"Korea Dreambus" Pilgrimage and Documentary Film

I finished my rough assemble edit yesterday morning. It seemed like I'd relived the entire trip during the last 2.5 weeks of editing - just about the same amount of time I was on pilgrimage, in fact. As I was editing, I drew more and more from footage and photos that I hadn't sent over to my editor, so this afternoon I had to get all that into Dropbox for him to grab, as well as some re-recorded voice over track. Now Derrick, my editor, can get to work on a more complete rough cut with effects, titles, transitions, and sound work. Likewise, Terry the composer can work on the soundtrack. The film is coming in around 50 minutes, which I expect will remain the same in the fine cut because many stills are going to be layered and moved a bit, and then titles will be added at the end. That's my goal - keep it at 50 minutes. With this large piece of work behind me, I need to focus on the ESOL class I'm teaching at the local community college. Classes start... tomorrow at 9 a.m...

I'm over the moon that L.A.-based composer Terry Taegwoo has agreed to work with me on the score to Korea Dreambus! You can listen to some of his sample tracks on his website. Terry has composed for film and television, and he currently works for Bear McCreary's studio, Sparks and Shadows.  So far Terry and I seem to be on the same page regarding the use of Korean folk music -- specifically Arirang -- as well as choral music in the film. Some of the sections are more about the martyr saints, others are about my pilgrimage, and still others are pure reflections, so there will be a couple of themes to work through those sections. Ulsan's JinHa Beach area, Sept. 2024 Summer spins by so fast. I have, in fact, decided to move the screening date to Jan. 17, 2026. The film will still be finished by the end of this year, but I realized that a Nov. 1 screening date just wasn't feasible. If I didn't have two or three other jobs and was 100% focused on this film 100% of the ti...