Secret History

You thought you knew Griffith Park? You have no idea! Griffith Park's namesake, the millionaire industrialist Griffith J. Griffith, was a well respected pillar of the Los Angeles philanthropic community. Until, in 1903, when everything changed. Learn more about the wild & weird history of the origins of Griffith Park in this mini-doc! You can read the narration text, as well as more tidbits from this bizarre story, on my blog: http://natalieraymond.com/blog/2019/3/4/la-layers The Secret History of Griffith Park Written & directed by Natalie Raymond Starring Christine Tran Shot on location on the Griffith Park hiking trails, 2019.

One afternoon out of sheer curiosity I decided to google the origin story of Los Angeles’ Griffith Park. At first it was unremarkable, a large tract of land donated to the city by a wealthy resident. But it didn’t take much digging to discover the strange & violent history of LA’s most famous public space. I took that curiosity & created this little short documentary exploring the weird early life of this landmark & the man who made it possible.

You can read the full narration text plus additional information (there was too much weird stuff to fit into just one 3 min video!) in my earlier blog post. & remember: the history of your local haunts is often weirder than you can even imagine.

Only at High Tide

Recently made the trek from Paris to Le Mont Saint Michel in north western France. The sometimes island is a fascinating site to spend a day exploring. Narration full text: Located about a half mile off of France’s North Western coast, Le Mont Saint Michel has served as everything from an abbey, to a fortified city, to a prison in its many centuries of life. Known as a “tidal island” the mount is isolated by water at high tide, but at low tide the floor of the surrounding bay is reveled. Once connected to the mainland by a tidal causeway, the mount is now accessed by a lightweight bridge completed in 2012. The island has been the seat of the Monastery of Saint Michael since the 8th century, but was populated for much longer, its original structures predating the roman empire. Local lore cites an Irish hermit as the original inhabitant of the island. The mont’s unique position made it one of the few villages not conquered during the hundred years war. Even allowing a small unit of French soldiers to defend the island against the English in 1433. Now a Unesco world heritage site, Le Mont Saint Michel receives more than 3 million visitors per year. Music: "Frozen Star" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

I first learned of this cool sometimes island as a teenager, but never really imagined I'd find myself one day standing on the marshy shoals on the north western coast of france looking at it live & in person.

the mont is awe-inspiring to look at up close. rising out of the water like some kind of science fiction fantasy city. it's said to be the inspiration for minas tirith in the lord of the rings movies. it also has a long & fascinating weird history, including spending some time as an offshore prison.

Documenting Glass Beach

Exploring glass beach, on the California coast. Once a dump site for thousands of pounds of trash, it is now a major tourist attraction only a couple of hours north of San Francisco. Written, directed, shot, & edited by moi. Shot on a Nikon D7500. FULL TEXT: Glass beach, tucked away along highway 1 in Fort Bragg California, was the dumping ground for refuse from a nearby glass factory until the late sixties. The beach & surrounding coastline are dotted with the rusted & hollowed out remains of mid twentieth century American industry. Thousands of pounds of trash, largely glass & ceramic, were dumped onto the coast & swallowed up by the pacific ocean, only to be reborn decades later as contemporary beach treasures. Collecting the glass is prohibited, but between the tens of thousands of tourists who visit the site each year & the pounding waves, the beach’s famed sea glass is dwindling in supply. MUSIC: "Garden Music" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

A place that has been on my bucket list since I first heard of it, Glass Beach is a fantastically weird little gem on the California Coast.

The beach is covered in multi-coloured pebbles of sea glass; a result of its past life as a dumping site for a nearby glass factory. Now a major tourist attraction, there are three beach sites accessible to the public. I spent a late afternoon exploring one & created this (very) short documentary about the beach & its history.

Read the full text from the video on Vimeo.

-N