I finally made a film I like. I’m not saying this film is perfect, not by any stretch, but what this film represents is a recipe that I can repeat and polish. Two and a half days of shooting time, more or less, and good subject matter. With these two ingredients, I can make a decent film. One day with subpar material is NOT enough for me to make something interesting. I learned this the hard way the week before I made the film you see here.

Also, this is from the series “From the Van with Dan,” which began as a campaign for Blurb and continues as a campaign for Blurb. However, I actually quite like this series myself and plan to continue it during those times I find myself vanning. Also note, this is a subject-driven film, not an artist-driven film. This film is about The Biggest Week in American Birding and NOT a film about me. I have zero desire to do films where I am the centerpiece.

My generation of photographers pointed our cameras out into the world instead of back at ourselves. (Except for the thumbnail, which I can explain.) My goal is to do more of this type of shoot and story only better and more in-depth. Any filmmaker will see the mistakes with footage, color-grading, etc. But as a one-man-band, newbie I feel okay with the rawness. The story and the birds are worthy of more.