Time passes so quickly. Almost 8 years ago I drove two hours from my home in order to sit down with my Grandma Sue and capture her stories on camera. Just a few weeks ago, I would have told you it was only four or five years ago. But almost a decade has passed.  

Trying to find files from 8 years ago was its own challenge, especially when you aren’t sure of the year, and even more as you have a 3-year-old climbing on your shoulders and in your lap.

With the help of my husband, I carved out some time to sit down and sift through rows of hard drives. The evening before would be my last time to see my grandma alive.

Just sitting down to the computer, with some calming music on, I receive a text from my mom: “I really savor the thought that you recorded her stories. I have missed her voice for three years.”

Dang. The pressure was deep to find those video files.  

In January 2014, we set up two dates two weeks apart. Two hours each session. We were going to continue beyond that, but I was entering the third trimester of my first child and well, I broke my leg. A lot shifted in my life at that point, a much different third trimester than expected, everything taking more time. And then I became a mom. That was its own new adventure, struggle and juggle.

Five years later, and three kids birthed from me, my grandma was diagnosed with throat cancer. Her vocal cords were removed. She worked hard to learn to speak through new breathing techniques and she truly was amazing; determined to fight for life. To still communicate was a gift and a miracle, but her words weren’t as effortless as they once were. Her stories and teachings couldn’t flow easily and took greater patience for her and her listeners.

We never continued the interviews and we never sorted through the many photos she mentioned to me.

She left this world on Saturday, November 27. An avid football fan, she watched 30 minutes of the OSU-OU Bedlam game with one eye squinted open to see the big screen tv. Lying in a hospital bed, next to the fireplace in her living room, the tumor on her lung took over her body. I imagine she finally said, “Forget this, I can’t see anything, I’m going to the game” and let her spirit go free. 

I find it fitting that she left this world on the last day of the liturgical calendar’s ordinary time. And we woke up to Advent, a season of anticipation. A season reflecting our hope for all things to be restored, for all that is broken to be renewed, our hope to join with her and all our loved ones again; to dine, dance, and sing.

I spent that weekend watching her tell stories through the videos captured 8 years ago. Yes, I found them. In fact, I ended up finding multiple copies I had spread across drives for safety. And now, it is all much more organized. Hopefully in 8 more years that organization is still sound.

Her stories are priceless. Dating back to the 1800’s as she tells of my Great Great Grandparents, moving from Tennessee to Oklahoma and starting a cotton gin with their thirteen children. My Great Grandparents surviving and even thriving through the Great Depression, and towards the end, buying the “finest house in Tulsa” for $5,000. More tales of my Grandma living through war times and meeting lifelong friends at army bases across the country in her young married years.

I could listen to hours more. I ache to ask more questions.

There are things I missed. Maybe I was distracted while she spoke. Maybe I was watching the camera or audio levels, or just trying to stay comfortable at almost 30 weeks pregnant. I am thankful for what we do have, and it is bountiful. It’s just never enough, is it?

The other priceless piece from those videos: capturing her mannerisms. I hadn’t thought of that detail, until I watched the videos so closely on her final day of this life. The way she flicked her thumbnails back and forth as she talked, always with her well-manicured nails, of course.

The way she would continuously slide her hands across the tablecloth, as if pressing it smooth. Or with a napkin, she would fold and press, fold and press. It made me think of her mom, my Great Grandmother, with her taste for the finer things and precision. My Grandma Sue was always a delighted hostess, and thoughtful in the details. I wondered if this habit while she spoke stemmed from her youth.

She also leaned deeply over the table to tell the story, drawing closer to the listener. I couldn’t keep the lens in focus because she would be so animated in her movements backwards and forwards. But that nuance of her personality, her way of telling stories, it was captured. And I feel so fortunate to have it. 

As I prepared for her funeral, I was determined to do something with all this amazing footage we had of her. It all came so fast, and it didn’t feel like I really had time to do it justice. But I grabbed some clips from my Grandpa Raymond’s old films, and some stories that reflected Grandma Sue’s life and personality and mixed them together. No music, just the natural sound of the old clicking film and their voices.  

Many, many years ago, my Grandpa Raymond recorded on VHS the 1950s projected films while he narrated the scenes. So, as I compiled his videos with her interview, they take turns telling stories. It became more beautiful than I expected, more precious than I had planned. Their voices together again.

And that’s where they get to be now, together again, restored and renewed with Jesus.

It is a deep void to lose the final connection to that generation in our family. I am so thankful my kids each have active memories connecting to her, even my youngest. And I hope her stories, captured on film, inspire more laughter around the table, more learning from the past and growth into the future, and a continued tradition of story.

Production can take you anywhere and everywhere, from a small swamp town in central Florida to the top of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Each and every place owns a unique culture, and a unique story, and of course stories upon stories upon stories. Each new location can present new challenges which pushes your creativity and comfort zones. 

I have been reading None Like Him by Jen Wilkin. First, this is a fabulous book and please ignore the flowery cover, as it is not gender-specific by any means. This is a book that ALL should read. But one of the chapters discusses the omnipresent nature of God and how we as humans just cannot be in two places at once, only God can do this. However, she also talks about the marvel of what technology has allowed us to do in experiencing multiple places (however never actually being in two places at once) and even feel connected to multiple places at once through things like FaceTime. And she reminds us of how the ancient world would never have imagined how quickly we could get from one place to another with all the variety of transportation options. The ability to travel is amazing and how beautiful that we get to learn the stories of various cultures, and even capture them on video so the rest of the world can experience them too. 

Recently I was working with Acts 29 US Southeast to produce a video promoting their Advance The Church 2017 Conference. The conference gathers church leaders from all over to speak and coach the churches that attend. We wanted to represent not just one place, but multiple in the video. We fortunately had a conference in February in New Orleans to gather the majority of interviews like Dwayne Bond, David Thew and Gib Gibson, but then also picked up JR Vassar's interview on another trip I had to Dallas. Tyler Jones is a key developer in the conference, so his team in Raleigh, North Carolina helped film his narration and send me the footage to edit. And with the conference being in Memphis, I enjoyed a cross-state road trip to grab some drone footage of the skyline and other b-roll of Living Hope Church. 

Production can be quite the process and a lot of puzzle pieces, but the creative process, for me, is energizing. To be able to pull from people across the southern US region for this project, and utilize imagery gathered from Fayetteville to Memphis, it is fun to see it all come together, supporting the ultimate vision of the conference. I can't wait to see where the next project may take me!

If you are a church-planting church, you definitely need to check out the Advance the Church conference. From listening to these men in the interview seat, what is in the video is barely the tip of their icebergs. They have so much to share and give. Go and be challenged, inspired and encouraged. 

My senses come alert, adrenaline pumps and I get giddy to hear, capture and share stories of people. I guess that is what defines being a filmmaker. It's what drives my passion for this art. Through years of interviewing people from football heroes, to architects, to a grandmother, each person has value and a story to tell. They have a world view to share and experiences we can learn and grow from.

It's typically a struggle to convince anyone to sit in front of the camera, to believe his or her words have value. And I find great joy to see them discover value in their own story and feel appreciated to be alive and know their stories now will be available for others to hear in years to come. How lucky we are to live in such a day that we can gather valuable stories so easily.

"In God's world the individual counts. Therefore, Christian art should deal with the individual."     - Francis A. Shaeffer

As a pastor's wife, I often hear stories of people from all over, from all walks of life and culture. One of my favorite projects was the "Kingdom Come" series of The Hill Church. This featured people of our church and had them discuss their craft of cultivation and how they worship Christ through doing these works, including painting, carpentry and farming. It made me desire to turn the camera around on myself and ask myself, "Why do I do what I do?" As I meditated on that question, the power of the story came to the forefront. We are created in the image of Christ, so of course God would want our stories to be shared and celebrated. Because they are His stories. How blessed am I to draw those narratives out of the people I meet in a form of art, to connect and inspire others. 

"We seek an enlargement of our being... We want to see with other eyes, to imagine with other imaginations, to feel with other hearts, as well as with our own... We demand windows... [Story] experience heals the wound, without undermining the privilege, of individuality... In [experiencing stories] I become a thousand men and yet remain myself. Like the night sky in the Greek poem, I see with a myriad eyes, but it is still I who see. Here, as in worship, in love, in moral action, and in knowing, I transcend myself; and am never more myself than when I do."      - C.S. Lewis

In recent months, I learned from my husband the power of the question, "What is it like to be you?" There is power and beauty in learning about other people, and sharing those stories. Film allows us to step into another world, another culture, or perhaps simply just deeper into a business or neighbor, and we get to discover a little more of the "why" behind who they are and what they do in their lives. We get to connect and create relationships, all through telling our stories. 

Perhaps your story is up next? 

It's important to always be learning, to always be pushing ourselves to improve and think beyond what we have done before. It's also a way to keep energized in whatever industry you reside. I came across the ad for the Aaron Sorkin Masterclass on Screenwriting. This was something I knew I wanted to do. Building a story, whether short or long-form is always something we can improve upon and apply wise tips. 

Before I did my first session and paid for the class, I read a review. It was a good review, very positive towards the class. My heart started racing as I got even more excited to take it. So I began my first session and I was not disappointed, to say the least. 

Sorkin begins with a focus on "intention" and "obstacles" as the foundation of any story. Sorkin is focused on creating a drama, whether a play, feature or television series. But as I considered the foundation of "intention" and "obstacles", I thought how this could be applied in any story telling. 

When there is a story of a business and why they do what they do, are we not aiming to find the "intention"? And it must be a strong intention for the business to succeed. But what makes the story interesting and an "American Dream"? The obstacles. Perhaps they overcame obstacles to start the business, or to open their first location. Perhaps they are continuing to face obstacles, but as they persevere they are growing closer to their intention. 

Keeping such a concept and foundation in mind as we approach stories, can help us find the arch and draw to each person we encounter. It can help us write better interview questions, ones that lead us to a compelling story in the edit room. And the editors can assess the selected sound bites against such a foundation. 

I'm excited to continue in the course and consider how to always improve the art of storytelling. 

As I sat in a panel of the inaugural Bentonville Film Festival, celebrating Women and Diversity in Film, I saw a variety of film industry personalities on stage. They were "experts" in the field but came from many paths. One being the president of DreamWorks, and another being a media writer. Some might judge their success against the other. And some might ache for their own story to be someone's on the stage.  But I was thankful that it helped me reflect on my own 10 years of industry work. 

Each person on that stage was proud of where they were and what they had accomplished. We all should be so proud, and it helped me recognize confidence in my own story and path in this industry. The path I have taken is not what I thought it would be, but it has been phenomenal, with experiences I never could have planned, people I never expected to meet and work with, and pressing my creative juices in new ways all the time. 

I have worked on projects for ESPN, Golf Channel and Outdoor Channel. I have met amazing sports heroes, including the late Arnold Palmer. I have traveled for production to New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, Atlanta, Phoenix, Sacramento, London and Dubai. I have worked in the Empire State Building and climbed to the top of the Burj Khalifa. Most of all, I have worked with fantastic people along the way and learned from each of them. 

Have I made a big name for myself? Not by the world's standards or even the industry's standards. But I have learned the value of finding ways to explore and use my creativity, while also valuing family. Along with those extravagant experiences, I have also been able to have a husband, two sons. I have been able to walk alongside my husband through seminary and church planting. 

Does this mean I coast? Never. Many 30-somethings have had conversations with me, feeling that their story is complete, they have missed their time for new adventures and they are set in their career path. Do you realize, a 30-something has the potential of 30 more years in the workforce?! That is a long time! Pause and think about that.... And in that time your career may change much, and you may do more education. And maybe you can take what you have learned from the first 10+ years of working, and now be creative in how you use and pursue the next multiple decades. 

This revelation put a fire under me to be passionate about what I'm doing, and to continue to dream big. I can still have dreams. I can still pursue new things, new paths in this industry, and continue to develop what I have started and what I have been given so far.