Links from the Show at a Glance:

 

Artist: Nathan Ives

Title of Documentary: Somewhere in the Middle – Watch Somewhere in the Middle on Amazon

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MuleFilms/

 

 

Also mentioned in this episode:

 

Griffin House’s song: City River Lights

 

Movie: A Christmas in New York

 

Movie: The Basement

 

Singer-songwriter: Griffin House

 

Actor: Jasika Nicole

 

Guitar Player: Aaron Tap

 

Paper Sculptor: Jeff Nishinaka

 

Painter: Dan McCaw

 

Art Ink Submission Guidelines: rebekahnemethy.com/artinksubs

 

 

 

Art Ink Podcast Transcript:

 

[Intro:]

 

Hello my friends, thank you for tuning into another episode of Art Ink. When I was still in the imagination phase of creating this podcast I had daydreams of featuring not just visual art, but also music and dance, knitting and embroidery, movies and books. I’ve been hustling so much to get each episode out on time it’s left me featuring artwork that’s limited to my small perspective. That’s not to say I don’t absolutely love the art and the artists I’ve selected so far, but what I am saying is that I’m just 1 person in a universe of what sometimes feels like infinite artists, and sometimes the only way for me to open up to a new creation is for YOU to reach out to me.

 

That’s why I’m thrilled today to introduce you to writer, director, and producer Nathan Ives whose latest film, “Somewhere in the Middle,” just released a few days ago. He was gracious enough to give us an insider’s look at how the film came to be, but before we dive into his story, let me give you a little taste of what it’s all about.

 

 

[Art Description:]

 

 

“Somewhere in the Middle,” is a documentary that digs into the lives of 5 artists who you’ve probably never heard of, but have all made a legitimate career from their creative work. Two musicians, an actor, a painter, and a paper sculptor all share stories that illuminate what it’s really like to have a career in the arts. In a culture that sees artists as either superstars or starving, I found this to be a refreshing look at the reality of being a full-time artist.

 

With that, I’m going to narrate the story that Nathan sent in about what sparked his idea to create this film and a bit about the struggles he overcame to complete it.

 

[Story:]

 

‘River City Lights’ blew me away. The song is simple, beautiful, heart wrenching, and, to me, a perfect song. To this day I’m mesmerized when I listen to it or hear Griffin House play it live. For a few minutes I escape the craziness and drift into a melancholy oasis. There are a handful of songs in my life that have this effect on me, most I discovered in my teens, a few precious ones, more recently.

 

In 2016 I was directing ‘A Christmas In New York,’ and needed a song for the closing credits. I reached out to Griffin, having met him at a few of his shows, and he was gracious enough to write one for the film.

 

We developed what I would call a professional friendship. We’re not on one another’s Holiday card list, but when he’s in town, we’ll chat before or after his show about music, films, and getting by as an artist.

 

On one such occasion I made a comment about how impressed I was that he’d found a balance between staying true to his art and making a legitimate living. Griffin replied with one of his humble, sheepish grins, and a ‘thanks, man.’

 

Then he continued and said, ‘but you know, I was playing at The New York City Winery a few weeks ago, it was a sold out, like three hundred people or something. Really fun show. Afterwards this couple comes up to me, and this happens all the time, they said ‘we really love your music and we just know you’re going to make it someday!’

 

Griffin owns a house in Nashville and his music is the primary source of income for his family. He spends a couple of weeks on the road playing shows followed by a couple of weeks at home spending time with his family and working on new material. Sounds like a miserable life that no one would want to live… or, wait, does it sound like a life many people would dream of living?

 

Our conversation got me thinking about what it means to be a ‘successful’ artist. Over the next couple of months the question kept drifting into my psyche at traffic lights, in the shower, and other random places. Eventually it occurred to me that it was something I wanted to explore further.

 

Around that time, I had just completed a horror film, ‘The Basement,’ and my wife and I had our second child. I needed a project smaller in scope than a full feature film, that I could do in my free time, in and around changing diapers. At which point the seed of the idea for ‘Somewhere In The Middle’ was born.

 

I reached out to Griffin first, since the idea originated with him, and he agreed to be interviewed. One of my favorite people on this big planet was next, the actor, Jasika Nicole, who I had worked with previously on a film. My friend Paul is Matt Nathanson’s tour manager and recommended I interview Aaron Tap, Matt’s longtime guitar player. I was introduced to paper sculptor Jeff Nishinaka through the cinematographer I’ve worked with through the years, Ken Stipe, and Jeff, in turn, introduced me to the painter, Dan McCaw.

 

All five met my criteria of not being household names, but who made a legitimate living solely through their art.

 

There, I had my subjects. All that was left to do was to interview them all, write all of the moments and ideas I loved on index cards, lay the index cards on our dining room table, and stand over them, sipping a cup of Earl Gray tea, nibbling on cookies, until I figured out exactly what this film would be.

 

Once I had a general structure, it was off to sit for many hours in a dark room with the editor, Brady, and cut the pieces together. Once that was done and we had a rough cut of the film, I decided, without question, it was the worst thing, perhaps, that I had ever seen.

 

I then went home to my wife, talked about what a failure I was, and moped around the house like Eeyore for a few days. At first, she was sympathetic and did her best to console me, but given that she’d just given birth to a ten pound child, understandably, it didn’t last long.

 

A few days and ideas later, I went back in with Brady and we re-cut the film. It was much better, it suddenly felt again like a project that just might be worth finishing. As we began laying in the score from Pat O’Brien, it really started to come to life and I was beginning to think that this might actually be a film I’d be proud of.

 

From there, it was off to The Garrison, both my producing partner on the project and the post production facility. There we did the sound, color, and animated the titles. To be clear that’s the equivalent of saying, we just painted the house, put on the roof, and did the landscaping. It’s a lot of work and took about six weeks.

 

In the end, Somewhere In The Middle is a film I’m very proud of. What strikes me most about it is the honesty and vulnerability of the subjects. They really pull no punches and give us a window into their lives, the good, the bad, and the ugly. They are hard working, flawed, kind, extraordinarily talented human beings who, even though they may not be among the fortunate few who make it to superstar status, are redefining what it means to be a successful artist.

 

I hope the film will serve as an inspiration and education for those considering a career in the arts. For parents of a child considering such a path, I hope it offers a different perspective. For those who are working artists, I hope it offers that ‘thank God I’m not alone’ feeling.

 

There are moments in the film that will resonate with anyone in the arts, but many of those moments are as much about life as they are about art. I’ll leave you with the one from the seventy six year old painter, Dan McCaw, who said ‘In the end, we’re only what we’ve allowed ourselves to be.’

 

 

[Conclusion:]

 

So, another reason I found “Somewhere in the Middle,” such a refreshing film is that, until now, podcasts were my only source of insight into the world of full-time artists. The mass media rarely cover anyone who isn’t already a household name, and I don’t think there’s a movie out there that doesn’t regurgitate either the rags to riches cliché and/or the starving artist stereotype. A new story is long overdue, and I’m so glad that Nathan is helping to tell it.

 

Despite how much I learned from these career creatives, I actually resonate with Nathan’s story, the part that I had to dig a little deeper to pull out of him, after he submitted his story. And because I think many of you will resonate with this too, I’m going to share.

 

As I let you know in the last episode I’m back to temporarily working a day job to pay off some of the debt I racked up in my yearlong journey of jumping into voiceover and to fund a new soundproof booth so I don’t have the urge murder my neighbors when they want to mow their lawns. Am I a failure because I decided to make some regular income from a job that’s not quite as satisfying… sometimes I think so, honestly, but I know that’s a culturally programmed mindset. And despite my intention to turn off the audiobook and voice over work since June, the jobs haven’t stopped coming, so for creating a mindset of success for myself, that’s been really validating. So really success is so very personal. Some artists want the paparazzi, to me that would be an absolute nightmare, I just want to be able to control my own schedule and work in yoga pants.

 

This is Nathan’s 4th film according to IMDB, his 5th if you count another movie I came across, that, for some reason, is not linked up there. Maybe there are even more I don’t know about. But the point is he worked with Vivica A. Fox on his very first movie, and he worked for 3 years completely off of his creative work. When I asked him about the experience of his own career via email Nathan wrote:

 

“Currently, my wife and I own a boat salvage yard that I manage and she has a good job in healthcare. Luckily, we have very good employees and the boat business only takes a few hours a day of my time. The rest I can focus on film work. 

 

The best things about my time as an independent artist were the flexibility and working on the creative elements full time. When I wasn’t shooting, I was down at my favorite coffee shop writing or prepping for upcoming projects – that was fun. The worst things, by far, were the inconsistency of work (and pay) and taking a lot of jobs I really didn’t want to do, just for the money. I’m much happier now, balancing my time between a business that I also love (boats), that is much more consistent, and film. These days, the film work I do, goes towards the kid’s college funds or a remodel on the house.”

 

I’m so happy he shared that with me, because it just goes to show you that an artist’s idea of what success is, is as nuanced as the people behind the art.

 

I know that many of you listening today are artists, and if you resonate with the idea of helping to shatter the starving artist paradigm there’s something you can do to help:

 

Please watch “Somewhere in the Middle” on Amazon and leave an honest review. Your reviews will go a long way in making sure this movie will be seen by as many people as possible. I’ll have a link in the shownotes that’ll take you right there.

 

Thanks in advance for your support! Ok, my friends, that’s all you’re going to hear from me today, but before I go, I wanted to let you know to stick around for just another minute if you want to hear a little teaser from the movie. Ok, I’m signing off, but as usual, I’ll be back with more in a couple of weeks.

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