Listen to this post:

When I first met Cheryl, we were both graduate students working on a literacy research project at Portland State University.

I left that research position, in part due to my fear of laminated badges, and over the next few years I worked toward becoming an ethnographic researcher and/or visual anthropologist. But the joke was on me, as I found myself contributing largely to survey research projects in the Urban Studies department.

However! This was not too terrible, for Cheryl and I worked there together as well. The funny thing is that we are now both filmmakers. Perhaps we both always were, but a veil needed removing.

Of course, once I realized my true calling, I immediately recognized that Cheryl should be starring in genre horror films, and set about creating a piece that would really showcase her talents. Can I call this my greatest work? Perhaps. But only because Cheryl was heavily involved with it. It was she who directed the dolls themselves to their fine performances. It is not an easy thing to just sit there like an inanimate object. I know from experience, as I often practice this.

This film was created in two parts, as part of my 30-videos-in-30-days project of 2010. Below is a link to each part.

The Dolls, part 1

The Dolls, part 2

I am honored to be co-producing “Who Am I To Stop It” with Cheryl. I will write more about my involvement in this documentary next time. Tally ho!