My Bolex died. In the middle of a shoot. This is the last thing it recorded. I’m calling it “Swansong.”

My friend Gerald Saul, who has been making a film-a-week this year as well (and, unlike me, is keeping up with it) did a series of films called “How to be an Experimental Filmmaker”

I like the idea, so I made a list that accompanies this week’s film

How to be an Experimental Filmmaker

Step #1 – Use old, antiquated equipment

Step #2  – Get professionals to be your on-screen talent. Make sure they have flown in from another country

Step #3 – Forget to close the gate on the camera. Blame the old equipment. (see Step #1)

Step #4  Have the camera completely break down half-way through the shoot (see Step #1)

Step #5 – Tint and tone the blurry footage and release it on the internet

Step #6 – Pretend that the film ended up exactly as you had planned.

The ghostly image is Carly Berrett, an incredible modern dancer from Utah. We met during MediaNet’s Dance for the Camera Workshop a couple weeks ago. Lots of fun. Embarrassing that half of the footage didn’t work out.  

Fortunately, most of the other footage worked out and will be made into a different film, the film I had initially intended to do (without some of the parts.) Still a lot of post production to do on that, so in the meantime, here is the final film that ran through my Bolex. I find it mesmerizing.

Mike Wolske made the soundtrack, but I played around with it a bit.