Imminent Return to Jumla

Time slips by so easily. It has been three months since we finished the first shoot. Sophie returns to Nepal in less than a week and days later we will find ourselves back in Jumla shooting the second phase. Thankfully, there is now a direct flight (once a week) from Kathmandu to Jumla so it makes the journey there a lot easier, rather than going to Nepalganj overnight and then flying from there. I'm looking forward to being back in Jumla so soon, surrounded by its majestic natural beauty and seeing my dear friends there. The warmth and love we experienced from the community is part of what we are trying to share with the world. It truly is a special place.

The past months have seen me slowly trawling through the nearly 60 hours of footage we shot in November, getting parts translated and planning what and who we will be focusing on for the March shoot. If I am honest, it has been quite overwhelming at times as there is so much to work with and so many directions we could go in, but I know that is all part of the process. And the footage is beautiful. The people, the landscape, even the daily existence is compelling to view, so I take comfort in knowing that we are creating something really beautiful. The tricky part is deciding what to omit. And in a matter of weeks, I will have even more to add to the canvas!

I am considering staying on in Jumla after the shoot when Sophie leaves. Although the tulo camera will be gone, it will give me an opportunity to get deeper into the community and get back in touch with life there. As long as I can navigate how to work around available power, I can still edit and review the footage and focus on the story. The lack of readily available internet will probably only serve to remove distractions. What appeals to me the most about working from Jumla is being back at the source of where the initial inspiration for this whole project was born. Although there is still a long journey ahead in the creation of this film, when I look at the last year and a half, I realise, with pride, how far we have actually come.