Written January 2001

Much has been said lately about the digital revolution. Digital video has broken boundaries financially and allowed filmmakers to have a voice that earlier were silenced by monetary hurdles. Desktop editing has allowed filmmakers to spend any amount of time they deem necessary to create their vision rather than be rushed to an empty wallet on an Avid rental. We are moving into a digital century and as a result new stories are finally being told. The Celebration and Dancer in The Dark prove the revolution has given a new voice to cinema. Third World Cop shows how the entire country of Jamaica will be able to create its own film industry and perhaps purchase less box office tickets for the American voice of capitalism. This is a revolution of grand proportions. Filmmakers are just beginning to explore the new story telling possibilities. In addition, the internet is arming the revolution with alternative distribution methods.

Over the past four years I have shot on DV – originally for internet webseries and more recently for my short film Sidewalkers based on a feature Laundromat Blues. Shooting digitally was an aesthetic choice much more so than a financial one. Actually the cost would have been exactly the same for either choice I made. I felt it would enhance the feeling of reality, a reality that we have become accustomed to seeing on our nightly news (concept of this reality described succinctly by Todd Verow).

Shooting my feature on DV will continue to allow me to be more intimate with my actors – particularly with a 10 year old girl who will have grown up in front of a camera this size. It will be an old friend to her rather than a monstrous chunk of metal. I recognize through previous experience that this will allow her to "be" rather than to "act". Because of the ease of use and the lightweight equipment and the small unintimidating appearance I am able to let the camera be a mere observer rather than the sole perspective.