Check it out!

Kalasha Awards Website

Yours truly presents our donation to the Kenya Film Commission.

As mentioned a month ago, WSO is partnering with the Kenya Film Commission to help with the first-ever Kalasha Film & Television Awards, Kenya’s version of the Oscars.

Sadly, I will be unable to attend the actual ceremonies, as the Awards have been pushed to May. I will be attending the nominee announcement ceremony later this month, though, for further good times and celebrations of WSO’s first year of work in Kenya.

So another week has passed! I’ve spent the past week on the other side of Nairobitown, where Hot Sun, Daystar, and the Film Commission are located.

I stay at a decent place called the Flora Hostel. Meals are included, but I have long since grown tired of them. One not accustomed to bad food can only eat bad food every so often, at least in my experience.

There are also issues regarding paper thin walls and crying babies and their equally crying 2-year-old brothers. This is a family that, for all I know, lives at the hostel. They were also here when I stayed in October, and again when I stayed in February.

I’ve had a couple get-togethers with the professor from USC who is also the screenwriter and producer for the feature film being shot currently in Kibera. I’ve heard many a story from the set that I have yet been able (allowed?) to visit.

I have a Daystar check-up this week, and have been noticeably snubbed by the Kenya Film Commission since I returned from New York. I’m getting the suspicion that the Kalasha Awards are being postponed again, which means that I will be unable to take part…

Otherwise, it is a beautiful, sunny Sunday in Nairobi. I’m out enjoying breakfast at Java House, working on some screenplays, and will soon probably go see Monsters VS Aliens. Or should I see Fast & Furious? (That was a joke?)

Oh, and most importantly, Major League Baseball is back today!

Fisheye lens = fun!

So I’ve been staying with the Parker’s since I got back from New York, fighting my compounded jet lag and the leftover cold that I get every time I go back to the USA.

I have been back in touch with all of my usual WSO suspects and I should know sooner or later how the month of April, my last month here, should go. I don’t take anything for granted, though. At the very least I hope the Kalasha Awards remain a go (April 25th?) so that WSO can be a part of them in person.

Beyond that, my connection to workshop students from Kibera has become super busy with the HSF feature film (read the blog following that production here). I think the movie title sounds like a Taco Bell special. I may have to swing by the set one of these days.

But as far as my workshops go, I may end up just getting together with a few students I know and having more personal one-on-three workshops with them. I’ve got some Flip MinoHD cameras to tryout!

In bridge news, the towers have been completed! We put up some photos on the Galana River Project Blog that you should check out. I especially love the two-shot of the towers. It makes the bridge look not so daunting! But don’t be fooled.

I should know about Columbia University any second now. Today was the day last year that students found out, so I’m getting anxious! Of course you’ll stay tuned for the latest.

Wanted to share this quickly with you before I get on with my New York Life!

I arrived yesterday afternoon around 4 pm to the Newark, New Jersey airport. As expected, having my feet on American soil again was a strange experience, even though I have only been off it for a month or so.

Spending time in Africa certainly has a vortex effect on time – each day feels longer, fuller, slower, and yet the weeks pass so quickly. I’ve always said my times in Africa have been the slowest moving fast times of my life. Or vice versa.

I emerged from the train at Pennsylvania Station an 34th Street, right in the middle of Manhattan. For me, this was an adult-life first, and while not a surprise, as I’ve been in big cities with subways and people and traffic and tall buildings, it was daze-inducing. I looked up a lot and just thought, “Wow.”

Wow because of all that has occurred in my life to bring me to that moment. Wow because it was really happening. Wow because I’ve been jumping around the world from culture to culture so much the past couple of years, and here is yet another one to I may add to my list. (Alaska, San Diego, Malibu, Santa Monica, Bowling Green, Nairobi, Malindi, and Galana are the 8 places I’ve “lived” the past 2 years).

And wow because, for the first time in my life, a city has made such a great impression, and so immediately made me fall in love with it, that I was just caught off guard. The romantification (did I make up that word?) of this city is well-earned. The story of the city is so rich and remarkable, and to consider joining that story is…Wow.

And whether I realized it right in those first few moments, looking up, around, and maneuvering my way past Madison Square Garden to the 1, 2, 3 subways, New York City became my next home, regardless of Columbia University’s decision.

Now you’re the one saying Wow. That’s a pretty bold statement to make in my first day in town. But there’s something inside of me that just agrees with this place.

Last summer, when I was applying to schools, NYU and Columbia were by far my top schools. Filling out those applications in particular brought about a strange excitement. Why was I being drawn towards NY, though? It’s a little odd, considering I’ve only been here once, and I was 9 years old, and don’t remember much besides FAO and Lady Liberty.

Here’s one reason: I need a good home for World Story. And in needing a good home, I probably need a good movie city. Obviously that means Los Angeles or New York. And I love LA. I miss it every day.

Let me just say a very generalizing thing on the film industries in New York and Hollywood:

By and large, I would characterize Hollywood as being about making great money off of good stories. New York, with its more independent-minded, Columbia-NYU approaches, I would characterize as being about making great stories off of good money.

Of course there are great little stories coming out of Hollywood, and there’s big budget TV/movies in NY. But the differences in City Story that each place has, and how each city’s mindset and culture serves the kind of movies coming out of each place is something to ponder. Okay at least I ponder it, you can do whatever you want.

As World Story helps to build new film industries around the world, which kind of movies do you think will be the first to come? If you answered, “Low budget, character-driven stories with no special effects and a great emphasis on expressing indigenous culture that speaks to a universal human experience,” you are correct!

Which city would you choose to host your World Story Organization? One with the UN headquarters? Or the one with year-round sun, fun, & beaches? That’s a great question!

I guess I’ll have to open two offices, one for each coast! Now, who’s with me?

The official name of the Kenya Film & TV Awards

Just out of my meeting with the Kenya Film Commission. Some notes I scribbled:

1. Possible use of KFC boardroom for WSO workshops
2. Formal agreement/letter between KFC and WSO to show we are “in a relationship” * – update Facebook status to reflect this
3. Kalasha Awards moved to April 25thish
4. Kalasha Awards main sponsor dropped out, now looking elsewhere
5. Does WSO want to sponsor a category at the awards?
6. Does WSO want to be a part of the ceremony with banners, branding…presenting?

Ha! For realz! Can you see me up there, all awkward in a rented tux, fumbling to open an envelope, declaring the winner of Kenya’s Best Screenplay, or Best Supporting Actor, Best Drama, etc.? All the while, thinking in my head, “This cannot possibly be real! What am I doing up here?”

And yet, it’s entirely possible! All for the low low price of *not saying*.

But wouldn’t that footage be absolutely priceless? And for WSO to have that much of a face at these awards? To be forever written into Kenya’s blossoming film industry’s history – the first ever Kenyan Oscars. Oh yeah, and WSO was all over it.

Just something to think about…

A scene from a short movie I recently made that I hope to share soon!

I’m back in Nairobi and diving into WSO while I can. I’m stopping by Daystar tomorrow and Hot Sun on Friday. Saturday I am meeting with the niece of an old Kenyan friend who has interests in film and what WSO is up to (don’t end a sentence with a preposition).

I also plan on swinging by the Kenya Film Commission to hear the latest on how the Film & Television awards are coming (and what I might do to help!). Those have been moved to the 28th – which is so great because before they were scheduled for the 14th, which is when I’ll be in NY. I’m so glad that got worked out, and I didn’t even have to ask them to switch the date!

Did I just say I’ll be in New York? Holy cow! I’ll be there for a week, and when I get back it will be very close to crunch time for WSO. I’m still hunting for a place to host our workshops in April. I’m hoping to put them on Saturdays, all-day sessions. Then during the week I can be free to do other things, like keep tabs on the bridge project and maybe shoot a video with some guys I met today who work at some orphanage.

If I don’t find some good internet this week, then I’ll at least be uploading my latest pictures and movies while in New York, so look out for some new media coming your way here soon!

Be good!

Pseudointerviewing Sylvester at the bridge site

I’m back in Malindi for a couple days before heading back to Nairobi. The steel towers are slowly but surely getting up! I’ve posted some pictures at the Galana Project Blog, so head over there when you’re done here!

Over the past month I have received 7 letters from PhD programs all over the USA, all rejections. It’s a bit disheartening. I thought that the prospect of what I’m doing with WSO would be a sure advantage, but apparently I’m quite resistible.

So this past week I was surprised to hear from Columbia (NYC) in regards to their MFA program in Film. I applied as sort of a wild card, figuring I was sure to be denied, but gave it a shot because it’s in NY and something in me was pulling for NY all last summer.

Columbia is one of the top 4 film programs in the country, in the world, an Ivy League school, blah blah blah, right? But I thought it would be fun to try, and made Helter Skelter for it, and besides, I had 9 PhD programs to choose from after getting rejected right?

Nope! Wednesday night I got an email from Columbia wanting to schedule an interview with me, face-to-face if possible! Whoa! I made it to the final stage!

What’s going on here? I’m not getting in where I thought I would, and I potentially can get in to the last place I thought possible. How upside-down is that?

So I’ve booked a flight to NY in 10 days to interview! Then I get back on the plane and come right back! I’m insane, I know!

But know what’s crazier? Take a once-in-a-year guess what day the interview is?

March 14th. Yup. The day I also happen to celebrate my birthday.

Cuckoo isn’t it?

Aside from all this wild, potential fun, I’m still as busy as ever here, trying to finish up my Daystar course descriptions and find a place to host my workshops in April! I updated the World Story website with our latest docs and whatnot if you’re interested.

What a way to start a March!

“We are committing ourselves to something that is going, going, going!“
- Purity Kiambi, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Daystar University

Oh how I wish I could be in two places at the same time! No, make that three places!

I want to be here in Nairobi, continuing WSO’s work here, conducting film workshops with the Kenyan storytellers of tomorrow, and delivering a film program curriculum to Daystar University ASAP.

I want to be in Malindi/Galana, serving and capturing the beauty of the Galana bridge project with Bridging the Gap, taking photos and video to capture the wonderful work being done there, and to keep Harmon from losing his mind as the only mzungu.

Thirdly, I want to be in the USA, flying all over the country, meeting with film professors willing to partner with WSO in “donating” their curriculum. I need course descriptions, syllabi, book choices, film choices, the works!

I just got out of my proposal meeting with Daystar University. I could go into greater detail about the incredible timing of all this, but let’s just say, Daystar is in a race to be the first university in East Africa (or even most of Africa, save for Egypt and South Africa) to launch a film program.

The Kenya Film Commission, already with me in their back pocket, has put out the call for universities with an offer of providing equipment and staff training opportunities for any university beginning a film program.

Suffice to say, Daystar is in the early lead because WSO is working for them. Not bragging! No other school has curriculum development people working for them. My joke today was, “I guess I won’t return those phone calls from the University of Nairobi.”

So get this timeline:

“Justin, can you give us course descriptions, like, now?”
Uh, I’ll get on it.
“We want government approval for our program as soon as July. Can we have curriculum ready by then?”
Cripes, okay!
“By August we want to announce the launch of our film program.”
Wow that’s fast.
“Kenya Film Commission has a connection with Sony and will help outfit our new film studios and provide staff training. We want to be first, in case that relationship runs out.”

There is a grand scheme at work here in Kenya in regards to their fiber optic line opening them up to the rest of the world later this year. Other countries are putting the call out to Kenya, “Let us show our programming in your country!”

Right now, Kenya is like, “Um, okay, we’ll take your money. Besides, we don’t have any of our own content to show.”

But the government has declared they want it to be 60/40 – with 40% local news, dramas, sitcoms, cartoons, movies, etc. Right now they think it’ll start around 80/20, with the 80% mostly being Chinese and Indian programming.

Can you imagine if USA TV was 80/20, 80% not its own culture programming? I don’t think Americans could even imagine being raised on TV like that. It’s already probably 97/3 in favor of US programming, no?

It’s no wonder Kenyans don’t grow up wanting to be film and TV stars – they never saw their fellow countrymen doing it, why should they?

So as you can imagine, the Kenya Film Commission is going crazy, wanting to build up local entertainment and talent. With the launch of a new way of doing television in Kenya as soon as this year, KFC wants Kenya to have a voice! And so do I!

My dad wrote and said the work I’m doing right now is more than any dissertation I would be doing for my PhD. Really? I guess to me it doesn’t feel like work. It feels like…truth.

Does that not make any sense at all? Too bad. It’s been a couple years now since the idea gathered in my head, “Hey, share your film education with Kenya, doofus!” Who’s to question the timing of such a “call?”

All I know is, I’m here today, willing and able to serve in exactly the way needed in Kenya, and here is Kenya, at this critical juncture in their local film and entertainment industry.

Coincidence? Maybe. But I doubt it.

The Kenya Film Commission

Just out of my meeting with the Kenya Film Commission, and I couldn’t be more happy!

I pitched WSO to them again because the woman I was in contact with had since left. Now I’m dealing with the new guy, Timothy.

For starters, their new offices kick butt. Their cubicles are film strips! They are in a brand new building a couple blocks from YaYa Centre, which is close to where I’m already active with Hot Sun and Daystar. Who would have thought my old neighborhood from 10 years ago would be a prime spot for running a film education organization?

I ran through my new WSO Keynote (which I will post tomorrow if the internet works). He was impressed, and asked for a copy that he could share with the rest of his peeps.

He, like HSF, was all out super excited to partner with WSO. He is going to help us find students from all over the country, and even a place to deliver our workshops.

It’s even looking like I will be running a 2nd film workshop in April, alongside the one with HSF. The more practice and more students the better!

The other reason I wanted to get in with KFC was the upcoming Kenya Film & TV Awards in March. I proposed doing whatever it took to be a part of the night’s events. I find it extremely exciting and important for WSO to have a presence at Kenya’s first step in recognizing their blossoming film industry.

I offered my creative skills, mentioning I did video with a marketing department in Los Angeles before I moved here (Go Waves!). His eyes lit up at this suggestion, and he is pitching my involvement at the Event Committee’s next meeting!

You know those highlight reels and tributes they play for the Oscars between presenters? Well just imagine me doing that for Kenya’s first film awards! How rad would that be?

So if you can’t tell, I couldn’t be more excited! WSO finally feels fully functioning, finding fruit from (alliteration alert!) all the seeds planted over the past year!

Let this be a lesson to you all: You can quit whatever you’re doing, go for the craziest idea possible, and it will pretty much happen! Ha ha don’t quote me on that.

I have truly been blessed, and I couldn’t have done it without the people back home supporting me. Asante sana!

In the meantime, I am out of clean underwear and my one pair of pants are a week old. Guess it’s laundry day! My hands are not looking forward to it…