructive criticism during the process and want our films to be the best they can be! It just begins to take its toll after 6 months of 16 hour work days. Needless to say, I am very glad that I can see the light at the end of the editing tunnel!

After all this work, the film is slightly different than we originally imagined. But, this is normal because you never have control over all the production elements in a documentary. In this case, we were thrown some pretty big wild cards during production. I compared it to riding a wild bull. We just held on tight, kept the cameras rolling, and prayed we were capturing what we needed to tell a great story. Thankfully, we captured some great stuff!

During a recent Athentikos meeting, we engaged in a deep and honest discussion about the film. We asked some  tough questions ….

Is this a compelling story?

Does this film achieve what we set out to do?

Is the story depicted in the final edit the same story we passionately felt called to produce in the beginning?

It was unanimous. Even though the story is different than we initially imagined, it compellingly accomplishes the goal we set out to achieve. This is the story God called us to tell.

It’s full of warm characters, beautiful tension and redemption that we couldn’t have written better if we wrote it as a narrative. It still makes me cry … and I have seen it thousands of times over the course of editing! So, either I am completely off my rocker, or this story truly connects to the heart.

As we work diligently to wrap up the final details in this project, I have mixed emotions. I’ve committed 2 years of my life to developing, filming and editing this story. I’ve grown to love these street youth as dear friends. Their delicate charm has captured my heart! I would love for this film to raise awareness and bring needed resources to this issue! But, I have no idea what will become of it all.

We raised enough funding to get through production. But we still lack the financial resources to release the film. Unfortunately, we can’t subsidize this next phase with our sweat equity. Unless we receive additional funding, we will be forced to put the film on hold. We truly believe this story has the potential to make a difference in the lives of street youth around the world. But we need your help … will you consider giving a donation?

As of right now, we only have one official film screening planned. Let’s make it count!

Becoming Fools will screen at the Omaha Film Festival on Sunday March 10 at 12:15 PM.

Gather your friends and meet us there! If you are too far away to attend, please help us make noise so we can try to fill the theater. Use every means necessary to tell people about this opportunity to see the film: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, phone calls, post cards, smoke signal … and especially talking face to face!

Please watch the trailer and share it. Give a donation if you can. Work with us to help bring the film to your city. Let’s become fools together and make a difference!

Give a tax-deductible donation to help us release the film.

Why do we keep marching forward in something that seems so foolish?

We are fools.

Why do we keep marching forward in something that seems so foolish? Seriously, sometimes I wonder if I am just stubborn or foolish myself. Either way, we seem foolish for pressing on. Today, I finally finished editing “Becoming Fools”, and we received our first response back from a film festival where we submitted the project. It read:

“I’m sorry to inform you that your project was not selected … Best of luck with your future projects.”

Not exactly the most encouraging news on this milestone of production.

Let me set the stage for this message. I’ve been working on the “Becoming Fools” documentary for two years, full-time for the last year and a half, and honestly, “full-time” is an understatement. It’s more like 16 hours a day, six days a week. I don’t share this for sympathy; I share it to emphasize just how truly foolish I feel.

From the very beginning, every step of this journey has felt foolish. It’s been a marathon of impossible hurdles designed to challenge our resolve to keep going:

– The protagonist of the story passed away while we were in pre-production.

– Amelia and I lost our day jobs within three weeks of each other, leaving us without a secure income.

– Our Kickstarter fundraiser failed to raise the necessary funds to produce the film.

– Funds were not raised to pay for the live theatrical event documented in the film.

– The lead character of the live theatrical event quit and returned to the streets.

– We had 485 hours of footage that needed to be translated before we could edit it down to feature length.

– The editing process took five months, working 16 hours a day, six days a week.

– We missed the opportunity to enter several major film festivals for the season.

– Technical difficulties complicated the finalization of the edit.

– Our first film festival notice was a rejection.

– We currently lack funds to release the film.

And yet, we continue. Why?

There are days when I wonder if I have wasted the last few years of my life investing in this seemingly foolish endeavor. Some days, it really stings and makes me feel like a total failure. But then I take a deep breath and remember why we started this project: it is a story that needs to be shared to inspire others.

What is failure? What is foolishness? Italo could be seen as both. He lived his life in accordance with the passion that God gave him, risking everything to care for kids who seemed unlikely to change. In fact, many of the children he helped still struggle with addiction and have not completely left the streets. But Italo didn’t die in those streets. Instead, his passion sparked the creation of a community of “fools” who believe they can make a difference together.

Was Italo a fool? Yes. Was he a failure? Absolutely not.

Like Italo, we continue because we are “fools” living our lives according to the passion God has given us. With that purpose in mind, there is no way we can fail. So, we keep marching forward.

A Moment of Applause Fills the Soul

Nothing fills the soul like applause. As the receiver and the giver.

So many emotions flood that one moment: the sense of accomplishment, the sorrow of the end, the struggle of the hard work and the desire for more. It is reflection of countless hours of rehearsal and sacrifice; and of the belief that you could be more. It’s a time to celebrate, to come together. In this moment, you realize you didn’t give up, that your voice was heard, that others accepted you.

Life without applause slowly crushes the soul. Who believes in me? Who will be my champion? Who will celebrate with me? Who will allow me to have a voice?

For one week in June, I spent my time in a dark rehearsal theater in Guatemala City, observing youth from the streets who were given the chance to take on a significant task. I couldn’t help but wonder if most of their lives felt like the dark, cold theater—without an audience, lacking light, filled with unfinished work, doubt, disbelief, frustration, and a silence that longed for applause.

Disbelief filled my thoughts, “There was no way this was coming together.” I was here as a champion for them, but I disbelieved. Could this event really come together? Could they REALLY accomplish this task? Did they have enough determination, enough skill… enough confidence?

For those who are new to our story: My husband and I are connected to Guatemala through the adoption of our two sons. We wanted to maintain a meaningful connection to the country, so we decided to use our skills in film and photography to share inspirational stories of hope. As a result, we produced a documentary film titled *Reparando*, which was completed in 2010.  We are currently working on a second documentary project called *Becoming Fools*. This film focuses on young men and women who left their homes, lost their families, or were abandoned as children and grew up on the streets of Guatemala. The streets of Guatemala City are home to more than 6,000 youth. Many of these children begin their lives on the streets as young as 8 years old. They often sleep in abandoned lots, beg or steal for money, and resort to drugs to escape their hunger, the cold, the rain, or even worse circumstances.

They are not alone; individuals and organizations are making a difference in the lives of marginalized children and young people. One man even dreamed of hosting a clown workshop.

The handful of youth participating in the clown workshop had the opportunity to perform in front of 400 people at a large theater in Guatemala City. The purpose of this event was to bring to awareness the situation of youth and children living on the streets of Guatemala City. This theatrical performance was the final event in a series of weeklong activities entitled Festival: Voz De Las Calles. Through laughter and learning, professional clowns have been investing time and love into this group, teaching them the beautiful art of clowning. This performance was a dream for many members of the community. It gave the youth a chance to perform with professional clowns, taught them to dream, believe, achieve and receive applause from their community.

Applause The Show

The story of the show reflects the real-life experiences of its characters, portrayed as clowns. Here’s a synopsis: A heartwarming journey unfolds as a clown embarks on an adventure filled with friendship. He discovers new companions in unexpected circumstances and teaches them the art of clowning. Together, they find joy in their newfound skills and decide to accompany him to “The King’s Party.” Along the way, they face various obstacles, but they remain determined to bring laughter and hope to the community around them.

The Purpose Of Our Documentary

As you may know, Scott spent two months in Guatemala this spring documenting the preparation for a clown event, the progress of the rehearsals, and interviewing experts about the issue of children who live and work on the streets. I was fortunate enough to join him for the last two weeks, which included the theatrical performance. It was a stressful week leading up to the show. Nothing is stable or consistent in the lives of children and youth at risk on the streets. Their thought processes, decision-making, and behavior reflect the instability they experience in their own lives. While it is heartbreaking to witness some of their immature actions, I am humbled by their courage to continue living, growing, and forming families amidst difficult circumstances. Although their clown performance was just a brief moment in their lives, the hope and prayers of the community are that they will reap the rewards of their hard work and find inspiration on various levels. I know it was inspiring for me.

And I am extremely proud to say that even in the midst of chaos and drama, the performance was beautiful. It was an honor to stand and give applause to the youth performers. Their talent and determination is amazing. And so we will be sharing their stories AND their performance in the documentary film, Becoming Fools, which we hope to complete by the end of 2012.

Here are some more of photos of the film production, which included a trip to Lake Atitlan and some underwater filming for me. This area has a special place in the story of the project; and is now one of my favorite places in Guatemala! And we got to have a little fun too. We also spent time with a sweet group of siblings who recently tragically lost their mother.

You have the opportunity to join the applause. We will share more about our documentary as it unfolds, however you can support the project now through a donation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We Believe Because We Are Becoming Fools

Guatemala’s statistics seem hopeless, but we believe we can make a difference because we are Becoming Fools. We spent the afternoon with an incredibly sweet family who are featured in Becoming Fools. A single mother who was deaf and mute, was murdered in February, leaving her four children to live with their grandmother. That is sad enough … but the story continues. These children sell candy on the streets at night to help their grandmother make ends meet financially. In fact, the eleven year old son had to sell candy on the streets the day after his mother’s death in order to pay for her coffin. This reality is what we hope to document in our documentary, Becoming Fools.

We Believe Because We Are Becoming Fools

I stepped on a plane on April 23 to travel to Guatemala to continue production … and haven’t stopped since. We continue to document the story that unfolds before us. It is sad at times, and often overwhelmingly so. But we have also witnessed incredible joy as street youth prepare for their theatrical event on June, 16. These precious kids who were once only familiar faces have become friends and we are thrilled to watch them grow. It will be difficult to capture their stage performance because I know our eyes will be full of tears!

As we had hoped, Becoming Fools is more than a film. We believe it is a movement!

Momentum has grown in ways that we could have never imagined. In addition to film production, we have engaged in meetings with NGO’s, GO’s, churches and media to plan the week long event named Festival: Voz De Las Calles (Voice of the Streets). Groups and organizations are collaborating like never before, and rallying together around the idea that “together is better”.

We are more than tired. Our journey has been a trail of impossibilities and we still have a ways to go. We are the under dog – under staffed, under funded, and told by many that we cannot accomplish what we set out to do. But we choose to believe that all things are possible because we are Becoming Fools.

We still need your help.

Click here to give a tax deductible donation.