Tobie Beneli A Casket Maker For The People

I found out about Tobie Beneli’s story from a team member of my hockey team. Tobie was a great person to spend the day with. He has so much to offer in his views of the world. I shot this story with my GH2 with one of Driftwoods settings. At this point I forgot which one is done for this video. Also there are some shots from my old trusty HVX 200.

Lasso The Sun: Navajo Translation & Transcription Kickstarter project

We have launched our Kickstarter campaign today. Get involved, spread the word, watch the video and be apart of a great documentary.

Lasso The Sun Documentary Kick Starter campaign

Welcome 2013 and now it is time to get our documentary Lasso The Sun in postproduction. I have been watching and looking at successful Kick Starter campaigns this morning and taking notes on how we can build a winning fundraising portfolio. First off we need funding to translate and transcribe the Navajo footage that we have. To get an accurate transcription it is going to be expensive. Unlike our last documentary El Inmigrante, which is about seventy percent in Spanish. Lasso The Sun will have far less translation to be completed, but there are not too many professional Navajo translators out there. So we really are limited in who we can hire to do the job. I am excited and nervous at the same time going out and fundraising. We never want to be tacky and pushy, however with out funding important documentaries will never get finished. Just like NPR and PBS we have to hit the trail and go for it.

Below is a montage of some of the footage that we have for Lasso The Sun.

The Dying Art Of Navajo Sheep Shearing

Here is another BBC story I did.

With in the remote center of the Navajo Reservation, of the United States. Arnold Clifford keeps cultural tradition alive by raising Navajo Churro Sheep. Churro sheep were introduced to the Americas by Spanish settlers along the Rio Grande Valley during their colonization northward from Mexico. While Churro sheep are a domesticated livestock they almost became extinct in the US. Navajo’s for centuries have counted on the Churro’s for their wool and meat for food.

Clifford was taught by his elders how to continue the art of hand shearing their sheep and not depending on modern electric shears. Clifford’s grandmother was a master weaver, to honor her, he donates the wool to different weaving families through out the reservation. Clifford, hopes to see the Churro sheep industry grow through out the Navajo Reservation and to create an economy where people are not dependent on welfare or the government. Besides being a sheep herder, Clifford also is a expert botanist, geologist and teacher.

Lasso The Sun… Documentary film shoot

This past week, I was out on a film shoot for our documentary, Lasso The Sun. I was out filming in Tuba City, AZ and out near Monument Valley. I had the privilege to interview a WWII Navajo Code talker. After the warm he returned home and worked as a uranium mill worker. The exposure to uranium has critically effected his family. We also interviewed a few other exposed uranium workers and their families. I am going to be editing a quick video of some of the footage that I gathered. So stay posted.