The Production team has a serious chat on set
So much has happened in the past 7 or so days. We began filming “A Marine Story” this week. A dear friend experienced a great loss. And I just found out my cousin/older sister is pregnant at 40. The ups and downs have been polarized and the entire experience has been both exhausting and enlightening.
Working a low-budget film provides many opportunities to foster creativity. Because there is a lack of financial freedom, the production team has to be resourceful. For instance, when asked to find a “clear plastic bag” that was large enough to cover our fancy RED camera… we couldn’t pay someone to create a “hoodie” for the device to protect it from paintball and rain. This meant that I had to run to Walmart (a first for me) and come up with something clever. It ended up being a jumbo-sized Space Bag usually used to vacuum-suck pillows and bed coverings. For only $10, we had our cure!
Spending 15 hours a day making magic happen is tiring to say the least. Considering I am pretty far down on the food chain of this project, I can’t even imagine the exhaustion that our Producers, Directors, and management teams are experiencing. However far up or down the chain, it’s obvious that the entire cast and crew is dedicated to the project. While dreaming of our pillows, we are also dreaming of telling this incredible story that has the capacity to change hearts and minds. What a pleasure to be surrounded by people who care about what they do.
Amongst the long days, I’ve attempted to keep in contact with the civil world around me. My roomies have taken to leaving me notes on my pillow to tell me they miss me. My friends follow my life on twitter instead of via my own mouth over a vanilla latte at Urth Cafe. Text messages are returned late and voicemails are hardly listened to.
Sadly enough, my lack of availability has also forced me to be absent during a great loss for a dear friend of mine. Her soulmate took his life after a long struggle with bipolarity and artistic angst. His 31 years of poetic life is the stuff of great novels, Shakespearean sonnets and best selling biographies. My heart is with the family of this lost soul and my love and commitment to my friend grows exponentially with each day she carries on.
My Cousin and I at our annual San Fran sleepover
In a week of exhaustion and horrible news… I was also informed of one of the greatest gifts to come to someone I love. My dearest cousin, whom is the closest thing to an older sister I’ll ever know, has learned she is PREGNANT! After 40 years of being an honorary mother to so many others’ children, my dear Elaine will finally bear her own gift into the world. I can not imagine a more welcome piece of news in the life of an already distinguished woman. Our family is joyous.
With all this happening, I look forward to an incredible summer full of continued artistic expression and expansion. I can’t wait to travel more, bring my camera along, and prepare for the extreme excitement that awaits me this fall.
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Janelle K. Eagle is infamous for always having her hands tied up in multiple projects simultaneously. She's directed a lot of theater, worked on some films, and raised lots of money for non-profits. She travels all the time and loves to share her videos, photography and writing via this blog. 
