So as you know I'm out at the far south of Cape Town by the sea in a harbour village called Kalk Bay learning about the basics of video production.  Amidst this time of preparing for a PSA pitch, I feel like blogging again and thought I'd say some news, actually from a big email I wrote a week ago:

Last week we had a steadicam guy come and speak for the most part about his testimony of how God has worked in his life which was really inspiring.  God had given him words and prophecies, and he had submitted to God's will.  He spoke of how God had taken him very quickly up the career ladder in the film industry.  (He recently worked as steadicam operator on the second unit for Blood Diamond.)
So I was saying earlier about how I have struggled to spend sufficient quiet times with the Lord and listen to Him.  Here again I realise how important this is and how much I need to do it in knowing where God wants to take me and what he wants me to do (rather than what I think he wants me to do).  

The steadicam operator said about his experience of being a Christian influence in the film industry which was also inspiring, how people have chosen him for jobs through his Christian character than just talent.  Witnessing through good Christian character and Jesus living in you as opposed to simply just evangelising to people.  I recently saw The Bourne Ultimatum and thought what hectic steadicam operating that was!  (Hectic in the sense of hard work!). (Or Hero during the calligraphy scene where the lady runs down the corridors to her love in tension - or perhaps that was too good for steadicam).In the second week of July a group of us were outside the front gate learning about framing when a whale (not too far from the shore) jumped out of the water, and again and then a few more times and then went beserk splashing its tale.  Butho, our tutor said, 'Oh come on guys, this happens all the time, its just a whale'.  So I presumed I'd see it again but I've not seen it since! Now every time I pass the door that looks to the sea I check for breaching whales.  It really was quite a spectacle, suddenly seeing what you've always seen in docs right up close infront of you for real.  Oh and the most amazing shark jump, shot on the BBC Planet Earth series was filmed very close to here too, though I'd prefer not to see one of them.

So right now I'm a 'producer' of a small group of two other people working on a public service announcement (against guns in South Africa - about 25 people are killed by guns a day here).  Working on the PSA feels a lot less hectic than when working on the individual soft news piece earlier.  We are pitching our concept to a panel tomorrow including two pro's who work in commercials so better get cracking on with it now!..