The Renée Review

Getting to St. Barth:

Getting to St. Barth can be an interesting experience as it’s not the easiest place to travel to, but well worth the voyage. St. Barthélemy is a tropical desert island with fantastic beaches, world class shopping and gastronomic dining. The island is small supporting a limited number of inhabitants and tourists offering exclusivity to those who are lucky enough to find themselves here.

The only way to get to St. Barth is via small aircraft, private yacht, cruise ship or ferry. Flights into St. Barthélemy (SBH) arrive from three nearby airports Guadeloupe (PTP), San Juan (SJU) and from Juliana Airport in St. Maarten (SXM) where 10-minute shuttle flights are made throughout the day. Your St. Barth adventure begins as your flight drops down between craggy mountain peaks onto the short runway landing just feet from the beach and ocean of Baie de Saint-Jean.

To make the most of your St. Barth’s visit I recommend staying awhile, renting a villa and a car. The island is steep and rugged, so 4 wheel drive is a must. It’s easy to get around St. Barth, plus the freedom when traveling by your own means offers the opportunity for discovery. Sibarth Villa Rentals and Wimco, their partners in the states is the premier agency for villa rental on St. Barth offering a vast selection to choose from and the expertise in placing individuals in the most appropriate accommodations.

If you are day tripping to the island and choose not to rent a vehicle, I’ve included approximate taxi times between Gustavia harbor to areas of interest. A rental car is still the best way to go unless you don’t plan to leave the Gustavia area.

AREA – Gustavia: Gustavia = SHOPPING! Get an amazing swimsuit at Hip Up, Black Swan or Kiwi. Find fun shoes at Kokon. Treat yourself to exclusive natural spa products from Ligne St. Barth or visit the pharmacy for interesting European body products. Check out boutiques like Made in St. Barth, Filles des Iles, Caravan, Ilena, Chic St. Barth and Lolita Jaca for unique finds. Shop Linde Gallery for vintage designer accessories and ready to wear. Based on the exchange rate, the same stores and brands could cost less stateside, therefore, save your purchases at Cartier, Hermes, Longchamp, Stuart Weitzman, etc. for home, unless there is something you absolutely know you can’t find stateside.

Dining in Gustavia – try Le Bistro for delicious Carpaccio, fresh fish and Italian pastas. They are located along the waterfront at the harbor, past the little park with large anchor and rotunda separating the sides of the harbor, near the post office on Quai de la Retrocession / Rue Samuel Fahlberg. Another fun spot is Le Select, a mainstay outdoor beer and burger joint, (think Cheeseburger in Paradise) stay for a drink and you just might stay for the burger as well, on Rue de la Guadeloupe and General de Gaulle.

Stroll through Gustavia, wandering leisurely to Anse de Grands Galets / Shell Beach – (Shell is not nice for swimming, but this little cove is full of beautiful seashells and a great place for taking unique photographs). This is a pleasant way to spend the day discovering the Gustavia neighborhood of St. Barth and once you’ve reached Shell Beach, stop for lunch or a sunset cocktail at Do Brazil Restaurant. Taxis can easily be arranged for your 5-minute return to Gustavia Harbor from this location.

Many of the excursion companies are located on the city hall side of Gustavia Harbor, waterfront on Rue Jeanne D’Arc. Here you can join Jet Ski tours, go out on a catamaran, rent a fishing boat or discover the island by sailboat.

For a more personal experience, discovering St. Barth by small sailboat might be an option for you. Lil’E St. Barth is a small sailboat skippered and managed by Mowgli. He offers various trips at 1 ½ hours, 2 hours, 4 hours and 8 hours and can also personally train you in the art of sailing; limited to 3 guests plus the captain. www.lilestbarth.com

AREA – Baie de Saint-Jean: 8 minute Taxi from Gustavia to Baie de Saint-Jean. This calm, white sand beach has a broad shallow base, allowing you to wade a good distance and is my favorite beach on St. Barth. Bring your snorkel gear to see the marvelous fish and sea turtles around the rocks of the Eden Rock Hotel; you’ll be glad you did! If you get hungry, enjoy lunch with your feet in the sand at “The Sand Bar” restaurant located at world famous Eden Rock Hotel. You could also enjoy fine dining in “On The Rocks” for an unforgettable meal, though you probably wouldn’t want to show up in your swimsuit.

From Baie de Saint-Jean, you can watch the dramatic airport landings of Winair, St. Barth Commuter and Air Caraibes flights as they drop down onto the short runway that ends just feet from the beach and ocean. Sign’s warn you not to cross the beach when aircraft are landing, better look before crossing the beach!!!!

Across the street from the Eden Rock Hotel and Nikki Beach next door is a secondary Mecca for St. Barth shopping. It’s smaller than that of Gustavia but it’s just as fun! Ligne St. Barth is located near here. Taxis can easily be arranged for your return to Gustavia Harbor from this location.

AREA – Anse de Gouverneur / Governors Beach: 15-minute taxi from Gustavia to Anse de Gouverneur / Governors Beach (tied for my second favorite beach) unspoiled; pristine white sand, bigger waves and the ability to swim with suit or au natural ☺ bring a picnic lunch and your snorkel gear, though be cautious of the surge!!! Taxis must be pre-arranged for pick up, there are no services on or around this beach.

AREA – Anse de Grande Saline / Grande Saline Beach: 20 minute taxi from Gustavia to Anse de Grande Saline / Grande Saline Beach (tied for my second favorite beach) close to the wild coast of St. Barth with golden brown sand, swimming with suit or au natural and Le Grain de Sel Restaurant nearby for lunch. Bring good shoes for the walk through the dunes to the beach (Keen’s are perfect!). This beach has the strongest surge with heavy undertow and is not recommended for weak swimmers.

If making the drive to Anse de Grande Saline, take the long way (30 to 40 minutes depending on time spent at viewpoints). You’ll see most of the St. Barth coast this way. Trek past the airport, by Baie de Saint-Jean, then ask to see the dramatic views from Pointe Milou, pass grand cul de sac and the hotel Le Toiny or stop here for lunch at Le Gaiac for unforgettable views and service. Allow time for a leisurely meal if dining at this gastronomic restaurant.

Continue your trek passing Anse de Grand Fond and the wild coast. This is a fun spot for a photo op with areas to pull over; you’ll know them when you see them. For the return to Gustavia, travel the roads through Morne Lurin, through Lurin and into Gustavia from the backside, (20 minutes). *Either pre-arrange your taxi for the return to Gustavia or call from Le Grain de Sel restaurant, if dining there.

AREA – Anse de Colombier / Colombier Beach: 20 Minute taxi from Gustavia to Anse de Colombier / Colombier Beach (drop off area). If you feel up to a hike, bring your snorkel gear and head to Colombier Beach. Park at the viewpoint located at the end of the road, trek down the craggy hillside with picnic lunch, lots of water and your favorite pair of Keens. The trek down to Colombier Beach takes roughly 25 minutes and a little longer going back up. If being dropped off, be certain to arrange for a pick up, as there are no services on or near this beach.

I don't know if you've looked at my Facebook status lately, but my husband Paul and I went away last week going to multiple national parks on a private aviation trip to film yet another travel documentary. 

We've been filming (working title) "Airplane Adventures" or "Come Fly Away" as a starting point for our "By Sea" travel documentary, to see if we have legs....if we could keep up with having to film all the time....and to see if the invasion to our privacy would be an issue.

Now that we're back on the ground and at home, I have to say - last week was CRAZY!!!!  Much of it was fun, but this trip was not at all like a "vacation." 

When we were not filming, we were getting talent release forms signed, obtaining location releases and getting permits for each of the national parks we visited.  What an interesting side job to the actual filming.  Working on the fly keeps you busy! 

Now we've got 80 GB of Compact flash data to download, transcode and actually edit.....talk about work!  This is a really big endeavor and one that I KNOW will require more than just the two of us.  That said, I'm still willing to get my feet wet and continue to produce, be on camera, direct, shoot and edit to see what we can accomplish.

We've got several other places we'll be going over the summer with very little time at home between trips.  I'm feeling overwhelmed with the accumulation of data and the inability to get to the editing side of this monster. 

It is pretty cool though :-)

The development of cinema equipment has led to ever changing stylistic transformations in content, visual effects, sound and story since its introduction in the 1890’s to present.  It continues to evolve as an art form and is a means of education, method of influence and an instrument for entertainment.

Since the origin of Actualities first created by the Lumiere Brothers, people have been fascinated with this art form called film.  Though Actualities were static and ordinary, they captivated audiences. These films were shot with a stationary MOS camera and depicted life in a series of black and white frames filmed in real time.  They contained no editing, no sound and were purely visual art relating to an event or action without story.

The birth of editing was the next progression where cutting the film and gluing the cut to another portion of the reel allowed the filmmaker to tell a narrative story.  The movement of the camera to capture different shots helped tell this narrative.  Animation techniques allowed for slates and subtitles to move a story forward with text accompanying the visuals on film.

With the advent of sound, each film could now have a soundtrack of speech, music and sound effects.  Cinema became an experience through a series of selected shots combined with camera movement and multiple camera angles.  In 1929 the filmmaker Jorvis Ivens uses the film Rain / Regen to capture the life of this seemingly dismal weather by animating it through the use of sound and carefully selected visuals. The rain becomes interesting and poetic as it falls on Amsterdam.  The tranquility turns to frenzy as the rain energizes through the progression of the storm and its ever-rising musical score and back again.  This world, Ivens world, is lovelier with the rain than it is without it.

The visual approach, camera angles, special effects, sound, color and series of selected shots of film have become the language of film.  A filmmaker could now create a perception of power, weakness, stasis, movement, suspicion, impending danger, etc., with the manipulation of the camera and effective use of sound. This created a powerful ability to influence people.  Leni Riefenstahl took full advantage of this when making her 1935 Nazi propaganda film, Triumph of the Will for Adolf Hitler and is largely responsible for many of the camera angles we use today in using the language of film.

The evolution of transforming film from black and white to vivid color added yet another layer of dimension to film. The desire to replicate what the eyes and brain process has gone beyond color and into 3D

In today’s world of film, technology and progress is an ever-changing beast with something new on a monthly basis.  Computers have led to the advancement of animated film, speeding up the process of individually producing each frame.  File formats let us share and view our films over the Internet.  Advancements in more affordable cinema equipment like the digital video Red cameras; Epic, Scarlet, Red One and Red Ray make it easier for independent filmmakers to produce a quality picture without having to leap the hurdle in costs for professional film equipment and stock.   

Story continues to be the driving force in an audiences desire to spend money to view a filmmaker’s work, so weather it’s a big budget film from a Hollywood studio or an indie film produced without financing or distribution, story is still the name of the game. 

Exposition and the use of voice:

Fog of War by Errol Morris – 2003

In Fog of War, a documentary about Robert S. McNamara, the filmmaker, Errol Morris uses first-person narration with voice over interview for the voice of his film.  The story of this historical Secretary of Defense begins with archival footage and tense music while credits roll on black that is interlaced with imagery of torpedo’s loading, gun boat crews, planning room sessions, troop deployment and a warning that “One mistake will destroy nations.”

The train of the film is moved forward with McNamara’s 10 Lessons and a sea of dominos that fall and reverse topple as the train moves forward. 

Errol Morris uses camera language to allow the audience in on specific thoughts about power and truth.  The use of high, low and Dutch angles is appropriate and effective in his edits. 

McNamara is out and no one knows what might have been, the fallen dominoes return upright.  This exposition is an interesting way to beg the question that the world will never receive an answer to. 

Errol Morris ends his film with McNamara’s refusal to respond to a question, which he responds to by saying, “You’re dammed if you do and dammed if you don’t, I’d prefer to be dammed if I don’t.”

In the end, we are treated to the marvelous insight of TS Elliott. “We shall start exploring and once we return, we shall know the place from which we started – for the first time.”  I loved this film!

Exposition and the use of voice:

J’ai Ete Au Bal by Les Blank – 1989

In J’ai Ete Au Bal, a documentary about Ziadaco music and the mix of Creole, Acadian and Cajun cultures, the filmmaker, Les Blank uses an ethnographic voice from within the culture using multiple individuals to tell the story. 

The music is first presented as simple.  The people tell the story of their ancestry and of the immersions of the three cultures, in their own voice, which makes the film folksy.  This approach offers the audience a sense of being invited into the homes and backyards of these individuals. 

From yard to yard and house-to-house, we are given a taste of this part of America today (1989) and the use of unique stills gives us a sense of time past. 

We discover that the music is complex and rich with history.  There is a love surrounding the music.  We discover that the social aspects of dance and music brought these cultures together. Music is a language that is a part of these people. 

The cultures have differences and while outsiders seem to lump everyone in French Southwest Louisiana as Cajun, their history, dialect and cultures are vastly different, yet are bound together by music and dance.