Ed M. Verner
I first wrote most of this music over 10 years ago with sailing as the inspiration.  I was trying to transmit the feelings in the bones of the boat, and in the sway of the helm; trying to capture what one experiences underway – Close Hauled & Beating – Beam Reaching – Bobbing at Anchor – Rain – Wind – Etc.  A lot of it was inspired by smaller craft, but Gil introduced me to cruise sailing and that changed several things about the music for me.  Over the years, I had visual images conjured in my head when I would perform the main piece, but I never genuinely considered making a movie until I discussed it with Bob Moffa.  So it’s all his fault!

After completing the music only meditation version of the film, I received many requests to add a narration voice and create a documentary. It was quite a challenge, but I enjoyed scripting a voice over. Adding it as the very last step was a study in timing. Eventually I wound up conducting Lee Snyder's voice, sentence by sentence, like an instrument in an orchestra. It wound up being a lot of fun and I think experienced sailors prefer the music only version, while those who wonder about cruising enjoy the narrated documentary.

Bob Moffa
Over the span of over 40 years as a professional musician I’ve worked with and helped sculptors, painters, musicians, performers, authors and dancers get the recognition and pay they deserve. In 1982 I started a foundation to assist my efforts. Many times I have partnered with these artists by having them work on music projects I have created; pooling various artistic talents often helps elevate the scope of projects and thus helps all involved to get proper recognition and deserved payment.
In the case of composer/pianist Ed Verner I had been told by some mutual friends that Ed composed music and played the piano. At this time I developed conversations with him about our musical interests and also learned that he was an active sailor on his sail boat the Wind Ketcher.  I too am a sailing captain (in the 1980s I lived aboard and captained a 65 foot schooner) so soon Ed and I were talking music and sailing.
One day in October 2005 he asked me if I would like to go sailing and I jumped at the invitation. Before our day on the water we talked about checking out my digital piano and he played a little of his music about sailing. I shared some of my latest compositions with him. Well!  When Ed was finished performing some of his music I was very impressed and told him so. I will never forget when he said,  "You really liked it?" and I replied, " It was fantastic!". I hear many composers that want me to help them and sadly many are not very good.  Ed had style, form, emotional transfer, and excellent creative ideas.  
At this time my foundation the AMERICAN IDEALS FOUNDATION, INC. and my publishing house RAM PUBLISHING HOUSE INC. were working on producing several DVD/CD projects.
I was very excited about Ed’s music and thought that a filming and recording  project could be fantastic  because of our sailing and composition interests. I believed strongly that Ed’s talent in musical composition and performance should be shared in film and recording and enjoyed by many people. I suggested to Ed that we could produce a sailing DVD/CD and use his music. Ed replied that he had thought of something along those lines too. The idea interested us and by early 2006 the project was under way and completed in early 2007.

Gil Gott
When the question was first posed about if I would like to get involved in the making of a sailing video - that is a real sailing video about sailing, not about how a winch works or how some far off islands look, but actual sailing - I answered the way any sailor would answer.  When and where?  Sign me up, I'll be there.  Real sailing is music; sailing and the philosophy of life are intertwined.

Amanda Verner
DWTW for me was like feeling the warmth of the sun on my face......then
having a cool breeze blow through my hair.  I was relaxed, happy and along for the sail.
During the entire week of shooting Ed was on top of everything and never let the ball drop. The check off sheet for shots and all the things he wanted to accomplish, I believe, would not have been done if he had not been the director. I saw a different side of him which I liked very much. We had close to 15 people with jobs to do, or not do, and not a single one of us was unhappy all week.....no matter how much we were told to do.

Mary Moffa
The research that was done to see if there was interest in such a non tutorial artful film with original music was excellent.  The one question and statement always came up "That sounds fantastic!" and "When can we see it?".  The wonderful response was the fuel that was needed to know that this product is unique.
The challenges in marketing this DVD came from not having a finished product in 2006, making it very difficult to get any interest because we did not have proof of what we were doing.  Now that the DVD is completed and with the production changes it has made the trailer and written proposal not current.  Up to now, the magazines, corp. advertising sponsors, in-kind sponsors, marine stores, marine distributors, boat manufactures, sailing clubs, and sailing schools wanted to see and hear the completed DVD.  Now in early 2007 we will be able to show the DVD product and move on to market this very artistic sailing DVD/CD.

Steve Smith

The fact that we had a crew (with the exception of Steve Seckar) that had limited experience in the filmmaking business was actually an advantage.  Each individual had a great attitude and everyone involved wanted the project to be a big success, so getting people motivated was never a problem.  What we didn't have to deal with were lots of opinions about what constituted good filmmaking.  Sometimes the gathering of creative personalities yields tensions surrounding artistic issues, but this group was in synch from the beginning. Our crew performed every task without questioning the direction or strategy of the shooting schedule and always did whatever was necessary to hit the targets of the day's filming.  The only major distraction during the day was all the fun we were having.  It was a pleasure to direct this great group of people.

The hardest part:  Our biggest challenge during shoot week was keeping the group moving in harmony while the schedule was constantly changing.  Since we had only eight days to complete principal photography, we had to take advantage of current weather, wind and sea conditions as they presented themselves.  That meant that sudden changes in sunlight and weather dictated that a new scene needed be photographed immediately, even though different people, equipment, boats and shooting vantage points were needed.  Ed did a great job in planning for the flexible shooting schedule, but when he made the call, the crew had to execute the shift quickly.  Everyone understood that those plans that we made over breakfast were often obsolete by lunch-time.  This caused a lot of extra work, but the crew never complained, though they sometimes put in long hours.  My favorite phrase when times are tough is the admonition to "warrior on" and they always did. Their willingness to put in the odd-hour schedule yielded spectacular shots of sunsets, anchor lights, evening lightening and early-morning skies. The fluid nature of the schedule meant that we needed to pay special attention to getting the crew fed and rested each day so that they could endure the eight day run.   Balancing the work with rest, food, fun and relaxation kept everyone in good spirits.

The best part:  Watching the concept that Ed and Bob had created actually come to life.  When Ed showed me his rough shot-list matrix in January of 2006, I knew that it was a more ambitious project than he had yet realized.  We were facing the challenges of a small crew, limited shooting window and a tight budget, but somehow I knew we could pull it off.  Helping him assemble the team, secure the equipment, devise the strategy, plan for the project, manage the process and actually transform his dreams into moving pictures was a great pleasure.

Steve Seckar
One of the challenges in getting the shots I wanted was substituting my legs for a Steady Cam on the chase boat.  This was no easy feat (feet? -- bad pun, sorry) Director Ed Note: When you work with Steve Seckar you smile a lot with stuff like this  However, I think the shots came out just fine, and it didn't kill the budget!  Coping with Florida's summer weather -- the sun, clouds, wind or no wind, and insane thunder and lightning -- is always difficult no matter what project you are working on.  As far as working with "yahoos," that wasn't the case at all.  Once we all agreed on a common language (boat talk vs, camera talk), the communication was great and we all made it  come together!  So what was my biggest challenge? After surviving a helicopter crash into water while filming boat races a few years back, it was getting back in a helicopter and knowing we were going to fly over water.  That was it by far.

Kenny Veenstra

Chaz Smithhisler

Randolph Sanchez

Jason & Casey Jones
It was a week and a half of work, but when it comes to sailing especially with such great friends it becomes less like work and more of memorable adventure.  Our fondest memories are of course the times spent on the water because of the thrill of sailing.  It's interesting how sailing excites all of the senses from sunset views, sounds of the wind filling the sails or water running alongside the hull, the smell and taste of salt in the air, and the feel of the gentle waves beneath you.  While sailing we are also able to feel both powerful and at peace with the water.  We also greatly enjoyed the evenings when we shared wonderful dinners with the cast and crew, developed great friendships and reviewed the shots of the day.

Kayla English Furcucci