Twilight Frequencies: Among the many people you’ve met participating in Backpod, who are some that have stood out the most, and why?
Michael Peters: The passion of the students who fuel the efforts of Global Brigades really stands out. The student groups plan and fundraise for months prior to the trip, and many times they must sacrifice their own break time from school to attend. While peers are off “spring-breaking it” – these students are making a difference.
…and they are dedicated! Several of the groups who were in Honduras with us have already made it back for a return trip to work another brigade.
Twilight Frequencies: What stood out the most in your quest?
Michael Peters: It was the opportunity to witness how much of a positive impact these students and this organization were having on the local people. They had such a respect for the local culture.
Twilight Frequencies: Where did the mission come from?
Michael Peters: The foundation of the project was always art. Kari and I have always had a strong connection and art was how that connection always seemed to manifest. We had worked/played together on several video art projects; short films, photography, even local commercials – but wanted to find something that was not “just” visually appealing…but really had something to say.
While I was in Tennessee and Kari was in New York, we continued to have a dialogue about our next short film. We were focusing on our usual artsy avant-garde type film, but the motivation wasn’t there.
From Left, Kari, Michael, and Eva. Photo by Theresa Taverno
During this time our friend Jonathan Caleb Meador was traveling extensively throughout Central and South America. He would regale stories of working with the locals on their farmland in exchange for room and board. Staying no more than a few weeks at a time, he would soon pack his belongings and travel by any means necessary to the next location, even if it meant hitchhiking. There was something so simplistic and sustainable, yet productive and inspiring about this idea. As his stories reached state side, Kari and I found our phone conversations to slowly start focusing only on travel adventure and unknowingly began to birth the brainchild we now know as Backpod.
We began to push around the idea of traveling with a purpose.
We wanted to create something that had a purpose not only for us as adventurers, but an idea that could encourage a global mindset in our audience and ourselves. As we began to press further into this realm, the idea started to lend itself more towards a non-profit sector project. In a leap of faith, we contacted non-profits in various Central American countries to pitch this idea of traveling to them and exposing their work by creating short documentation in the form of online video publishing in exchange for room and board. When Global Brigades said yes…we started reaching out to more people, such as sponsors, donors, and media…
We received quite a positive response from many people and Backpod came to life. We are still surprised and grateful to be able to have this project and experience happening.
Twilight Frequencies: Focusing in on Non-Profits there must be a ton of different pieces of information you have obtained about some of their general goals or missions within Central America. Give us an example of an organization you really felt compelled by.
Michael Peters: Global Brigades is an organization that really stood out. If you haven’t heard of their work, you will soon. It is a secular organization that empowers students and professional volunteers to provide communities in developing nations with sustainable solutions that improve quality of life while respecting local culture. GB’s vision is to become the largest student-led social movement on the planet.
What struck us is the idea that students are taking the initiative and making this lasting impact. Global Brigades is really a well-rounded organization thanks in large part to ambitious students with fields concentrating in medical outreach to water purification development even to assisting in local micro enterprise growth. It really had the all-around package.
In this video the crew discusses their adventure travels through the annoyances of airports and the folks surrounding them.
Twilight Frequencies: What was it like preparing for your trip to Honduras? If you can recall the initial feeling you had, what types of things were you expecting to see or learn? Were you scared? Had you been out of the United States before this trip?
Michael Peters: It was strange, because like many trips, none of us really believed it was going to happen until we officially booked the plane ticket. But as we learned the trip was a go, absolute complete excitement filled my body! And I’m confident in saying that feeling was mutual for the other members. I had been abroad before as had the other members, but for this time was different. This trip had a mission, a mission we all had personal investment in, and I’m not speaking financially. If anything, the only apprehension I had was the fear of failure. I yearned so bad for this endeavor to be a success, because ultimately it was not just for us, it was for the organization we were working alongside and the lives they were touching.
This week we’ll get to know a member from the group Backpod. Michael Peters is one of three exceptionally talented artist to dedicate his creative life by using his artistic expression as a tool for the greater good. This video will give us a brief introduction into the cast of Backpod, plus through out the week I will ask Michael Peters some questions about his experiences with backpod, and art itself.
Twilight Frequencies: Besides you, who else participates in Backpod, how did you link up with them?
Michael Peters: The Backpod team is made up of myself, Kari Foster, and Eva Nudd. While working in New York, Kari crossed paths with Eva. Eva was able to bring a international relations writing background into the work, rather than the art background of Kari and I – which is just what we needed! TEAM BACKPOD was born!
I think each of us bring a unique, yet relative perspective to the table. Eva is originally from Slovak Republic with a Masters Degree in International Relations specializing in Human Rights and International Law. Kari has a degree in Journalism concentration in Public Relations with a background in graphic/web design. Myself with a BFA in film and photography.
All very different, but each one makes up such a vital piece to the puzzle. Holding us together – our endless curiosity, and willingness to fall on our face a few times!
The new film from Canadian filmmaker Bruce McDonald (Hard Core Logo, The Tracey Fragments) called “This movie is broken: A rock show romance.” The film is about two friends who figure out they have more interest in one another than they realize. Broken Social Scene plays a huge outdoor bash, and the characters are aiming to go, and it will be one last night to remember before they have to split apart. Will they split, or will Bruce get the girl to answer his crush?
June 4, 2010, 6:00 PM
$15 each.
100 seats, first-come, first-serve. All proceeds go to the White family.
**You will not receive a ticket in the mail; your name will be on a guest list, and you will receive an armband at the door.**
“Shoot-outs, robberies, gas-huffing , drug dealing, pill popping, murders, and tap dancing – what do these all have in common? These are just a few of the parts of being a member of the Wild and Wonderful White Family. The legendary family is as known for their wild, excessive criminal ways as they are for their famous mountain dancing members, including Jesco White, the star of director Julien Nitzberg’s cult classic documentary Dancing Outlaw.
Exploring both the comic and tragic sides of life on the other side of the law, this stylish, fast-paced family portrait exposes the powerful forces of corruption, poverty, and West Virginia’s environmentally and culturally devastating coal mining culture that helped shape the White family, a dying breed of outlaws preserving a dying form of dance.” — Genna Terranova, Senior Programmer, Tribeca Film.”
Well, day five and the fun just begins. This week we explored the evolutions of life, and the realizations that the older we become the less imaginative our explorations appear. Personally, I’m aware of the trend that has come before me, for so many years. I do think that a person can go to a job they don’t like, while maintaining their creative and childlike soul. Its not easy, and its a struggle everyday for me, but within that struggle there’s something wonderful about life. The human spirit can endure the realities of responsibility without losing the fun behind the profundity of newness. I think we all can do better, I believe Kenzie Cooke’s work suggests to us that its not inevitable but let us not forget how things used to be, how we once were as children, laughing, and running through the open fields. This week has been a reminder for me to continue to be consistant in doing the things I love to do, the dreams I believe in, and the individual path I choose to walk. I told Kenzie in an email this week “I’ll let you know more about the latter stages of life, if you remind me about the early ones.” I implore the rest of you to do the same. Thank you Kenzie Cooke!!
Twilight Frequencies: Lets lighten up the mood a bit. What’s your favorite color?
Kenzie Cooke: I wouldn’t say that I have a favorite color. Depends on my mood and the combination, I love mixtures.
Twilight Frequencies: If you could lay your head on one thing what would that be?
Kenzie Cooke:Well I have imagined what it would feel like to be completely relaxed and limp but feel nothing solid beneath me…sleeping on air.
Twilight Frequencies: Water or Land?
Kenzie Cooke: I prefer to stand on land and swim in water.
Twilight Frequencies: Vocals or Instrumentals?
Kenzie Cooke: Instrumentals definitely.
Twilight Frequencies: What is “Sunder?”
Kenzie Cooke: Sunder literally is “to break apart”, “to sever” or “a division”. So sunder represents loss. A loss of perspective, a separation from yourself, from ones childhood or from ones idea of freedom or happiness. Whatever the viewer feels they’ve misplaced.
Here we are, its day four with the talented Ms. Cooke. This week we have learned a great deal about life, and how people perceive the possibilities of their own personal destinations. Tomorrow will be a fun closing, where I ask some simple questions, and she gives good answers. Today will be one question, closing this particular conversation, for now. It has been a pleasure reliving some of my own thoughts from the old days. Its not every day an 18 yr old takes questions about life from someone who is 29. But this piece did that, and age only suggests one thing in this interview. We all have a desitny, we all choose the path, you can be 18, you can be 29, hell you can be 89. What you do today, will transition into what you do tomorrow. We all have to choose based on the relative nature of our own individual lives. I choose to write this piece, Kenzie chooses to suggest to the world a different pace, and a recognition that getting older doesn’t mean you have to stop living. I admire this young artist for using her abilities for something as serious and palpable as life, and its seemingly popular course of giving up the dream – we all have dreams, here’s to living them.
Twilight Frequencies: I think we all notice how much our society has evolved. Sunder does a really good job translating the ecology within that evolution. Most notably how much more freedom we all have as our younger selves, and how the atmosphere within our individual cycles dictates the reality. Why do you think life becomes that way? Why is growing up represented in Sunder by the unfortunate office space, as opposed to the freedom of running through a field, or exploring the curiosities of adolescents?
Kenzie Cooke: I wouldn’t really know what exactly could steer a life in that direction, maybe just at a certain point feeling a sense of responsibility or obligation, maybe with new knowledge or realizations on different levels of consciousness. I wouldn’t even say that ‘growing up’ is the source of this kind of separation, something deeper rooted than that.
Twilight Frequencies: The music is so fitting for the different periods of life. Give us an idea how you chose the soundtrack. Who are the Artists?
Kenzie Cooke with her band Hear Hums. Photography by Ralph Giunta
Kenzie Cooke: Some of the songs I knew I wanted to use as soon as I had a good visualization of the film in my head. I immediately knew “Sis Around the Sandmil” by Avey Tare and Kria Brekkan would be perfect for the Childhood sequence because of its magical, curious mood. It reminds me of just waking up, of yawning and opening your eyes and seeing so much that you didn’t see before. We used Avey Tare and Kria Brekkan a few times, Animal Collective as well. For the songs we weren’t already sure of, we basically went through my iTunes and listened for the right mood.
Twilight Frequencies: Adulthood seems to evoke such a bittersweet time in “Sunder,” do you think being at the latter stages of life is bittersweet? If so, why?
Kenzie Cooke: I’m sure that it is. I’m definitely still in the earlier stages being 18 and Marcos 17, so our interpretation of adulthood was definitely a speculated perspective. I certainly don’t believe that the latter stages of life have to be the way adulthood was represented in Sunder. In fact, I hope that they are not. The ideas portrayed in Sunder represent, for me, one possible reality that many people fall into. Again this is just based on an accumulated general perception, that may actually represent a subconscious fear of my own. Becoming disconnected with a childlike perspective, loosing a sense of wonder or passion. Feeling as if you’re stuck or fallen into a way of life you never pictured for yourself. I’ve felt this actualized in other people i’ve encountered too many times to not address the possibility.
Twilight Frequencies: It’s funny to think back to when I was a child, and a teenager. Your imagery couldn’t be more cogent in that regard. How has your past influenced the sensory you put forth in Sunder? Is the premise autobiographical?
Kenzie Cooke:We wanted the different stages of life to be reminiscent of as many possible experiences as we could in order to really make it powerful for the greatest amount of viewers, so we tried to be vague enough to encompass as many emotions as possible. Of course though, we were biased in what we chose to shoot and on some level the sensory is a reflection of myself as well as Marcos’s combined pasts. We talked about the different experiences of adolescence and childhood and tried to take events vague enough to be relevant to a good amount of people, like the first interactions with love and exploration of the body. It became autobiographical through the emotions we attached to the experiences with the use of color, timing, texture, etc. So the premise is in a sense autobiographical as well, but I’d hope that it feels that way for many people.
Twilight Frequencies: Recently I have been reading into religion, most notably Natural vs Supernatural. Does Sunder’s origins come from a religious Lens?
Kenzie Cooke: No, it wasn’t really influenced by religion.
