Winding Down

Dec. 19, 2009

Winding Down

Finished off the week capturing some good film material. We’ve got two more days of shooting (Saturday is rest day, Sunday is AquaChurch so that leaves Monday and Tuesday, and then I fly out on Wednesday).

Adis and I were totally exhausted by the end of the day Friday so Saturday was devoted to doing as little as possible. Before the obligatory few hours of cable TV on the couch, the morning started off with a bit of fun filmmaking.

I shot some impromptu video this lazy Saturday: “Remmy’s Kitchen.” Remmy is the uncle of Adis and he is an exception to the traditional Nigerian male, for even though he lives in a house full of women (wife, mother in law, niece) he is very accomplished in the kitchen. As a matter of fact – and don’t tell the ladies – I think he’s the best cook in the house. He made beans with pasta topped with catfish in a very flavourful and spicy red sauce – really tasty stuff. That meal knocked Adis and I out, hence the extended TV watching.

After a few hours in front of the TV we went off to do a little bit of honest work. We had an interview/meeting at Protea Hotel, Lagos. Phoned the subject at 3pm to make sure we were still on for 4pm. “You bet,” yet, he shows up at 7:15pm. Got the interview but considering what he and his partner ordered in the VERY expensive hotel lobby, the 40-minute interview cost about $3/minute.

Adis and I are also brainstorming potential local financial sources for completing the film. There is so much money here in Lagos we might actually get the funds for what we need to complete the film (another field trip, editing time, production assistants, equipment, etc.). In fact, I bet I could just walk over to one of the many wealthy folks sitting in this hotel bar/lobby and just ask them for a check in the amount needed and with a little luck we might just find the benefactor we need. Fingers crossed.

In all it’s been such a great trip. Adis has been a fabulous host, and everyone has been very cooperative with our project. We’ve even had time to think about additional projects related to our work so it might be likely that we’ll be coming back for a few more trips. That said, I’m ready to come home – even if home is buried under snow.