What is it with caves?

You've seen one, you've seen 'em all...
I think NOT. I mean, what is it with caves? I just love these things. Or maybe they're not things at all. I mean, after all, a hole is the one "thing" that just gets bigger the more you take away from it.

Music Video Musings...
It was in the early summer of 2003 when I (along with the most amazing rag-tag crew of professional and amateur filmmakers) set to the task of shooting four music videos over the course of one week. Considering that these were all "on location" (which simply means NOT in a studio) and spread across a map from southern Indiana to the middle of Michigan, it was quite a task that lay ahead. What this has to do with caves will now be revealed.

The First Day.
If you've ever directed anything before (be it a feature film or a school play) you understand both the significance and the frustrations that come with the first day. It's that time when the entire crew becomes acclimated to one another and (more importantly) to you. It is a day that often proves to be less than perfect in terms of peak efficiency. No one is able to predict the moves of another. Let's face it, you've only just met. So as a director, despite your overzealous hopes, there is certainly no grand expectation (if you're any good). You kindof leave room for failure. Of course, failure rarely happens in the truest sense of the term. Instead, the sun will usually set on a first day, leaving you with a good sense of pace and a real handle on the type of crew that you have.

Start taking notes...NOW
As a director, I think that it's very important to develop your own style. I didn't say "create" your own style. I truly mean "develop" it. That is to say, it's already there. It is everything that makes you YOU. To be any good, you really have to DISCOVER that and then try to GROW it. So one of the things I like to do is overload the first day. I mean, really heap it on. There are a few practical reasons for this really. First and foremost, it is a good way to flush the "ego pheasants" from the brush right up front. Seriously, if you can really put the heat on immediately, you will get a good handle on the sort of people you have on your team. Are they tough? Do they break easily? How committed to this PARTICULAR PROJECT are they? (Remember, just 'cause Leroy was an ace on your last shoot, doesn't necessarily mean he will be of any worth on this shoot. Leroy is a dynamic and complex person just like you are. Maybe his dog just died. So get off his back already! Geeesh!) Anyway, another reason that such "heaping" or "front-loading" is effective is that you effectively make the back end of your shoot that much easier to handle. Remember, you've got a WEEK or a MONTH or THREE MONTHS of shooting ahead of you. As you near the end of that, people will be tired. Try to save some of the fun for last. Put some real work up front.

Weren't we talking about CAVES?!
Ah yes. Thank you. So, the first day of this one-week video shoot was spent filming in a cave in southern Indiana. What's more, the plan called for using a cammate (translation: camera crane consisting of giant crates, pedestal, and hundreds of pounds of dead weight), all of which had to be carried by hand into the belly of a nearly-pitch black cave. So at one point, while all of the AMAZING crew was lugging this beast into the belly of Marengo Cave, I found myself walking alongside Randy Shreve (drummer for the band). In his mid-twenties, he was in awe. As it happens, brother Randy had never been in a cave before!

Bless my soul...
Watching his childlike immersion unfold before my very eyes was truly a thing of beauty. I mean that. It was beautiful. This guy with a muscle shirt and a mohawk was immediately and perfectly made innocent and young again. Who he was became forgotten as he was made blissfully aware of who he wasn't. It made me think back to all of those caves and tunnels I walked in alongside my father when I was young. I grew steadily aware that not every kid gets to do that. It made me appreciate where I have been or rather (since a HOLE is more of nothing than it is of something) where I have NOT been. And then I started thinking about those naysayers. The "you've seen one, you've seen 'em all" folks. And I FINALLY put it together.

What I love MOST about caves...
It's not the mineral formations or the bats or the dripping water. It's certainly not the cheesy tour scripts delivered at the hands of a less than Shakespearian orator. It's not even when they flip the switch and cultivate within you a new found appreciation for light. Though all of those things are certainly part of the McCaving experience, they are NOT where the magic lies. And while there is a real sense of awe and wonderment that comes from a cave, perhaps even a haunted sense that we are not alone...buried in the overhead signatures and torch stains from a bygone era...that's not the beauty either. The real beauty for me, the real wonder, the real magic...what I love MOST about caves...is my father. I love you dad. I love those trips into the belly of nothingness that we've taken. We've been there and back so very many times. And though I suppose the formations and reflecting pools tend to get monotonous to the untrained eye, each holds a powerful and priceless memory for me. Thank you SO MUCH dad for the guilty pleasure that is caving. And while I'm at it, thanks to my creator as well. The artist who made art itself. Less really can be more. Nicely done!

You've seen one you've seen 'em all?
Nonsense. That's my dad you're talking about!

A few links:
Marengo Caves
GSMegaphone Website
My Dad