Cold & Hot Winter - Kathmandu to Kerala

I am a filmmaker. It has been something I have found hard to say, and one could argue that I haven’t actually made a film yet, but we are well and truly deep into the process now and I have a stronger sense of purpose than I have had in years. The shooting went amazingly well (check out the Shakti blog for more information about the shoot and photos). We have moved into the next phase of reviewing and organising all that we shot in our month there. Sad as I was to see Sophie leave, it signified the turning point in this project and a monumental moment for me as we had done it. All the planning of the last year was leading up to Sophie coming to shoot and now we have done it, it is completed - wrapped. The first, big step in production process. We are truly out of pre-production and making this film happen. It was a proud moment for me. The idea in my head, like a seed planted, is starting to grow.

Now I am settling in to my temporary home and office in Thapathali, Kathmandu. I have the good fortune to have a recently acquainted old friend, Dries, who lives and works here and seems quite happy to have me as a housemate for a spell. It is nice living in Kathmandu as opposed to staying. Winter is setting in and the ‘load shedding’ or rolling blackouts are becoming more a feature of life. But this house has an inverter and wi-fi, so I can work at all times on the long desk in ‘my room’. The living room has an enormous fireplace, so we can combat the cold nights with cosy, festive evenings by the fire. Being quite a sociable chap, there are often people staying or folks round for dinner or drinks so I well and truly feel like I have a life. And I’ve especially been enjoying the kitchen – cooking and dancing in it.

As I have said before, in spite of the dust, pollution and traffic, Kathmandu is a great little city. And I am enjoying getting to know it on a more local level – going to the vegetable market or calling the plumber. I am clearly bound to Nepal for a number of years with this project and the thought is appealing. My Nepali is coming along, albeit slowly. I had thought I would improve more in Jumla but being with Sophie the whole time, we spoke English. And Nisha, our production everything girl, has really come a long way with her English, so my practising was certainly more intermittent than last time.

During my time here – before the cold really does send me to the beaches of Kerala – I am going to focus on reviewing interview footage and sequences with dialogue. Although I am beginning to understand a little Nepali, I certainly can’t translate the hours of talking we have on film. I am essentially making a foreign language film. Over the coming weeks I plan to work with people here who can speak good enough English to help me understand enough that I can work on it.

So I shall spend Christmas and New Year with friends in Kathmandu and then head south to India in the early weeks of January. The idea is to rent a place in Kerala for 6-8 weeks, to again, settle one place for long enough to develop a routine and work productively. Somewhere warm and near a beach… I have a lot of work to do before Sophie comes back in a few months for the second shoot, so I might as well do it in a lovely place – I just need a room with a desk, constant electricity, internet access and a swimming beach nearby. I suspect the warmth and beauty will be a creative inspiration and I certainly feel drawn to spending more time down there so this will be the perfect opportunity.