Pamela Jo Bowman

BY CYNDI GREENING, ARIZONA — Another year has come and gone; it is so much easier to mark the passing time with annual events. I have a particular cluster of marking events … it begins with the holidays, continues through the Sundance Film Festival and peaks with Pamela Jo’s birthday on the last day of January. It signifies the passage of another year on our creative efforts. With the screening and distribution of THE LAND OF REFUGE, it’s been a very exciting year.

I was chiding PJ about being slow about blogging … heck, the last one was way back during Sundance. She said, “It’s my birthday, you blog something.”

If I were Pamela Jo, I’d have taken the request and made some sort of commemorative video to celebrate her life. It would be a retrospective of her upbringing in the Bay Area, her college years as a Journalism student, her 17 years in Colonia Dublán, Mexico, having and raising her four children and, most recently, as a documentary filmmaker in Arizona. But, alas, I do not have access to those sorts of videos, so I am unable to create that sort of thing for this blog entry.

Besides, my experience of Pam is of her more recent past; in addition to her life as a wife and mother, she has added a few new roles to her repertoire. In the past three years, I have come to know her in her creative roles as a filmmaker, a screenwriter, a world traveler and a teacher. I have the unique opportunity of celebrating her life each and every day as we work on our films because, with her contribution, things get done. More than anything, I notice that she is a FORCE FOR COMPLETION. So, I guess it’s appropriate that her birthday marks each new cycle.

We’ve got two new film projects we’re working on. And let me tell you, we’re both excited to be starting something new. As filmmakers, you might be surprised to know that as much as one may love a project when it begins, after spending a year with it, there comes a point when you just want it to be DONE! Toward the end of the making of THE LAND OF REFUGE, we were both so stressed out and tired, we were both almost ready to be done working … on the project AND with each other. Ironically, we were achieving our greatest success this year and we were both exhausted. Fortunately (I think), we remembered what it was that we each brought to our work and decided to create more together.

So, happy birthday, Pamela Jo!! Hope everyone remembers and celebrates you and expresses their appreciation for all that you bring to their lives … I hope this year is a tad easier for you, a bit more joyful for you, even more satisfying and rewarding!! You deserve it!!

I hope those of you who know Pamela Jo will jot a birthday message here!

I grew up with a large extended family. I grew up hearing the adult whisperings. Sometimes there was muffled laughter, sometimes muted cries. Shock, grief, joy, love. It is what family is to me.

Living in the Colonies among people I was not related to by blood provided a different experience, an experience beyond family of origin. Sharing one’s day-to-day living with friends and neighbors builds extended bonds of family … strong connections that endure and sustain.

We were reviewing the documentary and I was struck by a particular interview. “Everyone was interested in you and you were interested in everyone else. It was like … a big family.” This from a man who spent his entire life in the Colonies.

This weekend we will be screening our documentary at the Superstition Springs Harkins Theater. Many of our friends and families have shown great love and support over the months as we stubbornly worked to complete this project. As the project reaches the finale, we are discovering who has a genuine interest in us and our efforts.

Filmmaking forces a lot of common time. We have had many private conversations about our lives. We have shared adult whisperings. Sometimes there has been muffled laughter, sometimes muted cries. This weekend we share our work with those who remain interested in what we’ve created. Not really a comfortable place for either of us, but the story was meant to be shared and we are sharing with those who care.

It is what familes do.

Reserve your tickets for the
exclusive screening
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THE LAND OF REFUGE
The Mormon Colonies in Mexico Documentary

I love the editing process. Cyndi, not so much. This last week was grueling. Sometimes I couldn’t find the voice over, or the clip or
the picture or my mind. I realized that when I became fatigued I made foolish mistakes. I understand the concept of breaks. It isn’t so much about you as it the fact that the work suffers because of you.

We found a work groove that expedited the process and made us both feel productive. It was cool. In a perfect world, we’d have had a couple of weeks to work in that groove but Labor Day Weekend arrived. So she went off for a break with her friends to Tucson. I continued working and calling her to ask her where specific photographs or visual elements were OR to get her opinion about something I was putting together. I think her friends find me a tad annoying. I am a tad annoying. Step off!

I want to shout out to Kelly Jones. He gave us a check to support the cause. How awesome is that? People have no idea how expensive film and filmmaking is. The equipment, the crew, the gas, the marketing. It goes on and on. I know Kelly loves film and appreciates all the time and effort for this project. It warms my heart to have friends who love what I love so much. There have been others who have offered financial support and I tell them to buy the product. I believe they will get their money’s worth and then it is a win/win. So thanks to all who have shown faith in this project and in me. It means the world to me.

Quiet on the set!

You have no idea how silly that sounds when you are saying it in your own kitchen. There is a purpose to it all. Mostly it is to inform everyone to shut up, pay attention and tape is rolling.

Then Chris’ phone goes off. He can’t answer it because he is carrying his lunch downstairs to watch the Olympics, which we can hear through our audio equipment. At least we got him to stop reheating his soup! The boiling was really interfering with the sound quality.

This is only one of the disadvantages to having a non-existent budget. There are others, but we keep plugging along and are always pleasantly surprised with unexpected gifts, like friends who are willing and even anxious to record voiceover quotes that sound authentic!

By tomorrow, the border and main sections of the “puzzle” will be in place and then we can determine if the missing pieces prevent a clear idea of what the picture is. At least we will be out of the kitchen…and into the fire!

Action!

I have spent a few years contemplating on a rather personal and definitely private matter. It is the concept of well, prayer. It isn’t really an inquiry about if someone is in this communication with me; it was more like why is it necessary at all? I mean, when you think about it, if you believe in prayer then you believe that there is someone listening to or receiving your prayers, someone who also has the ability to respond or assist. So my thoughts were, since I have experienced the response, why is it even necessary to pray? That higher source is quite aware of my needs and desires, perhaps even more than I am. In listening to my prayers and the prayers of others, I have thought we can be a tad arrogant and even disrespectful in asking or even telling the recipient of our prayers what we want or need. No matter how humble we are it never felt humble enough to me.

I remember having personal daily kind of like conversations and then I have felt distant and aloof. Recently, after a particularly grueling week, I just kind of throught out a plea to just have a good and productive day. I admit there was desperation and despair in my request, but something magical happened that day. It was good and productive. Amazing. Still not sure why it works the way it does, but I’m just glad it works.

One of the “perks” I did not anticipate with the project is getting to know people. Complete strangers write to me to tell me their stories or connection to the colonies. As a result, we have recorded many interviews that add more depth to the story. It has been a pleasure to meet, talk with and document people’s lives, memories and family stories.

Living in the colonies for 17 years, I was able to meet people who would come for reunions, service excursions or youth trips. This allowed me to “connect the dots” whenever anyone would talk about people from the colonies. They might not remember meeting me, but I remember meeting many of them.

Ironically, my children ended up being the only Bowmans of their generation living in the colonies. When we first moved to Colonia Dublan, the Bowmans made up the largest percentage in the Dublan primary. As the years passed, more moved away until we were the only ones left. As a result, when cousins visited, my children ended up being the hosts. They got to meet many members of the extended family.

This week we interviewed a lovely sister who had been born in “Chupi”. Nina Morene Brown. It was delightful to hear her tell her childhood stories of running free in the land of the mist. We also interviewed Patriarch Keith Bowman. Another perk, documenting the perspective of many about the same story. Always makes for interesting conversation. Don’t you agree?

This last weekend we traveled to Mexico to get some “B” roll footage, voiceovers and interviews. For 10 years, I have been reading and researching. Now in the production stage I keep thinking of more ways to get more footage. At work I am NOT even allowed to read anymore. I sneak books home to scour at night. I am a read-a-holic. Intervention is needed!

We are putting all of the puzzle pieces together. When this project started, it was about a 500-piece puzzle. Over the past ten years, it has grown into a 10,000-piece puzzle that we’re having trouble compressing everything into a two-hour DVD. Every day I get more excited at the footage, the interviews, the information, the pictures, and the music. I love music. Carlos Avena, a wonderful guitarist, has sent me some of his music to lay under different portions of the film. Very cool!

More people are taking advantage of the pre-production price which is a good thing. Film making is VERY expensive and if I learned anything while living in Mexico it is “if you’re going to do something, do it well and do it right.”

Many are anxious to view the final product, but none as anxious as we are. Distribution will be in the early fall. As soon as we have the DVD in our hands we will mail them out and no doubt blog about mailing them out! We are pathetic. Love to write. Love to read. Love to produce. Love it all. I truly believe you will all enjoy the final product. I wonder how much it would cost to rent a theater to view it all together. Hmmm something else to research …

Working on a documentary about the colonies has some unexpected perks. I’ve spent ten years looking through piles of dusty journals, stacks of fading photographs and hours (and hours and hours) of old VHS tapes trying to find those little gems that will make the documentary unforgettable. The perk this week was going through the CENTENNIAL PARADE VHS tapes and finding some startling moments and memories. There was the footage of Dublanites clogging. I remembered Chris driving the Bowman family’s “Five Generation Float” and almost getting asphyxiated by the vehicle he was driving. And then I saw it. The THE HATCH FAMILY BASKETBALL FLOAT with all of those guys in those “wife beater” shirts and lovely shorts. I laughed out loud. I thought of that Bruce Springsteen song “Glory Days.” Those were the days!

If you want to take a trip down memory lane, click on the photo or link above.