It has been a year since we began preparing to launch the Kickstarter campaign for South Sudan Emerging. Since last March a lot has happened. I found an amazing group of people from all over the world who also want to see this film made. I moved back to Southern California for better access to personal networks that may be helpful in seeing the film through to completion. Filming began last August with a 16-day shoot in Juba, during which almost everything that could have gone wrong did. Even still, we got some amazing footage and a great interview with Kuol, which will set his story up very well.  

Since August it’s been a flood of post-production and grant writing. During this process, my wife (who is my closest partner on this project) and I realized there is no way to compress the timeframe for the story. Part of the reason I have not written you Kickstarter supporters sooner is that I was hoping to simply finish the full feature this coming year. Yet, as Erica and I read our narrative summary and prepared for the winter grant season, we realized the only way to show what it’s like to live through the birth of a nation is to watch the whole birth. This caused us to completely rethink our funding and production strategy. Our plan is to extend our production timeline through the next 3 or so years.

So, what does that mean for you?

Some of the benefits (rewards) related to your pledges will change. We hope you’ll find they’ve changed for the better:  

The 20 Minute Short Film ($10 pledge)

We will not release a fully edited 20 minute short film. After discussing this with several seasoned feature documentary filmmakers, we realized this offer was a mistake on our part. In this industry, wise filmmakers devote energy to creating either a feature length film OR a short film; not both. (One reason is that there isn’t a market for a longer version of a film that has already been created as a short.) We also realized that making a short film eats into production budgets and schedules. This would not be a good use of your money, which is something we want to maximize.   

Instead, you’ll receive access to exclusive HD videos of rough and finished scenes as we put them together throughout the course of production. These will not be viewable to the public.

The BlueRay Disc and Digital HD ($50-$75 pledge)

As BlueRay technology wanes in popularity and our production schedule stretches, we’ve decided to offer backers of $50 or more a downloadable full HD (1080p) version of the feature film after its world premiere. $75+ backers will also receive a gift from our next trip to South Sudan. Not sure exactly what that will be, but I have a few ideas and I promise you, it will be cool.

Prints ($109 pledge)

Get them while you can! :) You will be receiving an email in the next week asking which print you would like. We would appreciate if you would respond with your selection in the following 4 weeks. I’ll then have the prints made and mailed to you. If you are outside of the United States, please add your PayPal info in the survey (sent with the email) to cover international shipping costs.

“Thank You” in the Credits ($250 pledge)

Since there is no longer a short film, we will add your name in a thank you section on our upcoming website. If you would like your name to link to your webpage or anywhere else on the web, we would be happy to do that. If you would prefer NOT to be named on our website, please simply indicate that in the survey that will be sent pertaining to your print. 

Everything else (Pre-Screening Party, Associate Producer Titles, and Ticket to the Premiere) has not changed. It will just be a little longer before we can honor you for your generosity.

So that’s the business-end of things. Of course, for the South Sudanese men we’re following, life hasn’t remained still either.  

Kuol:

The SPLA is now regulating all de-mining personnel in South Sudan. Now, finding mine clearing work is less about who Kuol knows and more about waiting in a queue. When his name is called, he will have a contract. And when that contract concludes, he will again wait for his name to come up. While he’s waiting, he’s trying to find money to attend Juba University to finish his bachelors in Business. 

KongKong:

KongKong volunteered to enter into the first class of the SPLA’s officer candidates school shortly after I left Juba last January. I briefly met up with him last August during his first leave. He’s now stationed in the Army in a light armor division and has been very busy due to the tension between South Sudan and Sudan. Keeping in touch with him has been challenging.

James:

Unfortunately, no one knows where James is. Not even KongKong, who is his cousin. I received one text from James shortly after the Kickstarter was funded and I have not heard from him since.

We are still completely committed to this film, and in order to do it well, we have made changes to the scope and our thinking. We continue to be floored by the amount of support that came to the film last year. It proves to us that this story resonates with people and that it needs to be told. This keeps us going when things are difficult and we aren’t certain the way forward.

Thank you for your support, thoughts, and prayers.

Jon

After four long days on the road and a few more days of unpacking, we are getting back to a new normal (again) here in Southern California.  The move is important for the film because it will give us access to a large pool of resources during post-production as well as better family support while I am gone this summer.

THE TECH - I've been working with our video editor here in LA on exactly which camera we should use for the project and other boring technical stuff. (Secretly, I love it :) )  I'm really excited about the approach we'll take regarding the visual aspect of the film.  It will blend the increasingly-popular cinematic look with the more familiar hand-held documentary style.  All this without getting obsessed about camera maneuvers in a changing environment.  

THE STORY - I'm talking with Ronco Consulting (the de-mining company that Kuol works for) to arrange a trip with Kuol to the bush camp near the village where he's currently clearing mines.  Talks so far are good, but there are many layers to work through yet.

THE SITE - I'm in the process of standing up a website for South Sudan Emerging (southsudanemerging.com).  The site will utilize Swiftriver's Sweeper App to quickly cull and curate news on South Sudan, as it's happening.  This will allow anyone who visits the site to get a quick overview of what's happening in South Sudan at any given time.  Additionally, a Donations section on the website will soon be available for those who missed the deadline for the Kickstarter or just wish to help out.

Lastly, this is proving to be a very difficult time for South Sudan. Nearly 100,000 people are displaced in the state of Abyei as violence spreads in the disputed region, nearly all the fighting seems to be contained to that area. Because the state sits on a lot of natural resources (oil mostly), it represents the greater un-resolved issues between Khartoum and Juba.

South Sudan Emerging is fully funded!

The best part of this process has been knowing that if the project did get funded I would be able to take you along.  

I've said this so many times over the last 30 days, but I have been staggeringly humbled by the generosity and encouragement that we've witnessed.  I'm honored to be able to be a front runner for a story I know we all are interested in.

I am blessed by all of you.

We'll be making preparations over the coming days and weeks and you all can expect a more strategic update soon. But I'm moving my family from Orlando to Los Angeles over the next week and need to focus on taking care of them at present.

In the meantime please pray for, and keep an eye on, the people of South Sudan. These last couple of weeks have been tenuous for our friends. UN food distribution is back, but the boarder region is still on edge.

Peace be with all of you,

Jon Shuler

We are so CLOSE! If we can raise a little more than $5,000 we are going to make it!!!

These last couple of days have been incredible. The generosity of our collaborators is staggering. 

Thank you, and please continue to share the project.

 http://kck.st/g3bTZv 

Jon

It's easy to get overwhelmed by our perceptions of reality.

Do not be discouraged by the task ahead. We are not at the end of this endeavor. Not by a long shot. I am committed to this story and the lives it represents. I hope you will be to.