One idea...

I've been getting a lot of really amazing support from my family about the upcoming move, which means the world to me. Really, I couldn't ask for a better network of friends and family, and it really does feel good to know that people believe in me.

Since it doesn't look like I have to spend a lot of time and energy doing a visa application, I get to spend all my time and energy getting my shit together, to put it bluntly. I need to update my resume and possibly put together a reel, though honestly, I don't have anything I would be willing to put on a reel at this point. So in the next few months, I need to get back into producing my own video projects. I'm going to start making a series of short documentaries - no more than five or six minutes - and putting them up on the web once every 8 weeks. I would love to do more than that, but I honestly don't know when I'm going to find time to even start researching the first project. I suppose that one of the benefits to being totally broke this month is spending lots of time at home, where in theory I can get a lot of work done. Before I move to Amsterdam, I'm going to need a very polished resume, a newly updated website, and a final draft of my film proposal. I need to start applying for grants, figuring out what type of equipment I need to buy, and of course, I need to save money.

I've been looking at this school with great interest lately, especially their Creative Producers Program, which sounds like it would be perfect for me. It's a five-month program that would begin in September 2008, which is great timing. If I move to Amsterdam in March/April 2008, I could spend three or four months focusing on learning Dutch, continuing to make short documentaries and trying to find subjects for the longer documentary project. Then in July/Aug of '08, I would like to spend 4-5 weeks in Bosnia, Serbia, and Croatia doing a lot more "in the field" type of research (and maybe even some filming). Then, if I can get into this school and the program really is as good as it sounds, I could study for the next five months. I really like that this school is specifically a post-academic training facility and is meant for people who have already have professional experience. Again, if it's as good as it sounds, it would be a wonderful way to meet other filmmakers, writers, directors, etc. They even offer scholarships, which would certainly come in very handy in my situation.

It's been a little over three weeks since I made the decision to move to Amsterdam. I have been thinking about it for a long time, but it wasn't until I was there in early October that I was able to be sure. Of course, until I actually step foot in the country again everything is subject to change - but my mom said it best. "I know you, and if you decide that you want to do something, you're going to find a way." She's right.