Sundance Filmmakers Lab Internship

I have wanted an internship for a long time, I don't know why but I felt like it would get my foot into the door for something more. It would give my filmmaking and degree more credibility and now I will be able to attach the name of "Sundance" with the rest of my qualifications on a resume but Sundance has meant so much more to me then that.

Erika and I at Sundance 1992

While I didn't know about the independent filmmaking prestige then, Sundance and I have always been good friends. Some of my earliest memories are of my mother piling me into the back seat of the car and driving me up through the canyon. I played on the indian (sorry about that by the way) and ran through the softly lit trails. I watched outdoor classic movies, took the ski lift in the summertime to go hiking and in the wintertime to go snowboarding. Also, Sundance is where my dear husband and I spent many evenings walking around figuring out where our relationship wanted to go before it had even begun.

I. Know. Sundance. Well, at least the environment.

I have been through a lot of applications, resume adjustments and interviews. Many in the location I had hoped, with organizations that had very wholesome objectives but weren't familiar with the process of film. When I heard about this opportunity with Sundance through the BYU TMA Faculty, I was so desperately searching for something outside of my home state that I almost missed it.

"Reservoir Dogs" Quentin Tarantino || Sundance Filmmakers Lab

When I sat in the Park City office, the individuals I came in contact with were so respectful and easy to talk to. I remember hearing about those who have come before me to be a part of the filmmakers lab and my heart was full with pride for Utah (and surprised to learn that I had been working with the festival co-founder Sterling VanWagenen all along.) It had been a long time since I felt complete honor to be from here. I had been poisoned by lies (usually from people who always find something to complain about so I don't know why I started to listen to them anyway) from those who probably have never explored the wildlife. These hills, mountains and rivers are my sanctuary and I'm excited to rekindle my roots with my former stomping ground.

Once again, I believe in mixing passions.

Sundance Filmmakers Lab

Elizabeth Richards Fesler

May 25-June 27, 2013

7am-9pm Daily

Like a Bee Sting

Eric is hilarious....and bees scare me even more than they did before I shot this film.

Learning from the Places Where you are Presently Living

I found these words very inspiring.

10 Things I learned at BYU

1. I learned to love Charles Ives, Lyst, Arvo Pärt, Mahler, Shostakovich, and many other artists.
   
2. My eccentricities are wonderful and your cargo pants can’t do anything about it.
3. With enough Mormons in one place, I’ll find people who live the Gospel like I do.
4. My success is directly related what I do.   It’s a given that music industry people don’t care about my degree but I learned a lot about grabbing any opportunities that passed my way.
5. This one is a little more personal:  God put me here.  In fact, God’s cool with me pursuing music as a career.
6. Love is and is not what I thought it was.
7. I can make a home anywhere, it just takes work.  I love The Dollhouse and I’ve called it “home” for years now.
8. I shouldn’t worry about how other people live their lives.
9. The way to get better at something is to keep doing it.  Always.  Right now.  Keep doing it.
10. Being a proactive member of the community is enriching and more satisfying than I ever imagined.  Lots of people complain to me about Muse and some of their complaints are valid.  As annoying as it is to hear those ‘suggestions’, I find it much nicer to be one of the people that can fix issues than someone who just notices them.

More from Colin Hatch can be found here: http://thechatch.tumblr.com/post/50101604508/10-things-i-learned-at-byu.

Bryant and Amanda Smith Wedding Film

If I seem to be too busy because I'm filmmaking, having a new nephew be born or it's sunny outside; it's safe to say I'm happy.

Mentos

Dave tried Mentos for the first time last night.
He has put them  up his nose and made rockets out of them before but he never actually tasted them until last night.

It was the most daring act I could get him to do. We're making progress in the mischievous department quite slowly.

Such a Crack Up

I've seen this face a lot btw. Define it as: "Lizi, what do you think you're doing?"

"You're such a crack up" is a term coined and often used by my parents. So it seems fitting to quote them during our spontaneous photo session on Sunday. They thought I was insane bursting through their doors, (my mother didn't even have all of her clothes on but that's nothing new) and told them I needed them outside pronto. Then, we practiced engagement poses with them and they literally couldn't stop laughing the entire time. My mom was trying to hold her photo smile the whole time but my dad was purposefully trying to do the poses as awkwardly as possible. 

I've been taking a lot of photos lately but you can't blame me, look outside! We're in beautiful time of year my friends. These are the outtakes, feel free to see the final products on my "serious" and "mature" website at feslerfilms.wordpress.com/blog/

Beekeeping

Dave took this shot of me while we were filming Weevs with his new beehive. It was refreshingly new yet very scary at the same time to witness this. I could feel their little bodies running into me and that noise of 30 bees near my ear is not something I'm going to forget anytime soon. Happy it happened, glad it's over with.

The Stories that Bind Us

Dr. Duke said that children who have the most self-confidence have what he and Dr. Fivush call a strong “intergenerational self.” They know they belong to something bigger than themselves

Mr. Collins recommended that families create a mission statement similar to the ones companies and other organizations use to identify their core values.

Decades of research have shown that most happy families communicate effectively.When faced with a challenge, happy families, like happy people, just add a new chapter to their life story that shows them overcoming the hardship.

The bottom line: if you want a happier family, create, refine and retell the story of your family’s positive moments and your ability to bounce back from the difficult ones. That act alone may increase the odds that your family will thrive for many generations to come.

----This excerpt is taken from New York Times "The Family Stories that Bind Us" and illustrates principles I strongly believe in (I'd be surprised if you didn't believe in them as well.)

Spring Fever

CHERIE 25 Habillage from MATHEMATIC SAS on Vimeo.

I've got spring fever. How about you?

If I Could Take Pictures in Church

There are a lot of times I wish I could take pictures in church but today it definitely would have been when I was teaching Primary. Last night, Dave and I had a late Macey's run and I realized I had to teach today so I grabbed some stickers and had a really horrible idea which I'm glad I didn't do.

Remember the story about the puppets with dots and stars titled You Are Special? The puppets that did something good received star stickers and those that weren't awesome received dot stickers. Well, that was my idea for singing time. Good, not great. During Sacrament meeting, I realized how rude and horribly wrong it could go and panicked a bit. Instead of giving them dots when they sang badly, I just had them get stars if they sang at all and if they didn't sing, I got to put on a sticker.You'd laugh out loud if I had pictures of some of the creative designs the kids ended up with.

We had sticker goatees, stickers boogers, sticker eyebrows, sticker fingernails and lines of stickers right down the middle of their face. I had my rainbow bright sticker and let the kids decorate the rest of me after the activity. Then, some very confused parents.

A Love Note

One of our senior missionaries at work went into surgery a couple of weeks ago. He later received this note with a plate of cookies.

"Dear reader

your life has almost ended so before you die enjoy the cookies

I know you will be happy up there.

from Activity Grils"

We both had a good laugh.

Published

Amanda got published! Her work is amazing. Check it out here a.l.g.

Grass but better

See? These are pictures I took of grass but it's not quite has the "wow" effect I want from it. Anyone know of fields with long straight grass? Maybe a scenic view behind it? I am determined to find the perfect grass.

Final Cut-That's a wrap!

Final Cut Film Festival. 

For those of you who came, THANK YOU. For those of you who helped, THANK YOU. For the local professionals who came to the networking reception before the Saturday showings, THANK YOU.

Two years ago, this festival was a game-changer for me. I got two films in and then was blown away by how professional all of the films were. Last year, I was my first year working with the Student Film Association (they showcase the festival) and I adored all of it, despite my responsibility at the time. This year, the week I got back from Africa the Final Cut Film Festival was on the back burner so they asked me to be the Coordinator/Manager/Queen. It opened my eyes to how talented the members of the SFA are and though, most everyone had little to no time to help out on stuff, they still sacrificed enough to help out with advertising, programs, booths, social media, commercials...etc. That's how I feel most endings should be (if only for a year:) celebrations.

I believe in talent.

Pat Fiso

Pat Fiso from Fesler Films on Vimeo.

Pat Fiso passed away last week and I had a great opportunity to visit her with my camera a couple of months ago. I love her sweet soul and I think it is evident in this film what she holds as her highest priority.

I believe in the after-life.

Film/Photography Ideas

FILM: I'd love to make a dance video, similar to the "Pusher love girl" video above. I also really want to make a video about an elephant (possibly at the hogle zoo or in India.) On the horizon: a music video for Jason and The Astronaut, Lifestyle videos with some lovely elderly women in SLC and anyone who wants a wedding video.

MUSIC: I want to find more music that is unique. Recent Gems:  "Hi" from Psapp, "Araceli" from Nathaly Dawn or "Matilda" by Alt J.

PHOTOGRAPHY: I'm looking for long and bright green grass to take pictures of. Let me know if you know of any.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Involvement?

Dream

In my dream, I was hanging up the phone and I ran as fast as I could to the condos.
There she was, as excited to see me as I was to see her, her eyes wide and smile full of life. When we hugged, it wasn't one of those side hugs people give to others that they don't know well.We hung out like old times and none of the awkward stuff seemed to matter. It was a warm summer evening and we laughed, sang and danced until the sun went down. It was exactly how it used to be and what it is supposed to be now.

When  I woke up, my first thought was: "what happened?"

Last night, Dave and I confessed something at the last waking hours of the day.
We feel "grown up." In a Peter Pan resistant way.
Which is odd since I'm 22 and he's only 25.
There was a twinge of remorse in the comment, especially since to a degree we feel stagnant. Trapped in our current situations but yearning for more.

Meanwhile, I can listen to this.

Sadie LOVES to hate Caterpillars

Girl afraid of caterpillar from Fesler Films on Vimeo.

I don't know if this is evidence that we're bad aunts or if it just solidifies in your mind that my family really likes to embarrass one another. Sadie is so cute though that one day I bet she'll look back on this video and laugh just as hard as the rest of us.

This is how the story goes: You can watch a video here of Goosie showing Sadie a caterpillar she found. Then, Linda thought it would be a great idea to get Sadie a special birthday present of fake caterpillars in dirt. This was her reaction.

Rain Rebirth Easter

Pat. A participant I'm grateful for.

Today, I'm glad it's raining. It is fitting.

All I know is that even though the world is slowly growing warmer (which is absolutely splendid) the days surrounding Easter are often quite hard. This makes sense because Easter is centered on the concept of "rebirth." If our second birth is anything close to the first one, this time of year has the potential to be quite painful.

For me,  I've had reminders that sometimes I care too much. Most people may find that would seem like a positive attribute but let me reassure you that it can do damage as well. I will dwell on issues until I find a solution (which often is never,) it makes me terribly shy in odd situations, clingy in others and I cry (usually alone) much more than the average human should.

I believe life is not all that bad.