I haven’t blogged, in the pre-social media sense, in a really long time. It feels strange sitting here in front of the screen to do so.
But this blog has survived every life phase I’ve gone through, accompanied me through moving between continents, and is weathering the seasons of digital media production. It’s a trusted companion.
A few weeks ago, I had a reckoning and reconciliation that brought me back to my art in a significant way. I started watching and making film again. And that part ‘making’ has been the key part. I hadn’t touched or lifted a camera – still or moving – in years, perhaps decades. My only involvement with them has been moving them between different apartments and compartments of where I’ve lived.
But over the past week or so, my analogue Nikon, digital Canon, and Canon DV cameras have all breathed fresh air.
One thing I’m grateful for during this renaissance is that I know no one cares about the process or craft except me. That koolaid hasn’t coursed down my throat. This post is for me and this making-of video is for me – no one else. I’m documenting everything for me, for me to return to these posts later and reflect. No matter if my career goes somewhere or not. The myopic self-obsession of social media has worn off now and I just want to make art, and document it. That’s all.
It seems like everything is returning at the same time and I appreciate that. I really cherish that. Being free of the shackles of self-promotion on social media means that I can work on multiple projects at the same time and it doesn’t matter. Because no one is watching and it is glorious. It’s just me and the work.
What Am I Working On?
- A video essay, to go into production soon. Script completed.
- Two short films, combining old DV footage and fresh DSLR video coverage. The original concepts have passed their sell-by dates, so I’m repackaging them into magical realism ideas instead.
- A stopmotion short. This one is original and current to 2026.
- Revisiting the novel I’ve been having a tryst with for 13 years
- Revisiting delicately a podcast I started writing in 2016 and abandoned in 2019.
Great Things I’ve Read
- Hills are Like White Elephants by Hemingway. What a harrowing, brilliant story. Execution par excellence, characters so real that I’ve met them before.
- The Art of the Short Story by Hemingway. Awful essay. Don’t meet your heroes.
- The Umbrella by Tove Ditlevsen. Striking portrayal of the mundane – people, life, relationships.
What Am I Reading?
- The Reader by Bernard Schlink. Such a great novel.
- Making God Real in the Orthodox Christian Home by Fr. Anthony M. Coniaris. A beautiful book, as an investment towards my future marriage and family life.
