Adela: 0:06

hello friends, welcome back to the artists within podcast. I am your host, adela hitel, and this podcast is produced and sponsored by project human think a new way to think, new way to think about mental health, new way to think about health, new way to think about being a human being. I can't wait to talk to you guys about so many new things in this episode, and our next guest is so fantastic. But, first and foremost, before we get into the conversation, there's a couple of things I got to announce and I got to say One. I will be going out of town next week. I'm going out to LA to work on the documentary, which is something we've been talking about for the last couple of weeks, and on the podcast itself, but also I've been talking about it for like years now, right, so it's about time, and I'm really, really excited because we're in a position to actually where we have developed the narrative right, because it's always we need to define the narrative. So that's what we're doing, and I'm also, while I'm there, I'm also going to be doing a fashion shoot, which I'm really, really excited about, because it's been so long since I've, like, created and gotten into the space of the creative zone. That's not been the organizational work, that's not been things that are for everybody else Right. So I'm very, very, very, very excited to serve myself.

Adela: 1:17

But again, before we get into that we're going to do that I need to announce a couple of dates that I need you to put on your tentative dates for this year. That is September 27th of 2025. We are going to be having a Fink hosted event and I can't wait to share more information with you on that. But put that date on there. Also, put September 7th as our quarterly mental health day for this year. It is going to be an epic day for us to come out and talk about health and it is the beginning of Suicide Prevention Awareness Week, and September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. So we're going to really be looking into having that deep thought conversation on that, also on my also times.

Adela: 2:00

July 26th is our official online kickoff for so many things, where we will be launching our online fundraiser. We'll be launching our crowdfunding. We'll also be launching the pre-release of the trailer. Many, many, many, many, many, many, many, many things. So please, please, please, mark those dates. I would love your support. Can't wait on that.

Adela: 2:20

Also, speaking of support, I need to stop saying the word. Also, I just realized that I'm also kind of girl. But let's get to the support part. We need you to go into the uh. Go to our website, go join our community, join the Fing community, right? Uh, go subscribe, put your email, put your name in there. I'm not asking for a lot of your information and when you do, you'll get a little PDF file that'll kind of give you a little insight on what we do, called the Roadmap to Functionality, and it's just a little way of us, a little way of our saying wow, what is wrong with my brain? A little way of us saying thank you, hold on. It's so early in the morning. It's so early in the morning it's way earlier for my friend but it's so early in the morning for us to say thank you for your support, for coming on and for you to start navigating your life, like we want you to really really start that. So go join our community, hit the subscribe button on that. Uh, once you do that, go ahead and check out.

Adela: 3:15

Take a look at the artists within podcast. All of our webs, all of our episodes are on there right now. You can listen to them on any of the platforms that you listen to your favorite podcasts on, whether that's Apple Podcasts, spotify, amazon, youtube, google, whatever we're on it, because why we're awesome. So go listen to us. We would love the support. You can also find your Books for Change, something that we've been advocating. Define your Narrative, books for Change, and and again. It's. Our objective is for you to start navigating your life right off the bat. Right now. Let's kick it off. It's important. This is your journey, this is your life, so take a look at that on our website.

Adela: 3:56

Last but not least, we want your support, and how do we want your support? How do I want your support? How do we all want your support? One share, like, subscribe. Do all the great things. We really would love that. Share your feedback with us, your testimony about your life, your story. We would love to hear that. But we also need funding, because we have many, many things that are in the works.

Adela: 4:14

Many, many amazing things in the works. We have a three day mental health summit that we're launching next year. We have a pre-launch this year that we're going to be doing for that. We have programs in the works. We have a documentary. We have a lot of conversations getting ready to come out to you, for you, about mental health and the struggles of existing as a human being, because we really really believe the value of that conversation, because we really believe you're worth the effort, right? So, with that said, go and make a donation. You know, a dollar would be great, five would be awesome, a hundred is even better, more than that, you know, let's have a conversation. I'm down with it, but I am here. I want that. We need it. Let's support it. We appreciate it. Make that donation for us. We would really really love it.

Adela: 4:58

Two, go hit up our YouTube channel, because this is where you'll find all of our episodes, for the video versions of it you'll also find. Of course, for those of you who are listening to our YouTube streaming platform, you'll find the episodes as well on there. Our episodes will pre-launch prior to the video ones. So, again, you'll get to hear this sooner rather than later, and then you'll get to watch this. So please go take a look at that.

Adela: 5:22

Thank you to our 151 subscribers. Can you this? So please go take a look at that. Thank you to our 151 subscribers. Can you believe it? Oh, my goodness, over 20, I think. Seven subscribers in the last month just into the uh for the podcast and our organization. Thank you so much. That means that what we're doing and what we're talking about is meaningful, it's valuable and you are enjoying it. And thank you because that it also gives me the ability and the boost of confidence to keep going. So thank you, thank you, thank you. You'll hear me say thank you a thousand one times, because I'm just so thankful for even one, let alone 151.

Adela: 5:52

So let's go. I have a goal of 10,000. My man Seth over there which I can't wait to introduce you guys to our back team over there in the next couple of weeks but my man Seth over there said, oh, look at the fireworks weeks. But my man Seth over there said, oh, look at the fireworks, hey, hey, fireworks are popping up. Um, he said we can get 10,000. Fireworks are just that confirmation. So let's do that. Countdown begins. So subscribe to our, our channel, hit that subscribe button, subscribe and notification button, because you'll get all of the newest information in there. Whoo, what a breath right, there was so much information to give you all at once.

Adela: 6:26

Now let's have a conversation with my next guest. I'm really excited because this human has, from the beginning of this process. Since I started this organization in 2017, we met in like 2018. And since the beginning, he has been one of my greatest allies, one of my greatest supporters, one of my greatest creative allies, in a way that I just I don't have to think around him in a way of what needs to be done. He gets it done. He has his own perspective, he has his own way of doing things and it's so invigorating whenever we work together, and I can't wait to work together with him coming up because he's visiting next week in LA, so we're doing this pre our visit and then we'll do another one after our visit. So I will be sharing that with you in just a second.

Adela: 7:15

Let me take a sip of tea, okay, so let me introduce you to my man. My man Will Cook. Okay, so let me introduce you to my man. My man will cook. So you guys have heard me talk about him for the longest now, because I mentioned to you that he has directed and helped produce and, uh, uh, capture the and edit the visions that I've had, these ideas that I've had. My rebirth project was all him and his idea, and our crazy moments of in a tub full of water and blow drying my hair on a ladder, like, yes, there is that, you can look at that, that there's an image, I might find a way to pull it up, but that that's that's there. Uh, to our checkmate project where, during the worst of the worst confinement of covid, we're like no, we're gonna do this, and everything falling through and not going our way at all, and yet we're finding a way to do that.

Adela: 8:13

To him now, being an eight-time winner in the film industry and a four-time nominee for his work is so fantastic I it's an honor to know him and to know his work and to see the growth of it. He has produced films and has been featured in the LA Shorts International Film Festival. He's had independent shorts awards in the IndieX Film Spotlight International Film Festival and on and on, which is freaking amazing. He's also produced music video, been the cinematographer for music videos of Billy Morrison featuring Ozzy Osbourne, ministries, new Religion and Lynch Mom, time after time over this last two, three years, and it's just been fantastic to see him grow in so many ways. So again, his latest project that he just finished is called Blood Money and I can't wait for him to share more about that because it's been a project he's been working on for quite a while now and again.

Adela: 9:18

This human is a star in the making and his future is just so bright and I am just so honored that I get the privilege to have him as a friend and, more importantly, not only that, but a creative partner that, in this industry, we kind of tend to lack quite a bit when we need it. So, without further ado, my big man, little brother, little big, awesome, awesome, creative, let me climb the bridge. Friend will cook. William cook, director and cinematographer. Welcome to the podcast, thank you what's up how you doing adela?

Adela: 9:56

I am good. How about you give us a better intro to your biography than I just did?

William: 10:01

oh, I think you nailed it. You got it right there. No, you got it. If it's not on IMBD, it didn't happen. If it's not on IMBD, right right If it's not on IMBD.

Adela: 10:11

it didn't happen Exactly. So yeah, so tell. Let me ask you right off the bat Tell me about how you got into this whole world of creative and cinematography and just filmmaking in general, and how you get to hear now, give us a bit of a background to that.

William: 10:32

Okay, I'll start at the beginning, but I'll summarize the whole thing kind of quick. Out of high school, I didn't know what I wanted to go to college for. I took a couple gap years split around job hunting't know what I wanted to go to college for. I took a couple gap years floated around job hunting. See what I wanted to do, ended up at a social media management company In that area. I floated around a bunch of different jobs and eventually started doing editing and a lot of different video work and started doing commercial spots for their local clients and stuff. And I was like I really like this. And I was like this is what I could go to college for, this is what I could do.

William: 11:11

Little did I know you don't need to go to college for filmmaking. If you want to get into filmmaking, don't go to college. Just go get a business degree, start your own business, do that. Don't get a film degree. You don't need it. Everything you need is on YouTube. I always joke I graduated from YouTube instead, but no, from there in Florida. It was whatever I could get my hands on, you know wedding videos, music videos, little commercial spots for companies, you know eventually, and eventually started getting into a lot of fashion work with you and then kept doing music videos and before I knew it I was out in LA and pursuing a career in film out here, where I started somehow randomly got into reality TV, which has been an interesting industry to be in Not my favorite, I don't watch reality TV that much, but it's a fun job. It's great people typically within the crew. Everyone's just so friendly within crew in reality TV. There's just a nice positive mindset with a lot of people out here.

William: 12:26

You know LA's got a lot of music, did a lot of more music videos out here, kept working on short films on the side. You know, the last one I did was in like 2023, called Tragedy of Senator Abe Froman, and then did one at the beginning of this year, which is as of last week we just submitted to Cannes Film Festival.

Adela: 12:53

Yes.

William: 12:54

So super stoked on that. It was a rush to a deadline. We literally submitted like the day before, but we made it and I'm really stoked on this project, just mainly just because of the crew I was able to get on it. I had a total a-list badass team that, um really just brought 100% to the short film and I think we made something really special with it. I think it's going to do really well in festivals well let me pull up while you're talking about it.

Adela: 13:25

Let me pull up the um, the do, do, do, do while I'm speaking. Let me pull up the um. I can't speak now. Let me pull you up because I could see you. I just can't speak. I've lost my mind. It's so early in the morning, you guys. It's 5 am, 6 am at his time, it's 8 am my time, and we're still waking up to all doing all this. So bar to me when I have brain farts, as I have. But I meant to say let me pull, all right, and guess what Will I've weeks? I mean, I'm actually doing okay. I'm actually doing okay, if I'm being honest, coffee free for three weeks I'm actually doing, okay to be.

William: 14:10

To be quite honest, what I don't have the courage I've been on the tea.

Adela: 14:14

It just happened, it was so natural, it just like happened. I just, you know, I was like I don't want to be bloated in the sugar, and you know me and sugar, I love my sugar. So it was like, naturally my figure decided that it was better for me not to, and now I'm not even mad at it, but I will have tea. I did. I did almost this morning have another one. I did have almost this morning have a coffee and I was like I'll have it, um, and then I was like no, no, no, let me be, let me go be. Good, you know, because I'm doing my listen, I'm doing my good thing of, of, of following and committing and being good and, like you know, and it's lint and I'm learning how to do all that. And so coffee is my, without even knowing that, like it was my give up, like okay, great, that's just awesome, that's easy, you know for the most part. And now I'm like what's next? What can I elevate to? So it's just little stuff. So that's that's where I've been out.

William: 15:02

It's good to do it it's a good to always do like a detox of anything that we're used to. It seems like just to kind of. It keeps our bodies guessing and our brains in check in a lot of ways 100, 100.

Adela: 15:16

Okay, so back to blood money, really quick. So that is the name of your, that is the name of your short that you just finished and wrapped up and submitted to Khan. Tell me about that. I remember, like I want to say, two, three years ago, when you first moved out, or something like that, you just wrote the script and had this going and you'd asked me to, like we were talking about, you know, for the, for the wardrobe, for for the fashion, we had talked a little bit about it and then life happened, and then here you are now and it's done. And it's like it's so weird on how like it all unfolds when you don't think that it will get done, and but then like it's done, and then you're here oh yeah tell me about it, tell me about the process, tell me, tell me about it, tell me all about it well, I ended up.

William: 16:04

I actually wrote the script in college and the script is it's a western, it's about two cowboys that meet out in the desert and I lived in Florida so that was stupid because it was like where am I ever gonna film that in Florida, two cowboys meeting out in the desert? So so I just sat on it. I liked the script. I've always been a Western fan. I grew up watching Roy Rogers, clay Neeskowitz, john Wayne, any cowboy movie you can think of from the 50s, 60s, 70s. I've seen it.

William: 16:41

So I had the script and I was like I don't want to film this until I can do it the way I want to do it and you know, at the end of 2024. You know I just kind of put it off a bit because I kind of had the means, but it didn't have the courage and you know there's a life, life circumstance that lit a fire under my ass and I was like you know what I need a distraction for right now and I'm gonna do it. So I hustled on this. It became my life for the next couple months, as far as in January. It's like I did all the pre-production, the casting, all of it. I had some wonderful producers helping me with it Antonio, josh, robert Lee Brown, christian Paplich. They helped alleviate a lot of the production back-end stuff while I was able to focus on cast and all that. And then at the end of January we filmed it. It was three days out in the desert and the location I had it was, I'll be honest, that was the most surreal moment was when we got there on set day one and I had a crew of about 13 people and we're all like two and a half hours in the middle of nowhere in a dry lake bed and I just kind of remember standing there and I was like everyone's looking at me because I'm in charge and I'm like what did I do?

William: 18:12

I was like this is ridiculous, why did I bring all these people out here? And then I was like, well, let's make a film. So then we got started on it. But that moment I do was very surreal Because I remember writing that script broke had no clue what I was doing and just so young and immature in a way you know as far as my filmmaking career, to then be standing all the way out in California in a desert with a bunch of people that were, you know really talented, I was able to get like an amazing cast.

William: 18:56

You know, absolutely killed the parts Wonderful. You know, sound guys, special effects artists and camera just have seen that moment come to fruition. Was very surreal for me. Um, you know, when you almost have everybody, that you love a part of it that just makes it even that much better. Um, you know, and that that, ultimately, was the best part was like I know all these people, they're all my friends and I love to work with them when I can, and to me, that's one of the best things, that when you get to work with your friends, that's one of the most fulfilling things. It really is, because at the end of the day, the work's always there, you know you always have work.

Adela: 19:41

But when you get to do it with your friends, especially your special ones, it's so much more fulfilling the greatest, it's really the greatest and that's why, like this, today too, you being on the podcast, and that, like this journey is so full circle for the two of us because, in a sense, I so would everybody we have we have a pretty decent age gap difference. Yeah, I just act like I'm 15, you know, and I can get away with being 20, because everybody thinks they look like I'm in my 20s, which is great, thank you. I'll take my decades off for real. Um, but I am older and so I you know, and so, and you're in, you're younger, and but we don't have that like age gap feel or difference. Like because the creative journey, how we started, was so similar in that it was the creative journey was such a baby journey.

Adela: 20:25

When we started, I started with my baby stuff and then you started with yours. You were just fresh out of film school and I was just fresh on going. Hey, you know what I want to do? This random photo shoot with a whole bunch of people I don't know, and I'm going to try to find a team and like my so like that was my blood money, if you will, because I was like I'm so ambitious that I'm going to win. It's so great and you know Adela and her like her way of going. And then you know you come on board and there you are and it's just this monkey climbing this under this bridge while nobody else is listening and nobody else wants to take direction.

Adela: 20:59

Nobody else is reading a PDF and nobody else is doing anything. You are like Adela and I turn around and you're like up under the underpass and so for for it to be here and you to be in that desert and you to be in in it to do this, it just the growth you've had, like I've gotten to watch that journey and see you grow into a man of that in that, in that, and it's so phenomenal, like it just brings me so much joy. And and to see how much joy you have about this project because this was one of your babies and this was something that I do remember us talking about uh, as you were working on it and doing it, how much you wanted to do it and for it to be here for for you know, I'm sorry to say that it took something to happen for you to do it, but it also goes to show you that sometimes we need a kick in the ass to kind of take over and win in some ways and do some things and create some of our best work.

Adela: 21:58

So I'm so excited, I can't wait to see it. I can't wait to you know all that and you'd best believe, when I come up there next week, I'm getting a preview like since you have the key okay, okay, you're getting a personal.

William: 22:10

You're getting the screen okay, good, okay, good, good, I'll add that onto my okay good, I have.

Adela: 22:14

You know, I already have an itinerary for the week and like what we're doing, how we're doing and why we're doing it. I just haven't put in a pdf file. Okay, great, so it's one of those. I want to see that. Um, yeah, yeah, tell me what was your greatest challenge about making this film?

William: 22:30

there was multiple um, but I would say one of the biggest challenges, and mainly one of the ones I was most concerned about, was the location. The location was uh, so I, like I said before, it was a dry lake bed in the desert. It was in an area like Johnson Valley area, middle of nowhere. It's like no man's land. It's a three-mile dirt road to get to it and when you get there it's kind of like desert Daytona. I would liken it to that Because, like I said, it's no man's land.

William: 23:03

So all these like RV campers come out there and ride dirt bikes and quads and it's kind of a bit of a mad mad scenario out there, because everybody knows you can do whatever you want out there. So they do. And there's quads, people just running around. I don't even think I've told you this, adele. While we were there, a plane came and landed in the lake bed. A little Cessna just came in and landed in the lake bed. People literally do whatever they want to do out there. So it's great. In that it's awesome. There's no rules, it's total Mad Max and it's absolutely stunning and gorgeous.

Adela: 23:45

But then you don't know what the rules are and you don't know what's going to happen and you don't know if you're going to get run over by a plane. Like, let's just be real.

William: 23:53

There's a lot of that. There's a lot of that. But then there's also the sounds of, you know, all these dirt bikes and ATVs. So you know, I'm trying to shoot a western from the late 1800s and I didn't really have planes and dirt bikes back then. So you got to get good, clean sound.

William: 24:10

But I mean, the location was just remote, it's far away from absolutely everything and it was a long drive and it was a lot of people who, again, I knew a lot of these people but they had never gotten to work with me on this type of level before, which I felt confident. I've done stuff like this now for years, but they hadn't been able to see me do this. They've seen me in other capacities on film sets, so I wasn't sure if they were like looking at the scenario, going like, are you sure about this? Well, which I am, I've, you know, like you said, climbed under the bridges. I've climbed on rocks, gone to the mountains, cliffs, areas in Utah. I love that aspect of filmmaking and everything and living on the edge, even more so now.

Adela: 25:02

But I was worried everybody was was gonna get a little freaked out because listen, duval duval gorilla in jacksonville, and like florida gorilla filmmaking is different than california filmmaking and so different level. And like we're so right, we're so used to that and like you know, you got really good at your craft because of that, we knew what we needed to skirt around, how we needed to do it we still do and to win in the way that we need to win, and so we have had an advantage in our having to skirt around the bushes to win. So that just gave you the advantage there, because the environment is now the unknown territory, which is which, for you, that's exciting is now the unknown territory, which for you, that's exciting.

William: 25:47

I love it because, again, I've done stuff on budgets my whole life type of deal. So you maximize whatever resource that you can possibly have and it just inevitably turns into guerrilla filmmaking. And so when I saw this one spot and I was like free location, oh also, it's stunning. Um, how are we not going to use this? It's a no-brainer, okay. Um, but also the the first day or sorry, it was the second day that we got there, there's a sandstorm, yes, and I was freaked out because I, you know, we're, we're getting there, and when I I say standstorm, we're getting around 50 up to about 70 mile an hour gusts, so that's like small hurricanes.

Adela: 26:34

Yeah, that's Florida hurricanes, yeah.

William: 26:36

For Florida and it's in a desert and the dirt in the desert it's just like it's dust, so it gets on absolutely everything, everyone and everywhere. You know like everything kind of just had to live in the cars because everything was just flying away. There's tumbleweeds going all over the place. You know Real Western, oh yeah, total Western.

William: 26:58

And so the first day I talked to my sound guy and I'm like, can we get clean audio? And he's like you'll hear wind, but we can get clean audio. And I was like that's all I care about. I was like we obviously see the wind, so it's okay if we hear it. And, to be honest, our first shot of that day it's one of the most gorgeous shots of the entire film Wonderful DP Nate Husseini shot this amazing wide shot of these two characters just approaching each other and you just see this sand just lying through the frame. And I remember looking at the frame and I was like this was meant to be and we're all standing there just getting caked with dust and it's on. When I I had dust on me for like three days after it was like glitter it was so much.

William: 27:44

It's like glitter. Yeah, it's like glitter. You'll find like little bits of it still on you, um, but it's the most amazing shot of the film that he did, and that wind added so much of an element and the wind ended up becoming a character within the film itself, because we ended up getting wind the other two days and it just looked absolutely gorgeous, and so now it's a character within the soundscape which was just a complete added bonus isn't it the best when the environment can become a character of its own within something you didn't even know was part of it, or didn't even think or foresee, even though you knew you'd have to think about it.

Adela: 28:21

It's part of it. But when it just shows up on set, like a diva that it is and does the thing that it needs to do, mariah carries it for you, and you're like. And you're like well okay, that's why you get paid the big money, girl. Keep on, yeah. And you're like well okay, I, you, that's why you get paid the big money, girl like keep on swimming through it just does her thing.

William: 28:43

It's just fantastic. Also just like embracing, because a lot of times you know like there were some people on set. They're like, well, do we need to cancel for today? And I'm kind of like no, I was like it's just gonna suck a little more, but I was like we're still gonna film and also I was like if it looks cool and we can get clean audio, let's do it. You know, sometimes it's like as cheesy as it is taking the lemons and making lemonade.

William: 29:07

You know, just embrace it and then after a while, you know, if you just keep having that approach with a lot of things, embrace the suck you can just start turning it. Yeah, embrace the suck, make those negatives a positive in a way, and just go like this is what I did. There's nothing I can do to change it. So it's like you adapt to it. You change it. On day three or day two, when we got there, there was a like trucker rally event that was happening, this dry lake that's normally dead, and we found out, like four miles away, there's about 40 000 people here for this like trucker rally people, you know and so a ton of them were camping in the lake bed. We had to find a different location in the lake bed, like driving deeper into it, which we did like the day before, um, and it ended up being better than our original spot. And you know I'm a Christian.

William: 30:01

I just attribute that to God because you know there's nothing else that you can attribute it to. You know you can say you lucked out or whatever you know, call it whatever you want, but for me it's that and because there's so many times where it comes down to luck, and also I definitely believe that, like your luck comes down to definitely your mindset in a lot, of ways.

Adela: 30:21

Yes, yeah, yes, no, totally.

Adela: 30:26

And to me, we've talked about this and we've talked about divine intervention in so many ways over these last couple months quite a bit, and we both are really diving into our faith quite a bit in this journey as we're getting older and growing into an adulthood and, um, it's been really, it's been insanely uplifting, right and redeeming to see that when you put in the effort towards that and towards the values of christianity, but also towards value just like to god, and give your life to that and like what the rewards you get in the things would be the things you never thought of like your reward we've talked about this part your reward was the wind.

Adela: 31:05

You didn't, because it's what made everything for you in the feel and how you're gonna, you know, transpose this to the, to the audience, and how you're gonna make them feel, and because you would have had to create that and creating that yourself man man is not so the divine portion of that was so cool because and it's been specifically because it's been something you've been wanting for a long time right, and it isn't something that's like oh, I want, I have this idea, let me do it.

Adela: 31:30

This is something that's been on your mind, on your mind, heart, in your soul, and you also decided, as you said, through your life challenges, versus falling in down the pitfalls, you channel that and change that, and we're like no, I'm going to do something to create, and we've talked about creating better, and that was kind of your reward in that. So, embracing the suck part of that, just because it's windy and a little dusty I mean, we're're made from dust, so why are we not?

Adela: 31:57

so happy with the home that we're right there, like we're right where we were made, right in the desert, right in the storm, right where we're gonna back, go back to um and and in seeing that, and I think you had that full moment of of that with this. And I'm so excited for you with this because I just think it's so again and we've talked about it on our but bittersweet in so many different ways, but also fantastic on a level that just for you personally, from me to you as someone who known you grow, watched you grow up in this like I'm so proud of you. I'm so freaking excited and proud of you and for your future and for everything else, it's just I'm so lucky to know you. I'm so lucky like it's insane well, Well me as well.

William: 32:38

It's insane. I love to watch both of the things that we've done over the past couple of years. A lot of times we get so tied up with work and everything, but I know we're watching each other.

Adela: 32:50

Yes, we are.

William: 32:52

It's like that silent. I see you, I see you I see you, keep going, keep going.

Adela: 32:54

We it's like that silent.

William: 32:55

You know, like I see you, I see you, I see you, keep going, keep going. We're grinding, we're doing the thing. We'll reconnect here in a second.

Adela: 33:00

Yep, yep, yep.

William: 33:01

And then we do, and then we come back together and then we're like hey, I learned this, hey, I learned this.

Adela: 33:11

And then we do a project, and it's where actually let's talk about this, because I want to talk about this next thing. Really quick couple of things. So we have, um, you started with me, like I said, with Project Human. First of all. You started with me in the back end as our videographer, our cinematographer and our editor, just when you were learning, and you know I started as kind of your. You started the documentary process all because of a project you had for school and I just didn't even think that I'd be in a scope of being a potential candidate for something like that.

Adela: 33:38

And then you put this idea in my head and I was like, well, let's see what we can do, because you know, you know me like to fly off on a helium to mars. And so I'm sitting here and we, we start with your little documentary, we do the rebirth project, we do the checkmate project. Like we do these all these things independently and I'm like we need to do a documentary and we need to do it about my life and we need to do it about Adela and her survivor story and fighting the war and whatever, whatever. Well, we I thought as when we started was I was fighting the war back home and the war of Bosnia and the war of everything else, but it's the eternal war, like it's this whole battle of a self and identity and crisis and whatever. And so you move out to LA. I'm here left trying to figure this out. So I'm like, well, I'm going to go try this. We film one thing on it together. And we're like, okay, well, we're going to try this other thing again and good luck for us all.

Adela: 34:31

But those were also challenges for me, because your Blood Money is my documentary. The Define the challenges for me because your blood money is my documentary. The define the narrative documentary because it's my life's project, like it's my initial, let me take this on, produce, direct, create this narrative of something that I don't even know or understand. And, holy shit, I'm gonna take on documentary working. That's like taking on lace and trying to make it with all these frillies on a course. That is your first project, like let's go adela, like right, um, so that's what I did. But I wanted to ask you, because you have been so gracious to be along for the journey this whole time and you're also so gracious. I'm coming up next week and I can't wait for us to talk about finishing up all that stuff. But why, um? What about this documentary? And again, you're going to be finishing the editing of it. We're going to have a trailer coming out later this year For you guys and then we're submitting it to film festivals Next year. So it'll be another year or two Before you guys really get to see it, but we'll give quite a bit of stuff for you.

Adela: 35:27

But what about it To you, based on just our relationship? Because one of the things I was thinking about it In the approach like. You're very much A huge part of this because you've captured quite a bit of the struggle and been a part of that growth and then now you're putting and completing it together. We've talked about that first circle and we mentioned about how it started as a fashion thing. Adele's gonna do a fashion fashion documentary and a fashion film and we're gonna do this. But it really kind of sort of is because now we've through the woven fabric of life. Also, we're going to be ending this with a fashion shoot when I come up there like this whole roundup, wrap it up in a bow. So what about the documentary? Do you find intriguing or do you think will be intriguing for our viewers and those supporters when it's done? That you think will be also beneficial to them too.

William: 36:23

I can. I can kind of twofold here. So one of the interesting things about documentaries is a lot of people don't know this, how long they take, and typically the longer it takes to do a documentary the better. And the reason why is when you start one, you have your overall subject and that's about it, because ultimately you can't really predict where it's going to go. Where it's going to go unless you're especially if you're like on an active documentary that's like following a person or a structure that's going to go into the future um, unless it's something that's in the past and you have all the history that's already there, then you just go and get records and accounts.

William: 37:10

But when you're working on something that's like heading into the future, you don't know what you're going to get on year two. You have no idea. And you may think you have an idea and you may have set goals and plans and all this kind of stuff. It's probably not going to happen. It's probably not going to happen. So what you have to really think about is like looking, especially when you're on a budget, what are the key element things? It's like I've got to get film and I noticed this like something that we've done over the years to where it's kind of like we just keep the doc right here in the back of our head and so then like something will happen, and we go this is for the doc, and we didn't even know why, you know necessarily, but it's like this is for the doc, it's going to be relevant later. And I mean the conversations that we have about the documentary now are not even remotely the same conversations that we had the documentary like a couple of years ago.

Adela: 38:03

Not even close.

William: 38:04

It's changing, it's, it's morphed into thing. But what you start to see is you start to see this over our arcing story come into full, because it's been quite a few years now and we've gotten the footage and you've filmed even things over there in florida. And then, um, you know, we worked on these other projects together and then we realized too, it was like when we started doing you know, talking about doing this project, and when you come to la, we're like this is kind of like a full circle moment for the other things that we just filmed, yes, and now it's like helping that narrative come out even more so and bringing that three-part act of it to the doc. I think that's a super interesting aspect of it and even in the early footage of the documentary, you're going to see how it's going to morph into the ending.

William: 38:51

Basically, yeah, um I love that aspect of it of just documentary filmmaking in general, especially when you're working long term on something like this and I think a lot of people are going to appreciate it, seeing, like, all the growth and just the change of what the meaning was the very beginning. It's a natural progression to see where you know the ending. I don't know if that makes any sense. It's probably going to be something that you have to watch and experience yourself. Um, but I think when you look at the beginning you're going to be like I can see where this is kind of heading and it's like they weren't there yet. And then by the time you get to the end, you're like, yep, that that tracks, it makes sense and I love that's something that I've thought about with this.

Adela: 39:41

I don't know if you have oh, it's been one of my greatest things I've been thinking about, because, I mean, it's been the thing I've been thinking about because, also, here's guys, here's how, in the back end, that nobody sees how things work, right, we have been working on this for years. Okay, and in my last episode, if you guys haven't listened to it, you guys should go, definitely listen to it, because um adela had a moment where she had to confess a few things, like she broke her hard drive and had a panic attack and lost her, and just like had a moment you laugh, but you know, will, you know, will like I'm dying.

William: 40:11

I am dying this thing like just I know that you know, you know it.

Adela: 40:16

So we've been working on this for years and I have been so diligent about backing things up and doing things and doing things. You know this, I'm like back it up, back it up, back it up, back it up, like I'm always. And then, except I didn't do it, I didn't do it, I didn't do it, I just didn't do it when I was coming to la last time. I didn't do it, I was just not smart enough to do it. I know I got the finger.

Adela: 40:33

So, anyway, I'm over here and I bump my hard drive with the full hard copy on it, like just a full everything and all the stuff I've been working on. So my work that I've been working on preparing for will is all on that and it's gone. So that was when it hit me that I had to stop, but that you know what I realized how much that was a blessing. And I'm not saying that like it's a blessing for you will, because it just means more work for you, because it's not a blessing for you at all, but it's a blessing for us for the future.

William: 41:03

Again, as everything is, because it made me have to Taking the negatives, making them positive.

Adela: 41:08

Because I had to look at it as a restructuring of the narrative and I just want you to know you just moved out of frame a bit. Can you come on the other end of it? Oh sorry, thanks, that's okay. I just put you in frame, thanks, I don't mean I don't mind it, but like I'm not here to Van Gogh you today, I don't need to cut you off yet.

William: 41:25

I'm a filmmaker.

Adela: 41:30

We gotta I gotta be in thank you, gotta be in frame and like thank you, composition, I'm not God. That's only one job. For that. I'm close but not there and so anyway, um, but yeah, I'm. So I'm here, I'm sitting here and I'm panicking, like I'm panicking, and then I realized I'm like Adela, but this is what it's about. It's literally about that. It's about the progression of what all of this.

Adela: 41:48

You had this one idea of what this documentary was about, and it was about going home and reaching home and this whole process and all the work you've gone through and everything you've looked at it has been through a lens that was through that identity. Even when you went back and looked at it, it was through that identity. It's like I had to had my identity wiped with this to have to be able to see it, which is now where we talked about how full circle this is. On the whole aspect of yes, because we started with this documentary, we're going to do a documentary about making a short film on fashion and how this one fashion project of checkmate is going to turn this thing. But when I look at all the projects we've done and all these moments like fashion was really a big part of that, that fabric of learning, construction and learning how one thing flows and learning why it does, the growth of everything. Now I get to see it from act one, two, three. I'm like, oh shit, you guys really will get to see my experience of mental health, Like I'm not saying this to be like, oh, Adela, you'll get to see the human being from starting with when Will started it with the documentary and her blue little thing. Blue hair to pink hair to you know this, this wannabe blonde I'm going to be sophisticated hair to just these. And now you'll have a redhead too, because we'll have to clip a few things in there too.

Adela: 43:07

But you'll get to see this progression of a human being who, through art and through expression, got to find her identity and conversation through others got to find her identity. And that's what it's all about the definition, the whole reason why it's defined, the narrative, the documentary. It's because it's up to you to define your narrative and, for me, our journey through this and you got to see this and you be in a part of it this whole time. In a sense, we've been able to define our own narratives through the arts and how everyone else defines it through their own thing will be so cool to see and what they you know on there and again, it started out with me telling my story about being a prisoner of war, and not that you won't see and hear bits and pieces of that Like it's, you know backstory. You'll get to hear that, but it's not like. But it's not. It's not the focus like it was, it's not this. Let's tell a story of somebody who's gone. I'm not saying that that's not important, I'm not.

William: 43:59

But I want to see the triumph because the overall thing, I mean it starts with the prisoner war, yeah, kind of like that's. That's that's where we start. A lot of times we start with the trauma. You know, when we start on this journey of self-growth, we you have to start with the trauma that you is causing you to make these decisions and you get to a point to where you go.

William: 44:21

I don't want to deal with this anymore, and the only way to do that is if you address what's happened to you to help get you to the spot, the decisions that you've made in life, things that have happened to you that you haven't handled yet. And once you start to deal with that, that's when you start to see the growth. And so it makes sense that we started with that trauma and then it morphed into this and then it morphed into this and now we're here at this area. You know, with we, you know you deal with the trauma, then you start the healing process and then you can, then you can start growing. Really. I mean, that is all growth for sure, but, like, those are stages that you can't overlook.

William: 45:02

You can't really start growing until you deal with those other two things. First, because the healing process isn't necessarily about growing. It's about taking care of yourself, it's about figuring out who you are wanting to be then in that moment, and that is an aspect of growth. But it's also just kind of pulling yourself back together and getting back into your own skin, in a way oh 100, and I think so.

William: 45:30

It's only natural that we started with that, and you know the best part about it we didn't even know it, I was just thinking, we had no idea, I was just actively having a tantrum and going.

Adela: 45:40

I don't want to do this and I want to talk about my story and I want to go home, literally, and when you even know and you and you, even you would point out to me you're like adela, but like you know what about home, and like through this documentary, I'm like I just want to go home like and I don't mean to make myself sound that way, but it just that's what to me when I look back on this kid who had this one idea and she was just a kid who had this idea and she was gonna get it done and she was hell-bent on it and if that meant she had a tantrum, that meant she had a tantrum to get it done. But but the morph, like what's so cool is you will get to see the morphing into the woman part, into today, which is what you get with the podcast now, which is what you get with all this stuff. You get all of that because of this documentary and because I guess, and again and all, partially thanks to you Well, mostly thanks to you for even starting it, even thinking it was a cool subject to have. So thank you to our little, which is on our YouTube channel. Guys, look it up, it's like seven minutes. It's great. It's a little trailer too, on how you know you'll get to see the growth from that little kid again with a red, red beanie, power ranger hat to now this like again a cute little girl here, that's a cute woman that pretends to they can pass off to like do her little things and it's so cool.

Adela: 46:58

But but that journey is so insane and when you, even if you have fear to jump into something like facing yourself, facing your traumas again, I was very afraid of things. You and I've had many conversations, many of my bouts of like oh my god, what am I even thinking of doing? Why am I doing this? But then to be in it and to get through it and do that. I mean we've talked about when I found my captors online. We've talked about when, right, like we've talked and I'm like, holy crap, what does that mean? How does that mean? And it's like now, looking back on all of that, I look at and go it meant again, redeeming my being into humanity and defining what do I want my narrative being. I want to be a human period and discussion, and that has always been my doubt, like that's always been my. It's always been my narrative, but defining it in a way that's solid, structural. It it's just human being and it's so cool for that process and I can't wait. I can't wait to share it with you guys. I can't wait for us to take it to the festivals next year and, you know, be a part of it.

Adela: 47:55

Just a quick update, too, for our Mental Health Summit, we are going to do a private screening at the Mental Health Summit after we do the submissions, because we'll already have a year in, or at least six, seven months in the circuit, so we'll be able to do a private screening for our summit for those who come to our VIP party portion of it, because, well, why not, you'll get to get a chance to see it early because we're awesome, and then we'll be kicking off our tour in 2020-27 to talk about it and like really pushing it off. So there's so many things about it and, again, this human has really been in the back end of a lot of this help and making this happen, and now he holds the holy grail because I broke it on my end, and so now I've got got the only hard drive you guys, you don't know.

Adela: 48:37

I called him, I cried and I said, william, he's like, are you okay? He looked at me like who died and I was like my hard drive. I know that's a hard drive, but, however, again he saves the day, as he always does. Um, I wanted to ask you, uh, now about fashion and stuff, because this is the next thing we're about to get ready to do and I'm really, really excited and it's been a long time coming in this again full circle from Iron Horse.

Adela: 49:05

And you know, I thought about this too, because in Iron Horse, when we did it and I looked at the picture, I had a silver outfit and we had just talked about me putting on this full-on silver outfit. That's like structured and like this massive, awesome thing, and I was like, damn, adela, you don't even know how you foreshadow your own future, like before you even do it. Um, but tell me about this location that we're going to, because I also saw that the there is a band that you film and photograph with as well, right, and I believe you did one of their music videos there, and was that it or a couple?

Adela: 49:39

okay I just remember that I just saw the yeah, I just saw the drum sets and I was like I know those drum sets and so I was like, oh my god, so tell me about the location I found this I found this location early on when I moved out to LA.

William: 49:55

I was looking for deserty locations. Like I'm enamored with the desert, I grew up in Florida around everything green, so I wanted everything brown now you know, and so I was like where's like a good desert spot?

William: 50:08

and so this is about an hour and a half north, um, outside of la. It's in palm dale and uh, it's just an absolutely stunning location. There's this huge rock formation out there. I've I've filmed, oh geez, probably about half a dozen music videos out in this spot, just because there's so many different spots that you can shoot. The sunsets are absolutely gorgeous. The location's just insane. It's so calm and peaceful out there, which I absolutely love because it gets out of the noise of la and it's it's very inspiring when you go out there and just having.

William: 50:43

There's something about the desert that just hits very differently than a lot of different things. I know there's like the sense of deadness there, but it's not so much that too. There is a lot of life out there. When you really actually look at it, there's a lot that you can glean from it. But I'm really stoked on this spot. We did I've done a ton of music videos out there, so I know it really well. Um, I have done a music video in this particular area because there's this rock formation. That's just great and it's going to be able to really we'll be able to play with the you know geometry of your designs and the actual environment. And see, I'm all right. You see, you know, I'm talking your language. This is all up at Delray Valley. I know, I know it. I just know it.

William: 51:28

You know the designs are going to be perfect to photograph and film out there.

Adela: 51:37

Yeah, I'm really excited because this may be my best work yet and in fact I know it's my best work, because every time you do better, better, it's your best work yet.

Adela: 51:46

So this is my best work yet and in fact I know it's my best work because every time you do better, better, it's your best work yet. So this is my best work yet, it's particularly this one piece. We're going to be doing a fashion show as I said earlier in the beginning of the podcast remember the date, september 26,. We're going to be doing a fashion show fundraiser for Project Human and I will be debuting as one of the designers. We're also going to be doing a call to designers in a couple weeks as well, and I'm really, really excited about that because it's been a while, and our last one was the summer social fundraiser that you did the commercial for me here and that was me, and that was me just having to put something together and like real fast, because you know the back end story of that and um but now this is so much more intentional, this is so much more with feeling.

Adela: 52:24

This is so much more with feeling and these pieces have a life of their own and I'm so excited and because, like in Will, from when I make my pieces, I also make them from how Will would look at them, like in his way, so like when he uses his slow-mo moment, or when he wants to look at color grading, or so all my stitching has to be perfect, because he likes detail and I like detail, and so I want him to get in the detail. And it's just like I thought about this, okay, and so when you sent me the location, I was like, oh, I could see a flow and I can see how he's going to do. Oh, I can see what he's going to do. Oh, this is so exciting. Just the, the, the, the Same wavelength. So this is why you guys, I tell you there's no one better, for like this is my team, for if you could be better than Will Cook, I am down for it.

Adela: 53:14

I am betting my career, my money, my name, my, on it, like on Will Cook, because and it isn't just about like your work, your quality of work is superb and it just gets better every time you do that. But it's also about the heart of what you do, with what you do like you really do what you do with passion, you love it. You get so lost in it like I get lost in it when we're on set. It's about the set and it doesn't matter. We could pretend like we're gonna quarrel or we're gonna fight or we're gonna have to like. It is none of that. It's like.

Adela: 53:44

It's just a adela, get off the set, you don't belong here. I'm like oh fine, I was just trying to help. Well, I don't need your help, okay, well, great, go do your job. And it has nothing to do with like. But it's listen, I, I need to be bossed around. We talked about adela needs a boss all the time. Nobody wants to boss me. So when people boss me around, they become my best friends and that's what happens. Will boss me around. Our first meeting, he threw me in the water. Next meeting, he's telling me to get off my own set. So, like I'm not. Like you know, I'm not.

William: 54:12

Here there's a, there's a quote I don't know if you've ever heard it you might have but you'll love it. I know you will because you'll relate to this. There's a quote by Quentin Tarantino, actually, and it it's if you truly love cinema, you can't help but make a good film, and that just applies to absolutely everything. You know, if you truly love what you're doing, you can't help but make something special in it. And that's just us, because it's like there's so much build-up to these projects a lot of times, and that's like the. You know, we're the artists, we're the creatives, we want to just like.

William: 54:48

Once you get on set, it's typically only for like a couple hours, but those couple hours that's why you do it, because those couple hours are the most fulfilling moments and we really just love it, you know, and you dive into it. And so you do all the prep work. Though it it's not the most fun part, it's that that's always. The most difficult part is the prep work, the build up, the pre-production, that the. It probably endless nights sewing, you know the gear preps that take forever, getting this equipment, that equipment, and it's like a nightmare and you have no sleep. And then you get it on set, and then you're just like here we go and then nothing goes according to plan and you have to like my favorite part on being on set.

Adela: 55:28

Is that what people here's the thing too. I think what people miss mistake especially me, but maybe in your thing is that when we plan and we have this pdf file and we have this folder, that's like you know, 700 pages and it's like the bible as we call it on set, because you have a bible on set. You really do you, you guys, and it's the thing you follow, and then you get on set and nothing goes according to this like form and format.

Adela: 55:51

You have to throw it out the window, right, you have to. You know how to do it. So, okay, you got the how. You know why you're doing it. Okay, you got the wow and then, but like figuring out the, the logistics of the rest of it, when nothing's working on, that's my like. I look for that challenge because to me, that's when we make the best work, like when checkmate.

Adela: 56:07

I love that project. I go back and look at that project so much now with such awe, the fact that we were able to accomplish. And again, when you're in it and you're doing it, you can forget how much work you've put in, how much effort, and you can forget to be, you know, proud of the work you've done. I mean, it was sleepless nights. We didn't sleep that night, we didn't sleep for a week. For that we're like doing that. You came in to do this from LA and then we had a location that fell through and we had to figure it out.

Adela: 56:34

24 hours prior to that, like, there's just so many things that I had a Bible. I'm like this is the Bible, but those lessons are like that project taught me the challenges, because when I called you and I said, hey, well, this isn't happening, but I have this. Can we make this work? I don't care how, I don't care why, and you're like yes, no questions about it. I was like OK, that's it, that confidence, and I think that's why I love our partnership. So not, I think, I know, but that's why I love our partnership so much is because you won't give me an excuse why it can't work, right, you know, because because you can always you can always give an excuse of why it can't work.

William: 57:13

That that's that. That's what happens in films, like the moment you get on set and especially when you're a creative director or just a director you're producing or whatever. It's not. I hope nothing goes bad. No, that's stupid. You're an idiot. You're very inexper. It's not. I hope nothing goes bad. No, that's stupid. You're an idiot. You're very inexperienced.

William: 57:26

If you think that that's how it's gonna go, it's what's gonna go bad, today you have to almost look for the problems a bit and then go like this is kind of a problem. That's hindering my thing. So how do I overcome it? How do I work around it then? And that takes being flexible and willing to compromise. So many people go if I can't do it my way, I'm not doing it at all. Guess what? You're not going to do it at all then, because ultimately, a lot of times you're not going to be able to fully do it your way.

William: 57:56

Your vision has to be flexible to the environment around you. It just has to be you can. It doesn't matter if you have the million dollar budget or envy. It doesn't matter how big the project is. Stuff is going to happen, stuff is going to go wrong and you have to learn to just problem solve on the fly and if you don't, you like, like you know, you can make an excuse to quit for anything, anytime, anywhere. It's so easy to. So it's like, why make the excuse If you know the problems are going to happen? Just figure out how to problem solve and move on from there, and then yeah at the end of the day, would it have been what you originally thought?

William: 58:38

But no, that vision changed. Now, this is the present. This is the future. That's the past. The project is what it needs to be now and ultimately, too, then. That's when you I always believe you the project's made in the edit yes you know, well, it doesn't matter what you shoot anything you you can have the most beautifully shot thing. You got a terrible editor. It's not going to come out and that's not going to come out.

Adela: 59:02

It's not going to read that's why nobody can edit my documentary, because, even though I shot a whole lot of terrible shit, you're going to make me look fantastic, you guys, because that's what happens in the editing room, that's why an editor is so important, which this man is a four-time nominee editor, right, and a couple-time winner. So I'm just saying you know. So I'm just saying you know, I'm just saying like an eight-time winner of his films because he's edited them all. And then I'm just saying I'm just saying so I can't like not go with winners, because when winners want to be around, they want to win. I'm a winner, you guys know that I win. I don't, I don't sugarcoat that and people like go win. I'm like no, you should want to win because winning is good, winning is cool, winning is good is good. Okay, lastly, let me this has been so awesome on a conversation. I wish we could talk more, but I will see you in just a couple of days, so we'll have a couple of days to talk and you guys need to be prepared.

William: 59:53

We'll do a debrief one. We will.

Adela: 59:55

We're going to do a debrief. So please listen to this and then you'll get to see some behind the scenes stuff too, because I'll share with them on the travel. So please, please, follow us and stuff and please follow Blood Money. All that. Please let me know so that I can share with the audiences where everybody can find you. I have your Instagram handle right now. You know up for everybody and but where can people find you, will Cook and your work and reach out to you?

William: 1:00:26

Instagram's my primary source, but you can also check out my websites will cook mediacom. My Instagram is William Phillips cook. That's where you're going to see most of my current work. And then, if you're interested in a little bit of the behind the scenes of what I do, I'm trying to actively always have more behind the scenes footage and basically small little interviews of breaking down everything that I do in music videos, shoots, anything. That's my YouTube channel. Right now it's still called Will Cook Vlogs, but I'll probably be doing a rebranding of that soon. But check out Will Cook Vlogs if you're interested in more filmmaking. You know detailed gear, nerdy type stuff, stuff perfect.

Adela: 1:01:08

Uh, make sure you follow him, because you guys will get to see a vlog too from us on our thing, because we'll do for our week adventure on there, because we have to, because why not? It's been full circle of me. I'm a man of like so much work. It's just so awesome when I think more and more on it now, like we really have done this thing. You know our way and still supported each other, and it just is such a blessing. Well, will, it was a pleasure, it was awesome. I can't wait to see you. And is there a message you want to leave everybody off with for this year?

William: 1:01:44

For this year For this year, focus on yourself by focusing on those around you. I love that. That's what I've been. That's what I've been trying to do this year. You know I found that to be the most fulfilling way to help myself in a lot of ways, and it sounds selfish, but ultimately it's not, because we all need to grow and it's good to help those around us, so only good can really come out of it.

Adela: 1:02:10

Only good can come out of it. I love it. All right, ladies and gentlemen, I will talk to you in a little bit, will you? Ladies and gentlemen? It was a pleasure to have you on. Thank you so much. Follow, like, like, subscribe and all the other good bits on the things that we need you to do. Remember that you are worth the effort, we are all worth the effort and together, united, we bridge the gap. And remember to save your dates for next, uh, for the end of the year. I'll talk to you in just a while.