Sorry for the delay in getting this video out. There was a voluntary isolation in our home that prevented access to video editing. Everyone is fine, and we are pleased that little trial is over.
Melissa and I have been working on a series of seven short videos wherein we discuss our process and the lessons we learned along the way. In this video Melissa reviews another lesson: how we allocated responsibility in order to curtail power struggles and foster accountability.
Seven Lessons – Lesson Three, The Rite of Mercury: Stay in Your Lane
In Another Bit of Good News…
The Rite of Saturn has been announced as an official selection for The Madrid International Film Festival. The Rite of Saturn has been nominated in four categories: “Best Costume”, “Best Hair, Makeup & Body Design”, “Best Original Score”, and “Jury Selection”. If you look at the jury who will be reviewing our work, you may have an idea of just how excited we are about this opportunity!
Thanks again to everyone who has been watching The Rites of Eleusis, sharing the videos with their friends. We are so grateful to have so many supportive friends who’ve made this all possible!
EDIT: As mentioned in our last update, The Rite of Saturn has been nominated in four categories at the Madrid International Film Festival.
Melissa and I have been working on a series of seven short videos wherein we discuss our process and the lessons we learned along the way. In this video Melissa reviews one of the big take-away lessons from the project: know when it is time to adjust your vision to fit your circumstances.
Thanks again to everyone who has been watching The Rites of Eleusis, sharing the videos with their friends. The outpouring of support has been moving, and we are so grateful to everyone who helped to make this work a reality!
Melissa and I have
been working on a series of seven short videos wherein we discuss our
process and the lessons we learned along the way.
Here is the first,
titled: The First Pancake
We really want to
thank everyone who has been enjoying The Rites of Eleusis, sharing
the videos with their friends, and especially those who’ve been
reaching out to us to share their kind and supportive thoughts. It is
gratifying to receive such an outpouring of love and support for our
work!
Celebrating the release of The Rite of Saturn (TODAY!) we reached out to some of the cast, crew and contributors over the last 20 years and invited them to talk about the project, and what it meant to them. Here is the third series of clips.
The Rites of Eleusis – Memory Reel Volume Three
The Rite of Saturn is available starting today!
Visit Vimeo for streaming, or you can order the DVD on Amazon.
A Final Note – the chord resolves
This is the day. For nearly twenty years this project has dominated my creative life, providing countless hours of joy and challenges. People have loved it, people have hated it. I was proud of the work, or dissatisfied. But taken for all in all, it is accomplished. And that is saying something.
In 1999 I had been a practicing ceremonial magician for about 5 years, and as a part of my practice, I undertook skrying the Enochian Aethyrs. If you don’t know what that is, don’t worry about it. Just understand it was a big project, and changed my life. There was about six months of preparation, including celibacy and fasting, and another nine month to complete the working. For those with an understanding of astrology, this was my Saturn return.
Up until today, it was the most all consuming magical working I had ever completed.
In the months after I finished the working, in early 2000 e.v., I was like a balloon with the string cut. My life had changed dramatically over a few months. I was a different person, and looking for a way to reintegrate with life. I started a new relationship, got involved with a new community, and volunteered to direct a play (The Rite of Jupiter) and on a whim, decided to present it as a musical.
And for 20 years, that became my next great work. I don’t expect most people to understand what it takes to devote yourself to a project for two decades. But there are some who’ve been there every step of the way. It becomes the metric by which you measure your life, as many of the testimonial videos have attested. It takes a special type of person to do it, and the unbelievable number of such people, and the quality of those people who have integrated themselves into, and supported this project certainly defied probability.
I came to view each “product”, be it a song, and picture, a video or a DVD, as a talisman. Something created, something birthed out of the huge magical exercise. And today, the final great talisman of this Planetary Rite spanning multiple decades will be released into the world.
Of course, nothing ever goes as planned. But it all works out, somehow.
It’s a mystery.
Twenty-five years into my magical practice, and I am still learning, still growing, still feeling the discomfort and the trials, and pushing through as best I can. I trust that will never change. Coming to the end, it is legitimate to ask if the working was a success. Well, I suppose that depends on your measure for success. There were some nice reviews. There were some awards. There was never enough money, but hey… that’s theater.
Since my primary goal, back when all of this began, was to engage with my community, and learn something new, and deep dive into the material, I can honestly say it has been a far great success than I could have imagined when we started out. For this, I am profoundly grateful.