What do the Calder Foundation, Andy Goldsworthy, Maya Lin, the Noguchi Foundation, Claes Oldenburg and Coosje Van Bruggen, Pilobolus, and Kenneth Snelson, have in common? They have all recently added their names to the 14 artists who had already given copyright permission and waived their fees for our educational documentary Engaging the Imagination: Wally’s Way!
As we aim for completion of this film, here are a few 2015 highlights of the behind the scenes activities achieved and what we have left to complete:
- Tom Porpiglia and I edited the special features interviews with Wally, Art Advisor Jaci Canning, Sculptor Roland Gebhardt, and dancer & choreographer Tamara Pullman responding to the authenticity of Wally’s method.
- We resolved a technical glitch between professional editing programs that interfered with the quality of the images in the final product. Patrick Wright, chair of MICA (Maryland Institute College of Art) film department joined the editorial team to donate his expertise and time to fix it.
- The internationally renowned composer Charles Morrow has offered to donate his services to create the sound track for the film! We no longer need to begin seeking permissions or finding large funds for the music that is currently in use. Mr. Morrow offers his work and services as an in-kind donation and we will have an original soundtrack from a very accomplished artist. A preliminary meeting suggests we are conceptually on the same page. Of course, we need to have the final edit complete before we can get specific.
- Once we had a version of the film we all liked (the ‘wish-list version’) copyright permissions were sought to use all the new images and music – the final stage of the archival process. We had been working on this since we learned in 2011 that permission from the museum was not enough, but some artists or representatives required review of the final version before giving complete permission. This second to last step also involved submitting this ‘wish-list’ version of the film to artists whose images we had added to increase the representation of a few more significant artists AND to agencies owning support images such as photos of Pilobolus dancers who Wally mentions and some children have not seen. (That permission came in on December 24th!) Mary Aspin and I have been at this since summer – in between seeking applicable grants – researching copyright ownership of images. (We still cannot find Petra Bober, the amazing photographer of dancers whose photos of a Martha Graham dancer in a bag we hope to use, if anyone can help, please let me know.) All permissions are needed before going to the costly step of Post-production as there is no such thing as simply cutting out a sculpture that did not grant copyright permission. Editing is just not that simple.
Our challenge for 2016 is to raise the needed funds and complete the film. Most of the last five years have been spent researching and applying for grants and seeking other funders to successfully get ¾ of the project done. Mary’s research has revealed that (rather than grants) people or organizations interested in the subject typically fund educational documentaries on a specific project.
Our fiscal sponsor is Independent Production Fund (IPF), a 501 (c) (3) where tax-deductible contributions can be made at any time: 200 Central Park South, Suite 12F, NY, NY 10019 or use the Donate button to make a contribution.
As of January 31st, the remaining costs including all post-production costs & fees such as the required ‘errors and omission insurance,’ totaled $50,000 in cash (or in-kind donations). This challenge takes a village. We will be keeping you apprised of our progress more frequently as we expect, given the funds and donations, to complete the film this year.
Sandra Kay on behalf of the creative team of “Engaging the Imagination: Wally’s Way”
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