In Search of Light
Here's a first peek into the edit suite on the Woodstock Light Bus Project.
It's been two years since we first pitched the idea of a WOODSTOCK LIGHT BUS project to broadcasters at REALSCREEN. Curiosity Stream, Discovery Canada and Autentic Germany all came in to support the project. You'll be able to see the story on those channels this summer ahead of the Woodstock 50th Anniversary.
At the end of films you often see long lists of thanks to people who helped make a project happen. I don't think any project would have a longer list than this one. Every step of the way the path seemed blocked for this most unlikely story. And at every step some person, family, club, or company appeared and said "let us help". Dozens of folks even contributed cash to the restoration, repainting and resurrection Kickstarter (including substantial contributions from the Jimi Hendrix Estate and Alliance Tire) The Kickstarter raised an astonishing $90,000 in just over 30 days.
Dr. Bob, the original artist of the Woodstock Light Bus, believes in magic. When I started this project I believed in effort. After a point though you have to wonder. Either nothing is magic or everything is magic. I'm starting to lean toward the latter.
This week we've wrapped up principal photography on the first part of the Project. It kind of brings us up to the starting line of the road back to Woodstock. We've explored the backstory of Woodstock, VW Buses, and The Light Bus. We visited with the talented Bob Grimm and Trudi Cooper, members of the band LIGHT for whom the bus was originally created. We've searched America for the fate of the original bus. We found a matching 'canvas' bus brought to us by David Brasil. We restored the bus through the astonishing efforts of Skinner Classics, Eastcoast VW Restorations, JC Customs, Wolfsburg West, Greg Urrutia Engines, Wright's Gear Box transmission experts, and Kevin Kilfoy key expert. Dr. Bob and an amazing team of young artists he dubbed The Light Brigade painted the bus. We got it finished and road ready inside and out with help from SWS auto detailing. We traveled east and west. We've started to collect music for the project including an amazingly epic and apt contribution from Alasdair Roberts called the Flyting of Grief and Joy. We unveiled the bus to the sun in California with the help of Volkswagen of America. All along the way we shared the work, the experience, the story, and the joy with the most openhearted people imaginable.
In March we'll work out our plan to journey with the bus back to Woodstock.
We hope you'll join us.
