8.12.11

I’ve been keeping up a heavy pace of work since I arrived in Vermont in late May, and I’m pleased with the progress of the projects I’m working on, namely my most recent telemark ski movie Loyalty and issue #17 of Telemark Skier Magazine. Loyalty picks up where I left off stylistically with The Freeheel Life, which I toured in 2009. It is a straightforward flick with music and telemark skiing, and steers away from the route I went last year with Hippies Punx & Misfits. I consciously wanted to do this to get back to a more action- packed, bang-for-your-buck type of movie and not slow things down too much with a storyline. I will revisit the story telling aspect more in the future I’m sure, as it intrigues me and challenges me to learn and try new techniques, which I’m more than open to experience.

Our Buyers Guide, issue #17 is coming along nicely. This is the first issue where all of the written material will be from TSM Crew. This is a group of five athletes I put together this past February, made up of Kjell Ellefson, JT Robinson, Alex Paul, Weston D and Shaun Raskin. They make up the core athlete group in the movies I’m making and are also the content creators for the editorial one will find in Telemark Skier Magazine and on Telemarkskier.com.

We had a late start (February) with the program last season, so I’m looking forward to entering the travel season having the Crew in place the entire production cycle, which runs from October until April. This will allow us to really get down to work and create something interesting for next year’s film and magazines. In contrast to past years, this will be the first time I’ve ever truly known that I would be making a movie starting in October. You can imagine my increased interest in the upcoming project, simply because I know I have more time to conceptualize and create from scratch, rather than the more piecemeal approach I’ve used in the past.

For those of you that may be interested in checking out Loyalty this fall you can find the tour dates Here. I would love to see you out to a show, whether you are a telemark skier or not, and enjoy some powder turns on the big screen to get the season started.

The next few weeks most of my focus will be directed towards movie and magazine creation and finalizing those items. I am however going to be directing some remaining attention towards my musical endeavors towards the middle of September and beyond. I currently have one show in Burlington, VT booked prior to leaving for my film tour and will be adding a few dates across the US as I make my way back west for the Loyalty tour. I’ve added a Tour page so those that are interested can keep up with where I will be.

I’m currently down in Delaware, visiting some of my family and enjoying some of the sunny weather here on the beach. It has been a perfect time to catch up on some reading. I just finished a book that I had my eye on since it came out, but hadn’t had the opportunity to purchase till about a week ago. The book is titled Anarchy Evolution and written by Greg Graffin.

Greg Graffin is the lead singer of the punk group Bad Religion. He is also an accomplished evolutionary biologist and a professor at UCLA and Cornell. I’ve owned and listened to Bad Religion records since I was in junior high school, but to be honest I wasn’t deeply familiar with much of what Graffin had written or done, either musically or with biology, until recently. That has made this particular  discovery of his writing that much more interesting and valuable for me.

The book weaves together a hybrid fabric of anecdotal imagery of punk rock shows, Bad Religion history and evolution. I’m grateful people take the time to share their thoughts through their own personal experiences, as I found in this book. His insights on being a naturalist and his feelings towards various subjects like family, music and work really resonated with me and this well researched book has left me with an intense desire to dig deeper into some of the subjects presented.

The book is a great read for someone looking to expand his or her thought on the subject of evolution, or maybe you are simply a Bad Religion fan. Either way, I believe you will find your time reading this book well spent.

I have a few more days here on the coast and then I’ll be back in Jeffersonville, VT for the next month beginning early next week. I’m looking forward to getting back on the road soon and seeing some new places.

– JM