Like the proverbial tourist in London, I feel compelled to snap a photo of the changing of the guard. As recently announced at The Greencine Daily, David Hudson is moving "onward" to IFC where he intends to continue posting "all the news that's fit to link". Though this is a great development that David's talent will achieve a new manifestation—and equally great news that Aaron Hillis will continue commandeering The Greencine Daily with consummate professionalism—I can't help but feel the press of time: onward and inward.So I salute David Hudson at this important juncture. Out here in the ether it takes a particular genius to give shape to the shapeless and to form an embodied society out of so many disembodied voices, which is precisely what he has done. Through his skill set of critical overviews and aggregates, David has singlehandedly introduced a society of writers to each other and reminded us all that we are in this together. It's not enough to write solipsistically, each to our own keyboard and screen, particularly when the ideal we hold aloft is the communication of our responses to the art form called cinema. He has reminded us of the importance of cross-pollinating each others' work and that this begins with the reading of each others' writing.
He has also given credence to those of us who came out of nowhere, summoned by the democratization of online journalism. I remember when I let him know that I had started The Evening Class and how thrilled I was to be added to the Daily's blogroll. As a postscript to my previous entry regarding the practice of interviews, I likewise recall notifying David by email when I conducted my first interview and his enthusiastic encouragement. Speaking only for myself, David Hudson has helped me become the film writer I am today. Not only by the professional opportunities he has given me by optioning interviews for The Greencine Daily but by being a personal champion and a friend. Thank you, David, for what you have created these past five and a half years. I look forward to your growth at IFC.