An Update!
about 7 years ago
– Thu, Mar 14, 2019 at 09:02:33 PM
Hello Backers,
I'm so sorry for how long it's been since my last update. Time has flown past.
Thank you so much for the kind wishes and sweet messages you sent about the birth of my daughter. Renee Jeanne is getting bigger and stronger and funnier and sweeter every day and, as much as I'd like to spend my every waking moment doting on her, my wife Jen has been looking after your interests and using her maternity leave to largely go on adventures or sit in local cafes with the baby so that I can finish the book without distraction.
The good news (and, actually, there is no bad news) is that the book is now finished. I'm really happy with it. The autobiography is at the very centre of it and I hope you'll find all of the supplemental material that I've created to contextualize, explain and expand on the document useful and enjoyable. I recently conducted really fascinating and fun interviews with Serge Bromberg (the man probably most responsible for protecting Méliès's legacy and finding so many of his lost films) and Bryony Dixon, the silent film curator of the BFI. Both interviews are fully transcribed and included, as is a short interview I did with film-maker Michel Gondry for the BFI a few years ago in which he talks about sci-fi and touches upon Méliès. The BFI have kindly given me permission to reproduce that.
There's loads more stuff in the book, but I'll release the full contents later on.
The book has been illustrated by Lucy Collin, whose work I adore. She worked hard on getting the right very sparse but very kinetic style and, in some ways, Georges will be your guide through the book. I think she's really captured his energy and physicality. Here's a little sneak preview:
I've also been working hard with the designer on the final layout and aesthetic of the book. I wanted sections to feel modern but also to overall retain the feel of the Victorian fantasy that Méliès's work evokes. In a sense, I've always imagined it a bit like a Victorian kids book with quite decorative lettertypes and design but balancing that with the material has been interesting. I think we've found a great look and am eagerly awaiting the final assembled proof.
I feel like I'm still on track for an April completion and I'm hoping delivery will be swift. Because this is my first hardback book and I want the final product to have a high quality, I'm going to have to have it printed overseas - this is already proving to be slightly stressful and I suspect if there are any delays to be had it will be due to production but I think I'm very close to closing a deal regarding that. I got the ISBN all sorted out last week and all of those other practical issues are starting to fall into place.
Basically, the book is on it's way.
In other news, I'm getting lots of emails about address changes - although I appreciate it, please wait until I ask for them. Before the mailout, I'll be asking for final addresses. So sit tight!
Also, have you guys seen the doc Saving Brinton yet? Gosh, it's such a beautiful film - it got me quite emotional in places. If you love film, you should see it - it has particular Méliès interest, too. On that subject, the fairly recent doc Dawson City Frozen Time by the very brilliant Bill Morrison is an essential watch too. If there's one thing that I've learned writing this book (and, actually, I've learned A LOT of things) it's that the locating, preserving and restoring of our earliest cinema heritage is one of the most passionate and unsung endeavours currently occurring. The clock is ticking on film - much of the important work which remains undiscovered in attics or basements will by now have deteriorated almost to the point of being unsalvageable. So do think about supporting your local film archive/institute and labels like Lobster Films and Flicker Alley.
That's all from me for now - as always, feel free to get in touch and, providing Brexit hasn't reduced my country to the Mad Max style dystopia so many of my fellow citizens seem to be hell-bent on, I should have a book for you fairly soon!
All the very best,
Jon
