Welcome to the World of Barry & Joan

Hi Everyone,

I’m excited to share with you some personal thoughts and some of the story associated with our feature film, BARRY & JOAN. I appreciate you taking the time to read this and I hope it leaves you with some positive feelings you can carry with you today. Odds are, if you’re reading this you’ve met me or one of my team, and have some sense of who I am. In that case, I’ll take the liberty of being somewhat personal.

So why have we done this crazy thing? It is a crazy thing...starting with nothing but inspiration and little to no experience in the film world, and deciding to make a movie. The only thing more crazy than that is finding someone, a partner, who was willing to get onboard and do it with me, even though they’d never met these people whom I claimed to be so spectacular. These intriguing characters I’m talking about, are of course Barry and Joan Grantham (the “inspiration”) and Cathy Bonwick (the “partner”). My first blog post is a dedication to the three of them.

I met Barry and Joan when I was just 20 years old, and about to make some big decisions for where I wanted my life to go. I was intellectually transformed by them. They spent many hours in the Sands Film Studio in London with me, teaching me dance routines and the physical techniques of the Music Hall era. I was enamored with them. In love with the process of being in a room with two people who were completely and utterly sure of who they were and what they had offered in this world and in their time.

They had such clear identities, and supported each other in such a beautiful way that I couldn’t imagine them with anyone else or doing anything else. I wanted to be perceived that way, and to have a relationship like that someday. I think many of us do...but perhaps we don’t know it’s possible?

To my impressionable 20 year old mind, what could possibly be more wonderful? Two lives intertwined - symbiosis - crafted with passionate abandon and almost reckless dedication to their skills and to each other, and most importantly, to sharing themselves with others.

The bigness of those feelings were what compelled me to tell their story.

My initial goal was fairly simple: To catch on film the remarkable process that is transference of inspiration and craft. I won’t go into detail here about what happened next. I’ll save that for another day;)

I knew what I had to do, so the next step was to make it happen.

This is when Cathy, my fairy godmother appeared. To say that this woman is remarkable is a ridiculous understatement, but I can’t think of a better word. The most important thing I can thank her for is, surprisingly, not her financial contribution to this project. Yes, she has funded this entire thing and that must be acknowledged. But what I value most about her is her strength of purpose. She is calm, forthright, determined, and energetic and has infused this project (and me) with confidence from the very beginning. That energy is worth more than anything a dollar can buy, for with it you have assured success. The best kind of success, by the way, which morphs as you go along. She and I both understand that the goals may change, and that is the most exciting and growth-spurring aspect of it all.

Alright, enough mush from me. Next week I’ll tell you about the rest of the team and they are well worth hearing about, I promise you.

Status Update: The film is complete and it is beautiful. It’ll make you feel good and think about your future in a positive way. What could be better? We’ve submitted to 12 film festivals thus far, with many more to go. Got any ideas or contacts for us? Send ‘em my way...

Love and good energy,

Audrey Rumsby

Director & Producer

audrey rumsbyDecember 18, 2018