October 2011
3 posts
Thank The Film Gods for Film Independent
We had an amazing work in progress screening at the the DGA. We showed a 10min clip of Gravity along with our other Film Independent, Doc. labs fellows. It was a great weekend.
The most exciting thing for me was showing new footage to the crowd and seeing that they actually got it.
The Art of War
I am currently reading the Art of War. It is amazing to me how many lessons from this book are applicable to film production.
Here are a few.
“The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations beforehand.”
“The general who advances without coveting fame and retreats without ...
Updates
“The gulls who scorn perfection for the sake of travel go nowhere, slowly. Those who put aside travel for the sake of perfection go anywhere, instantly.” One of Carl Boenish’s favorite quotes from Jonathan Livingston Seagull.
I have started getting emails asking if I am finished yet? And when will I be finished with the film? The answer, I don’t know. All I can do is...
August 2011
2 posts
and here it is.. →
The Very Tiny Room, Arrival in Molde
Molde again- It is strange to be nervous in such a beautiful place. First day of production in just a few short days, on the Norwegian part of my film. I walk into the hotel and there is an article in the local paper I happen to see that says my production is in town.
http://www.rbnett.no/lokal/rauma/article372837.ece
It doesn’t mention I am directing but talks a lot of about Alex Gibney...
July 2011
3 posts
love to Norway
My heart goes out to Oslo and Norway today, a place very near and dear to me. I send my love to my Norwegian friends. What icky and senseless news.
More about Sick Mick and The Boys, a project that I have started to help get made… a very entertaining and worthy project that will inspire and deliver an amazing slice of life. Help find out how this film will end, you will be happy you did. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/docriot/sick-mick-and-the-boys-a-documentary
Summer Plans
We are gathering a team and plans are being made to go back to Europe. I am very thrilled to get to return to Norway! The project is moving forward never fast enough for me, but things happen in their own time. We want to shoots be right and show BASE jumping filmed in ways we have not seen before.
We are also still getting through footage and scanning photos, letters, and the history of BASE...
June 2011
3 posts
LOVE- HATE- RESPECT
On Klaus Kinski: “People think we had a love-hate relationship. Well, I did not love him, nor did I hate him. We had mutual respect for each other, even as we both planned each other’s murder.” Werner Herzog.
So much of making a film comes down to the people you are working with; it is not always easy. When a film is your baby people who stand in your way seem evil. It seems...
May 2011
1 post
The Mountain and Gravity
In my life the mountain has been the 16mm footage and massive amounts of material that I have been gathering for my film. The other limitation in documentary filmmaking is money. Today I was thinking about Fitzcarraldo. I have been thinking about a boat going over the mountain. How does man overcome physical limitations that are seemingly rigid and unmovable? It is in the the belief that all is...
April 2011
1 post
Molde, Norway
Norway is sublime. Arriving by airplane to Molde there were miles and miles of white snow and mountains, trees like in Oregon in the States. The landscape doesn’t seem real. It is almost too beautiful, almost too clean.
We were brought to Norway by the Western Norwegian Film Council. For me coming here is a dream come true. Since I first saw the footage of Carl and Jean jumping in...
February 2011
1 post
Midnight Sun
I can’t sleep. In Norway it is 11:27 am here in Los Angeles it is 2:27 am. I am so excited about the people that I meeting to potentially bring on to my film Gravity.
I will be traveling to Norway in April to location scout. I have never been before. I have kept photos of it’s landscape pinned to my wall in my NYC studio apartment for over 3 years; a kind of prayer to the universe to...
January 2011
2 posts
Update 2011
So many people have asked how the film is doing. Thank you!!!
Happy 2011! I apologize for being in a footage tunnel and not updating you on my progress. I have rolled through nearly 700,000 feet of 16mm film(by hand). My muscles are stronger, my eyes are going, my back hurts ,but I have found filmic GOLD!!! I can’t wait to share with you my finds. Thank you for your support again. You...
November 2010
1 post
POST AFM WRAP UP
People are making a lot of films I don’t want to see. People are mostly making films for the youth market and mostly for teenage boys. Since I am making a film about BASE jumping there is this assumption that I should construct my film for 17-38 year old boys because they buy DVDs. I said to someone that I have no idea how to do this. They told me it would involve lot’s more adrenaline...
October 2010
1 post
Update Back in the Saddle
Sorry, I have been out of touch dear supporters(kick starter, and otherwise) and friends.I have been working on editing jobs to “pay the bills” for the last month. I haven’t quit my day jobs but as a freelance editor it is flexible. I am back in L.A now and fully committed to getting through the massive archival transfers. We still need more support both financial and just...
August 2010
2 posts
Work
It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.” — Andy Warhol
Dear Friends and supporters,
These last few months I have been literally buried in archival footage. You will be amazed and happy with the amazing footage I am uncovering. WOW. I so much look forward to sharing this with you.
I have hand cranked through almost 200,000 feet of film and watched 180 video...
I am in footage heaven, hell.
900,000 feet of film, 150 -3/4 Tapes, 30,000 feet of mag tape, 70,000 feet of reel to reel tapes, 300,000 photographs, 100 cassette tapes. Carl must have known that what he was doing was important. He has good coverage.
The archive has become my life. As a documentarian is this heaven? Or maybe hell? No interactions with people. Mostly the rolling through of 16mm, the sound of the hand crank....
July 2010
2 posts
Cotton Carnival
I discovered amazing audio and some photos from Memphis’ Cotton Carnival. Jean has kept the glass awards that Carl and her were given. It was a legal jump from a building.
1984, June 2 - Carl and Jean Boenish jump (with parachutes) from the top of the 430-foot-tall 100 North Main Building as a kickoff for the Cotton Carnival Parade. Carl would die five weeks later in a jump from a...
Now it is time to work
Tomorrow I am going to pick up a 3/4 video machine from a guy’s garage somewhere along the coast, it’s an hour and a half drive from L.A. Then I am taking the 3/4 video machine back to the archive. After that, I am picking up a broken 3/4 machine from the archive to bring to get repaired. Tomorrow is about 3/4 video! Somedays that is it, one simple task gets accomplished.
There are...
June 2010
7 posts
Fast Track Much Love for Film Independent !!!!
What an amazing week! A big thank you to the Film Independent and the Fast Track program. Josh Welsh, Jennifer Kushner, and the great people of Film Independent are my new heroes! WOW, It was one of the best weeks I have ever spent pitching our film GRAVITY 60 times to top notch industry people!!! I loved most meeting other fantastic and talented filmmakers whom I hope to know for the rest of my...
THE 11th Hour
If you are an ex-boyfriend who owes me money this is a great time to donate. If you are a friend who has watched me struggle and have not known how to help please help. This is the time. I wont be asking for money from the general public for a while. Nose to the grind stone this process is over. Much Love and Thank you.
LAST DAYS
Thank you everyone who has donated. I am very happy we have made our goal! YAY! Please spread the word as we are hitting our last 3 days. I will not be offering Mike Allen’s fllms or photos for sale beyond this fund raiser and also will no longer be offering the amazing Japanese prints or other fantastic prizes. So get them NOW and spread the word. After these 3 days I will be getting to...
FINAL PUSH
Dearest Friends, Family, BASE jumpers, Skydivers, Kind Strangers, Thank you! I feel so much gratitude for your support. We are very close to our goal as I am writing this. I can’t begin to express to you how kind, generous and supportive people have been. Thank you !!! Also a special thank you to our sponsors. MORPHEUS TECHNOLOGIES, PHOENIX FLY, ProBASE World Cup, BLINK MAGAZINE, APEX...
APEX BASE ROCKS MY WORLD
APEX BASE has made some awesome last minute donations. Stuff BAGS, PILOT CHUTES, PARACHUTE, and more. You will be thrilled and want to tell everyone and get everyone to donate so they get great prizes!!!! We also have some great Japanese prints, Mike Allen photos and a lot of great prizes left. The Kick Starter ends in 10 days and it is all or nothing! We are very excited! We are getting closer...
THANK YOU PAYPAL AND CHECK BACKERS!
THANK YOU BACKERS Barry Waling Joe Jennings Megan Shutes Sura Rubenstein Bruce Banasky Elliot Sobel Chris McNamara Lynn Hart Dream Job Coaching Rich Riccirilli Bryan Scott
bring it on!!!
Bring it on!
posted just nowedit this post
We have less then 12 days to raise the rest of the money needed to meet our goal around 3,000 bucks. In reality we need a lot more money then we are raising. The money are raising will get us a little closer to our goal of finishing our film.
We got some great news, GRAVITY was accepted into the highly selective Fast Track Program at the Los Angeles...
May 2010
11 posts
two weeks
two weeks… We still need about 3,000 dollars to make our goal. We still have some GREAT prizes. BASE race(spread the word)!!!!! Japanese prints, worth more then you are paying. MIKE ALLEN PHOTOS and VIDEO fantastic! Please blog and post on all you social networking sites! Thank you so much to people who have donated. I am feeling blessed that you believe in what I am doing. I will not let...
B.A.S.E #1 →
GETTING THERE dollar by dollar
We have about 6,900.00 raise only around 3000 to go!!! It’s all or nothing. Thank you everyone who has donated and spread the word and continues to support what we are doing.
I had a lot of hesitation opening up this project to the world publicly. I am super glad people, especially in the BASE jumping, skydiving community have so receptive. It’s exciting! It gives me energy to...
PAYPAL AND CHECKS ARE GOOD
PAYPAL SPONSORS
I wanted to also thank people who donated via paypal or snail mail these donations will be added in a few days they total around 700 dollars. So this will up the total. We will try to add them to the kickstarter page yet will absolutely add them to the website thank you page and the sum will go into goal.
THANK YOU BACKERS Joe Jennings Megan Shutes Sura Rubenstein Bruce Banasky...
thank you Rick and Joy Harrison
Rick and Joy wrote on Blink.. “Hey BASE Jumpers. Joy and I want to let everyone know we very much support Marah’s efforts to restore, edit and digitize Carl’s original BASE footage. I’ve seen the trailer she put together and the material is very good and has a real personal side of BASE, not just a bunch of jumps. I spoke to Jean Boenish yesterday and we all agree that we...
Before B.A.S.E
Tonight had a lovely dinner with one of the first people to parachute from El Capitan in 1966 and his lovely wife of 42 years. Wow I don’t know what intrigues me more being married for that long or being one of the “B.A.S.E jumpers” before it was B.A.S.E. LOVELY!
further asking for help Carl Boenish archive
Hello friends, BASE jumpers, skydivers, filmmakers, I have been diligently seeking your donations to my project Gravity. If you have donated, thank you. We have raised over $4,000. We will however only get that money if we reach the $10,000 goal. All or nothing! So we need your help. We have one month to raise at least $6,000; can you help us out? Every bit helps and even if you are feeling...
Granny
We broke 4,000 with help from my grandma. This is what my granny says about our film. “Marah is a true artist….you can just feel the thrill of each jump,and the vibrant personalities of the men and women engaged is this project…………live it vicariously.and JUMP in yourself with a pledge of 50 to 100 suportive dollars………” Granny Jeannie
news and heart felt appreciation
I have some very exciting news that I will be able to announce next week. It involves the LA film festival. I am super exited.
The kickstater is plugging along. It has felt so good to open the project to everybody. I can’t believe the kindness and support I have been receiving. I couldn’t be luckier then to be making a film that involves such an amazing community of people!
Watchhttp://www.kickstarter.com/projects/marahstrauch/help-us-transfer-carl-boenishs-archive-and-finish Please help us get more footage like this digitized.
Kickstarter
Ok, we have 39 days to raise over 7,000. Thank you people who have been donating on the kickstarter. What an adventure. It has been exciting to meet more of the BASE community and receive support. We still have a ways to go. Please keep promoting on your facebook, twitter, and where ever you can. I have been working hard here in California to be ready to transfer footage and get stuff going...
April 2010
2 posts
kickstarter →
Prizes
http://www.flickr.com/photos/47525240@N04/sets/72157623697000709/
March 2010
3 posts
http://www.gravitythefilm.com →
2 tags
putting it out there
I am joining the modern world. Please welcome me. I have decided it is time to attempt to raise money for my first feature film gravity on the internet, while talking to other sources for larger funding. We have been trying to raise money for a little over three years. We have raised small amounts and quickly folded them back into the project, always needing to complete the next step. I have been...