Day One (The Sequel)

Sunday morning, the weather was much better than anticipated, so we were at our location--Meridian Hill Park--by 8:30 a.m. Jacques arrived with his entourage (also known as Lan and Mie) and was quickly ready to dance. Against a beautiful archway of trees, he performed a joyful dance, different from the serious one he did the day before.

By 12: 30, we were finished, and ate a big lunch. Then we scouted to find somewhere to test the drone, and got some very inspiring shots in a Maryland park.

Some wonderful people stopped by to watch the shooting, and we greatly enjoyed hearing about their work using dance to teach and uplift people. It's exciting to see how the film seems to create opportunities for collaboration! We're very excited to meet Gail, Mark, John and Boris!

Only later did Jacques share with us pictures of some of those who have enjoyed his performances, and taken pictures with him, including Angelina Jolie, Chris Tucker, Angela Bassett. We never would have known this, as Jacques treats every person and every situation as if they are precious. Through all the tough and stressful moments, he has been a model of gentility and patience. His performance is full of passion and grace, which obviously comes from how he lives his whole life. He is an emissary not only of Rwandan dance, music and culture, but also, of the power of forgiveness to heal enemy wounds and to transform human relationships. We feel truly honored to have him set the standard for our film. Thank you Jacques Nyungura, our wonderful Rwandan brother!