Crested Butte, Day Two

July 9, 2010

On Friday both of our filming locations were much nearer to Crested Butte than the day before so we started later, at the humane hour of 7:30 a.m. First stop was a place called the "Nordic Center" where Sherry Mikesell and her daughter Julie had earlier scouted out wonderful wildflowers. Crested Butte is the Wildflower capital of Colorado and mid-July is when the flowers are at their peak. Sherry also brought along two different wildflower books so she and Anita and I could entertain ourselves identifying all the different flowers we saw. And we saw a lot: lupine, columbine, showy daisy, paintbrush, chiming bells, harebell, wild geranium, cinquefoil, fairy trumpet, primrose, one sided penstemmon and others I can't even remember right now. The diversity was amazing.

As we searched out the best show of flowers it took over an hour for Greg and I to decide where to shoot each scene, probably the longest "prep" time we've ever taken. Thankfully our crew is so patient! I am satisfied we captured the beauty of the flowers and created a great back drop for Jesus' words, "Consider the lilies of the field."

There was quite a bit of foot traffic on the path through the field which made for many interruptions but also generated interest in the project. People see a video camera and they want to know what is going on! Since I am usually otherwise occupied, it falls to the film crew to explain aCross Creation to curious parties. The crew must be good at describing the ministry because often persons want to know when and where they can see the episodes. Of course I had no business cards with me on the trip so we had to scratch out addresses and email on any scrap of paper we could find. We have decided for our next trip to make up some large cards that explain the project and also give contact information. The interest people continue to show for the concept of aCross Creation is a huge encouragement to me.

After finishing with the wonderful wildflowers, we headed back to the Mikesell's house in Mount Crested Butte for lunch and to prepare for our last filming location.

It wasn't a terribly far drive up to Paradise Divide that afternoon but it was a touch sketchy with the dirt road, large rocks and a sheer drop down the mountain on one side. The higher we climbed the happier Greg became driving his AWD Subaru. At one point Kendall Mikesell, our fearless guide, stopped and we all jumped out of the car to see the amazing view, only to find out that we weren't there yet. There was more beauty to come! When we reached the top of Paradise Divide it was stunning in all directions.

Without consulting me (no surprise) Greg decided to try something new for our last shoot.

During lunch he put the numbers 1-6 in a hat and had members of the film crew draw a number out. Each person then got to "direct" the corresponding scene at Paradise Divide. At first I was a little miffed at suddenly having 6 bosses instead of one, but they all turned out to be great directors, choosing their spot and framing each scene with great care.

By this point in the trip everyone knew the routine and things were more relaxed than the first morning at Mirror Lake. Perhaps too relaxed. At one point Greg said, "Quiet on the set" and I looked over to see Janet and Anita with their hands high in the air holding the "QUIET" signs as they leaned in and talked earnestly to each other. The contrast was too much for me and I started laughing and kept laughing to the point of tears. Obviously we had to wait for me to compose myself before continuing on.

The weather proved to be perfect all day (a welcome change after being snowed out in Sedona in February and almost frozen out at Westcliffe last November). After the shoot we had plenty of time to drive over the mountain toward Gothic and to hike to a waterfall before returning to Crested Butte for a celebratory dinner.

This proved to be a pretty challenge free trip for aCross Creation. A small portion of that might be that we know a little more what we are doing. A larger portion of it is due to luck on the weather and the ease of such beautiful surroundings. But the biggest reason, I think, is because of eight dedicated, creative, patient, intelligent, flexible, inspiring crew members who believe in this ministry and the people it will touch.

Thanks for your support as well, in prayer and encouragement.

Feel free to pass on this blog address to anyone you think might be interested.

The first week of August we head to Oregon for more filming, watch for updates!

Peace,

Crested Butte, Day One

July 8, 2010

Just 12 days after our last shoot at wheat harvest, the aCross Creation film crew packed up and headed to Crested Butte, Colorado. This time we were pleased to add four persons to the crew, Mark and Susanne Smith and Kendall and Sherry Mikesell. Personally I wasn't sure how an eight person crew would keep busy during filming but the extra hands proved to be invaluable and made the work smooth and efficient.

Two new pieces of "equipment" were added to our process for this trip. First Greg Sullivan made two "QUIET" signs that could be held up to let the crew and approaching strangers know we were filming. Janet Sullivan also created a system for the cue cards that keeps them organized and makes them easier to hold. We have come along way in the 10 months since we started filming.

The weather in Crested Butte was perfect (no surprise). On Thursday morning we headed to Mirror Lake, near Tincup, CO, to film our first episode. Though it was fully daylight outside, when we arrived at the lake around 7:30 a.m. the sun had not yet risen over the surrounding mountains. The lake was full of wind ripples and looked nothing like a mirror. Considering I had based the whole meditation on a lake that looked glassy and reflective, this was a bit of a problem.

Nature provided, however, and once the sun started shining on the water it smoothed out and turned into a beautiful...you guessed it...mirror! it was amazing the detail you could see reflected in the water.

After a few hours we finished filming and drove back thorough Taylor Canyon where we picnicked on the Taylor River. The break didn't last long, however, as we were determined to get a second episode filmed that day and afternoon thunderstorms are a constant possibility in Colorado.

We traveled next to a small informal chapel much closer to Crested Butte. It is a beautiful wooded location where someone has set up an altar and benches. Named the "Chapel in the Spruce" it was the perfect location to talk about the main idea of aCross Creation, that for "Meeting God: no steeple required." We are inspired to this whole project in part because we know that worship is about our relationships, with God and one another, not about a church building or wearing fancy clothes. We can worship God everywhere, especially in a beautiful place like the Chapel in the Spruce.

One small issue with filming amid spruce and aspen trees that are located next to a stream: mosquitoes. Though Anita Martz was vigilant about applying bug spray, the mosquitoes were relentless. Most frustrating to me was the fact they seemed to hover right next to my mouth exactly when I was making my most important point and Greg had the shot as close up as possible. We had to re-take one scene five or six times. Even with all those attempts, I expect the mosquitoes will make an appearance in the episode. That's what it means to go aCross Creation, I suppose.

A few sprinkles encouraged us to wrap up the shoot very quickly but the rain mostly held off until we were back safely in the cars. It was early enough in the afternoon (this is what happens when you start work at 6 a.m.) to browse through downtown Crested Butte before dinner. Or at least that's what the film crew did. After more than 9 hours of preaching/filming/traveling. I choose a nap.

I'll save the story of day two for the next post.

Feel free to pass this blog address to anyone you think might be interested in aCross Creation.

Currently the project is funded solely by private donations. Contributions can be made c/o Woodland United Methodist Church in Wichita, email me for the details. (look under my profile at the right.)

Peace to you.

Wheat Harvest

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Hot, dry, windy Kansas summer days can only mean one thing…wheat harvest! Since the beginning of aCross Creation I knew I wanted to film in Edwards County when my father was cutting his wheat. My family has owned land near Kinsley, KS since the 1880’s and a ritual of my childhood summer was traveling from Wichita to spend a few days watching the combines work in the field. Because harvest and wheat are major metaphors used in scripture I knew it would be the perfect setting for some of our episodes.

Because of travel and timing, we almost missed our chance at harvest this year. I returned from a few days of vacation on Friday afternoon and about 90 minutes later we were on the road west to Kinsley. The farmers who tend my father’s land had started cutting on June 18th and they were down to their last 30 acres by the time we arrived in town.

After checking into our B&B “The Tucked Inn” (which happens to be owned by a lifelong family friend) we headed directly for the field. It was hot! And windy! And dusty! (all things harvest should be). The wheat was beautiful waving in the wind and to see the combines rolling through the field created an absolutely ideal setting. We worked for several hours and filmed one episode before the field was finished or the sun set. We even had time for a quick stop at the Salem cemetery (where all my Lippoldt relatives are buried) before heading back to Kinsley for a late dinner.

Several months ago I had made plans to have a good friend from seminary visit me this weekend. Since we had to film Friday and Saturday before harvest finished, she had no choice but to come along! Melinda helped in a number of ways. She made great suggestions and worked with me to do some rewriting of the script. She also did a great job with the boom microphone. Not only was it fun to show her the project, she was especially needed since Steve Martz was still in France on a business trip. It wasn’t the weekend we had planned but Melinda received a true Kansas adventure.

On Saturday morning we headed out to a different field owned by the brother of the farmer we worked with on Friday. Since my father had finished cutting his wheat he was able to help us all morning. He turned out to be good with the reflector and also answered all our questions about harvesting wheat. That morning we filmed again with an active combine in the background, traveled to the Burdett elevator for another scene and found the perfect field with weeds in the wheat to illustrate my main point. By noon we were again hot, dusty and tired but satisfied that another episode was filmed.

Over our 24 hours in Edwards County we saw a coyote, deer, pheasant, a buffalo herd and more mosquitoes than we could count. Thanks and thanks to our hosts: John and Susan Ploger, owners of the Tucked Inn; John and Gary Klenke, the cooperative and generous farmers, and Clayton who gave Greg and I each a ride on the combine.

Thanks also for your continued support of this project. I cannot wait to begin to use aCross Creation episodes at Woodland in our Daybreak Service. Our launch date of September 12 is right around the corner!

rev. amy

Catching the Sun

Friday, May 14, 2010

Part of me really wishes I had thought to film a “sunrise on the prairie” episode for aCross Creation back in January. You know, when the sun was rising around 7:45am. Of course in January I didn’t even know that our new worship service at Woodland would be called “Daybreak,” so anticipating the need for a sunrise episode was impossible.

After the Woodland church council approved the new service a month ago Janet Sullivan was the one smart enough to point out the first Sunday of Daybreak should feature an aCross Creation episode about the sunrise. I quickly wrote the script but filming was delayed by weather until Friday.

The beautiful and green flint hills were an obvious location to capture a sunrise and the Film Crew decided that staying over night at the Tallgrass Retreat Center (near Matfield Green and run by a United Methodist Elder) would be better than trying to leave Wichita early enough to catch the sunrise.

Because of last week’s heavy rains, Billie Blair, director of the retreat center, warned us things would be very muddy and was worried about our ability to film. Knowing she could easily underestimate Greg Sullivan's persistence (and his desire to drive in sketchy circumstances) we decided to take a chance and see the mud for ourselves.

Luckily on the dirt roads around the pastures the cows were a much bigger hindrance to driving than the mud. Arriving on Thursday evening allowed us to pick a perfect spot before sunset, a spot which we marked with a clear plastic bag weighed down by a pile of rocks. Not the best flag, I realize, but it was all Anita Martz could find in the car.

After dinner that night, Billie told us that nautical twilight, “where it is still so dark you can’t see anything” was at 5:15 the next morning and sunrise at 6:16. It was indeed very dark at 4:00 a.m. when I woke up to get ready for filming. So far that’s the earliest wake up call I’ve had (and I hope it is a record that stands.) By 5:00 a.m. the crew was loaded in the car and rolling toward our predetermined spot.

Greg managed to avoid all the sleeping cows and the deer on the way out to the filming location (though the fate of one jackrabbit is still unknown). It turns out a clear plastic bag is a little hard to see in the dark. We missed it the first time but quickly realized we had gone too far and turned around. Also, nautical twilight is not completely dark. By 5:20 we could see a distinct red glow on the eastern horizon. I can safely say I have never stopped to watch all of twilight, from complete darkness to sunrise. It was beautiful. The morning was great, there was almost no wind and the only sound was birdsong.

Filming was incredibly smooth, except for the eight matches it took me to light the gas lantern Steve Martz (our boy scout) had provided for a prop. And the Film Crew was so nice they didn’t even laugh. Though I am sure Greg will keep the failed attempts for his growing outtake (re:blackmail) reel.

After writing the episode two weeks ago I had used my new iphone to record myself reading the script. Listening to that recording turned out to be an excellent way to prepare for filming. Each time we film, I think the whole crew gets better. I am more fluid in delivery, Greg knows more about the camera, and everyone else’s work with lights, cue cards, reflector, microphone, etc is easier and faster. A four person crew is the definite minimum for a shoot, everyone had their hands full the entire time. We also tried something new, a 180 degree pan with me walking and talking at the same time, hopefully that will turn out nicely.

The sun cooperated, though it quickly rose behind a cloud bank. The cows stayed away and stayed quiet. The birdsong was lovely and the pasture a brilliant green. We wrapped up filming by 7:30, one of our fastest shoots yet. It was wonderful to record God’s gift of a new day. I can’t wait to see “Daybreak on the Flint Hills” play in Woodland’s Sanctuary on September 12th!

Thanks for your continued support and prayers,

rev amy

Welcome!

Thanks for checking out the blog for "aCross Creation.

We are in the process of creating videos that help people reflect spiritually. Call them sermons if you want, or lessons or meditations or episodes. Whatever you call them they are about God and about us and about the world and the places where all three of those things meet.

We travel to beautiful places and let the natural world inspire us, along with passages from the Bible, to think about spiritual things. We try to capture some of that beauty and some of those thoughts onto short video episodes (7 to 10 minutes each).

The videos are used first and foremost at Woodland United Methodist Church, Wichita, KS, during our "Daybreak" service at 9:30 a.m. (beginning Sept 12, 2010, that is). If you are in the Wichita area, come worship with us!

In the coming months we will have DVD's of the video episodes ready for sale so that churches, small groups, even groups of friends can use them to inspire, learn and create conversation about God.

If you would like more information or would like to support the project, please e-mail me (email listed under my profile on this page). Until then enjoy some stories from our filming adventures.

peace,

rev amy