kew bridge on bbc

kew bridge got on tv!

Some troubles

Due to London being so far away and expensive, plus shooting on film is costing lots too, I'm debating whether to simply just do the squat or Kew Bridge Eco Village. I'm not sure whether or not I have the time and money to shoot both.

I prefer shooting at the squat, however there's more going on at Kew Bridge. I'm worried I won't be able to cover enough if I do both. I could probably go more in depth if I concentrate on just one subject, however I really want to do both.

What to do?!?!

Dark Days

Dark Days IMDB Link

Here's the first ten minutes of the film so you can get an idea of what it is like 

I just watched a documentary film called "Dark Days". It's filmed and produced by a man named Marc Singer. He filmed some homeless people squatting under New York underground.

It's quite beautifully filmed, and I think this is due to it being in black and white. I found quite a funny quote on imdb.com about the film-

"The film was shot on 16mm black and white film stock, not as a creative decision, but because according to Singer, a filmmaker friend had told him, "If you shoot color and you don't know what you're doing, you'll fuck it all up and it will come out looking all green or red.""

The film is really insightful. It is full of useful information about the homeless and gives an all round story of their lives. It doesn't go in at any particular angle, it simply documents what is happening. It is an emotional yet funny story, and watching it makes me want to go back to the squat and photograph/film. I find sometimes I get a bit fed up of this project, simply because of the distance and cost. It takes about 3 hours to get to London and it's so expensive there. I want to go to the squat and spend more time there, rather than just going for an odd night here and there. It's simply not enough. 

and some more pics

more pics...

Shots from second shoot- Eco Village

Unfortunately I haven't got many, and the ones I have got were underexposed. I did a bit of retouching, and they look ok now. However I will be returning to get some better ones.

What do you think anyway?

Second shoot- Eco Village/ Pub Squat

I got the train to London on 30th January. I found out that half the tubes weren't running again so instantly knew it'd be a bit of a pain getting around London again. I eventually made it to Gunnersbury in west London. I used the map that one of Darrens housemates drew for me and made my way to Kew Bridge Eco Village.

Everyone was incredibly friendly, and a man called Gareth showed me around the site. I then spent about 5 hours at the site, I sat in at their Permaculture meeting and took some pictures around the site and spoke to the people there. While I was there they had many visiters coming in and asking about who they were and what they were doing, but they were all incredibly friendly and just wanted to say hello. It's strange to think that this eco village was in the centre of a really busy area, surrounded by busy roads, and lots of buildings. Apparently eco villages are usually in the countryside. 

I planned to come back to the eco village the next day for an "Imbolc Festival" that started at 5pm.

I left Kew Bridge to head to the Pub Squat on the other side of London as they were holding a party. However, I got to Kings Cross and fell down the stairs at the tube station and injured my ankle. Stupidly wasn't paying attention when I was walking. It really hurt and I couldn't walk on it properly. I decided it'd be best to head back home (Huntingdon is a direct train from Kings Cross, so that was a tad handy!) I was hoping just to rest for the night, and then head back the next day for the Imbolc Festival. London is only a 40minute train journey from my house. 

Unfortuntely my ankle swelled up quite big and I couldn't walk properly, so I was unable to walk on it properly so I ended up just getting the train back to Cheltenham. Very disappaointed! I will definitely plan another shoot as soon as my ankle is healed. Next time I'll make sure I take a bit more care when traveling around!