The Journey to the Find the Story Begins Now
Every great story requires a central conflict. And the last thing you want to do when embarking on a journey to create a documentary, let alone a real-time documentary, is not start with a thesis. (Thanks, Andy Stoll, for that advice.)
Plus, you have to know what you believe. That way, you can go boldly with ears, heart, and eyes open to find the real story once it emerges. Have a thesis and then test it with reality-based observations.
My Initial Thesis: Resilience and hope will get us through the pandemic
I believe COVID-19 heralds the beginning of a new era, which has tested us and will continue to test us, individually and societally. However, we are not the first in human history to face great challenges, nor will we be the last. By traveling the United States around 100-125 days into this era, I will find stories of resilience and hope that will provide us with lessons for how we can move forward.
Belief 1: Narrative matters
The human mind loves stories. Data move the mind, stories move the heart. Ever since the days we painted images in caves, we have been leaving stories for others to find. Narratives give us ways to make sense of what can be a confusing and overwhelming world.
Belief 2: Travel sparks new insights
A list of great books and stories about people on an adventure would have to be quite lengthy. From Homer’s The Odyssey to On the Road by Jack Kerouac, we have many choices. I remember reading Blue Highways: A Journey into America by William Least Heat Moon in high school and saying, “I’d love to travel across America one day and tell stories about the people I met.” It took him five years to figure out how to weave his masterpiece. Let’s see what we can pull together in five weeks.
Belief 3: Honor those who came before
You’ll get a chance to travel along segments of historic and pre-historic trails. This is an intentional approach on my part to make sure you and I recognize the First Nation peoples who have lived tens of thousands of years in what is now the United States. Their voices are as important as the settlers who came from other lands.
The Transcontinental Railroad, Oregon Trail, Lewis and Clark Trail, and Natchez Trace each offer insights about the various people who have traveled along them. Especially because of the many layers of culture those who have passed through them left behind for us.
Belief 4: The landscape shapes us
The physical world molds our minds. Moving in the three-dimensional realm, we create mental maps and metaphors that serve as foundations for our worldview. I wrote a poem the first time I walked where the Tippecanoe River and Wabash River meet in Prophetstown State Park near Battle Ground, Indiana, which hits on this theme:
The Central Conflict: Fighting my own bias
As your guide, I will fight daily with the need to honor each person’s belief of the truth, regardless of my beliefs. I will struggle to challenge my own beliefs and stay focused on what is, not what I believe/want it to be.
We are surrounded by the Outrage Media Complex. This means each of us have hyper-polarized media clouds customized based on our social and interest graphs influencing our perceptions.
To prevail, I will need to recognize that whatever I think, the person I’m interviewing believes their perspective is the truth. I need to honor that truth. Big thanks to David Seeney from Fresh Behavior Media for that insight.
What do you think? What needs to be added? Where am I wrong here? What blind spots do I have?