“Forever Young At Heart”
By Filmmaker Barbara Allen
July 31st, 2008
Welcome to my blog! It’s true! I did fall in love with the chorus….here’s how.
I moved to Northampton in 1992 and I remember my neighbor saying I had to see some wild senior citizen’s chorus. According to her, they were one of the main things that made Northampton great. (There’s lots of other things, but that’s for another time.) So, trying to make a good impression on my neighbor, I begrudgingly went to what I thought would be a boring show.
WOW, was I wrong! I laughed, I cried, I was moved. I was so moved that when a few years later when I had one of my several mid life crises, I decided to make a film about the chorus. I approached Bob Cilman the director, and he loved the idea.
So I jumped in and began filming. I had never edited before and bought a computer and editing system and spent millions and millions (or what felt like millions) of hours editing the footage. I also spent millions and millions of my money on the making of the film. Okay, that’s another exaggeration too…it just felt that way!
Anyway, I edited part time for months. I remember one time during the winter I was sitting in jeans and a gray sweatshirt editing Ralph as Carol Channing talking about her gorgeous gown. Somehow I felt very plain and boring and found myself laughing at the thought. There I sat feeling boring, which is what I had stereotypically thought the chorus was…boring. I love the lessons life teaches me.
That was 1992, since then, I’ve continued working on various projects and improved my editing skills. So earlier this year, I re-edited the film, added new footage, and trimmed some slow scenes. Wahlah! Here it is, the new version of Forever Young At Heart! I hope you all find this film inspirational!
So, here is my first entry into blogland and I will continue and invite you to check back often. I hope that you folks that have seen my film will join in too…I’d love to hear from you.