ABSTRACT
Here, we explore how tenacity and dedication can carry a film’s production, as well as when it can go too far. The notion of staying motivated to produce work through an incremental production strategy is discussed through Andy Martin’s The Planets – a series of twelve monthly micro-shorts that would succeed in their own right as well as a single compilation film at the end of the year – and acclaimed independent artist David OReilly’s earlier, episodically produced works such as RGB XYZ and Please Say Something. Staying Power discusses the slow-burn productions of Emma Birch and Peter Williamson’s Being Bradford Dillman and Daniel Gray and Tom Brown’s teeth, and how various reworks of the films’ respective concepts over the course of a decade would ultimately improve the final products. Hurdles to Overcome looks at the serious subject of burnout, either through personal circumstances or specific, negative filmmaking/creative experiences. Insights from Don Hertzfeldt and David OReilly lay out some of the main tenets of learning from experience, self-care and how to keep the experience of personal projects fun and rewarding.
