Loved & Unnatural - my new short film about 4 years attending the burn.

[ehalleck]

[BoyScoutGirl]

I wouldn't have thought to pair The Great Dictator with burn footage. I was surprised at how well it worked, emotionally and technically.

I don't consider myself a rabid "the burn changed my life" type, but then I do certainly plan my year around it and have sunk a lot of unneeded money into it. And I definitely do a lot of volunteer work at the burn, so clearly I care about its cultural impact and power to change others' lives. Hearing these words from Charlie Chaplin never fails to move me, his passion and his certainty. But layering it over burn images made me consider again just how special BRC is and that maybe it can be a force for good in the world, despite my generally considering it a) a party for rich fucks and b) a whole hell of a lot of work to get right back to empty playa in the end.

I got a little chill from the third or fourth appearance of that bike riding in the dust footage you kept cutting back to - when the man finally appeared. That was the coolest moment.

Toward the end of the video the music overpowers Mr. Chaplin a bit and it is sometimes hard to hear him. I don't know if that's intentional, but I was more interested in the message than the beats so it was annoying to me.

Also, it maybe could have used a bit more footage from the more intimate parts of the burn, rather than just big art and big music. You did good capturing broad emotional range among lots of people, but I don't recall seeing the little corner bar or tea house or 3am coffee at the trash fence. It's those little moments that make the most human connection for me. But then again, maybe you don't have footage because you were too busy connecting! It's hard to capture the intimate and ephemeral, and I definitely don't want cameras intruding on those spaces, too.

Those're about the only technical thing I'd point out - the footage is excellent, the cuts are well-executed (to my untrained eye), and the whole damn thing is beautiful. It wasn't overly long and there was good variety and great visual rhythm, with a sense of building tension and of mirrored/bookending resolution.

Thanks for creating, thanks for sharing, thanks for burning.

[gaminwench]

This is my new 'go to' video when someone pesters me (I make 'em work for it these days) to point to a visual representation of the burn.

Well done, and thank you.

[arthur02]

So many stories from those faces and happenings. Nice vid