"the real story was allowed to evolve" The project was developed over a 3 year period by four key people, namely James Hersov (executive producer), Ellen Windemuth (producer and distributor), and Craig and Damon Foster (directors and DOP's), in association with WIMSA, the Working Group of Indigenous Minorities in Southern Africa. The films are the first productions ever to be created, throughout all stages, in full collaboration with the San (Bushmen) themselves. The intention is to do the same with the proposed book and CD. The central concept is the search by the filmmakers to witness, record and try to understand what is called by the San, "the chasing hunt''. It is an archetype for the iconic struggle between the hunter and the hunted. It has a powerful spiritual dimension in addition to being an extraordinary feat of endurance and tracking expertise in extremis. We attempt to place it in the rich context of San hunting and gathering in general as well as their mythology and powerful spirituality. While hunting and the search for meat in particular is a fundamental sub plot to "The Great Dance", the San do not separate hunting from tracking from dancing from storytelling from trance. In this way, a true hunter's story encompasses a holistic demonstration of the power of living with the land, the people and the animals. It is only the Western mind that separates and misunderstands. The book will also deal with the contemporary socio-political issues that face the San, and the relevance of the old ways for them, and for the western world today. We allow the story, the landscape, and the characters to influence and "create" the style of filmmaking. The initial shooting phase captured the unique connection between the !Xo San hunters and the animals - they described feelings of becoming the animals and so miniature camera systems were designed to be mounted on the animals that they spoke about - cheetah, springbok and birds. Visuals of these were then taken back to the San, and they helped select those that best fitted their sensations while tracking. Similarly, cameras were mounted on the spears and arrows, the most powerful symbols of their technology. Most of the soundtrack is composed of, or inspired by organic matter - rocks, sand, feathers, and quills from the Kalahari - all these things are played like musical instruments. Ambient sound recording was taken of the insects, birds and animals after the rain, and the music draws on these natural sounds and rhythms. The script is based on the words of the hunters themselves. The rough-cut was taken back to the Kalahari for them to comment on. As trust developed between filmmakers and hunters, a number of practices not previously well-known to anthropologists were exposed, especially certain phases of the legendary "chasing hunt" where the hunters risk their lives by running down large antelope in the fierce heat of the day. Three of the five digital tape cameras used were destroyed in the quest for radical shots. One was broken by dozens of vultures as the camera was mounted underneath a carcass, on which they were feeding. Nevertheless, most of this footage was recovered. The film and story was never prescribed in advance. Rather, the real story was allowed to evolve over a period of two years in a continual process of shooting, editing, shooting and editing. Research ended when the film ended.

Interview with the Director

 

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