Mister Rogers, Avid & Me

Well, that didn't take long. Or did it?

Two weeks ago, my brother handed off a hard drive loaded with "Mister Rogers & Me" footage, and taught me Avid Editing 101.

After a fifteen-day period that included ten of travel (and one marathon), I sat down in front of the computer to get started.

You'll recall that I first met Mister Rogers in September, 2001. Principle photography for our little, DIY documentary began in June, 2006. We've been steadily chipping away ever since, including weekend shoots in Washington, DC, Durham, NC, Fredericksburgh, VA, Pittsburgh, PA, and Nantucket, MA.

We've interviewed Tim Russert, Susan Stamberg, Bo Lozoff, Amy Hollingsworth, Tim Madigan, Marc Brown, and Linda Ellerbee.

Last summer, we applied to Independent Film Week, but didn't make the cut. Chris found out he was going to be a father for the third time. I found out I was going to run MTV News.

So here we are, eight years later. I spent most of last night poking around Avid. It's like the most-complicated, 3D puzzle you can imagine. Worse, with my level of competence, it's like assembling that puzzle with my nose. At this rate, it'll be another eight years before anyone sees this sweet, little story..

So I just sent two emails: one to Save Mister Rogers founder Brian Linder, and Nerdcore Rising director Negin Farsad. Because I'm inches away from a) launching a fundraiser and b) hiring a professional to finishing this thing.

Stay tuned...