Fathers & Futures

I have to start out with a special message to my Dad. Maya is missing you, Grandad. Let me tell you what! That girl keeps asking for you sweetly. Thank you for being such a patient, loving, and imaginative Grandad and Dad! We all love you very much. Especially this little one:

But there's another father in my life. The father of my children: Wesley Roy. SO many people offered congrats when Wes graduated last week, and I wanted to thank you all for that! And as many congratulated also asked what the future holds. So I thought I'd let you all know what we have planned. When a Cinematographer graduates from AFI, he's plunged into the ocean that is the L.A. Film Scene. And then they have to figure out if they can swim. Wes is heading out kicking as hard as he can! :) Cinematographers don't really get "regular" steady jobs with a company right out of school that involve typical résumés. There will be no interviews with suits. There won't be immediate health benefits, paycheck security, or a normal schedule. But we knew that going in (and Wes's previous career as a professional Photographer didn't include any of that, either). We is now on the hunt for work. Any film work that he can be a part of. The name of the game? NETWORKING! Lunch meetings, crewing on sets, networking, collaborating on new project ideas, revising logos and websites and "reels" (the portfolio of the film world), networking, filming spec ads. Did I mention networking? Just like when he was a Photographer, Wes will be seeking constant work: projects that will primarily include commercials, short films, and eventually feature films. And we will be staying in L.A. to do it for as long as it takes to become established. However long that is. We won't be heading back to Arizona (so sorry to all of our dear Mesa friends and family who have sweetly asked when we will head back to the desert—we miss all of you). So settle in, little Johnson family, because we're here for a good while...

So what will Wes actually be DOING, you ask? A Director of Photography is someone who supervises the filming of movies, commercials, television series, or any other sort of filmed production. The title is generally equivalent to Director of Photography (DP), used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film. They are responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image. A DP can be the one doing the physical photographing with a motion picture camera (the art and science known as cinematography). But at times a DP works with the Camera Operator, and would not operate the camera himself. (Thank you, internet.)


Wes's Thesis film, Firelight, will be finished next month. I saw a color-corrected version the other night (although it was not a final cut, and there was no sound). But it looked really great. So I will share that when it is all said and done. I am currently helping Wes with a new logo and look for a new website, which will also be finalized in the next month. It will showcase his film reel and some related still photography.

Until then, take a look at Wes on set over the past two years. Sometimes you have to play "Where's Waldo..."

Happy Father's Day to my Cineman!

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention my Heavenly Father. Without Him, none of this is possible. I took time to get to know him a little better today by reading the scriptures and watching THIS.