Editing!

I'm immersed in the editing of the film, wherever I go, now that the dissertation is finished. Here's a shot of me editing in LAX.

Look for a trailer coming soon!

WRLD Dissertation Now Online!

The dissertation version of "We Rock Long Distance," which focuses specifically on M.anifest (because focusing on all three artists would fill three dissertations), is now online! Lots of photos and embedded audio and video from Minnesota and Ghana. It's hosted by the University of Minnesota, with the media stored in the Digital Content Library. 

Click here to read!

Two Upcoming Events

Photo by Matt Hadley

There's been a bit of radio silence around here while I finish a draft of my dissertation, but I'm going to be sharing some of the fruits of those labors at two upcoming talks. 

The first is in Chicago at the "Cinematic Diasporas" conference. My talk is Saturday April 14th at 9:30am at the University of Chicago's Film Studies Center, Cobb Hall, Rm. 307 and 310. I'll talk about M.anifest, "Suffer," and the digital diapsoric networks on which our respective music and videos circulate through. 

The second is at the University of Minnesota on Thursday April 19 at 5pm in Nicholson Hall, room 275. It's part of the interdisciplinary Moving Image Studies (MIMS) discussion group. This longer talk will be an overview of the dissertation, and will serve as a trial-run of my dissertation defense, which I plan on completing in September. 

Come out if you can! And, if you haven't yet, follow the film on Twitter and like it on Facebook. (Both can be done with a simple click to the right.)

Last, but certainly not least

Visiting the Hmong villages in northern Thailand was the last trip of "We Rock Long Distance," but was most definitely not the least.

Tou and I had an incredible experience there. I shot about 18 hours of footage, but have stories that can take up many more hours than that. We interviewed and filmed both traditional and contemporary poets and musicians, experienced a number of Hmong New Year festivals throughout the region, saw the Mekong from both high up a mountain and on its shores, and spent most of the month riding around in the back of a pickup truck. 

I want to thank all of my new friends in Thailand who I hope to see again very soon, this time with the completed "We Rock Long Distance" in my bag. 

Now, off to the edit suite!

One week from today

This is where Tou and I will be. 

Minneapolis to Tokyo. Tokyo to Bangkok. Bangkok to Chiang Rai. Then a drive through the mountains to a Hmong village you can't find on a map. 48 hours (or so) of travel, the fun begins. Internet will be limited, but follow along over at Facebook and Twitter as I try to post updates and media whenever I can.