David Licata | May 4, 2012
When I was looking for subjects for A Life’s Work, I always considered a collector in search of a holy grail object. In the early days I thought I’d like to include someone like a film historian searching for, say, London After Midnight, the lost silent film directed by Tod Browning and starring Lon Chaney. [...]
David Licata | May 1, 2012
A couple of years ago I met with an editor about editing the sample for A Life’s Work. The conversation eventually turned to music for the film. One idea I told her I had idea was of staging a choir performance of Is My Living in Vain? Shooting the choir as it rehearsed and eventually [...]
David Licata | December 21, 2011
This is as timely this year as it was in 2010, so with that in mind, here it is again. I asked Robert Darden of the Black Gospel Music Restoration Project for a list of some of his favorite gospel Christmas songs, and true to form, Robert delivered the goods and then some. The songs [...]
David Licata | December 13, 2011
Bob Marovich is a gospel music historian, radio announcer, and journalist. Since 2001, he has hosted “Gospel Memories,” a weekly radio program featuring classic gospel on WLUW Chicago. He is currently at work on a book-length history of gospel music in Chicago, to be published in 2013, and is the editor of The Black Gospel [...]
David Licata | November 29, 2011
David Licata | July 12, 2011
When I first interviewed Robert Darden of the Black Gospel Music Restoration Project for A Life’s Work in Chicago (August 2009), one collector’s name came up again and again. Bob Marovich. Bob Marovich is a gospel music historian, radio announcer, and journalist. Since 2001, he has hosted “Gospel Memories,” a weekly radio program featuring classic [...]
David Licata | April 1, 2011
Robert Darden, journalism professor at Baylor University, author of People Get Ready: A New History of Black Gospel Music, founder of the Black Gospel Music Restoration Project, subject of A Life’s Work, was recently on a panel at SXSW. Below is his report on the proceedings. Thanks, Robert. As usual, you went above and beyond. [...]
David Licata | March 11, 2011
Attention Williamsburg hipsters! Are you going to SXSW? Do you want to know the origin of all of your guitar riffs? Well then on Saturday, March 19, 2:00pm go to the panel called Searching for Blind Willie Johnson. You’ll get some learning, and you’ll see author, journalist, professor, and subject of A Life’s Work, Robert [...]
davidlicata | September 3, 2009
I have these stickers, they’re little red dots. They look like this: When I capture a tape (that is, put the miniDV tape in a deck and transfer that digital information to one of my external hard drives so that it is accessible for editing), I cut a quarter of the dot and place it [...]
David Licata | August 26, 2009
I probably should have inserted this in the last post. On second thought, no. This deserves its own post. If you are unmoved by Blind Willie Johnson’s vocals and guitar playing, listen to it again. And again. And again. Eventually its pathos will strike you, you’ll probably start crying, and then you’ll know why it [...]
![](http://alifesworkmovie.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/tango_059-150x150.jpg ""Don't you want to make a REAL film?"")
