Doing the (almost) impossible
None of us really know what we’re doing, and that’s ok.
Filmmaking is hard. Especially for students.
There are so many pieces needing to fit together.
How do you get money? Do everyone’s schedules line up? Will people drop out at the last minute?
We’ve been told by many that this is an impossible project… and they might be right. I leave every meeting slightly overwhelmed by the scope of what we have to do. We don’t have nearly enough money or people and a lot of us lack experience and skills.
The pieces won’t fit.
And that’s why it will all work out.
I joined the Relic workspace on Slack, which is where we do everything currently, in mid-July. It’s now nearing 2021, and this series (which I at first thought sounded kind of strange) has become a child.
I will do anything to take care of this baby.
Do I know how? No!
Do I have anyone to give me advice about it it? Not really!
But I’ll sacrifice a lot to keep it alive and healthy for long enough to see it interact with the world.
We all would.
And that’s why it can be done.
We’re not striving for perfection or professionalism. We’re just doing our best.
Two days after joining the project, I was asked to direct an episode for no reason other than having joined the Slack. Usually I would have said “no, I have no experience”. And I did. I told the people at the pre-production meeting I didn’t know if I was good enough, because that’s what we (women, especially) are taught to do.
But they — the two crewmembers who had the time to show up — convinced me it didn’t matter. And I try to bring that same attitude to the newcomers to the project. None of us really know what we’re doing, and that’s ok. That makes it fun and creative and different. That’s why we’ll do anything to make this series happen.
The project keeps growing and it feels a little bit like it’s getting ahead of us. But as our team is growing, we’re amazed at how willing people are to help. Our crew are all passionate and talented and lovely. We’ve also made nearly £300 on our crowdfunder. That’s 97 coffees. 97 people who are willing to give up their money to help us (If that’s you, thank you!). That’s hope — it brings us closer to making what we want, the way we want to make it.
Relic is our first shot. This is the chance we have, right now, to move one step closer to our dreams by making something we love.
So we’ll make it.
We’ll make it like our lives depend on it.
Idunn Marthinsen, Showrunner
