Changing Times

“The Times They Are A-Changin,’” sang Bob Dylan back in the 1960’s: he could have been referring to the Travel Film business just as much as anything else. In the last 50 years a great deal has changed in our little world, none of it more rapidly than during the last decade. 

In the last episode of TAC Online, I wrote about Marsha and I attending our first Travel Film Convention, in Tampa, Florida. That was ten years ago and it was all new to us. But even then, it wasn’t what it used to be.   

In December, 2000, we had never made a film. In fact we still haven’t made a “film,” as such, because, well, times have changed.  Most of the Travel producers prided themselves on being film makers, extolling the virtues of 16 mm  and firmly proclaiming that they would never switch to DV. The difference in quality was just too great, they said.

Remember the space three or four films would take up in your vehicle. A big round can for each reel, two reels for each film, the old Bell & Howell projector (and perhaps a spare), sound equipment, dress suits, tuxedo. But the times they were a-changing and Digital Video (DV) came in so quickly it made your head spin. Now you can carry your films in a pocket.

For us, there was never a question of working in film. We had been advised by our mentors, Sandy Mortimer and Dale Johnson, that it was economically feasible and entirely possible to make programs on DV, and since we traveled to Europe each year to play music, we should invest in a camera and record our expeditions. Neither Dale nor Sandy had a digital camera at the time, so we sought the advice of video pioneer Hal McClure. 

Once we had the footage we would worry about editing, and once we’d edited, we would worry about purchasing a projector and other bits of equipment. Then there’d be convincing sponsors to hire us and agents to work with us. Taken one step at a time, we didn’t consider it too daunting.

There were changes going on that had nothing to do with our need to get started, so we ignored them. The Big One was over “live” or recorded narration. I hesitate to even mention it because for some people it’s an ongoing issue. I have my own reasons for clinging to “live” narration  but let me state very clearly: I don’t care what anyone else does. 

Ten years ago there were lots more venues, of course, and many of them were quite prestigious: the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh springs to mind. Also Dick Walter’s series at the Joslyn Museum in Omaha, and Ken Armstrong’s Golden Gate Geographic Society in San Francisco’s Bay Area. At the Tampa convention I spoke briefly to the man from National Geographic in Washington, DC. He gave me some sort of advice but his show checked out before I could get there.

It’s hard to say where all this is headed; nobody predicted the current technology ten years ago. We made VHS tapes of our first two films, but DVDs elbowed their way in and will, no doubt, be elbowed out in the future. We can only live in the moment, and the moment dictates that we continue to put on our shows for the audience that still exists. The only thing we can be sure of is that times will continue to change.