*Christina's friend

Combine drone footage with an AI-generated flying guy who swoops around and explains what the white belt is. A bit of a cartoonish, comical superhero character. It is a surreal, unreal world. Apparent that it's contrived by the filmmakers, showing glitchy AI. Maybe - even showing the AI artist at his/her computer creating then generating the clips before we see the actual clips.

"Dufferin Construction employees pose for a photo with local dignitaries at a Ministry of

Transportation press conference on Friday

updating expansion work on Highway 400 through Barrie. Kevin Lamb/Barrie Today"

Approx. date of this news story Friday July 4, 2025

*this scene, or a scene attached to it, would include Doug Ford - "build, build, build" mentality, cheerleading "housing starts", Ford is seen as an archetype "fat cat" politician which people anywhere in the world will recognize

I did not do a deep dive but could likely find some decent temp music tracks here.

User: mhamilton@fourthline.ca

"2 arrests in rock throwing incidents in Markham & Whitechurch-Stouffville."

Farmhouse Motorcade – a 150-year-old stone farmhouse is raised onto steel girders and carefully inched onto a giant flatbed truck. Roads are closed and a visually-striking motorcade begins, crawling to a new, safe location. Three generations of the farm family have gathered to watch the spectacle as it unfolds. While demolishing farmsteads in the White Belt is routine, we witness the rescue of this generational legacy.

Sony FX6 and Leica prime lens set

*old farmer sitting in pickup truck outside senior home

*auction is like a wake

*auction could also be a finale

*connecting Group of Seven with people today creating art around abandoned buildings, including Danielle

*bugs, what does that mean? maybe, in addition to showing the reality of the time and place, need to also show bugs in bug season and not avoid it like films avoid winter

*ground zero...

Yes, Toronto has experienced significant flooding recently due to a large amount of rainfall. On July 16, 2024, a major storm brought torrential rain to the city, causing flooding on major highways like the Don Valley Parkway and Lake Shore Boulevard, as well as in other parts of the GTA. The heavy rain also led to widespread power outages and disrupted public transportation, including subway closures and delays. 

Here's a more detailed breakdown:

• Torrential Rainfall:

  A significant rainfall event on July 16, 2024, saw Toronto receive close to 100 mm of rain in a short period. Pearson International Airport recorded 97.8 mm of rain that morning, more than the average monthly rainfall for July. 

Hundreds of Canadians thought they were going to make money by cultivating earthworms more than 40 years ago.

When they didn't, the RCMP's commercial fraud branch got involved in trying to figure out why.

"The RCMP says there may be as many as 10 companies in Ontario and the West selling worm-raising kits," the CBC's Terry Matte reported on The National on June 10, 1979.

Chances are if you've been using bait worms for fishing, it came from a specific stretch of land between Toronto and Windsor. We're digging into the earthy art and economy of worm farming in Ontario. 

In yoga, drishti (Sanskrit for "gaze" or "point of focus") refers to the specific focal point the eyes are directed towards during an asana (pose). It's a technique used to enhance concentration, improve balance, and cultivate a deeper connection between body and mind. Essentially, it's a way to draw attention inward and create a moving meditation. 

Here's a more detailed explanation:

• Purpose:

  Drishti helps to quiet the mind, reduce distractions, and improve focus during yoga practice. 

• How it works:

  By fixing the gaze on a specific point, like the tip of the nose, the navel, or a specific finger, the mind is less likely to wander, and the body can find a more stable and aligned posture. 

We shoot a sequence to go just before showing this photo - of the airport how it is now, massive, congested, hundreds of planes, throngs of people, and possibly an ariel with similar angle (although major restrictions for drones near airport so that's likely impossible) but could shoot out passenger plane window - wouldn't be able to recreate the angle but that footage would place the urbanization all around the airport - to contrast with the photo.

(FB post Sat. Sept 13, 2024)

(appears to be annual)

A series of farm accident simulations and rescues, with actors - we get permission to shoot the whole thing - the sequence goes with people's stories about farm accidents and the whole culture of danger and tragedy that goes with farming. With, possibly, footage of the art installation in Denmark (Louisiana contemp art gallery) of 25 old artificial legs in a circle. And/or (and maybe this is even better) shoot footage at Chedoke Centre in Hamilton, partially built limbs, technicians making limbs, maybe the victim of a farm accident being fitted (kid?).

Protest holding up traffic and streetcars on Dundas in front of AGO (Sat Sept 20, 2025). Lots of uniformed cops, passerby stopping to chat, a lot of laughing, taking selfies, cops all seems the same age, early thirties, hipsters, same as people on the street, cops are men, women, black, asian

They organize photo tours to liminal, abandoned buildings and malls. Somehow, they must be getting permission. Maybe we could suggest to them a farm-related White Belt photo tour, and they could use their expertise to get permission? And we film a weird and unexpected doc sequence - people prepping for tour, getting on bus, driving, and then exploring these buildings. (And/or maybe we set something like this up at non-developer, "access-friendlier" places, like historic houses or barns that are owned/controlled by a region, town, or city, are safe for people to access, and are someday going to be saved and rebuilt as a public project. Such as - city of Guelph and the Hanlon Expressway stone house near Sleemans, and on hill at Hanlon and Paisley Rd.

Oct. 2, 2025

"Aiden Karkhanechi has been living in Guelph for only a month, but he has big plans to try and make life better for some of its oldest citizens.

The 17-year-old is starting Hues for Hope, a not-for-profit aimed at connecting generations through arts, crafts and activities in retirement homes across the city.

The Vaughan native, who is taking real estate at the University of Guelph, got the idea from one of his professors, Ruben Burga."

647-760-9300

*karaoke and open mic night

*garden tractor pull in parking lot

*bike night (was cancelled in June 2025)

*"chicken races" fundraiser for "Uncommon Society"

* from ChatGPT "in these community events it’s a safe, supervised stunt or timed challenge, not an actual game of chicken. Participants drive at low speed in controlled settings (often in a parking lot or lot cleared for the event), sometimes raising funds for charity or local food drives."

*apparently this woman is the person behind Uncommon Society

*vet and former beauty pageant competitor and organizer??

*from Kapuskasing, studied in the Soo, lives in Hamilton

"Uncommon Society serves as a platform for people to engage in dialogues about faith, beliefs, and personal experiences in informal settings such as bars or public spaces. The aim is to create a welcoming environment where members from various backgrounds—both believers and non-believers—can explore life’s complexities and shared experiences."

Also according to A.I. Uncommon Society has no far right-wing political leanings or affiliations with conventional religions.

*extensive ChatGPT "background check" shows no political views

*photos show him and bikers and really rough-looking people

*a message to Kevin on Facebook is from a guy who's profile pic supports Satan's Choice

*basic Google search for southern Ontario - it's called "root extraction" as opposed to root grinding. Appears to be a couple of companies that do extraction, one is "Pollack Land Clearing" based in Carlton Place.

*Google A.I.'s response "For true "industrial scale" root extraction where the entire root ball is physically yanked or sheared from the earth, you must look for land clearing and excavation firms. Most standard tree services only offer grinding, which leaves the root system in place to rot."

"Old Toronto Series" post on FB, Nov. 6, 2025

spoken about in the documentary relating to colonization of Metis in Manitoba

injustice

dispossession

dislocation

From ChatGPT

"a conceptual sequence that recurs widely"

"a triad" commonly used by historians, writers, researchers, academics, etc. to describe "a recognizable colonial progression"

"a common analytical frame in studies of settler colonialism, imperial conquest, forced migration, and cultural genocide."

Examples given - Australia, US, Ireland, Palestine, South Africa

A drone can deliver some beautiful perspectives! Here from a sunny winter day above the rural countryside of Denmark

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18LNvK6B1g/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Missisauga’s Square One Mall in 1973.

https://www.facebook.com/share/1JXzcqNg2H/?mibextid=wwXIfr

near Hamilton airport

100 or 200 meters from the Greenbelt/White Belt line

on a busy highway, surrounded by "white belt" land

*Could we organize a local band with some kind of farming connection to play here? Possibly the young band that played at Guelph Storm game (Jan. 2, 2026)

*Sometimes they have summer events in the parking lot - read about miniature tractor pull held there

*Do they have eating contests? Or outdoor barbeque events? Or maybe food that goes with miniature tractor pulls? Those could be tied into the "everyday rituals" that go with food and any particular culture

WHO TO FILM:

*local volunteer fire cheif

*Ontario Fire Marshall's office (already communicated with them and they said they "aren't commenting")

*neighbours in place where there have been fires

*local print or radio reporter? (would have to find)

*I've seen several online news-related "bloggers" that did clips/stories on these fires when they happened (poorly done but we show it from two steps back to document the actual form of what they're doing)

https://padlet.com/markwhitebelt/character-outlines-click-to-enlarge-romoifamavrjv97z/wish/XGyBQbXRpVYnWL6K

*leads into yoga class by the duck pond, yoga instructor talking about us being connected to the earth

*we filmed the Erin Fall Fair demolition derby in 2024 as part of the first demo shoot. Had permission from the fair organizers and the association that regulates the derbies. Should be easy to get permission again.

*we filmed with the Davis's for the demo shoot - will be very easy to get permission again

*have read about Satanist rituals being held in abandoned farm buildings in the Ottawa area

*what about GTA? Same thing happening in White Belt places?

*one Satanist in Ottawa leads a whole community of people who take part in the rituals, he's very outspoken and public-facing

*they seem to have no problem with cameras - they stream the rituals live, record and post to the internet

*seems Satanism is very active in lots of other places in Canada

* it's creepy and theatrical and outrageous, seems almost like an idealistic protest against formal Christianity

*would have to evaluate the level of danger or risk communicating with these people and filming with them

*based on internet videos, they don't appear dangerous at all - almost the opposite, they seem happy to share in a way to justify their outrageous beliefs, and to get their ideas into the public sphere

"Susan Dobson graduated with her MFA from the University of Guelph in 1997. Her work has been exhibited in major photography festivals such as CONTACT (Toronto), Fotoseptiembre (Mexico City), Images Festival (Vevey, Switzerland), Le Mois de la Photo (Montreal), Bitume/Bitumen (Brussels), and FotoNoviembre (Tenerife, Spain) as well as public gallery exhibitions across Canada, the US and Europe."

"By Design" (photo series) is comprised of digitally constructed fictitious buildings, based on memories of industrial buildings glimpsed through my car windshield while travelling on Highway 401.

https://susandobson.com/portfolio/portfolio-by-design/

Susan Dobson had one photograph (above) in a small group exhibition "Glass, Concrete, and Stone" at the Guelph Art Gallery. From September 18.2025 to January 4.2026.

Curated by Tristan Sauer

*the first action taken when a piece of land is going to be developed is a work crew going in and removing the trees

*often done intentionally stealthily - no advanced notice, at dawn on a Sunday

*the tree companies strategically drop all the big trees fast (and then go back and finish cutting them up later) so no one really realizes what's happening and couldn't even contemplate stopping them

*from the time they start, within an hour all the trees will be laying on their sides spilling over into the fields

*very challenging to get permission to film

*if no other option, maybe we could rely on a collage of cell-phone footage, that we gather from people who might randomly document something like this because they are opposed to it

*teen guys and girls, teamwork

A good way to lead into and justify drone footage we'll shoot.

Early in the film this becomes a visualization of the development line and what the White Belt is.

inaturalist.org

*it's costly for developers to cut down Butternuts, they have to pay into a Butternut preservation fund

*they are qualified Butternut assessors, certified, who are called into confirm species (not hybrids) and the health (no cankers)

*the identification and "ruling" by the assessor can be "very dramatic" and "contentious" because there is a lot at stake re: development going ahead or not, plans being modified to accommodate the trees, etc. and there are potentially a lot of extra costs for the developer