I’ll start with an apology from all of us. Sorry. I know many of you have been wondering how the 9 days went and, unfortunately, those of us with that knowledge have practically gone on complete hiatus from all things Nashville 9 and Nashville 9 related. So. Sorry. We really needed to take a week or two off just to step outside, take a look back in, and make sure what happened really did just happen.
But we’re back now - and back with more information than you probably want to know. So, to begin with, and to put it simply - It went well. Really well. Really, Really well.
Not good enough?
Fine. Here are my answers to some of the most common FAQs.
1. Did Brandon shoot anyone? Don’t know. All of the footage hasn’t been viewed yet.
1b. Did Brandon almost shoot Luke? Well, that’s what it sounded like from the room next door. So, I’m going to go with quite possibly - contingent on my ignorance of Brandon’s proximity to a weapon at that moment and what “Don’t come any closer” actually means. Granted, it was about 2:30 in the morning and Luke entered the darkened bedroom unannounced. And granted Brandon was in bed asleep, with Nat, with whom it’s only reasonable he felt a little protective of. Anyway, I’d give it about a 55% possibility.
2. Why did Luke have to sleep on the couch when everyone else got to sleep in a bed? See question 1b.
3. How many of you were injured playing football? 4.
4. Did Nat at anytime appear naked to what could be constituted as a group of people? So the story goes.
5. Did either of Luke’s dogs throw up on you? Yes.
6. Who won the election? Obama.
7. Was a story told by anyone resembling a paternal cartoon character of french origin? Yes.
8. Did all the Buffalo Trace get drunk? Uh, yes.
9. Did you misplace anything indefinitely? 1 glide cam case, 9 dry erase markers, 1 PA.
Okay. So maybe that’s not what you were looking for either.
I’ll try this.
Yes, we had a lot of expectations for the Nashville 9. And yes, we are eternal, sometimes maniacally stubborn, optimists. But even so, it still hurts my head to try to come to grips with what happened 3 weeks ago. Maybe another group of people would have been content just to make it through the 9 days. But not this group of people. And when I say group, I mean everyone. Everyone who worked on, took part in, and shaped this project.
I knew great songs would get written. And because I’d heard their work, I was confident the artists and the producers would easily get the job done. But, I soon realized I had no idea. Not until the first morning did I have any idea of what we were getting ourselves into. Not until the first morning when Ryan brought over a rough mix of the song recorded the day before. And it was just simply amazing. Blew my mind. But, I thought, come on, you’re bound to get at least one amazing song out of 9, right? But, then it happened again the 2nd morning. And the 3rd morning. And you get the picture.
Which potentially could have been quite unnerving, quite demoralizing, and quite embarrassing; considering this was the last thing I heard every day before leaving for set. And, trust me, the cultivation of an inferiority complex would have been considered quite reasonable. Quite all these things had I not learned within the first few hours of the first day what the Nashville 9 cast and crew were really capable of. Not only were they asked to perform in situations that required of them to rethink and revise almost every standard operating procedure when it comes to filmmaking, but to not ever make it appear so. The true testament of someone’s talents within their craft is seeing them perform under duress, without complaint, and all the while realizing creative accomplishments on par with any, excelling most. I got to watch this everyday. Pretty charmed life.
Of course it’s a lot easier to work under these situations when your inspiration is handed to you everyday. Without stories, let alone good stories, this project would have never gotten underway, and definitely never kept up the momentum it did. The story gathering process probably had more variables and duress to work through than anything else, and still there were always 9 stories ready to be watched at every deadline. This is a testament not only to the story gatherers, quite possibly the best organized facet of the Nashville 9 team, and their innate knack for finding great stories everyday, but also to everyone who told us a story. I don’t think I’ve laughed so hard, been jaw-droppingly amazed, or utterly dumbfounded, in quite some time.
So, to the music team, to the film team, to the story gathering team, and to everyone else who kept us going - from preparing food to hosting parties to providing locations to providing studios to providing resources to drawing up documents to cleaning house to just doing anything you could.
To the Nashville 9.
I don’t think it can be said any more simply and honestly than - Thank you.
Well, maybe with a hug. Okay, so I owe everyone a hug.
How did it go? All I can say is that I’m proud. Maybe prouder than I’ve ever been. Proud to have worked on this project. Proud to have worked in this town. And proud to have worked with all of you who gave of your time and talents.
And smirking. Smirking because I know what we’re holding under wraps. And I just get to sit here and wait for you to be as amazed as I’ve already been.
