Monday, July 11 – Sunday, July 17

Monday, July 11

Worth observes as Susie films her mother and the Tsosie sisters film their grandfather. Tobia Worth also observes Susie as she films her mother weaving. Worth reflects,

It is interesting here to compare the certainty of Susie’s shooting with the shooting of the T girls. Susie is helping her mother, and shooting at the same time. She also doesn’t shoot with my concept of causality, but she seems to have a clear idea of what to shoot and how to do it. she shoots close ups but I don’t think she’s shooting any of the face (B14FF30P281).

Worth also notes that “We are having trouble with the airline strike…Now we must wait 3 days between sending and receiving film” (B14FF30P282).

Tuesday, July 12

Students continue to work on their films, while Worth and Chalfen discuss the possibilities of their behind the scenes film. Worth remarks that,

For the first time a student came to me and asked, “I saw in the movies – ” “that they have lettering on top of moving pictures. Can’t we do something like that for our titles.” I talked to them about the expense of it all, and told them at this point we couldn’t do it (B14FF30P289).

Wednesday, July 13

Rushes are shown. Worth  remarks that “for the first time we had genuine criticism,” explaining how

Johnny Nelson said that he was disappointed that there were no close ups. I though for a minute that he was referring to face close ups. But as he explained it he meant for the girls to get close ups of hands. He explained that what they could have done was not get down low, but ask Sam to lift his hands up – he demonstrated by lifting his hand – then one could get the sand dripping out of his hands…He explained this criticism as if he were the teacher teaching the girls. But instead of listening respectfully as they invariably do to me, they began to show signs of annoyance. When Johnny finished I waited a bit, then asked the girls what do you thin. “We think, they said that it’s good the way we did it. And we didn’t do it that way. The way he says.” (B14FF20P290).

Students continue to work on their titles, while Worth and Chalfen discuss their “final film” (292).

Thursday, July 14

Students continue to work at their various stages of filming and editing. Worth reflects on what he has learned as a result of the project, and what he would like to study next:

The major thing that I have discovered as a result of this project is that it will be possible to do more rigorous experiments in cognition here, There is a semantic differential stuff on Hopi Navajo. I could give them an instruction book in Navajo and see what happens kind of thing. The editing exercises which I have talked about with Shel and John Adair seem very easy to do now, and the reactions to the film itself seem possible. There is plenty of work! But it is now possible to do. This much has been learned in this project. I can’t help feeling that this doesn’t seem like a momentous thing to find out – but on the other hand it is something quite clear that I think we have found out (B14FF30PP295-6).

Friday, July 15

Worth interviews Johnny and Al about their films. He also negotiates Sam Yazzie’s financial compensation for appearing in his granddaughters’ film:

At 8:00 A.M. we started a discussion with Sam Yazzie and the T girls about how much money was owed him. Sam wanted ten dollars from the girls, and ten dollars from us, for Dick’s painting of his forehead. This is a typical hassle. The girls don’t understand Sam even though they speak Navajo. We can’t understand him either, but that’s because we can’t speak Navajo. Anyway we finally settled on ten dollars from us and told him that that was the final figure and he was going to get no more (B14FF30P297).

Saturday, July 16 – Sunday, July 17

There is no description of this weekend other than a vague indication that Worth had left Pine Springs (B14FF30P299).

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