Please join us Tuesday, August 3rd, for the premiere of a new short Monarch film for kids titled “The Marvelous Magnificent Migrating Monarch!” The film will be airing all week through the library. You’ll learn about the special connection Monarchs have to Cape Ann, how you can help the butterflies, and how to raise Monarchs from eggs found in your own backyard, meadows, and local dunes.
My deepest gratitude and thanks to all who are contributing to the second phase of launching Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly out into the world, the world of Public Television. To date we have raised close to $18,000.00 toward our $51,000.00 goal.
Thank you so very much to all these kind contributors:
Lauren Mercadante, Jonathan and Sally Golding, James Masciarelli, Pete and Bobbi Kovner, Karrie Klaus (Boston), Sally Jackson, Marion Frost (Ipswich), Joy Van Buskirk (Florida), Lillian and Craig Olmstead, Suki and Fil Agusti (Rockport), Janis Bell, Nina Groppo, Nubar Alexanian, Marguerite Matera, Claudia Bermudez, Thomas Hauck, Judith Foley (Woburn), Jane Paznik-Bondarin (New York), Paul Vassallo (Beverly), Stella Martin, Liv Hauck (California), Julia Williams Robinson (Minnesota), Cynthia Dunn, Diane Gustin, Heidi Shiver (Pennsylvania), John Ronan, Karen Maslow,Fernando Arriaga (Mexico City), Holly Nipperus (Arizona), Kristina Gale (California), Maggie Debbie, Kate and Peter Van Demark (Rockport), Mia Nehme (Beverly), Chicki Hollet, Alice Gardner (Beverly), Therese Desmarais (Rockport), Jennie Meyer, Kathy Gerdon Archer (Beverly), Melissa Weigand (Salem), Duncan Todd (Lexington), Catherine Ryan, Linda Bouchard (Danvers), Elaine Mosesian, Paul Wegzyn (Ipswich), Catherine Bayliss, Jan Waldman (Swampscott), and Alessandra Borges (Woonsocket RI).
SOOOO many Monarch eggs!Female Monarch depositing eggs on Common Milkweed buds
My goodness, I don’t recall a July like this in forever. The females are depositing eggs on leaves, buds, and for the first time that I have ever observed, today depositing eggs on seedpods! Not sure if I captured that but will post if so.
Female Monarch depositing egg, left, drinking nectar, right
Please join me, along with the youngest members of your family. I have created a short film for Cape Ann young people for the Sawyer Free Library titled TheMarvelous Magnificent Migrating Monarch – here is the link and more information: August 3rd – August 6th, Tuesday through Friday, 10:00 to 10:30. Children’s Services Summer Reading Program “Tails and Tales” presents Monarch Butterflies with Kim Smith! Kim created a short film and virtual presentation to share these beautiful creatures with children and families, and see how Gloucester is a part of their amazing migration journey! Register here and we will send you the link to enjoy this presentation throughout the week starting Tuesday August 3rd.
While sitting in my garden watching the female Monarchs bump into each other in their eagerness to deposit eggs, our resident Mama Ruby-throated Hummingbird stopped by for her (at least) three times daily sips of nectar from the native honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens ‘John Clayton.’ At this time of year she’s also drinking nectar from the Rose of Sharon, Mexican Sunflowers, Zinnias, Cardinal Climber, and several other species of honeysuckle.
Plant and they will come.
I would love locate her nest, but it’s such a jungle of pollinator plants in my garden I know I’ll never find it. Ruby-throated hummingbirds nest are about the size of a walnut half and the egg, only as big as 8mm pearls.
I hope you are all doing well. It’s been a bit of a tumultuous past two weeks. Many of you have heard but I don’t want anyone to be surprised not knowing, so first the not-so-great-news is that I broke my leg. It’s going to take a number of months before I am back on my feet, literally, but not figuratively 🙂 Our darling daughter Liv is here visiting for what was supposed to be her vacation and she, our son Alex, and husband Tom are being fantastically helpful. I’ll soon be able to work from my desk and the forced confinement means that I’ll be able to get more work done on fundraising and beloved film projects.
The super exciting news is that Beauty on the Wing has been accepted to the 37th annual Boston Film Festival!The festival dates are September 23rd through the 27th. This year the film will be part virtual and part in person screenings. This is a fantastic festival and the organizers are simply a stellar group of people. When I have more information, I’ll let you know.
Have you been seeing more Monarchs in your garden and in meadows this past month? We have definitely been having a lovely influx, a greater number of Monarchs than in the past several years. It’s so beautiful to see. I’ve released a number of butterflies this past week, and currently have them in all stages in our terrariums, from the teeny tiniest newly emerged to chrysalides and adults.
A friend wrote to ask if these beauties we are currently seeing are the parents of the Super generation, or Methuselah Monarchs, the generation that flies to Mexico. They may very well be, but there could also be one more generation after this.
Monarchs don’t generally drink nectar from roses, especially hybridized roses. This variety is a very old Bourbon Rose that is divinely fragrant. The male was vigorously patrolling our garden looking for females and stopped frequently at the rose to rest before beginning pursuit again.
Please join me, along with the youngest members of your family. I have created a short film for Cape Ann young people for the Sawyer Free Library titled TheMarvelous Magnificent Migrating Monarch – here is the link and more information: August 3rd – August 6th, Tuesday through Friday, 10:00 to 10:30. Children’s Services Summer Reading Program “Tails and Tales” presents Monarch Butterflies with Kim Smith! Kim created a short film and virtual presentation to share these beautiful creatures with children and families, and see how Gloucester is a part of their amazing migration journey! Register here and we will send you the link to enjoy this presentation throughout the week starting Tuesday August 3rd.
My deepest gratitude and thanks to all who are contributing to the second phase of launching Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly out into the world, the world of Public Television. To date we have raised close to $18,000.00 toward our $51,000.00 goal. Thank you so very much to all these kind contributors:
Lauren Mercadante, Jonathan and Sally Golding, James Masciarelli, Pete and Bobbi Kovner, Karrie Klaus (Boston), Sally Jackson, Marion Frost (Ipswich), Joy Van Buskirk (Florida), Lillian and Craig Olmstead, Suki and Fil Agusti (Rockport), Janis Bell, Nina Groppo, Nubar Alexanian, Marguerite Matera, Claudia Bermudez, Thomas Hauck, Judith Foley (Woburn), Jane Paznik-Bondarin (New York), Paul Vassallo (Beverly), Stella Martin, Liv Hauck (California), Julia Williams Robinson (Minnesota), Cynthia Dunn, Diane Gustin, Heidi Shiver (Pennsylvania), John Ronan, Karen Maslow,Fernando Arriaga (Mexico City), Holly Nipperus (Arizona), Kristina Gale (California), Maggie Debbie, Kate and Peter Van Demark (Rockport), Mia Nehme (Beverly), Chicki Hollet, Alice Gardner (Beverly), Therese Desmarais (Rockport), Jennie Meyer, Kathy Gerdon Archer (Beverly), Melissa Weigand (Salem), Duncan Todd (Lexington), Catherine Ryan, Linda Bouchard (Danvers), Elaine Mosesian, Paul Wegzyn (Ipswich), Catherine Bayliss, Jan Waldman (Swampscott), and Alessandra Borges (Woonsocket RI).
A joyful sight to see so many Monarchs in the dunes and in our gardens over the weekend! A female flew in and left us with another dozen or so eggs, deposited on the Common Milkweed. She briefly inspected the Whorled Milkweed (Asclepias verticillata) and Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa), but as usual, opted to only lay a batch on leaves and buds of the Common Milkweed.
Early Sunday morning on PiPl watch, several Monarchs flew in from across the bay and later that day, dozens and dozens were spotted drinking nectar and depositing eggs at the Common Milkweed growing at the Good Harbor Beach dunes. The milkweed has been blooming for over a month now and all this rain has kept the blossoms fresh and inviting.
Beeline for the Milkweed!
Save the dates to share Monarchs with the youngest members of your family. I have created a short film for Cape Ann young people for the Sawyer Free Library about the Magnificent Monarch – here is the link and more information: August 3rd – August 6th, Tuesday through Friday, 10:00 to 10:30. Children’s Services Summer Reading Program “Tails and Tales” presents Monarch Butterflies with Kim Smith! Kim creates a short film and virtual presentation to share these beautiful creatures with children and families, and see how Gloucester is a part of their amazing migration journey! Register here and we will send you the link to enjoy this presentation throughout the week starting Tuesday August 3rd.
My deepest gratitude and thanks to all who are contributing to the second phase of launching Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly out into the world, the world of Public Television. To date we have raised over $17,500.00 toward our $51,000.00 goal. Thank you so very much to all these kind contributors:
Lauren Mercadante, Jonathan and Sally Golding, James Masciarelli, Pete and Bobbi Kovner, Karrie Klaus (Boston), Sally Jackson, Marion Frost (Ipswich), Joy Van Buskirk (Florida), Lillian and Craig Olmstead, Suki and Fil Agusti (Rockport), Janis Bell, Nina Groppo, Nubar Alexanian, Marguerite Matera, Claudia Bermudez, Thomas Hauck, Judith Foley (Woburn), Jane Paznik-Bondarin (New York), Paul Vassallo (Beverly), Stella Martin, Liv Hauck (California), Julia Williams Robinson (Minnesota), Cynthia Dunn, Diane Gustin, Heidi Shiver (Pennsylvania), John Ronan, Karen Maslow,Fernando Arriaga (Mexico City), Holly Nipperus (Arizona), Kristina Gale (California), Maggie Debbie, Kate and Peter Van Demark (Rockport), Mia Nehme (Beverly), Chicki Hollet, Alice Gardner (Beverly), Therese Desmarais (Rockport), Jennie Meyer, Kathy Gerdon Archer (Beverly), Melissa Weigand (Salem), Duncan Todd (Lexington), Catherine Ryan, Linda Bouchard (Danvers), Elaine Mosesian, Paul Wegzyn (Ipswich)
Laura Azevedo, Director of Filmmakers Collaborative, and I are featured guests at the 2021 DOCTalks Festival and Symposium that takes place annually (this year virtually from New Brunswick). We will be screening Beauty on the Wing and then discussing myriad topics related to filmmaking. The screening and discussion are FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Please see below to register for the event. Our talk and screening is scheduled to take place June 16th at 7pm (our time), which is actually 8pm Atlantic Daylight Time. I hope you can join us!
Please consider making a tax deductible contribution to our online fundraiser to bring Beauty on the Wing to American Public Television. DONATE HERE and READ MORE HERE
Laura Azevedo, Director of Filmmakers Collaborative, and I are featured guests at the 2021 DOCTalks Festival and Symposium that takes place annually (this year virtually from New Brunswick). We will be screening Beauty on the Wing and then discussing myriad topics related to the filmmaking process. The screening and discussion are FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Please see below to register for the event. The schedule has not yet been finalized but I believe our talk and screening will take place June 16th at 7pm (our time), which is actually 8pm Atlantic Daylight Time.
Earlier on Thursday June 16th, at 1pm (6pm UK time), I screening Beauty on the Wing to the British Mexican Society in London. Thanks to Zoom, it’s going to be an international day for Beauty!
The theme for the 2021 festival and symposium is – DOCTalks Dialogues – a program of conversations that will feature people from various cross-sectors that have associated with DOCTalks over the last nine years (2013 to 2021).
In a ‘relaxed conversational’ format that will feature knowledge-based documentary media – long form documentaries, short videos, podcasts, immersive learning technology, interactive website, social media – DOCTalks Dialogues will explore ‘best practices’ used to create, fund, and mobilize knowledge-based documentary media using a cross-sector collaborative storytelling approach.
Our moderator and host for the DOCTalks Dialogues program will be Catherine D’Aoust from Jemseg, New Brunswick. Enrolled in a Masters program studying linguistics at MUN (Memorial University of Newfoundland), Catherine will also be investigating – How does language and personal intention affect cross-sector collaborative outcomes when producing knowledge-based documentary media?
It should be noted that an underlying narrative for cross-sector, knowledge-based documentary media is – real stories, about real people, living in real communities, addressing real issues, and trying to create real change in society.
We are overjoyed to share that Beauty on the Wing has been selected a semi-finalist at the Dumbo Film Festival. We’ll know on June 11th whether or not we have been selected officially to show at the festival that takes place in September. Keeping my hopes up!
About the Dumbo Film Festival
The Dumbo Film Festival (DFF) is a yearly event structured in bimonthly contests. Every two months, each of the categories will be awarded and a final ceremony will be held every year in New York City’s district of Dumbo to award projects that have been judged the very best over the past year. This structure is meant to highlight both affirmed and emergent filmmakers and to launch promising artists into the world film stage.
Monarchs have been sighted in our region! Before the Memorial Day weekend cold snap, Monarchs as far north as Nova Scotia have been reported. One was spotted in Ipswich and another in Concord, New Hampshire. The chilly temperatures surely put the kibosh temporarily on flight but as soon as it warms again, Monarchs will be on the wing. Map from Journey North of first adult Monarchs sighted
Milkweed growing tip – The most productive milkweed for Monarchs in northern regions is Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), the species you see growing prolifically in dunes, meadows, roadsides, and even in the cracks of sidewalks. By productive I mean that females deposit more eggs on Common Milkweed than any other species. Marsh Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), also know as Swamp Milkweed, is second.
Common Milkweed Good Harbor Beach
We grow patches of both in our gardens. I find Marsh Milkweed is generally slower to emerge than Common. Some of our Common is already two feet tall. Because most Monarchs will not be depositing eggs in our New England gardens for another few weeks, I prune half of the Common Milkweed plants to nubs several inches high. The plants quickly regrow and when the majority of Monarchs arrive, there is new fresh tender foliage emerging. The females prefer to deposit their eggs on new shoots and tender leaves to that of the older, thickened foliage. The flowers of the milkweed plants that aren’t pruned are there for pollinators and for any early bird Monarchs.
Common Milkweed thrives in full sun but also does remarkably well with morning sun and afternoon shade. And as you can see based on the variety of rugged areas from where it emerges, A. syriaca is not fussy in the least about soil!
With gratitude to my generous community, we have raised $16,000.00! We are more than one quarter of the way toward our goal of $51,000.00, which will enable us to distribute Beauty to the national public television audience.
Thank you to all for your very generous donations and kind, thoughtful comments.
Lauren Mercadante, James Masciarelli, Pete and Bobbi Kovner, Karrie Klaus (Boston), Sally Jackson, Marion Frost (Ipswich), Joy Van Buskirk (Florida), Lillian and Craig Olmstead, Suki and Fil Agusti (Rockport), Janis Bell, Nina Groppo, Nubar Alexanian, Marguerite Matera, Claudia Bermudez, Thomas Hauck, Judith Foley (Woburn), Jane Paznik-Bondarin (New York), Paul Vassallo (Beverly), Stella Martin, Liv Hauck (California), Julia Williams Robinson (Minnesota), Cynthia Dunn, Diane Gustin, Heidi Shiver (Pennsylvania), John Ronan, Karen Maslow, Fernando Arriaga (Mexico City), Holly Nipperus (Arizona), Kristina Gale (California), Maggie Debbie, Kate and Peter Van Demark (Rockport), Mia Nehme (Beverly), Chicki Hollet, Alice Gardner (Beverly), Therese Desmarais (Rockport), Jennie Meyer, Kathy Gerdon Archer (Beverly)
For more information about the film and how to donate, please see the following links:
With gratitude to my generous community, we have raised over $15,000.00! We are more than one quarter of the way toward our goal of $51,000.00, which will enable us to distribute Beauty to the national public television audience.
We had our first contribution from Mexico, too. Thank you Fernando!
Last week, I had the joy to present Beauty on the Wing to the O’Maley Innovation School students. See post here.
Thank you to all for your very generous donations and kind, thoughtful comments.
Lauren Mercadante, James Masciarelli, Sally Jackson, Marion Frost (Ipswich), Karrie Klaus (Boston), Joy Van Buskirk (Florida), Lillian and Craig Olmstead, Suki and Fil Agusti (Rockport), Janis Bell, Nina Groppo, Nubar Alexanian, Marguerite Matera, Claudia Bermudez, Thomas Hauck, Judith Foley (Woburn), Jane Paznik-Bondarin (New York), Paul Vassallo (Beverly), Stella Martin, Liv Hauck (California), Julia Williams Robinson (Minnesota), Cynthia Dunn, Diane Gustin, Heidi Shiver (Pennsylvania), John Ronan, Karen Maslow, Fernando Arriaga (Mexico City), Holly Nipperus (Arizona), Kristina Gale (California), Maggie Debbie, Kate and Peter Van Demark (Rockport), Mia Nehme (Beverly), Chicki Hollet, Alice Gardner (Beverly), Therese Desmarais (Rockport)
For more information about the film and how to donate, please see the following links:
I love the above photo because it shows how Common Milkweed supports so many many species of wildlife. There is a Monarch and a honey bee drinking nectar and also, adjacent to the single floret on the upper right, you can see a spider trapped a moth in its web. Smart spider to spin its web where so many insects may be found!
Last week I had the joy of presenting my Monarch documentary Beauty on the Wing to a wonderful bunch of sixth, seventh, and eighth grade O’Maley students. I was invited by the school’s Spanish teacher Heidi Wakeman. Ardis Francour’s library media classes participated as well. The kids were wonderfully engaged and asked the best questions!
Heidi shared their thank you notes. I am so impressed by the kids expressive notes and drawings. Here are just some of their thoughts : Olivia writes, “…The documentary was super interesting and informed me on a topic I didn’t know much about…, ” and Brady writes, ” My favorite part was when you showed the butterfly escaping the chrysalis.” I shared the notes with my husband this morning and we both enjoyed Cassidy’s comment, …”It is crazy that it took ten years to make, that must take a lot of dedication and patience.” Yes, Cassidy it does take a lot of dedication and patience, and YES, it is a bit crazy!
Thanks so much again O’Maley students, Heidi, Ardis, and the Gloucester Cultural Council! it was My Joy!
$12,000.00 raised the first week! I am so humbled by everyone’s kind generosity THANK YOU, THANK YOU TO ALL WHO ARE DONATING TO OUR ONLINE FUNDRAISER FOR BEAUTY ON THE WING: LIFE STORY OF THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY!
We currently have one underwriter (with thanks and gratitude for her extraordinarily generous gift) and a number of wonderfully generous contributors. We are more than one fifth of the way to meeting our goal of $51,000.00!!!
Thank you with all my heart to the following donors who have contributed so generously to this second phase of fundraising and are helping to bring Beauty on the Wing to a national television audience.
Lauren Mercadante, James Masciarelli, Sally Jackson, Marion Frost, Karrie Klaus, Lillian and Craig Olmstead, Suki and Fil Agusti, Nina Groppo, Nubar Alexanian, Marguerite Matera, Claudia Bermudez, Thomas Hauck, Judith Foley, Jane Paznik-Bondarin, Paul Vassallo, Stella Martin, Liv Hauck, Julia Williams Robinson, Cynthia Dunn, Diane Gustin, Heidi Shiver, John Ronan, Karen Maslow
Please consider making a tax deductible contribution to funding distribution for Beauty on the Wing. We need underwriters and donors for the next phase, to distribute Beauty to a national public television audience. All contributions, large and small, will be listed on the film’s website and on American Public Television’s website. For more information, please go here:
Underwriters, those donating substantial sums, will be featured at the beginning and end of the film. For more information about underwriting, please email me at kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com
Thursday I am super excited to be presenting Beauty on the Wing to the Spanish students at O’Maley Innovation Middle School. This program was organized by Heidi Wakeman. I plan to do more of these screenings and QandAs with young people and will let you know how it goes!
We are overjoyed to share Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly wins an environmental award at the Toronto International Women Film Festival!
Last week we were accepted to the Montreal Independent Film Festival. It’s very meaningful to me that audiences in Toronto and Montreal are finding Beauty relevant as southeastern Canada is an important breeding area for the Monarchs.
I hope so much you will consider making a tax-deductible donation. We are seeking $51,000.00 to cover the cost of distribution and only have a few short months to raise the funds. We are looking for underwriters and donors for the next phase, to distribute Beauty to a national public television audience. All contributions, large and small, will be listed on the film’s website and on American Public Television’s website. For more information, please go here:
Underwriters, those donating substantial sums, will be featured at the beginning and end of the film. For more information about underwriting, please email me at kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com
Thursday I am super excited to be presenting Beauty on the Wing to the Spanish students at O’Maley Innovation Middle School. This program was organized by Heidi Wakeman. I plan to do more of these screenings and QandAs with young people and will let you know how it goes!
I have the most wonderful, exciting news to share. Our documentary Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly has been accepted for distribution by the American Public Television Exchange market, which means that within the year, you will be watching Beauty from your living room, on your local public television station!
American Public Television Exchange is the largest source of free programming to US public television stations, covering virtually every market in the country (nearly 350 stations). APT writes that they expect the documentary “to engage and delight public television viewers of all ages who are interested in nature, conservation, and our planet’s amazing ecosystems.”
What happens next? Beauty on the Wing needs underwriters and donors! The total distribution cost to bring the documentary to public television is just over $51,000.00. We only have several months to raise the funds. Please consider donating to the distribution of Beauty through my tax deductible online fundraiser at Network for Good. The link is here.
If you have donated previously to the fundraiser for the post-productions costs, I am so grateful for your generosity. Because of your kind contribution, Beauty on the Wing is doing exceptionally well at film festivals and has received a number of awards. If the distribution phase of the project is of interest, please consider a second donation.
Film screenings and awards to date include:
Winner Best Documentary Boston International Kid’s Film Festival
Winner Best Feature Film Providence International Children’s Film Festival
Environment Award Toronto International Women Film Festival
Outstanding Excellence Nature Without Borders Documentary Film Festival
Outstanding Excellence Women’s International Film Festival
New Haven Documentary Film Festival
Montreal Independent Film Festival
Flicker’s Rhode Island International Film Festival
Docs Without Borders International Film Festival
The names of supporters contributing $10,000.00 and over will be promoted in the film’s underwriting credit pod. What does it mean to be an underwriter? As an example, when you watch a show on public television and the announcer says, “This show was brought to you by Katherine and Charles Cassidy, by The Fairweather Foundation, by Lillian B. Anderson, and by The Arnhold Family, in Memory of Clarisse Arnhold,” that’s where your name, or the name of your foundation, will appear. APT allows for up to 30 seconds per film and your name or promo will appear at both the beginning and at the end of the film.
Please write and let me know if you would like more information about underwriting, including a complete budget, along with APT’s underwriting guidelines. Email at kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com.
All donors, no matter how large or small the donation, will be listed on the film’s website and on APT’s website. Any amount contributed is tremendously appreciated!
Thank you for being part of launching Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly onto the national television stage!
With gratitude,
Kim
A brief overview of the film – Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly is a 56-minute narrated documentary film that takes place along the shores of Cape Ann and in the heart of Mexico’s forested volcanic mountains. Filmed in Gloucester, Massachusetts and the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserves at Estado de México and Michoacán, the film illuminates how two regions, separated by thousands of miles, are ecologically interconnected. See more at monarchbutterflyfilm.com
Thank you all so very much for taking the time to respond to my ‘survey’ question about how you view films. Wow, what a variety of answers. I am working on a plan for Everyone to view!
Such a disappointingly light Monarch migration through Cape Ann this autumn but the shift in wind direction at the beginning of the week produced a tiny sprinkling of butterflies. Friends along the New Jersey coast are reporting good numbers the past few days. You can see on the map from Journey North how few overnight roosts have been recorded on the East Coast. Typically the map is much more densely colored: Monarch Butterfly Overnight Roosts 2020 Hopefully the migration will strengthen in the central part of the country
Stay well and take care,
Very best wishes,
Kim
Migrating Monarch in the garden fattening up on nectar at the pink New England Asters
I hope you are all doing well and fortunate enough to have good health.
After a brief cold snap we are having a beautiful Indian Summer here on Cape Ann. I hope you have the opportunity to get outdoors today and enjoy nature. Bird and butterfly migrations are well underway. At Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, rangers shared that they have never seen a migration such as this year’s, with over 180 species sited at the refuge this past week. The birds appear to have benefitted from decreased human activity over the past seven months. On the other hand, the Atlantic Coast Monarch migration seems stalled or nonexistent. Perhaps we will have a late, great migration as we did several years ago. And there are some positive signs for the butterflies, especially through the Mississippi Flyway as Monarch Waystations further north, such as the one at Point Pelee have been reporting that the Monarch migration is doing well. I’ve seen Monarchs migrating through Cape Ann in good numbers as late as the second week of October, so we’ll be ever hopeful.
Good news to share -the page for Beauty on the Wing is up on American Public Television World Wide! Here is the link, including information with a link on how to license Beauty. The page looks great and the line-up of films, stellar. We are so honored to be included in this fine catalogue of Science, Health, and Nature Programming!
And more super good news to share – Beauty on the Wing has been accepted to the Boston International Kids Film Festival! This is an outstanding festival for kids, by kids, and about kids and is organized by a dynamic group of women: Laura Azevedo, Kathleen Shugrue, and Natalia Morgan. A complete list of films for the 2020 BIKFF will be posted in the upcoming days, along with information on how the festival will be organized for safe viewing during the pandemic.
I have been following (or become enchanted is a more accurate description) a small flock of Bobolinks. Click here to read a story posted on my website: Bobolinks Amongst the Sunflowers. While reading about Bobolinks, I came across a link to The Bobolink Project, a truly worthwhile organization. The Bobolink Project habitat conservation plan not only helps Bobolinks, but many species of declining grassland birds.
The sun is coming out and the temperature still summery. Stay well and enjoy the day!
If you would like to license Beauty on the Wing or would like more information, please follow the above link and click on the Contact Us box. Thank you!
For more information about the documentary Beauty on the Wing and the Monarch Butterfly migration, visit the film’s website here: Beauty on the Wing
The Gloucester Stage Company’s preview screening of my forthcoming documentary Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly has been postponed until May. We don’t have a set date yet and I will keep you posted.
If you have already purchased tickets you will be contacted by the GSC box office. You will have the option of a full refund or the ticket my be used at the screening on its new date.
Please forgive any inconvenience and thank you for understanding ❤
I am beyond excited to share that we have been able to license the music that I dreamed about for my Monarch Butterfly documentary. This may not sound like a huge deal, but we have been working towards this for several years. The four songs were composed and arranged by world renowned guitarist Jesse Cook and they are: “You,” “Fields of Blue,” Afternoon at Saties,” and “El Cri.” My husband, Tom, introduced me to Jesse’s music, and from the moment I heard it, I knew that we would find music to score Beauty on the Wing from his repertoire of beautiful songs
Jesse Cook: Beyond Borders is his newest concert special and begins airing on WGBH tonight at 8:30pm!
Beyond Borders is Cook’s most recent album and while touring the record over a 31 day period, from Canadian coast to Canadian coast, they filmed the performances in 4k every night. “The result is an immersive musical journey that treats the audience to a sense of being on stage with the band from the opening note to its energetic finale.”
From PBS:
JESSE COOK: BEYOND BORDERS
Premieres March 2, 2019 on PBS
– A Musical Journey with the Genre Bending Guitarist –
JESSE COOK: BEYOND BORDERS, the latest concert special by the acoustic guitar virtuoso, was filmed over the 31 days of his coast-to-coast tour of Canada. Instead of filming just one show in one night, the cameras rolled every night, allowing Jesse to place the best version of each song into this unique concert experience. The result is an immersive musical journey that treats the audience to a sense of being on stage with the band from the opening note to its energetic finale — a Jesse Cook “Rhumba Party.” JESSE COOK: BEYOND BORDERS is part of special programming premiering on PBS stations in March 2019.
Canadian guitarist, composer and producer Jesse Cook blends rumba and flamenco with elements of jazz and world music. He is a three-time winner of Canada’s Smooth Jazz Award for Guitarist of the Year, as well as a Juno Award-winner (Canada’s version of The Grammy) in the Best Instrumental Album category for Free Fall. In 2009, he was Acoustic Guitar’s Player’s Choice Silver Winner in the Flamenco category.
JESSE COOK: BEYOND BORDERS features these performances:
“Beyond Borders”
“Tempest”
“Come What May”
“Hembra”
“Jumpstart”
“Chendy’s Caja” solo
“Dance of Spring”
“Bombay Slam”
“Ho Hey”
“Double Dutch”
Medley (“Bombay Diner,” “Closer to Madness,” “That’s Right,” “Baghdad”)
“Beneath Your Skin”
Jesse Cook, a master guitarist known for his intoxicating fusion of world music, has travelled the globe looking for sounds that resonate with him. “I like finding common ground for different music traditions, a space where music from around the world can come together,” Cook explains. “A place where modern sounds can mix with ancient timbres.”
Writing proposals and organizing the film’s website this past week. This is a longer version of the synopsis. Oh my goodness, the last application was ten pages long. I think (hope) it will get easier the more I do it!
* * *
Beauty on the Wing ~ Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly is a documentary film that tells the story of the monarch butterfly at it unfolds along the shores of Cape Ann and in the heart of Mexico’s forested volcanic mountains. Filmed in Gloucester, Massachusetts and Angangueo, Michoacán, the film illuminates how two communities, separated by 3,000 miles, are ecologically interconnected.
Every stage of the butterfly’s life cycle is experienced in vibrant close-up, from egg to caterpillar to adult. Set against the background of sea and forest, sun and wind, by the millions and millions the intrepid monarchs journey thousands of miles. The most magical thing is that this migration happens in our midst, taking place in backyards, farms, meadows, and along the shoreline, wherever milkweed and wildflowers grow.
The monarch’s life story is one of nature’s most incredible examples of adaptation and survival. There are no other butterflies in the world that journey thousands of miles over such a great and vast area, ecologically linking Canada and Mexico, to nearly every region within the United States.
The story opens in the industrial port of Gloucester, Massachusetts. Well known for her legendary fishing industry, Schooner Festival, Italian feasts and fiestas, rich artistic heritage, and stunning coastline, Gloucester makes up much of the peninsula of Cape Ann, located on the coast of Massachusetts just north of Boston.
As are most regions along the length of the Eastern Seaboard, Cape Ann lies within a largely unrestricted north-south corridor for migratory species of birds and butterflies. This means that birds, butterflies, and other insects travel along the Atlantic flyway without being impeded by either mountain ranges or large bodies of water to cross. There is a tremendous sense of urgency in this great movement of life. Whether traveling by land or by sea, wildlife must reach its seasonal destination while life-sustaining food is abundant.
Cape Ann and Angangueo emerge as characters in the film, places where we have much to gain by preserving the habitats of these unique ecosystems and where, through neglect, the loss will be devastating.
Beauty on the Wing is a film for all ages, created for all to gain a deeper understanding of the symbiotic relationship between habitats, wildflowers, and pollinators, and the vital role that they play in our interconnected ecosystems.
In seeking funding to finish the film, I am currently in the process of writing grant proposals. Recently, I was invited to join the Filmmakers Collaborative, which is a dynamic organization that is providing excellent advice and will also act as the fiscal sponsor for the film. Each filmmaker represented by the Filmmakers Collaborative has a project page on the FC website and I invite you to visit mine here: Filmmakers Collaborative.
I am super excited to write that today I am launching the trailer for my monarch butterfly documentary, Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly. I hope so much you enjoy watching as much as I have loved creating!
I am asking a huge favor of all my Good Morning Gloucester, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram friends and that is to please share the trailer, hit all like buttons, and if you have time, to please comment.
In seeking funding to finish the film, I am currently in the process of writing grant proposals. Recently, I was invited to join the Filmmakers Collaborative, which is a tremendous and well-respected organization that is providing excellent advice and will also act as the fiscal sponsor for the film. Each filmmaker represented by the Filmmakers Collaborative has a project page on the FC website and I invite you to visit mine here: Filmmakers Collaborative.
The next stages in finishing the documentary are title design, audio mixing, and color correcting. I’ll keep you posted on progress made through GMG, the film’s website, and my website.
Look for Pilar, Meadow, and Atticus in the trailer. They were wonderful and I am so appreciative of their assistance. There were additional kids from our East Gloucester troupe that participated in making the film however, I couldn’t squeeze them all in the trailer. I think you’ll love all the children’s parts in the finished film!
For more information about the documentary, please visit the film’s website here: Beauty on the Wing
My most sincerest thanks to everyone for your kind support!
