Update 3: Testing Times

(July to October 2025)

The last few months has been a period of learning, being personally tested, and moving from theory into real world practice. Born On Death Row now feels like a real production with international footage, new collaborators, and a growing sense of direction.

July & August

Two months of preparation and planning, with a growing sense of real world pressure as our upcoming Moby interview in Los Angeles drew closer.

We mapped out the structure for future interviews with guardians of ex-laboratory beagles — relaxed, intimate conversations in people’s homes about life after the laboratory — and began exploring crew options for this style of shoot.

Around the same time, I was invited to my first public speaking engagement, giving a 45-minute talk about our animal sanctuary at Vegan Camp Out, the world’s biggest vegan festival. The talk mattered — not just for outreach but because the retreat helps sustain this project financially.

We also turned it into a filming exercise, recording the talk from four different mobile-phone angles. A week later, with animal cover in place for the sanctuary, we were heading for Heathrow Airport!

September — Los Angeles

September marked a milestone: our first international filming block in Los Angeles.

While we recovered from jet lag in LA, that sanctuary talk footage became my hands-on introduction to synchronised multi-cam editing and proxy workflows – an exciting piece of the learning curve for me and as usual, a great test of patience for Jacqui! The edit was worth it though, as this upcoming winter season already has a much higher level of bookings at the retreat.

Thirteen Puppies!

Whilst staying with Beagle Freedom Project, we had the surprise pleasure of babysitting 13 rescued maltese puppies overnight who had been rescued from a puppy mill. They were on a stop-over on their way to their foster homes. Luckily they were quite well behaved overnight, but also very messy!

Then things took a testing turn — with the first half of the plans falling through, and we had to rebuild our schedule and crew at speed. We relocated, re-grouped, and hired new people in just a couple of days. It was a costly but defining experience that tested our focus and resilience.

Our positive mindset was quickly rewarded by Jane from UnchainedTV who responded to our message on Instagram with a very warm dinner invite where we ‘talked shop’ and shared connections, before taking a marina walk to ‘get down’ at MDR Dance!

We got to grips with the Blackmagic Camera App on the iPhone, mounted on a gimbal and recording ProRes directly to an external SSD — a lightweight but cinematic setup that proved invaluable for our experimental vox-pops with the soulful characters at Venice Beach Skate Park.

A supportive conversation with the very courteous Dr Alka Chandna from PETA led us to a spontaneous six-hour drive upstate to San Francisco where we interviewed Rebekah Robinson of Dane4Dogs, a small but determined grassroots group that has helped to actually ban animal testing in several Wisconsin cities through ballot initiatives, and is taking legal action against Ridglan Farms, one of the US’s largest beagle breeders, for regulatory violations. Their courage, persistence and tactical approach was a great inspiration.

Back in LA we filmed with @OtisTheHandsomeHound, a gentle laboratory survivor, and his devoted guardian in their beautiful Santa Monica home — both loving souls who brought much-needed warmth and humanity to the story.

The Moby Interview

Our trip concluded with a powerful interview with Moby, whose thoughts on transparency, compassion, and creative activism fit perfectly into the film’s core themes.

Despite a tense and time-limited setup, we stayed composed, respected Moby’s boundaries, and secured strong, thoughtful answers to our prepared questions.

October

Back in the UK, we touched down straight into a couple of weeks of getting back on the ground at the sanctuary, we set up a new enclosure and trellis fencing, and replaced a very mature, but unfortunately very toxic, wisteria with animal-safe jasmine.

Next, we acquired our own professional cinema camera (used but mint condition), giving us the independence to film on our own schedule and explore freely.

The past few weeks have been all about getting to grips with it — learning its controls, testing lenses and filters, and integrating it into our Linux-based DaVinci Resolve workflow.

We’ve also been consolidating everything from the US shoot — syncing, logging, backing up, and shaping it into a coherent archive for long-term post-production.

Now, with the Moby interview recorded, we’re ready to return to the pitch video with much more substance and perspective.

Meanwhile, sanctuary life continues in parallel — volunteers caring for the animals, constant maintenance, and moments of calm that remind us what all this is for.

It’s been a demanding but transformative few months. Born on Death Row feels less like a project and more like a living, evolving organism — tested, stretched, and now finding its rhythm.

What’s Next?

We are very much looking forward to further UK interviews and location pieces over the winter as well as a follow up return trip to the US which includes interviewing a lifelong animal researcher and following the prosecution of Ridglan Farms.

Oh and stop playing with the new camera equipment and FINISH THE PITCH VIDEO!!!