A Note of Hope

Become a Film Patron

Carolyn McCulley — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 02:11:27 +0000

The deadline for supporting A Note of Hope through Indiegogo’s collaborative fundraising system is August 30. Make a small gift to finance the next stage of production and become a film patron!

Africa Highlights

Carolyn McCulley — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 20:47:35 +0000

As production continues on A NOTE OF HOPE, the second work-in-progress trailer is now online (see the trailers page). It doesn’t show the whole storyline, but it does introduce highlights from September’s Africa shoot.

Fond Memories

Carolyn McCulley — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 23:29:38 +0000

Principal photography for A NOTE OF HOPE continued in November with cast interviews in Philadelphia. We wanted to place these musicians in a performance or artistic space for their reflections on music and culture. We were graciously accommodated by both the historic Clef Club for Jazz and the University of the Arts to film these segments. Now we are working on the second trailer for the project, which will debut here in the near future.

Photo by Beth Altrogge

Facebook Photo Album

Carolyn McCulley — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 07:01:09 +0000

A Note of Hope now has a fan page on Facebook, featuring a growing collection of photos from our filming in Africa. You’re invited to check it out, view the photos, and become a fan.

Photo by Carissa Gallo

Song for the Children

Carolyn McCulley — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 04:08:15 +0000

Every film needs an “elevator pitch”–a condensed description that can survive the length of an elevator ride with the film executive you didn’t expect to meet. In the U.S., connecting music (and specifically spirituals) with a humanitarian cause requires an unusually pithy elevator pitch. Americans are more used to thinking of music as a consumable item and musicians purely as entertainers. But what has struck me here in Africa is how many of the exceedingly talented local musicians we’ve met are also connected to the cause of children orphaned or affected by HIV/AIDS. To them, it’s natural. And a very high percentage of these musicians are also pastors, caring for these children and splintered families on a more daily basis.

In one of our interviews in Zambia, I spoke to man who graduated from college in the early ’80s. By 1985, many of his friends were dying of a mysterious disease that was later identified as HIV/AIDS. As a result, he is one of the few middle-aged men of his generation in Zambia. It’s a sobering thought, but he and his wife are working hard to make sure their own sons survive to middle-age, as well.–Carolyn McCulley

(The band plays for the children who attend Lighthouse Christian School in Ndola, Zambia, which is an outreach into poorer neighborhoods near Ndola.)

Happy New Year!

Carolyn McCulley — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 21:53:00 +0000

Addis Ababa street concert

Happy new year! It’s 2002 in Ethiopia, which is on a different calendar. It’s a wonderful gift to be able to go back in time and be younger than you were when you entered the country! Tonight Addis Ababa is celebrating New Year’s Eve. We filmed a New Year’s Eve concert, which was packed out. They had chairs going out the door and spilling out on the sidewalk–probably more than 1500 people in the building and an unknown number more outside. Our band performed their set along with some local musicians, and during one extended Ethiopian jam, the building erupted in a wave of stomping, jumping, hand-waving joy. It was quite a sight to behold. I wasn’t able to get any decent still photos of tonight’s concert, but I do have one of yesterday’s impromptu street concert in one of the poorer neighborhoods where we went to visit some of the children. It was so much fun to watch the children running from all directions to take in this concert.–Carolyn McCulley

Emebet’s House

Carolyn McCulley — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 07:17:32 +0000

We filmed a scene at Emebet’s house in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She lives with her older sister, mother, and grandmother. We were received with great hospitality and offered wonderful Ethiopian coffee and fresh baked bread. I knew that we would be received warmly because I met Emebet’s family last year on another film shoot. When I saw her, I was immediately drawn to her. Her older sister was a sponsored child through Covenant Mercies but Emebet didn’t yet have a sponsor. I signed up on the spot. So what a joy to come back a little more than a year later and see Emebet flourishing. I brought her family some gifts, including harmonicas for Emebet and her sister–which were a big hit. Though I don’t speak Amharic, it was still easy to give and receive affection without a language barrier.

The Welcoming Committee

Carolyn McCulley — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 21:05:37 +0000

Every time our bus pulled up near the children’s homes in Nagongera, Uganda, we were greeted like dignitaries on parade. The children ran alongside the bus, waving and singing, and crowded around the doors to boldly say hello or shyly stare at us. No matter what we were doing, we were sure to have an entourage. In this shot, violinist John Blake, Jr. is enthusiastically received by the children.

Photo: Carissa Gallo

This Is Africa

Carolyn McCulley — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:41:20 +0000

TIA. This is Africa. It’s a code phrase used by many foreigners to explain the problems one encounters when traveling across the continent. From finding out as we did tonight upon arriving in Ethiopia that the power is only available every other day in Addis Ababa, to services or goods being promised daily and never being delivered, to the endless delays and inconveniences, a traveler in Africa is forced to shrug a shoulder and sigh, “TIA.”

On the other hand, this is Africa when you are received with a warm smile and a handshake with someone saying, “Sister, you are most welcome here.” No casual American, “Hey.” This is also Africa when mealtimes are respected and people are reluctant to interrupt. Or when children crowd in around you, eager to have their picture taken so that they can demand to see it on the digital camera and giggle with recognition and delight.

TIA is much more than the little inconveniences for westerners. TIA reflects a generous and welcoming culture.

Nagongera

Carolyn McCulley — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 11:41:38 +0000

We are wrapping up a week in Nagongera, Uganda. Yesterday was our highlight as we held a benefit concert at the children’s homes in the rural village of Nagongera that is served by Covenant Mercies. We filmed several local bands playing indigenous instruments, including the extremely talented Macedonians. They are a band of 21 people who play thumb pianos, local drums, shakers, and long drums. That concert and the rehearsal the day before were a highlight for our team as they were immersed in the sights and sounds of the local culture. (You can see what I’m talking about in this video previously made of the Macedonians in Nagongera.)

Joshua Ijala, the leader of the Macedonians, is also a pastor. The region he serves has a large number of orphans. But they are parentless because of the Lord’s Resistance Army, that heinous group of rebels that has kidnapped children and forced them to become child soldiers and kill the adults in their land. It was shocking to find out that this is a daily reality for Joshua after spending these last few days with him and listening to his joyful music.

Africa — a land of contradictions.