SUGAR MAN IN MY "BACKYARD"

Malik Bendjelloul's SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN is a lesson for all us procrastinators and so-called perfectionists. I'm talking about myself. I recently saw a tweet that I've adopted as sort of a New Years Resolution. Whomever tweeted this recently, thank you:

Perfection is the enemy of good.

I keep telling myself that I can't do that film, or that documentary because I don't have the money. God knows I've produced enough stuff, but so much of it is just stuff, or if it's good enough I excuse myself from finishing it because I "say" I don't have the time or money. 

(Okay, so I did get a doc on PBS with a budget of $25 and 6 months of free labor... but c'mon, it's a story about replacing the engines on a boat.)

Along comes Swedish filmmaker Malik Bendjelloul with no money (well, he has a healthy travel budget at least) and an iPhone, takes a four year journey to make a film about a singer-songwriter who's been living within yards of my weekly travels through Detroit. Heck the production company I owned for the first 3 years of it's existence was about 5 miles away from this guy.

Now, I'm not pretending for a moment I could have done what Bendjelloul has done, or make it as good as he's done, or win an Oscar as he so admirably has done. (Did he really shoot this on an iPhone?)  It's not envy. It's inspiration delivered by a switch kick in the ego-butt.

If a guy from Sweeden with an iPhone can find a story in South Africa about a songwriter in Detroit with a true soul who's gone missing for 40 years.... the rest of us have absolutely no excuse. No excuse.

I have an iPhone....and Final Cut... and some good mics... and access to a lot of good stories. What is my problem?

Forgive me Father, for I have sinned.