Soulmates Director's Blog

Hi everyone who's reading this - wow - this is my first real blog about the Soulmates movie - so I'm going to give you some background on why I did the movie - then in other blogs - I'll talk more about directing and making this movie - and what it took - especially the low budget part - and ALL the ups and down - and ALSO - more about Millie the real person this is based on - and everything I can AUTHENTICALLY TELL YOU about creating and directing this movie!!!

So-I made this movie because it was a story I thought had to be told! I got a phone call form someone I didn't know - "Millie" - now the real person in the movie - and she wanted advice on how to tell her boyfriend she used to be a man! I first of all had a little trouble getting my head around the concept, and had never given anyone advice like this before. We talked for about 4 hours! on how she was going to tell him so he wouldn't leave her or kill her - (really that could and does happen) - so we came up with an approach - about the American Indian (Millie is part Cherokee) and having two souls - on a woman - and one a man - and then saying this wasn't just a theory - but was her! She then had the courage to go and talk to her boyfriend, and she called me back on New Year's day and said - she did it! and he didn't leave - now this is a key scene int he movie!

So after talking to Millie for about 6 months - I decided this had to be made into a movie - why - because I deeply felt this story had to be told - one of profound integrity of someone fulfilling on who they are despite enormous circumstances and difficult odds, it was a moving and inspiring love story, and also a person of enormous courage and inner strength!

So I started wring an outline for the screenplay! more later on how we got this movie done!

Looking towards Yule

For those of you unfamiliar with the Wiccan seasons, many pagans,like myself consider Oct. 31 (Samhain for them, Halloween for the general public), to be the beginning of winter, the time of reflection and preparation for the New Year. Yule, Dec. 21, is considered the next "biggie" for us, and what I've come to love about Yule is that IT'S MINE!

Christmas has always felt like my parents' and extended family's holiday. I and my partner, before and after we met, have always spent it on the road, except once, with his family or mine. We don't regret that, because we love our families, and as time has passed, it's harder than ever to keep up with them.

Anyhow, when we started our studies with Millie, it took me a while to realize that, along with developing my spiritual path, I could develop my own holiday traditions, and we would almost always "Home for the (SABBAT) Holidays", since they fell on different days than the mainstream Holidays.

What does this have to do with Millie? It occurs to me that as I and partner walked along our new spirtual path, we were undergoing our own transformation, though ours has been spiritual versus physical, as Millie's was. We definitely have had an easier time, since, outwardly, our bodies had not changed, but like Millie, our minds and hearts have shifted dramatically. We live our lives differently, more in tune with the change of the Wiccan calendar, and Millie helped us begin our journey on that road.

Thanks to Millie, my partner and I are Adepts, and he is now a High Priest in his own right, leading an independent Circle, though maintaining ties to Millie and the Mother Circle. One year, I had people sign a Mother's Day card for Millie, beginning with the greeting: "To the Mother of us All". In her Movie, one sees the main character(named Mary Lou for the movie) touched when her sons are calling out "Mom! Mom!", and she realizes they are looking for her. Not many people get to be a Father, and also be considered a Mother at the same time!

So, as the Holiday season ramps up, pagan and mainstream, giving thanks to, and for, family, and appreciation for the guidance we have received from family, biological or chosen, is timely as ever.

How Does She do it?

I spent three years in "Witch" training with Millie, and never did she pull a punch. In her wilder days, she'll tell you how she didn't pull any physical punches, either.

She imparted a lot of advice over time, and it sometimes was tough to take, to put it mildly. I went home after some classes, feeling emotionally raw and frankly ready to tell her where to get off. Her delivery could be less than gentle, but, too often, it was on the mark.

One piece of advice she imparted, which I still remember(partly because she reminds me of it, every now and again), is "Ad-lib here."

Let me explain....

Whereas the general advice for survival is, "Think before you speak," Millie counterintuitively suggested I leave space for just winging it, and she included all topics and situations in this statement. I can tie myself up in knots about what to say next, who is going to be offended, etc. and so on....hence, "Ad-lib here".

It makes sense, because a person can get into trouble whether he/she agonizes and then measures out words, or dumps them indiscriminately in a gloppy pile. At least, in the latter situation, the individual has let off steam, and the trouble caused makes for an entertaining story over drinks at some later date.
(Sorry, I'm not providing personal examples just yet....this blog isn't THAT far along!)

Anyway, having one's life story seems like a cross between those situations. Millie took a chunk of her colorful life and just let it all out on paper: the depressing, the violent, the racy, the emotional, the exciting and all the rest. Then, the director took Millie's material and SHE labored over how and what to present. Who had the harder job is debatable. Is it more difficult to open up a pivotal chapter of yourself for presentation, or to coalesce the years covering someone's life-changing transition into two hours or less?

I suggest you see the movie and decide for yourself.

Director's first blog "intro to Soulmates blogging!"

Hi Soulmates viewers! The blog by the Director of the Soulmates (Millie) movie, aka me! will start soon! please stand by!