Birddog

In the spring of 2010, Kelley Baker visited a college where I was working part-time as an English instructor; I was also taking video production classes on the side. He told the story of the making of Birddog.

Baker, who had spent several years in the Hollywood scene, mostly doing sound for such big-time films as Good Will Hunting, Finding Forrester, To Die For and My Own Private Idaho, decided to write and direct his first feature. He said the budget was in the vicinity of $150,000, a fraction of what a major Hollywood production would entail. (He also said he mortgaged his house to finance the film, after which he quipped, "Don't ever do that!") He stuck to what he knew, filming in his home area of Portland, Oregon, and creating a story that centered around the local city of Vanport, which was destroyed by a flood in 1948. Baker presented a sharp script -- a mystery/detective story (even if the detective is a used car dealer), a history lesson, a comedy, and a tale of loyalty and friendship -- the latter sometimes coming from places you don't quite expect. Baker pulled together a fine cast to portray his characters, some quirky, some annoying, some sincere, all entertaining. Birddog doesn't rank as a great film, but it is pretty good, especially when you take into consideration the miniscule budget on which it was built.

After Baker's presentation, he mentioned that he had some of his DVDs and books for sale. I only had enough money to buy one item, so I opted for a DVD of Birddog. That's one decision I've never regretted.