Goodbye South

Goodbye South. Goodbye Waffle Houses, and interstates with wildflowers in the median and billboards for Fireworks MegaStores. Goodbye little ol’ ladies who take 30 minutes to give me extraordinarily precise directions to get where I am going. Goodbye sleepy streets and antebellum houses and revitalizing downtowns with 50s era storefronts. Goodbye sweet tea and wet vs dry BBQ battles and meandering conversations about why people are still compelled to reenact the Civil War. Goodbye flowering redbud tress, ancient moss-covered oaks and gator-filled bayous.

Goodbye rental cars, lost luggage and REALLY cranky airport policemen. Goodbye hours on the road with nothing to do but sing at the top of your lungs, look for the next exit, and talk and talk and talk to someone you never get to spend enough time with.

Goodbye quirky arts program directors with interesting backstories and 1930s movie palaces in various states of renovation or disprepair. Goodbye small southern colleges with students who call me m’am, and full houses of people who greet each inside joke of the film with a knowing chuckle. Goodbye showing my film to audiences that do not, necessarily, agree with me ahead of time - a rare and precious commodity. And goodbye to being reminded once again of the grace and warmth of the South, a place where people can disagree with you at the same time as making you feel like their favorite person, where no one seems rushed, where everyone uses their front porches, and where people will buy a DVD of your film after they’ve already seen it just to show they support you.

Goodbye Louisville, Cullowhee, Augusta, Charleston, Jackson, Mobile and Alexandria. I am sad this is over.

Last night’s screening in Alexandria was a fittingly sweet and magical ending to the Tour. Mom and I pulled into town after 7 hours on the road, checked into our hotel, and then headed over the pre-screening reception. We met Ben and Maggie, who run the Louisiana Arts Council program there, and chatted with the usual assortment of interesting locals, both native and transplanted, who come out to these screenings. After the film started we ducked out to grab some dinner (at this point, if I sit through the film one more time I’ll start calling out lines like the Rocky Horror Picture Show). On our way to the restaurant, we were pulled by the sounds of music coming from the other side of a levee a few streets away. We climbed a large grassy hill and found ourselves in the middle of perfect southern spring evening. A hopping zydeco band was playing on a stage in front of the river, people of all types, races and ages were dancing to the music, toddlers doing their little stiffed-legged hops of excitement as their parents clapped, and a warm breeze coming off the water like its own harmony. The band, an African-American “zydeco cha-cha” group, as they called themselves, sang and played the washboard with gusto as black men in cowboy hats and women in lizard skin boots danced a laughing two-step, hamming it up for the people who were sitting that song out. Mom and I couldn’t resist, twirling each other around and dancing like idiots (some of us more than others - don’t get me started on her Funky Chicken). For one song we joined a Cajun line dancing string of black women who were both highly amused and wonderfully encouraging about our complete inability to keep up. We pretty much got it down by the end. I think.

Finally, we dashed into a restaurant for a quick bite and back to the theater for the end of the film. I could tell the audience was into it, laughing and gasping at all the right parts, but when the lights went up and I stepped in front for my Q&A, I was unprepared for what happened next.

Out of a theater with over a hundred people in it, at 8:30 on a Friday night, not a single person left. They ALL stayed for the Q&A.

Now, after who knows how many showings all over the country since this film premiered over a year ago, I have never been to screening where every single person stayed for the Q&A. Not that I mind when people leave, I totally understand it, even expect it. But to see all of those faces turned to me, black white, young old, season ticket holders and people who just wandered off the street, all there wanting to know more, wanting to stay, wanting to share, well it just put a lump in my throat that hasn’t gone away a day later.

Or maybe they were just hoping to see Mom’s Funky Chicken.

So that’s how my last evening on the Southern Circuit Tour ended, full of serendipity and sweetness, with a great Q&A and a lovely dessert reception afterwards, with laughter, and insightful questions, and lemon chess pie (‘cause Lord know I didn’t eat enough on this trip.)

There have been so many great moments throughout this trip. With Kathy, with Mom, in all the different towns. I may not remember all of the names or places a year or five years from now, but I will absolutely remember this horizon of adventure and appreciation and Southern hospitality for a very very long time. And of that, as the white-haired lady giving us directions from the Mississippi Craft Center information desk said, “I am double barreled sure.”

GA, SC, GA, FLA

I apologize for the time off. I usually blog at night and the last couple of stops have been at a B&B and a private home. Both fabulous night stays but I wasn't "doing the net." I have four visits to report!

Since my last writing we screened in Watkinsville, GA (next to Athens) at North Oconee High School. For those who haven't seen North Oconee, it's the Taj Mahal of high schools. It looks like a college campus...just an incredible facility. The screening went well and I stayed in a charming Victorian B&B. The next morning I walked the campus at the University of Georgia. As much as it pains this University of Tennessee alum to write, I have to give it to our rival SEC East school - Georgia. They have a beautiful campus and Athens is everything you'd want in a college town.

Speaking of college towns with pretty campuses, it was up I-85 to Clemson. I enjoyed my time with the school's film professor Aga Skrodzka-Bates. Aga is a native of Poland, as is our film's editor Greg Grzeszczak. We all call Greg "GG" because no one in North Carolina feels comfortable saying, Grzeszczak. Aga and GG spoke in Polish about their mutual love of films and the epistemology of GG's last name. Aga claims Grzeszczak means "little pea." GG was hoping it was something more grandiose, perhaps, giant grapefruit. I'm betting on Aga. Anyway, we screened in front of a large crowd, including lots of students and had a great showing.

Then I travelled across the Palmetto State from Clemson to Orangeburg, home of South Carolina State. I met Ellen Zisholtz. Ellen is originally from New York. In true Gotham City style, we immediately had coffee and talked. There are lots of exciting things going on at South Carolina State and it seems Ellen is leading many of them. She's an energetic ambassador of goodwill, and an excellent painter! I got to tour the latest exhibit at the I.P. Stanback Museum and Planetarium: The James Brown Collection. It is an impressive collection that is very well done! I was particularly taken by the original sheet music. Our film played in a planetarium. I've never had that experience before. It was interesting, watching a crowd that reclined (usually a bad sign like they're asleep) but they weren't. The film was warmly received.

Today, I drove from South Carolina down to Brunswick, GA. Truth be told, I got there a little early so I could hang out at the beach for a few hours. I walked and biked around Jekyll Island before making my way to Brunswick. We played at the Ritz Theater - a great venue that dates back to the 19th century. Heather Heath runs the place and, as I'm noticing with most of my hosts, she too is an artist. Heather is an accomplished actress. She's also married to the Mayor of Brunswick but that's a whole other story. I also enjoyed meeting and talking with playwright/director Rob Nixon. As the film played at the Ritz, I strolled down the street and had a glass of wine at a local bar. I sat in one of those big comfy couches, the kind you want to lounge in but don't want to have in your house. I asked the visiting musician to play some Van Morrison. He obliged. As I sipped wine and sailed into "The Mystic" I realized I have only one more gig. It's up in Kentucky, tomorrow.

It has been quite a trip! I hope to report on the Paramount Arts Center tomorrow night. Until then...

Marvelous Mobile

So I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record when I talk about how much I've enjoyed the audiences at my screenings ("no, this was my favorite audience, no THIS was my favorite audience, no THIS REALLY was my favorite audience...") but can I tell you how great the audience was tonight? First of all, they entirely endeared themselves to me by being the first audience to proactively take advantage of my Feed An Independent Filmmaker Program, and bought several DVDs of the film BEFORE THE SCREENING. That's right folks - presales. These wonderful people didn't even know if they'd like the film, and they were already buying copies of it. So right there, they're getting bonus points.

Of course it didn't hurt that Mom was in charge of selling them. She was on fire - like the Vanna White of 'Bama Girl DVDs.

It was an entirely different audience from yesterday, older, whiter, not very many students. A lot of 'Bama alums or parents with kids that had gone or are going to 'Bama currently. They clearly knew of what I spoke. I do like playing to Alabama audiences -- I get nervous because I worry they'll feel defensive, or that I oversimplified, but I also appreciate being able to have sophisticated conversations about the film where everyone already knows the backstory. Anyway, the film got an overwelmingly positive reaction and inspired a great Q&A, though interestingly some people seemed uncomfortable talking about the Machine (or more precisely, using its name in public) while others wanted to make sure I knew they were proud of their kids even if they were currently involved in organizations affiliated with the Machine. Overall a very interesting evening.

And I SOLD OUT of my DVDs. Baby needs a new pair of shoes!

After the screening we went out for a drink with our host, the thoroughly delightful Charlie Smoke, who is an asset to the Mobile arts community, with a lot of passion for and knowledge about the field. They are lucky to have him here.

But a recap of the day would not be complete without a nod to our lunch destination, the legendary BBQ destination in Hattiesburg MS, Leatha's BBQ Inn. I'm not sure why it's called an "inn", since it's not anywhere one could stay, unless they rent out the space under the tables. It's a little shack off the 98W, with plastic laminated tableclothes, faded newspaper articles about the founder on the walls, and the sweetest sweet tea this side of Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory. The BBQ was abundant and delicious, and we ate so much of it I believe I could live off the stored calories for a good fortnight. (Not actually sure how long that is, but it sounds long, doesn't it?)

Tomorrow is Alexandria, and the last stop on the tour. Which would really bum me out if I thought about it. So I'm not going to. Yet.

Refuge in Jackson

I fled a thunder and hailstorm this morning in DC to arrive happily in the balmy warmth of Jackson MS. At the airport I met up with my companion for the next (and final) leg of the Tour -- my mother.

Yes, my mother.

And no, not because I am 16 years old, but because, on the contrary, I am a married mother of two little kids living across the country, and mom never gets to see me. So we thought this would be a good opportunity for some quality mother/daughter time. Which I'm sure it will be.

It's just that it's a little odd explaining to the venue hosts that I am bringing my mother with me.

So here we are in Jackson MS, which I haven't seen all that much of. We rushed straight from the airport to the screening, held at Millsaps College and hosted by the charming Melissa Kelly, a psychology professor at the college and a wonderful dinner companion. At five minutes to the start of the film, there was a sparse scattering of students in the theater, and I started to get a little nervous. Thank goodness for the perennial tardiness of college kids though, they all came pouring in with seconds to spare and the screening was packed. They were a fantastic audience, laughing at throwaway shots and little verite moments that I thought only I appreciated. I saw more than one student crying at the climactic moment, and heard audible gasps when the tension was high. Seriously, I love these guys. I want to rent them to come to all my screenings.

As the lights came up and the Q&A started, I realized that a significant section of the audience was part of the white Greek system on campus, sororities and fraternities, and a few boys were even members of the Millsaps chapter of KA, a fraternity I show in my film parading around in front of the black sorority house in Confederate uniforms for their annual "Old South" week. They seemed nonplussed but not hostile towards the film, saying I had done "a good job" but also noting that the Alabama chapter that I showed was the most "decorated" chapter in the KA membership. I'm not sure what you get decorations for in that world (I'm assuming it's not matching your throw pillows with your drapes) but it seemed to be something to be proud of.

I wish we'd had more time to talk about the positive and negative sides of Greek life, but overall I was so thrilled to be able to show the film to these kinds of audiences - young, collegiate, partly Greek. It's really been a strong point of this tour for me, at several of the academic venues. No offense to the usual film festival crowd, which I love, but preaching to the choir has it's limits. Sure they know the chorus, and they'll harmonize with you on key, but you're probably not teaching them any new hyms. Being able to take my argument to these kids though, to watch them consider things from a new angle, maybe make them think analytically about something that they took for granted, well that, in a nutshell, is part of why I made this film in the first place. So screenings like tonight are pretty darn gratifying.

Tomorrow, a renewal of our quest for good BBQ ( we have a good lead in Hattiesburg, 2 hours away) and let's see what Mobile Albama has in store for us.

Back from Beyond

Sorry to be incommunicado. After two great (but as yet unblogged) screenings, I ducked back to DC for some work and kid time, back on the road - and the blog - tomorrow.

But first some updates. Charleston SC got off to an inauspicious start. Dropping Kathy off at the airport, already a sad event, I evidently triggered the ire of an underworked airport policeman. Despite there being NO other cars in the airport, this gentlemen took quick and vehement exception to my waiting in my running car in the loading zone for for Kathy to check her flight status. As I had her purse and computer with me, I did not want to drive off and circle, but asked his forebearance for two or three minutes. No such luck, and quicker than you can say Do You Have A Brother That Works For the DMV? I found myself in possession of a $230 ticket for disobeying a police officer! Now I had somewhat resigned myself to getting one ticket on this long journey, but I thought it would be for speeding, not civil disobedience. And I wasn't even singing We Shall Overcome as he was writing me up.

Thankfully, the rest of the Charleston leg was much better. The town itself is delightful and gracious, with a lovely waterfront and gorgeous old antebellum houses. It's a bit like New Orleans, but without the voodoo or 3 gallon drive-thru daquiris. The screening went swimmingly - Mark Sloan and his staff at the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art were a pleasure and the screening was well attended. The Q&A afterwards was lively and I think everyone went home happy. I know I did.

From Charleston it was a relatively short hop to Augusta GA, where the film screened at the beautiful old Imperial Theater, lovingly helmed and kept up by Charles Scavullo. Other filmmakers here have written about Charles and the town, but it definitely lived up to it's reputation. Confederate memorials and slightly-less-than-life-sized statues of James Brown live side by side, there are a few great restaurants, and the old downtown has a retro charm. I went back to my lodgings after a good screening and a nice post-screening dinner with Charles, a local filmmaker and teacher, and a charming French couple who landed in Augusta 3 years ago for the husband's job and seemed bemused to find themselves still there. At that point the evening got a little less fun, but no less picturesque, as my room was apparently 3 inches above the local VERY POPULAR bar which hosts an equally popular karaoke night every Saturday. Until 2 am. Believe me, I know.

You haven't really experienced the South until you are sleeping in a four poster bed with toilet paper in your ears desparately hoping that one of the revellers below you will choose SOMETHING other than Shania Twain sometime in the next half hour.

But all's well that ends well. Got a few hours of sleep, made my flight home, and now, three days later, I'm ready to do it again.

Upwards.

The last three stops...

A recap of the last three stops on my Southern Circuit tour...

From Baton Rouge, I drove along the southern edge of Louisiana across beautiful swamps and unspoiled nature preserves to Lake Charles. The point person there is Irene Vandever. Irene is a fun, delightful person committed to maintaining the arts in her corner of the world. (Quick political plug: The state is proposing an 83 % cut of Arts funding. If you call Louisiana home, do everything you can to lobby against such a move.) When the movie started I ran down the street to grab a quick bite of dinner. As I sat at the bar, an elderly couple came in and sat next to me. The woman reached over and tapped my hand and said as politely as the words would allow, "You're not from here." "No ma'am," I said with some trepidation. She then proceeded to welcome me to Lake Charles and tell me all that it had to offer. I found this encounter to be a good representation of the community. The group that watched the film was very affirming, a very nice collection of people.

I then flew from Lafayette, LA to Memphis, TN to Paducah, KY. There is a great deal of artistic promise in the historic river town of Paducah. On the banks of the Ohio even the walls built to hold back flood waters are covered with beautiful murals. It makes sense, Paducah has long embraced the arts. It is the epicenter of quilting. In fact, the American Quilter's Society Quilt Show runs this very week. And with renowned Artist Harvey Sadow ensconced in the community leading the Paducah School for the Arts, the artistic future is quite exciting. The film showed to an enthusiastic audience at the Maiden Alley Cinema. We were then treated to a lovely post-screening event at the downtown home of West Kentucky Community & Technology College President Dr. Barbara Veazey.

The next morning I enjoyed breakfast with Harvey and his lovely wife Sue, also an artist who makes beautiful clothing. Then it was off to Lexington four hours to the east. I arrived early enough to check into the Gratz Park Inn. WOW! This was no Cleveland campground. I don't know how many stars a place can receive but the Gratz Park Inn deserves all of them. Nathan at LexArts put together a triple billing (two films from a local filmmaker), and the final film was ours. It was a beautiful night in Lexington and there was a great deal to choose from: race week at Keeneland, the Harlem Globetrotters, it was even prom night. All of which is to write, we played to a select crowd. Nonetheless, Nathan was great and LexArts has a lot of interesting programs coming up in the next few months.

I returned to the hotel for what I thought would be an early evening. But alas, it was not to be. Between race fans and a large wedding, the Inn was most joyous. In the early morning hours I stepped out of my room to see if folks might keep down the reverie just a bit. The first person I encountered was wearing pink shorts, blazer, bow-tie, and the look of a man who'd down close to 15 mint juleps. "Ain't it great?" he asked. How can you tell a guy in such a state to end the festivities? "Yes, it is," I said and tried to go back to bed.

Cullowhere?

That was the refrain going through our heads (in between singing at the top of our lungs to Cher - don't ask) as we made the 7 and a half hour trek between Louisville and Western Carolina University. A mostly fun and painless trip, leavened by a hour detour into Knoxville TN to find quintessential southern BBQ for lunch. (Sadly, after getting directions to various BBQ establishments from a 97 year old man in a golf cart, a drunk pregnant woman smoking a cigarette, two businessmen in ties and a janitor with a russian accent, we ended up eating Chinese chicken salads at a sidewalk cafe.)

We finally rolled into Western Carolina University, Cullowhee NC (Go Catamounts!) in the late afternoon. Dr. Elizabeth Heffelfinger, a great professor of film here, was our host. After doing an intro to a packed house (I'm on a roll) she took us out to the only BBQ joint in town. So mission accomplished there, although we're still looking for that perfect BBQ sandwich.

For the first time since I can remember, I was nervous about the Q&A. This was not some older, liberal film festival crowd. These were all college kids, many of them Greek, trending conservative, not obviously predisposed to be contemplative about race and politics. In part, my film is about these kids, or kids like them, so if they thought I got it wrong, then I really got it wrong. And also, the film is premised on basic assumptions about world view that I wasn't sure this crowd shared.

As it turns out, I needn't have worried. They were polite, interested and thoughtful in their questions. Perhaps more questions about fraternities and less about racial politics than I am used to, but good questions and a lot of interest. I think, or at least hope, that it gave them a window into a point of view that they wouldn't otherwise have spent an hour and a half pondering. Or maybe they were just hanging around politely for the free pizza following the Q&A...

Tomorrow it's on to Charelston SC, which I hear is beautiful. And I'm looking forward to seeing the water. I lose Kathy so I'll be on my own for a couple days. All the more time for blogging.

Night.

The capitol of Louisiana is...

Do you remember the episode of the Brady Bunch when Cindy appeared on a televised quiz show? It was this question "Name the capitol of Louisiana?" that did her in. I never had that problem. Capitol of Missouri or North Dakota - yikes, but not Louisiana. Baton Rouge was the capitol that's very essence helped me recognize at least two words on French tests.

The film played last night at the Manship Theatre. The Manship is part of a 6 story cultural center that rises above the Mississippi in downtown Baton Rouge. It is my understanding that the building is part of an effort to revitalize downtown. It appears to be working. The theater is spectacular. From the outside its white round edifice looks like the Guggenheim. Inside, it's a beautiful theater with double balconies and an intimate feel. This is Spring break week in Louisiana and it limited attendance, but those who were there were engaged and delightful. In the post screening aftermath I was given a strawberry beer and spoke with a security guard who had seen the movie and was planning a trip to Bishopville to meet Pearl and see his garden. Today, I travel further west into Cajun Country for the next screening.

Lucky in Louisville

First screening in the tour (or rather, my first screening in the tour) tonight and it went off swimmingly. After landing in the lovely city of Louisville and getting lost on a number of identical looking industrial bridges (someone later in the evening told me they are thinking of adding MORE, which really seems unnecessary unless one has an irrational fear of riverbanks) we checked into our hotel. I am traveling this leg with the Marvelous Kathy Fletcher, a colleague and partner in crime who has come along to help with the driving and inappropriate smirking for a few days.

The Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts is a beautiful soaring space in a cute built up downtown area, and the volunteers there are worth the visit alone. There was a terrific turn out for the film, almost a full house, and everyone stayed around for a lively and engaging Q&A. I love these audiences - smart, interested, all with their own interesting backstories. After the screening Tom, the Programming Director at the Center, took us to the most fabulous bar/restaurant/hotel/art space, 21c, which not only would not have been out of place in Tribeca or Notting Hill - it would raise the bar considerably. There we were wined and regaled by Tom, an assortment of darling Dans, Ted, and a charming and gracious local filmmaker, Stu, who took us under his wing for much of the evening. My favorite thing about Louisville so far is that everyone has a fascinating origin myth -- how they ended up in Louisville from NY, CA, Alabama, DC, why they stayed, and what they're doing. Clearly an interesting place and one in which I need to spend more time (especially in the 21c Bar.)

But not now sadly, as we have 8 hours of driving ahead of us, if we're lucky, tomorrow, to get to Cullowhee NC. Which I can't yet pronounce correctly, but I will have hours to practice.

Onwards.

The Tour is on...

I was extremely excited and quite impressed when I saw the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art rising above College Street in Auburn, Alabama. This would be the location for the first stop on my Southern Circuit tour and it was an extremely impressive introduction. When one thinks of a museum, and a modernly-designed one at that, the word "inviting" almost never comes to mind. And yet that is how I would describe it. Beautifully landscaped and well-designed, it is quite a venue that they have down here in Auburn.

To get to Auburn from Charlotte, NC required a rental car, two flights, three gate changes and an amazing voyage. I won't spend too much time on logistics except to say that the woman seated next to me on the plane had never flown before and our commuter flight encountered the end of the storm that has caused a great deal of havoc across Dixie these past few days. First flight plus high winds equals great theater. I believe I have my next documentary in mind, or at least a reality show: TURBULENCE. You get a group of people who've never flown before and you send them up in a small plane on a windy day with a camera crew.... Sorry, I digress.

Tonight's screening was a great deal of fun. The folks at Auburn, Scott Bishop in particular, were very kind. The Q&A after the screening was interesting. I found the audience was extremely knowledgeable about film both artistically and technically. "Did you shoot that on tape and bump it to film?" "The editing was layered." Near the end of the evening I was scanning the audience hoping to see another hand pop up. I didn't want it to end.

Tomorrow the circuit continues one state to the West. Baton Rouge here I come...

Counting Down

Two days before I leave for the first leg of 'Bama Girl's Southern Circuit Tour (though only one day before the first screening -- the lucky audience members at the first official Tour date, in Jacksonville Florida, will be delighted to find that they get a Q&A with Jessica Thomas, the star of the film, instead of having to hear me blather on about my "craft.")

I am certainly looking forward to the audiences and questions as I traverse the South. A little less certainly looking forward to the hours on various Interstates in a Ford Taurus or whatever rental car they give me, with a numb rear end and counting the exits until I can get some more fries at the next TGIFridays/IHOP/Taco Bell. But it'll definitely be an adventure. One which will undoubtedly leave me with an even greater appreciation of the beauty and diversity of the South. Not to mention the need for a jumbo tube of Clearasil.

Onwards!

A Sunset Over Georgia Ends My Tour...

FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2009

I drive a few hours southeast from Orangeburg, SC to Brunswick, Georgia, for the final Southern Circuit Tour screening of All About Us.  As I enter downtown Brunswick I notice a very happening and fun vibe here.  I later learn that today is "First Friday" when the quaint shops, art galleries, local bookstores, restaurants and other businesses come together and have a festive block party/open house every first Friday of each month.  Downtown Brunswick reminds me of another quaint area near Los Angeles' Hancock Park called Larchmont and its downtown.  

I head to the Ritz Theater and they too participate in First Friday by exhibiting beautiful art work from local elementary school children.  The lobby is full of students, parents and art admirers enjoying the art and a table full of refreshments equally.  

It is now showtime...the big tour finale.  I introduce All About Us to a wonderful audience, the film begins and then I immediately head outside to enjoy the festivities.  Art gallery stop, bookstore stop...I eventually make my way to the lovely docks where the Liberty Ship Memorial is housed a few blocks away from downtown.  I stand on the waterfront over looking the calm waters, inhale the fresh air and enjoy a beautiful, golden sunset while a variety of birds play in the distance.  This is such a poignant end to what has been 12 days that will never be forgotten.  I have not watched a sunset dip below the waters in about a year and I remind myself that it can never be that long again.  

Tomorrow, when the sun reappears here in the southeast, I will be in Jacksonville, Florida, preparing to board my flight home to Charlotte.  The Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers is officially a wrap for All About Us.  -Michael Swanson

South Carolina State University & Laid Back Seats!

THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 2009

Tonight marks the second to the last screening on this fabulous Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers.  South Carolina State University is an historic Black college that I am excited to visit.  I arrive on campus and head straight to the I.P. Stanback Museum & Planetarium.  I am immediately welcomed by the staff and instantly feel right at home.  True Southern hospitality up in the Stanback.  I am greeted by everyone and eventually meet a very nice former New Yorker who happens to be the museum's curator and my Circuit Tour hostess, Ellen Zisholtz. 

The first thing we do before the screening begins is walk into the phenomenal exhibit of everything James Brown.  Ellen gives my a guided tour of the exhibit and tells me so many fascinating stories behind the items that only a curator who selected each item from the Brown estate could know and share.  I was truly impressed by how well Ellen, Darryl Murphy and other dedicated folk on her team assembled this remarkable James Brown exhibit.  The exhibit (which includes hand-written music/lyrics to some of his chart-topping songs, his furniture, wardrobe, hundreds and hundreds of personal items, awards, photographs, artwork, jewelry and even his hair-rollers) is at the museum until September 1, 2009.  So if you are close to Orangeburg, SC, you should really stop by the Stanback Museum and see his "stuff."

The All About Us screening was packed with students, faculty and adults from the town.  As other filmmakers have mentioned in their previous blogs this is the tour stop where your film is projected inside of a planetarium!  This was the first and possibly last time All About Us will be screened on a domed ceiling.  As we sat in permanently reclined seats and watched the film, I had this feeling on the inside about 30 minutes in that they REALLY, REALLY like the movie!  

After the screening the audience and I had a very long Q&A which has now become more of the norm on the tour.  I was told after the screening that the students had never asked that many questions to any of the other filmmakers (due respect, of course, if other tour  filmmakers are reading this).  But the students connected with the material and perhaps with me.  In fact, I asked how many had seen my first movie, All About You, and lots of hands went right up all over the planetarium.  That was cool.  Like the last evening at Clemson, I felt like I was interacting with my Johnson C. Smith University students again here at S.C. State.  We had an awesome exchange and a memorable event overall.  

I look forward to returning to the museum with my family this summer to show them James Brown's rollers.  -Michael Swanson

Clemson University and a 1963 Flashback

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1, 2009

Tonight is our Clemson University screening of All About Us.  This university has always been on my radar for one reason or another for various reasons.  I know the first Black student to be admitted to Clemson University in 1963 (sadly, South Carolina was the last state to hold out to racial integration).  As I walked around the Clemson campus I tried to imagine what it could have possibly been like for him all those years ago as the first and only Black student on this campus.

That student, who went on to earn an architecture degree with Honors from Clemson, was Harvey Bernard Gantt.  Years later Harvey Gantt also became the first Black mayor of Charlotte, NC and had two very close U.S. Senate bids against the North Carolina incumbent Senator, Jesse Helms.  Today, Mr. Gantt is still one of the most successful architects in Charlotte, we attend the same church and he enjoyed All About Us at our red-carpet premiere in Charlotte.  So now here I am on his old stomping ground.  I believe there's a building named after him somewhere on campus.

The auditorium was packed with students!  By far the largest audience I have had on the tour.  The screening went very well and the students were enthusiastic and asked thoughtful questions.  I am an adjunct professor at Johnson C. Smith University this semester and I found myself right at home as if I were giving one of my informative and exciting college lectures to my own students.  

My visit to Clemson University was not bad.  Thank you for paving the way Harvey Gantt.  -Michael Swanson    

Hospitality: Hope Style!

TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2009

The rain did not deter a very sizable crowd from coming to watch All About Us.  I must give a lot of credit and thanks to the kind parents of my Charlotte friend, Helen Kimbrough, for putting the word out around town about our screening.  

Helen's parents, Rev. Dr. & Mrs. Winfred Hope, are a very distinguished and simply wonderful couple of Athens, GA and Rev. Hope is also the long-time pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church West.  Rev. & Mrs. Hope invited me to stay in their home during my visit to town and what a delight it was to spend so much quality time with them.  In addition to all the insightful conversation, rich laughter and special visit to the "Prop Room," Mrs. Betty Hope found time to cook and prepare me some of my most memorable meals of 2009.  I love to eat great home-cooked meals and I was truly spoiled (and stuffed) during my stay at their peaceful home.  I thought I was at a restaurant for a moment because Betty Hope had TWO cakes from which to choose for my dessert!  By that point I felt completely "at home" at their home and I had a slice of each!  Who needs to choose between two cakes while on tour?

The next morning after a slamming Hope-style, Hope-cooked breakfast I attended a noon-time Bible study taught by Rev. Hope, received a personal tour of their church which was undergoing a major renovation and Mrs. Hope gave me a driving tour of the massive University of Georgia campus and downtown Athens.  

When I hang out and talk with wonderful Christian couples like The Hopes I always leave with renewed encouragement and focussed purpose.  The Hopes have already traveled the road on which I'm just now getting up to speed (enjoying marriage, raising children, navigating life, serving Christ) and I left the Watkinsville-Bogart-Athens area with more wisdom and insight than I had when I rolled into these southern parts of Oconee County.  For that, I say much love and much thanks to Winfred & Betty Hope.  -Michael Swanson        

Southern Circuit Welcomes Scott Galloway and "A Man Named Pearl"

Southern Arts Federation welcomes Scott Galloway with his feature documentary film, "A Man Named Pearl," to the 2008-2009 Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers beginning Tuesday, April 14, at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University in Auburn, AL, and concluding on Saturday, April 25, at the Paramount Arts Center in Ashland, KY. Along the way, the film will also screen in Baton Rouge, LA; Lake Charles, LA; Paducah, KY; Lexington, KY; Watkinsville, GA; Clemson, SC; Orangeburg, SC; and Brunswick, GA.

More about Scott Galloway, "A Man Named Pearl" and the tour schedule

Web site for "A Man Named Pearl"

Audio interview with Scott Galloway

Southern Circuit MySpace Page

Southern Circuit Welcomes Rachel Goslins, Jessica Joyce Thomas, and "'Bama Girl"

Southern Arts Federation welcomes Rachel Goslins, Jessica Joyce Thomas, and the feature documentary film, "'Bama Girl," to the 2008-2009 Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers beginning Tuesday, April 14, at the Florida Community College of Jacksonville, in Jacksonville, FL, and concluding on Friday, April 24, at the Arts Council of Central Louisiana in Alexandria, LA. Along the way, the film will also screen in Louisville, KY; Cullowhee, NC; Charleston, SC; Augusta, GA; Columbia, SC; Montgomery, AL; Jackson, MS; and Mobile, AL.

More about Rachel Goslins, Jessica Joyce Thomas, "'Bama Girl" and the tour schedule

Web site for "'Bama Girl"

Audio interview with Rachel Goslins

Southern Circuit MySpace Page

Random pix from the Random Lunacy experience

Charlie Smoke, our great host in Mobile, who introduced us to the brilliant Eugene Walter. (His gravesite below, right, with his eloquent epitaph.)

Charles Scavullo runs the Imperial...

...and is also a Rory Gallagher fan!

Hank Williams' grave

Stef w/ "Godfather of Soul"


In Mobile, gracious and historic lodging...........>

Who says barbecue is bad for you?

Montgomery, Alabama



4-H Clubbers enjoy the screening in Montgomery!

A rainy night in Georgia...

This image now appears often in our dreams...
in an endless loop.

Self -Portrait in men's room. Lousiville KY.





The memories will be enduring. We loved every minute of this tour. Thank you to Allen Bell and all our wonderful hosts.

Finally, our video finale.

Do Brad and Angelina travel this way?