In 2008, I quit my corporate job, sold off everything I owned and moved overseas with my husband Drew. Since then we've traveled around the world, started our careers over as creative types and nurtured our love of sleeping in late. Oh and we had a baby. Cole, our almost 2 year old has been traveling since he was four months old and probably knows more Thai than me (not that he brags).
Almost Fearless: The Documentary (and the $9,830 Challenge)
When I started this journey in 2008, I thought I was alone. I always knew I wanted to travel, but I didn’t know people who made it happen over the long term. The closest I would hear about was someone taking an extended break (maybe a year) to backpack around the globe, but at the end of the trip it was back to the office, the “real world” and 2 week rushcations.
Now I know better. There’s a huge community of people, all over the world, living, working and traveling where they please. The internet and wifi has made it possible to work from anywhere. They’re called digital nomads.
Since I’ve started my own family, I’ve realized that this isn’t just about travel… it’s about being able to do absolutely anything. For us that means in addition to being able to live anywhere and to travel as we please, we also have the flexibility to pursue projects that interest us and most recently to start a family. In a time when having one parent stay home is a luxury, we’re able to both be home with the baby, tag-teaming child care and making life with a newborn a breeze. Being wireless doesn’t just change where you work, it changes how you live.
The Documentary
This summer, we’re traveling to Bulgaria as our home base in Europe and we’ll begin (my husband and I) a project I feel very passionate about. We’ll begin primary shooting for a documentary on the digital nomad lifestyle.
We’ll be interviewing and following other digital nomads as they show what their lives really look like. It’s like the 4-Hour Workweek Movie or A Map for Saturday: Digital Nomad Edition. Throughout, we’ll be exploring the different ways folks are able to make long term travel work:
- Where do they live?
- How do they make money?
- Where do their kids go to school?
- What is the “digital nomad” lifestyle really like?
- What are the pitfalls?
- How can I apply these things to my life, even if I don’t want to travel abroad?
Why I’m Telling You This
Originally, there was a part of me that wanted to keep this project under wraps. After all, it’s a huge undertaking and announcing my intentions up front also puts some pressure on me. If I fail, it’s public. But after thinking about it, I realized that this is exactly the kind of thing I need to be transparent about. What better way to illustrate the process of going from having an idea to executing it? I had the faith to begin this journey and to document it publicly, so I can’t become complacent now and start shielding myself from risk.
The $9,830 Challenge
We’re funding this project completely out of pocket. And it’s not going to be cheap. We need a professional grade camera, a microphone, lighting, a Mac Book Pro, editing software (Final Cut Pro), and portable storage (think terabytes). The total cost for these things? $9,830. And I have to raise it before I leave the US on July 1st.
That gives me about 2.5 months to raise nearly $10K out of thin air.
In the spirit of transparency, I’m starting this challenge to raise the cash and to share my steps (and mis-steps) as I go.
The rules are simple:
- It has to be money I raised. I can’t siphon off my current income, I need that to live.
- I can do whatever it takes to make the money. I can use this website. I can get a job at 7-11. I can start street performing for donations. I can even sell the clothes off my back if that’s what it takes.
Every Sunday I’ll be posting about my progress with updates on the totals raised, and what I’m planning for that week. I’m hoping it’ll be interesting to see the process, especially since $10K is about the amount that would get most people on the road and traveling, if they wanted. It’s not about how I raise the money, as much as the concept of putting yourself out there and making things happen. I like to think that if you declare it, it will come. So far, that’s worked for me.
Support this project
To get things started, instead of finding one well-financed angel investor to help fund this documentary, I’m looking for partners who can make a micro-payment today, in order to support a film they want to see. Any donation amount will get you a mention in the credits, but I’ll also be reaching out to the folks who donated for when I have cool stuff to share (think sneak peaks, events etc).
Also you can pre-order a copy of the DVD for $25 (includes S&H). When the DVD comes out, it will automatically be shipped to you.
Pick your option (donate or pre-order) from the drop-down below:
Get Involved
If you’d like to participate in this project, you can! I’m always looking for folks with an interesting story, a good contact or even looking to roll up their sleeves and jump in. If that’s you, tell me about it.
Pic: blhphotography
goodluck… i wish I could buy your dvd to help you but i dont have any money to donate so ill just post this article in my FB and Twitter.
.-= flip´s last blog ..Meet the Nomads: Lauren of ATC =-.
Excellent idea & best of luck with it. Its not the easiest life but it takes me usually less than 10 minutes to think of the alternative to our nomad lifestyle (moving back to the U.S.) and appreciate the freedom and wealth of experiences we are fortunate to enjoy.
I wish you all the luck with this. It sounds really fun and I can’t wait to see the finished project.
.-= Jay´s last blog ..An Update on How Things are Going =-.
Wow, this is a great idea, but like you said a huge undertaking. I’m sure with your vast network of travelers you can find plenty of people willing to share their story.
.-= Cornelius Aesop´s last blog ..Savannah Riverboat Cruises =-.
Sweet! Since we’re working hard to figure out if we can go digitally nomadic sometime in 2011 (with our family of 5–its own kettle of fish), we’ll watch your progress with great interest. And I’m buying a MacBook Pro next month–woot!
.-= Lisa @ The World is Calling´s last blog ..Unforgettable Beach Bars =-.
We’re very excited about this, and would love to support your effort in anyway we can!
We’re currently about to attend a gathering of full time digital nomads on wheels, and will be capturing video interviews of the event for a little documentary of our own. If you’d be interested in the footage, happy to share!
.-= Cherie @Technomadia´s last blog ..Nomads Rolling In =-.
Hey Christine,
What an awesome and exciting project for you to be undertaking.
Would you consider hiring a nomadic editor on this (saving yourself the up front cost of mac/software)?
Best of luck!
.-= Will´s last blog ..Easter Island! =-.
Thanks guys for the support! Already, I’m getting all these emails from people who want to be part of this project, which is awesome, I’m so excited at the prospect of sharing more about this community.
Cherie- We will definitely be in touch!
Will- That’s an idea, although I suspect that the cost of editing will be much more than the Macbook plus Final Cut. The biggest cost for this is actually the camera, which is the lowest end Pro model available but is still quite pricey. We would love this film to be featured in film festivals and to even get some kind of distribution deal, so the quality of the original footage is paramount.
As some people noted, it is ambitious, but that’s what makes it fun!
This is a great idea!
I look forward to following your progress and can’t wait for the final product.
Good Luck!
Interesting idea and worth participating in. If you need some peripheral help I use to work in the tv industry – have some rusty editing skills and radio/hosting/producing skills. Uh, the radio part may not help you, but I’ve done lots of interviews before. Email me if you like! And good luck with this – sounds fascinating. If you don’t know about this, check out: http://www.kickstarter.com/ It’s a fundraising platform for artists,designers, flimmakers. You can post your project & Twitter the hell outta of it. Nice new skin btw.
.-= Nomadic Chick´s last blog ..Second Day of Layoff =-.
Right on, Christine! This’ll be amazing for sure.
Looking forward to the DVD and will definitely order it when it comes out.
.-= Mike´s last blog ..Photo of the Moment: In the Shadow of the Chicago Bean =-.
Great idea and best of luck to you in this quest! I’ll spread the word.
.-= Keith´s last blog ..The Importance of the Quest =-.
wow! new life, new projects, new look for the blog, many exciting things to come!
Great idea! looking forward to reading more about it!
can I pre order the dvd with a card from another country? or do I have to have a billing address in the US?
Fantastic idea, can’t wait to see the end result. Our family is traveling to South America in an old VW bus. 8 months so far, and it has been fantastic. We’ve already scrapped our intended year itinerary and decided to home school our son and keep traveling.
I was sort of offering my services as an editor. I’m set up with a MBP and Final Cut Studio 3, though I totally understand if you wish to maintain complete creative control of your project.
.-= Will´s last blog ..Easter Island! =-.
That’s interesting and inspiring for people fighting for their dream. it’s very great of you, and very creative.
best of luck. and i will spread the words.
Jeff Wang
.-= Jeff Wang´s last blog ..面对与朋友，合作伙伴的冲突，你会怎么做？ =-.
Hey Christine
I love this idea of making your goals public and detailing the process. I am also doing something similar in that I am trying to raise a similar amount of money in a similar time frame for my over land and sea journey around the world via the trans-sierian express. I’m really keen to find out how you do this and successful method you have.
Hi Christine, I emailed you separately with kudos on this post and your project and some info I wanted to share … just wanted to add a p.s. suggestion: you should consider adding some zeroes to those donation amounts in the drop-down menu below
! (e.g. 50 instead of 5) Or, at least give the option to give whatever amount donors would like to give. Good luck with your fundraising!
Ahhh…something fresh and exciting. I like it. You know I think that this will be a great service to the world for you to complete this documentary, and it aligns with my passion, so I’ll preorder and see what else I can do:)
.-= Lis Carpenter´s last blog ..Tao of Jeet Kune Do =-.
I have been a Digital Nomad for many years now, working from 7 continents
Last 2 years I have worked (my own onkine company) from my bicycle, cycling from Alaska to South America in the process. I went back to an office about 5 years ago, but ran away after a few months! It is the only way for me, such a waste of time when the only thing you discover during work is the new shirt of the guy in the cubicle nex to you…
Anyway, some advice as I have filmed/produced a documentary about an Everest climb and had to buy 5 HD cameras for it: we contacted the imported and got the cameras for wholesale price. We used them and after the shoot/climb, we sold them again, nearly for the same amount. Still cheap compared to full-priced camera.
So, the point is that you only need to borrow the amount for the duration of the project. As long as you buy a good, new, popular camera, many young filmmakers will take it of your hands afterwards. There are many ways to ask people to sell it cheaper in the first place. Good luck and let me know when you need an interview
.-= Harry & Ivana´s last blog ..Intermezzo: Interview with Ivana & Harry for Examiner =-.
Awesome project! Not only is the documentary an interesting idea, I also love the way you’re going to go about raising the money to pull it all off.
Good luck with it all, I look forward to reading about it.
As someone who has aspirations of getting into video stuff at some point, I will be especially interested in seeing how it all goes.
.-= Kirsty´s last blog ..Building Lasting Friendships on the Road =-.
Love the idea. Wish you the best! Makes me excited for my trip…two years away. *sigh*
I love the idea of becoming public, very inspiring, and also how to raise the money for it all. Would love to see end result. All the best.
I believe you can do everything you are planning to do at about a third of your projected cost. High level HD quality digital camcorders are easily had for under 1K these days. I have been using one for a few year-I still prefer tape-safer storage and archival. Mac is completely unnecessary. Think small when traveling and get a HP mini-laptop at around $400. Editing software- use Pinnacle Studio 12 or above. It does everything you need for under $200. I’ve traveled for 10 years around the world doing photographing and video and have learned especially with airlines charging extra for bags, keep it small and simple. Shure microphone with adapter- $100. fold-up tripod-$30-100. With the other 6K you can finance your trip. Take it from an old pro. You can step up to the fancier stuff after you get the cashflow up. Hope this helps. Happy Nomading.
Hi Dave,
Thanks for your feedback about the gear. Part of what I’m planning for is to be able to show this film at festivals… and as I’m sure you know, format is going to make a big difference…. so while you can do HD on a cheaper camera, you won’t necessarily have the quality (especially for sound) that you’d need.
I’m basing my gear choices on what has been recommended to me by folks who have done documentaries before… which may be different than say doing video for a wedding.
Finally, this isn’t about just raising the cash, for me. I mean if that was the case I could just use savings or a credit card, buy all the gear myself and save myself the trouble. Part of what I’m doing with this challenge is getting people involved and making sure that there is an actual market for this. I will be traveling (on my own dime) and filming for about a year and this represents a huge project.
Plus I thought it would be cool to share the project.
So yes, I could go super cheap and buy better gear later, but I don’t think that works for this specific project… especially as I’ll be flying around doing interviews as soon as this summer. But I’ll be talking more about that later.
The good news is that fundraising is going well and I’m optimistic that I’ll reach the goal.
Thanks!
-Christine
Great idea! I can’t wait to see it!
.-= Mikko Kemppe´s last blog ..I Self-Induced A Fever To Heal Inflammation In The Brain =-.
Great and inspirational that you are doing this and documenting it! I hope to have a story to share about my digital nomadic life in the not too distant future.