Yesterday I met Juan Jose again. He's a Spaniard living in Cuzco who runs an agency that organizes shamanic and alternative healing programs in the Peruvian jungle. He's written a treatment for a documentary about shamans and thinks I'm a guy who can help find money or distribution for it in the US market. To my surprise, I agreed to meet again. At first I was wary. For one thing, the perception I'm an instant pipeline to money because of my American passport or resume. Two, the shaman/alternative healing theme. Personally it's an interest of mine - but God (or whatever term Shamans use) only knows how many people probably have pitched films on the subject. But Juan seems to have actual connections to Spanish funding and distribution in Madrid, which I researched a bit, and wants me to meet with them next month here in Lima. Also, I like him personally - he's a thoughtful guy, a pharmacist by background who's really got knowledge about the topic. And Raul and I have talked about pitching other projects with a shared cross-cultural theme. This could fit as another project in the pipeline. But I must be diligent about not getting distracted or wasting time, there is none to waste.
By the way, the log entry title refers to one of my favorite documentaries of all time, Sherman's March by Ross McElwee. I think when I started yearning to make a documentary I had something like that in mind - personal, funny, quirky, moving.
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