The monologue used in this video is taken from the commentary track Linklater recorded for his very first film "It's Impossible to Learn to Plow By Reading Books" which can be found on
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The monologue used in this video is taken from the commentary track Linklater recorded for his very first film "It's Impossible to Learn to Plow By Reading Books" which can be found on the Criterion Collection's set for "Slacker" - https://bit.ly/2UXRyTi
A bit of background on this video:
I was going through something of a rough patch back in early 2014. My first film had been rejected from every festival I submitted it to and I was slowly beginning to see all the cracks that were in it (I should say though that I don't for a second regret making it - the year that my friends and I worked on it was one of the happiest times of my life so far, but the final film, as I slowly began to see it, was and is a right old mess). I'd stupidly put too much onto the film's success - I was very much wrapped up by the idea of the film being accepted and loved and taking me to the next level in my career and all that, so much so that when it completely failed to deliver on any of that, I was left feeling solidly crushed and just plain lost.
In the middle of my putzing around aimlessly afterwards, I randomly stumbled upon this commentary track Richard Linklater recorded for his very first film, a Super 8 feature he made almost entirely by himself. I don't know why but (as corny as it sounds) it had what I can only describe as a quietly profound effect on me - one of those "it was exactly the thing I needed to hear at that time in my life" sorts of things. The thoughts Linklater expressed about patience and pacing are so antithetical to what you usually hear about filmmaking and success and climbing up the ladder and all that (or at least they were antithetical to the way my 21 year old self was approaching life). I dunno - I've thought about the things he's said a lot in the years since first hearing them and I think they've really helped me correct my perspective and (as difficult as it often is) to embrace the patience that both filmmaking and the life surrounding filmm