Anne’s July Update and Musings – The Lights of Sturgis
- annep3704
- Jul 22
- 3 min read
In a couple of weeks, I’ll be heading out to a favorite vacation spot: Sturgis, South Dakota.
The scenery is breathtaking, especially on a motorcycle. We’ll visit Badlands National Park, with its dramatic landscape of layered rock formations, steep canyons and towering spires. Then on to Custer State Park, winding through the wildlife loop in search of bison, bighorn sheep and those cute little prairie dogs. Spending the day in Deadwood, we’ll relive the gold rush, poker games and Mount Moriah Cemetery, paying our respects to Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane.
And just north of Deadwood, at the edge of the Black Hills, one of my favorite rides to Tatanka. This is Kevin Costner’s Tatanka Museum. (Tatanka means bison in Lakota). During the filming of Dances with Wolves, Costner fell in love with the creatures and the culture.
I can only imagine what Dean Semler saw through his camera lens as he captured the incredible landscape. It was a vision that ultimately earned him the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for Dances with Wolves. A great cinematographer doesn't simply record what’s there. Every shot is intentional - where the camera is placed, what is illuminated and what remains in the shadows. The story changes simply because the perspective changes. Cinematographers know that changing the camera angle can completely transform a scene.
As Alan Roth and I wrote Lights, Camera…YOU!, I learned so much about the movie industry. So, when I visit South Dakota this time, I think I’ll see things differently. And though most of us are not cinematographers, we have the ability to change our camera angle at any time.
The landscape hasn't changed. Only the perspective.
Sometimes that's all it takes. The same event viewed through gratitude instead of fear. The same challenge seen as an opportunity instead of a setback. The same life...from a different angle.
And I think about the amount of footage from that movie that landed on the cutting room floor. Did you know that eighty to ninety percent of film footage never makes it to the final cut?
It makes me wonder how many scenes from our own lives deserve another take. Which memories have become bloopers? Which old stories belong on the cutting room floor? And which moments deserve to become the opening scene of a brand new chapter?
That's exactly what Lights, Camera...YOU! is really about.
Not changing your life overnight. Changing the way you see it.
Oh...and one more exciting bit of news. Lights, Camera...YOU! is no longer "coming soon." It's here.
Working alongside Alan has been one of the most enjoyable writing experiences of my career. Seeing it finally out in the world has been incredibly rewarding. I can't wait to hear what scenes resonate most with readers.
So, as we ride the Black Hills and enjoy our adventure anew, I am looking forward to seeing it all from a new angle. But unlike Dances with Wolves, we’ll be on a bike instead of a horse. Perhaps the real lights of Sturgis won't be the rally or the sunsets at all. Perhaps they'll be those quiet moments when I see something familiar through an entirely new lens.
Whether you're exploring the Black Hills or simply navigating another ordinary Tuesday, perhaps it's worth asking yourself one question:
What happens if I change the camera angle?
Love and Light,
Anne
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