The script reading was simply amazing.  The moment the doors opened to start setting up the room was filled with love, happiness and gusto for the evening!

The cast for the evening all arrived in a buzz about how excited they were to present the script to the public, a few had the “before performance jitters” but what actor at one time doesn’t. The doors opened to the public and the guests started pouring in, everyone I talked to was beaming with enthusiasm and joy, with a hunger in there bellies for this amazing transformation and a warmth in their hearts for this wonderful process.

Amy Walker took the stage with her co-founders Sander and Marilee to take the audience through some of the very beginnings of the ConnectedFilm Project, and this next stage of putting the Project on hold for now. It was amazing to hear the three go through things that had been going on in their lives that really helped them give birth to this astounding creation!

The reading was powerful, and entertaining there were tears and there was laughter, the reviews after where heart warming and truly marvelous! In everything that was said after the event was over there was an overall feeling of immense gratitude that the ConnectedFilm Project could be shared in this way and all were excited and intrigued about what would be next down the road after it’s rebirth.

~Alex Wren

An audience member left this response in our blog post announcing the event:

Kyle says:
I went to the screenplay reading and was totally blown away by it. The actors were energenic, inspired, funny, emotional and professional. Which is a great testament to its writer and director Amy Walker. Watching the screenplay gave me a whole new meaning and appreciation for what Connected is all about. It made me want to be more apart of it. I wish more people had a chance to see the performance. I’m sure they would come away from it as inspired and motivated to see this film happen as I am. The making of the movie may be delayed, but thats ok! The integrity of this film is more important than time. It will happen and when it does watch out! it will be rockin!! Thank you to all the actors, directors and Amy……..WELL DONE EVERYONE!

We are deeply honored and grateful for your participation in the ConnectedFilm Project.  Over the past three years, we have done everything in our collective power to realize this vision of creating a film about connection, by connecting with others around the world.

We’ve come a long way, and it’s been an incredible journey so far, but we simply haven’t been able to pull together the resources to see this massive and beautiful vision through in the time frame we’d imagined.

Rather than compromise the vision,
we’ve chosen to suspend the ConnectedFilm Project for the time being -to launch it out like a dove from this vessel that we’ve created together, that it may return when we have the resources to properly ground it.  We love this film and believe it can still be produced by utilizing the shared gifts of time and resources from our global community.  It will simply take a larger team of professionals to create the infrastructure to support the many facets of this endeavor.

You’re still a part of this journey.  Our database of producers will remain intact, so that everyone will still be represented in the credits of the film when it is completed.  You can view our list of producers on the Landing Page.

The entire project has been run by volunteers, with no one taking any salary from the $9,370 we raised in donations.  This has enabled us to develop the film and Project on less than $1,000/year, plus the $4,000 deposit on our filming location.  Of the remaining $2,400, $2,000 has been put into certificates of deposit to await reactivation of the Project.  That leaves $400 free for any minimal maintenance expenses that may arise.  Everything recouped from the deposit on the location house will be preserved in certificates of deposit.

In the meantime, co-founder Amy Walker will refocus on sharing her gifts as an actress, singer and performance artist.  She has had to put all of that on hold, as she focused entirely on Connected, and now you can look forward to new video content after she’s had a chance to recharge.  She’s excited to be able to connect with you more in this way.

From all of our hearts to all of yours,
We Are Connected.
~The ConnectedFilm Team

Here are a few pictures from our latest rehearsal for the with the reading cast for our Leap Day event on Whidbey Island…
AWESOME actors.  Abundant thanks to all of them.  Wow.
So much fun!

Scroll down for: Spotlight on the character “Douglas”, written by David Mayer, the actor reading him.

We Are Connected!

David Ossman, “Nikolai”; Deana Duncan, “Pam”, Elizabeth Grant, filling in for “Bev” and several characters; “Shelley Hartle, “Baba”; Jennifer Bondelid, “Susan”; George Henny, “Ron”, Amy Walker, (writer/director); Liam Henny, “Zach; Isabella Moreno, “Wren”, Phoebe Jacques, “Phoenix”, Patricia Duff, “Neela”, David Mayer, “Douglas”; Photos by Ahna Dunn-Wilder, reading several roles

Connecting to Connected

                  I have had the opportunity to participate in the initial staged reading of Amy Walker’s screenplay, Connected.  I have the distinct pleasure of reading Douglas, the man that Chekov’s Andrei Prozorov wishes he could be.  Douglas is the nerdly yet extroverted son of Baba Russel, the family matriarch who has also raised two equally strong women.

In Douglas we get to experience a man living the modern dream of the well-educated.  He has achieved career goals and acclaim by doggedly following his scientific calling.  He has found love with an exotic, liberated woman and is devotedly raising two beautiful daughters in a partnership that serves all his needs.  Douglas feels successful in both work and family life, largely by separating the two emotionally, logically, and technologically.  Spending much of his research time out in the field, he maintains maximum focus by removing even the opportunity for contact with his other world.  Like any good scientist, he prefers closed systems.  And he expects his children to follow his lead, regardless of peer pressure to the contrary.

Of course, compartmentalizing to the extreme has its price.  This disconnect does not sit well with Douglas’s immediate or extended family, but his fear of breaking the clockwork precision of his life keeps him closed off from the disenchantment of his loved ones – a disconnect of its own.

When Baba’s 80^th birthday brings everyone together, these issues are brought to light.  We hope that the confidence instilled in Douglas by his upbringing and bolstered by his mastery of every opportunity he has approached head-on, gives him the strength to learn, to compromise, and to grow.  And we root for his family members to gain from understanding his eccentricities and to apply a little of his method to their own techno-exhausted lives.

As a lover of science, a daily worker in computers, and as a human in 21^st-Century America, I too recognize the necessary infiltration of technology.  And like the Russels, I celebrate the new abilities we have to bring distant people together, or at least to open the door.  Yet, like Douglas, I actively shy away from letting data packets penetrate every facet of my life.  I too seek the balance and often compartmentalize to do it.  I too fear the dilution of deep, meaningful connection at the hands of constant connection.  So Douglas’s is an easy relationship for me to welcome.  And in her rich characters, I believe Amy has given all of us people to recognize and hold on to.

Family communication issues might change medium, but at their heart, they define what it is to be family.  The Russel family seems genuinely past the great societal struggles of race or sexuality, a testament to the loving guidance of Baba.  But through the Russels, we see that self-esteem and how to love are always waiting to be reckoned with, no matter what the stage.  Today we join in not only working through internal challenges we all face, but in questioning new relationships – new connections created by technology itself.  I thank Amy for letting me visit with Douglas, and I can’t wait to see the Russels come to the big screen!

~David Mayer

When:
Leap Day! Wednesday, Feb 29th at 7:30 pm
Fellowship Hall of the LUMC, on 3rd and Anthes, Langley, WA

Join writer/director Amy Walker and the ConnectedFilm Team to celebrate, collaborate, and launch this innovative film project. Come meet the characters, hear the vision, and see how your gifts could be an essential part of this community collaboration.

With screenplay excerpts read by stellar actors:
Deana Duncan, Patricia Duff, Shelley Hartle, George Henny, Liam Henny, Jennifer Bondelid, David Mayer, Isabella Moreno, Abi Tchetter, Pheobe Jacques, Amy Walker, and David Ossman

Are you coming? Check out our Facebook Event to confirm your attendance!

]]> http://www.connectedfilm.com/leap-into-connectedfilm/feed/ 6 http://www.connectedfilm.com/connection-on-all-levels/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=connection-on-all-levels http://www.connectedfilm.com/connection-on-all-levels/#comments Wed, 01 Feb 2012 01:28:04 +0000 Amy Walker http://www.connectedfilm.com/?p=4167 Hello, Dear Producers.  

My goal is to live in balance.  To connect my heart, body, mind, and spirit, with my self, family, local community, and world.

Out of this desire, came the idea for a family film that explores the diverse affects of the many forms of communication we use to stay “connected” in the internet age.

From the beginning, I yearned to give back to my community by shooting the film here on Whidbey Island, and utilizing local art to dress the sets.  I’d thought the project was too big to be fully supported here, so I turned to the global audience base I’d developed as an online performer, to utilize the power of uniting the gifts of people all over the world.

This brought me great joy, and also an imbalance.  I was unable to maintain a strong connection to my local community, and I grew exhausted and frustrated trying to collaborate only through the internet.

I realized, painfully, that I’d been too scared to ask my incredible community for help.  So I turned my heart homeward and began to workshop the script with a wonderful cast of local actors.  They, and our Line Producer, helped me realize that we have excellent resources to cast and crew the film right here on Whidbey Island, WA!

In resonance with my initial goal, this Project invites me to engage every resource I have within my self, family, local community, and global community, for a truly collaborative film.  I have a lot to learn, and announcing my deficiencies honestly so that they can be filled by others is the greatest challenge I’ve ever encountered.  But it’s also thrilling.

I believe that we all have important gifts to share, and that the world needs what each of us feels inspired to give.  I offer my gifts as a writer, director, and initial visionary for this Project.  I also offer this entire learning process as an open resource to help educate and inspire others as they manifest the projects of their own soulfire.

With all my heart, We Are Connected.
~Amy

2012 is our Production Year!  Wow.  I am bursting with joy about all of the cool things coming up.

We’ll be workshopping the script with a group of local actors to really delve into the heart of the material.

Then on to launch this Project publicly here on Whidbey Island, where we’ll be shooting, so we can invite the local community to collaborate on the production.

We aim to openly share as much of the process as possible and invite your input, so we can all learn and create together.

VIBES of Wonder, Joy, and MANIFESTATION of Connected and Your SoulFire Dreams!
~Amy

Writer/Director Amy Walker and Maggie Schreiber, in San Francisco preparing for a ConnectUp -Photo by Istvan Sonkoly, & Thanks to Sharon Beck

Happy Holidays, Producers!

From Liaison Maggie Schreiber:

I just had a vision of sitting in a theater watching the opening scene of Connected and feeling a sense of excitement and accomplishment of being a part of something so big.

Your dream is now part of my dream because of my contribution. I LOVE that!!!

Since we’re shooting next August, we could be watching Connected around this time next year… VIBES!

* Your Input: As I revise the script, I’d love to hear your thoughts about your experience of technology use at family and holiday gatherings.

* Core Team Open to All: The Core Team (collaborative force behind the project) is now holding open meetings! You can join us if you want to have Fun, connect the world, and gain invaluable experience. In November, we welcomed Fred Radford , who specializes in Visionary Product Management; you could be next! For more info on joining the Team, please email info@connectedfilm.com

VIBES of Connection to You and your Friends & Family this holiday season.

Happy Holidays,
~Amy

Looking for the Perfect Gift? Give the joy of being a film Producer for only $1 -they’ll get an official certificate!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Vibes of Connection to you and the ones you love!

I’m so incredibly grateful for each and every one of you who are helping bring this film to the big screen.

In a year or so, we’ll all be watching Connected!

Here are some of our Producers, showing the We Are Connected hand sign at their family dinner table.

You can upload your own photos to our gallery (in the side bar) and show us how you feel connected!

Gratitude and Joy to you,
~Amy and the ConnectedFilm Team

Hey Producers,

Thrilling news this month!
Sander and I have been working with an excellent Line Producer, Patricia Friedman, who’ll be the one to hire the right crew and help us put together an exceptional production next August.  She worked in the film industry in LA for 10 years, but now lives near where we’ll be filming next summer -Lucky Us!

She’s excited about working on Connected, and said:

I am continually impressed by your creative ideas for this project.  It is this type of passion/energy that will get Connected produced and Soulfire Films launched.

It feels wonderful to have someone with her expertise and chutzpah who has total confidence that we can make this film with integrity and beauty.  She’s already a great help -plus she reminds me a little of our character “Pam” in the film, which is slightly trippy, but Very Cool, because I adore them both.

It’s a Big Step for our production team!

Here’s a fun video from our meeting this week with the proprietors of our main location, Jenne Farm.

Vibes to you and all you do,
~Amy

Hello, Fellow Producers!

Here’s an Insider’s Look at my recent tremendous experience, in the unfolding of this ConnectedFilm journey…

Six or seven months ago, I was asked to give “A TEDx TALK” -something that had been on my Maybe Someday (wouldn’t that be Amazing?!) List.

If you’re not familiar with TED’s Ideas Worth Sharing -through Technology, Entertainment and Design, you can check out the TED website here.

As I explored and honed my topic over time, I realized that the only thing I can share that no one else can, is my personal journey thus far.

The crux of that journey is you. It’s This, right here.  Two words and a lifetime of education, intention, effort, and slightly more courage than fear. ConnectedFilm. …guess that’s one and a half words.

Here’s Part 3 of my TEDx Talk, in which I tell my story, from building an online presence as an actor, to Co-Founding a world-wide Revolution in Filmmaking.

“Expanding Your Identity to Embody Your Potential”

 
Parts 1 and 2 below, in chronological order…

In brief, it’s about expanding Who You Think You Are to include Who You Want To Be. Or for me, rather than spend my life Wanting to be or do something, I just start Doing it, and figure it out along the way.

With a lot of Help! From people like you.

THE ULTIMATE HIGHLIGHT of the entire week was meeting 3 of our Core Team Members in person for the first time.

Kara, Lisa and Alex (and Tim in Spirit!) all came to the conference, and after over 2 1/2 years of working together in e-space, we got to HUG!

At the awesome Connect-Up the next day, we all worked together In The Same Room with our 5 computers and very cool, technically advanced set-up at Widener University (and The e-World).

It confirmed the fact that I gratefully work with Incredible People!

Enjoy the videos!

Be Well, Be YOU! and Be Connected.