Okay, so this one isn't released yet, but that's because I'm still making it!

I am in the middle of production for my 26th documentary. It's about the nomadic movement happening all over the U.S.

I've been interested in travel my whole life - which is why 24 of my movies were filmed and released outside the states. Over the last five years or so, I've started see more and more school bus conversions, vanlife hashtags and social media activity about life on the road. So, I decided that this would be my next feature length project.

This film will start off using found and archival footage of the early nomads following agricultural work during the great depression; then discuss the peaks and valleys during the 60s and 70s and influences like market crashes and housing crises; and then move into the bulk of the story, which is what we are seeing now.

This larger exploration includes custom van and bus rebuilds inspired by younger generations avoiding college debt and seeking adventure; tiny home villages cropping up in response to the needs for homeless and disabled veterans; buslife videos funding life in both inner cities and public lands; full time RVers known as "snowbirds" travelling in their retirement years; and many others.

There are many locations for filming, including Colorado, California, Oregon and a few others. The main one, though, is Quartzsite, Arizona, which, because of both the agreeable winter temperatures and the vast expanses of public lands surrounding it, is also called the snowbird capital of North America.

People flock here in their wheeled abodes and inflate the tiny, year-round population of 3,000 into a town of more than 300,000 during the high season. It hosts events like Skooliepalooza and the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous. It is home to yearly Rainbow Gatherings, and nudist meetups in the desert. Huge gem and mineral shows bring in veritable swarms of global collectors. Swap meets swell sprawling, once-empty tracts of parking lot into buzzing impromptu villages where vendors make a year's salary in a few weeks.

In my films, I am a participant observer, and I entrench myself in the action. So, for this trip, I took a hiatus from teaching journalism at the American University in Bulgaria, built an off-grid, live-aboard production vehicle out of a shuttle bus, and began the two-year-long project of documenting the nomadic lifestyle and following it across the country to wherever it might lead.

So far it's led me here - back to Quartzsite, for my second round of filming. I first came during the RTR 2019 to interview travelers and famous YouTubers leading the social media movement that's wrangling in new members and driving new traffic to learn about the typically stigmatized and often controversial facets of the lifestyle.

Now I'm back to interview the locals, the law enforcement, the parks officials, the politicians, the shop owners, and the last wave of visitors left behind after the road shows have moved elsewhere.

In just two days, I've met with many and filmed a few. I plan to be here for at least the next couple weeks hoping to meet with more of the town's very animated and eclectic residents, and piece together the base of the story before heading to my next filming location - the infamous Slab City.

From there, I'm hoping for better weather to clear a path farther westward and north to collect footage from festivals and meetings up the coast.

Unfortunately, after the $15,000 I invested in the build, and the $15,000 of traveling and production costs to cover permitting, production insurance and incidentals, I am out of ! But I believe that there is a great story to tell here, and I'd like to put in the effort of a few more months to tell it. So I've started a crowdfunding campaign to put the rest together and complete the film by October.

I've already pitched it to PBS and several streaming channels, and I'm getting some really positive feedback in response. I've also had a huge contingency that should cover distribution once it's complete. So, really all that's left is a few thousand dollars and I'm all set!

I have set up some great perks, like behind the scenes footage, podcasts with travelers, three full seasons of my international series of documentaries, and even exclusive interviews with donors that can be a part of the film itself!

If you've read this far, and think that its a good idea too, follow the link and see how you can be a part of it.

Thanks for reading!

[indiegogo.com]