Director’s Notes by Tamara Scherbak

“The War Will End”
We wanted to invoke the spirit and determination of the Civil Rights Movement and early sixties protest marches. To show that the barriers created to divide us must be torn down to promote peace. No matter what our background or opinions may be, we are all united by our desire to see our children and loved ones safe without the terror of war and hatred. B.A. Markus’ lyrics and imagery lent themselves well as slogans for the protest signs used in the video. The dignified and solemn yet impassioned stares of the mothers, fathers, and children says it all: the war must come to an end. I find this song to be a very necessary commentary for the world at the moment and I hope the video helps highlight this necessity. I applaud the crew, cast and Michael for all their fine work on the project and hope all those lovely kids weren’t too bored by the stops and starts of the filmmaking process. I must add that I’m especially impressed by Michael, who practiced for who-knows-how-long in front of a mirror with the recorded version of the song just to get his performance spot on. Now that’s dedication.

“Going Across The Sea”
Michael’s children inspired the idea to create a video that could have been made by children. This is why all those childhood arts and craft staples are used: Popsicle sticks, construction paper, beads, etc. Not only that but video actually features animated paper puppets of Michael Jerome Browne’s family, adding a nice personal element – turning it into a mini family storybook of sorts. As anyone who has animated anything knows, it can be quite a time-consuming practice but it was great fun. I’m also glad that the amazing ‘critter’ banjo gets to be featured in the video.