Back to the Garden

The Summer of 1969 was a tumultuous time, marked by the heat of war, politics, and growing cultural divide. One day, in the midst of all that heat, Canadian-born singer- songwriter Joni Mitchell penned the following words that would conclude her song “Woodstock”: “We are stardust, we are golden/We are caught in the devil's bargain/And we've got to get ourselves/Back to the garden.”

A half century later, during the heated Summer of 2020, I was driving along the Sarasota stretch of Highway 41 with my wife, trying to come up with an idea for a new short film. Throughout the previous winter, I was in production on a full-length documentary that COVID-19 would force me to shelve by the early spring. Now it was Summertime, everyone was in lockdown, death and destruction were the single menu options every night on T.V., people were being furloughed by the millions, and a positive thought was nowhere to be found.

Poster (Var. #1) for "Gardens of Life," the new short, poetic documentary

from Oskar Films. The film is currently in production.

“What’s the complete opposite of everything we’ve been seeing lately?” I asked my wife.

“What do you mean?” she replied.

“What’s the opposite of all the death and the destruction and the gloom and doom we’ve been seeing on the news, night after night?”

We sat in silence for several minutes before coming to a red light. I looked to my right and noticed a flower bed by the side of the road. Then the idea hit me – a garden.

For the remainder of our Sunday afternoon excursion, my wife and I talked about gardens and gardening, both literally and metaphorically. We talked about the patience that’s required of a gardener. We talked about the hard work and the focus, commitment, and care a gardener must employ every day for their work to bear fruit. We talked about gardens as one of the ultimate metaphors for life.

We also discussed the garden as a universal symbol, something that transcends politics, race, religion and anything else that may divide us. We all need food to live; we all need natural beauty to make life worth living. For me, the universal symbol is something all good artists search for in their work.

I’m a self-admitted brown thumb, but by the time my wife and I reached the driveway to our home, I had made up my mind – my next film would be about gardening.

Today, I’m pleased to announce that Oskar Films’ new project, “Gardens of Life,” has been registered with the Writer’s Guild of America.

Like our first film, “Blacksmith,” “Gardens” will be a poetic documentary set to music. Unlike “Blacksmith,” “Gardens” will be shot entirely on Kodak Vision 3 Super 8 film. Why Super 8? Aside from the fact that Super 8 is making a comeback in the 2020’s, I believe it’s unique, classic look is perfect for capturing work that has been around since the dawn of man.

“Gardens of Life” will feature four gardeners from Southwest

On the set of "Gardens of Life," Oskar Films Founder Frank DiCesare loads a

cartridge of Kodak Vision 3 200T Super 8 film into his Canon 1014 XL-S

camera. (Photo/Miranda L. Clapp)

Florida: Darryl McCollough, Cathy Willard, Marsha Wikle and Richard Zielinski. Each of their gardens is unique in its own way, but all of these gardeners employ the same patience, commitment, focus, hard work and care in their daily work. Suffice it to say, these same virtues seem to be in short supply in today’s troubled world. Perhaps we all need to get back to the garden, whether in a literal or figurative sense.

It is my hope that “Gardens of Life” will, at a minimum, inspire people to try their hand at gardening or any other activity that doesn’t yield instant gratification. At the most, I hope the film illustrates some of the things that make life worthwhile: patience, commitment, focus, hard work and care.

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates on “Gardens of Life.”

Best wishes,

Frank DiCesare

Film: The New Cool From Old School

The hands-on world of analog has been making a comeback over the past several years, especially among the young.

For some it’s a mystery worthy of Stonehenge; for others it’s an anachronistic sea change that was bound to happen. But as the 21st century nears the end of its first quarter, it seems analog is making a red zone drive in the hearts and minds of Millennials and Generation Z.

A Canon 1014 XL-S Super 8 camera. Photo/Frank DiCesare

Some are tuning out their apps in exchange for an occasional needle drop on a refurbished stereo; others are tapping a typewriter keyboard; and still others (lots of them, it seems) have rediscovered the world of film.

Don’t believe me? Take a trip down the YouTube rabbit hole and count the number of videos featuring an under-35 host crowing about the glories of celluloid. The number is easily in the tens of thousands.

It’s as if these kids somehow wandered off into America’s Forbidden Zone and stumbled upon the remnants of a 1970s camera store. Amid the smashed debris, they dusted off Nikon F2’s, Leica M3'sand Minolta SRT 100’s. Some may have located the motion picture department and unearthed a Braun Nizo Professional, or a Canon 1014 XL-S. One of them may have unboxed a Bolex.

But regardless of what they discovered, they learned quickly that Dr. Zaius was wrong – they liked what they found. The question was – why?

Those of us old enough to remember Three Mile Island, The Pepsi Challenge, and Walter Cronkite’s final sign-off, recall the birth of the video camcorder and film’s slow, stubborn decline. Indeed, what was supposed to have been a torch passing has evolved into a 30-year tug of war. The only difference is that one side of the rope evolved; the other side remained mostly true to its formula.

Early video was different from film. In the 1960s and 70s, it looked like electronic garbage with little contrast. Why do you think John F. Kennedy sported a tan and a dark suit for his first televised debate with Richard Nixon in 1960? Contrast. Kennedy knew a dark suit would stand out from the studio’s light gray background. (Moderator Howard K. Smith of CBS News was also wearing a

CBS Washington Correspondent Howard K. Smith (center) moderates the first

televised debate between Sen. John F. Kennedy, D - Mass., (left) and Vice President

Richard M. Nixon, R - Calif., (right). CBS Studios, Chicago, Ill., Sept. 26, 1960.

dark-colored suit.) Nixon, on the other hand, wasn’t as media savvy. With his light grey suit on, he blended in with the background to the point of becoming lost in a Zone 7 tidal wave.

As its technology advanced into the 1980s, and even in to the 1990s, video became sharper and sharper to the point of becoming utterly realistic. However, it still retained its cold, video-ish look. It seemed, at lease for the time, that film was the art and video was the science.

Then 1999 arrived along with the Nikon D1, the world’s first professional digital single lens reflex camera. Soon words like jpegs and tiffs would enter the global lexicon. We know the rest of the story – photography and post-production would never be the same.

Nearly 25 years later smartphone users can take razor-sharp pictures and shoot high-definition movies with little thought. Aim, point, shoot, export and you’re done. And if you don’t like the results, just press the trash can icon and repeat. Give the smartphone another five years and our pets will be shooting movie trailers and taking selfies to post to Instagram.

So with all this technology in our pocket, what accounts for the resurgence in film photography? And why is it that young people seem to be leading the charge? The reasons may be as vast as Apple’s App Store.

As film and digital photographer and filmmaker, my explanation is simple – film harbors a look that digital, no matter what plug-ins you purchase, cannot replicate. Video has indeed come a long way in capturing saturation, contrast and, above all, resolution since the days of the Beta vs. VHS wars. Today, however, if you want film's timeless look in your project, you gotta shoot with it.

Even the latest RED's and Arri Alexa's cannot duplicate the look that film has offered for more than a century. For younger filmmakers today, it’s the look of some of their favorite films from their parents’ and grandparents’ era, the wired world of the 20th century.

This world of Welles, Ford, DeMille, and Kubrick intrigues today’s young filmmakers, those too young to remember 9/11, but too curious about the past to let something like film zoom by them without a crack at it. They also see the analog challenges film presents and they’re up to it. They know it’s a process far different from video and they yearn to crack its code.

Frank DiCesare films Cathy Willard of Palmetto, Fla. with his Canon 1014

XL-S Super 8 camera while Miranda Clapp serves as gaffer, March 5, 2021.

Video footage/Tony Gallucci.

I’m far from a youngster, but I’m making my own return to film. I’ve shot 35mm still images for years with my DSLR and its RAW files. But now I need a break from the digital world. In the months ahead, I will invite you on my own analog journey, as production continues on my first Super 8 short film. The first seven rolls are in the can, but there’s plenty more to shoot.

I hope you’ll join me.

Best wishes,

Frank DiCesare

A Note of Gratitude

Those of us who can eke out a living as independent filmmakers have a lot to be thankful for. First are our patrons, our ticket-buyers, the individuals from all over the world who spend their money on the chance that they may actually like our work.

Then there are those who simply share a filmmaker’s content on social media so more and more eyes will read it and be aware of its existence. It’s the modern-day equivalent of the Faberge Organics Shampoo

Frank DiCesare speaking at the world premiere of

"Blacksmith," the Jefferson Theater, Beaumont, Texas,

October 28, 2017. Photo/Brandon Gouthier

ad from the 1970s: “You’ll tell two friends, and they’ll tell two friends, and so on, and so on, and so on…” Nearly fifty years later word-of-mouth advertising hasn’t changed a bit; it’s just gone online; the mouse has replaced the mouth; and it’s still free. All you do is click “share” and you’re done. Believe me, it makes a big difference in the life and livelihood of an artist, no matter what they create.

Finally, and perhaps most important of all, are the sponsors: the companies, the institutions and individual benefactors who believe in the work of directors who create their films far beyond the Pearly Gates of Hollywood. The sponsors are those who often put up the seed money for a film they believe in (sometimes even in its development stage) to get it off the ground and on to a solid start. Without them, most good films are doomed from the beginning.

In the three-year history of Oskar Films I have been blessed to encounter all three, either in person or through online, analytical data. Indeed, it has been an incredible journey. Imagine having your first film streamed by people in more than 15 countries around the world. And that number appears to be growing. Last month “Blacksmith” was viewed by a short film fan for the first time in The Philippines. A close look at Our Viewers map shows that the sun has yet to set on “Blacksmith,” and I am grateful for every minute streamed.

Today, Oskar Films has several projects in development and a few in production. It is my hope that these stories touch everyone who sees them in as many ways as possible – artistically, intellectually, emotionally, even practically. In the weeks ahead, I will announce a new short film and the subjects and people who will bring it to life. As the film’s producer-director, I hope to galvanize as much support as possible during its production in order to see it through to its conclusion.

So if you or your company or organization want to get involved with my new short film as a sponsor, please let me know through Our Sponsors page. I am always grateful for your support.

Best wishes,

Frank DiCesare