I am beginning a documentary about a friend in Austin who has a running two-year battle with the city over permitting and code enforcement.
(Work-In-Progress Synopsis below)
This edit was more an personal exercise to explore how I might begin to tell the story visually, but I think it captures some of the value of the story, too.
More to come.....
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Work-In-Progress Synopsis
Beau wants what any property owner wants: the right to enjoy his home as he sees fit, provided that enjoyment does not impinge upon the well-being or comfort of his neighbors or community. That seems reasonable. But throughout the two years that he's owned his 2-acre piece of land in East Austin, his battles with the city over taxation, permitting and code enforcement has ranged from the conventional to the truly absurd.
Beau's unwillingness to succumb to the any of the city's unreasonable practices or conditions has led him to engage city hall and challenge the (often inane) contradictions represented by their permitting and code enforcement departments. His willingness to put up a fight is matched by his diligence with details, facts and research. He has hired a consultant who helps him with strategy and response, and who also used to be the head of code enforcement for the City of Austin. He spends the time to read the codes, research their origins and histories, and to survey how they are enforced in different demographic regions of Austin.
Overshadowing this situation is that Beau lives with Asperger's Syndrome, a condition characterized by difficulties with social interaction and human connection. Neither Beau's brilliance as a sculptor and craftsman and antique dealer, nor his dogmatic struggles with the city are defined solely by this, and yet, his Asperger's is something that colors all he does.
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