The big question now is whether I should keep on with this short film. The people involved are whether busy or away, away or busy, and the deadline is in a little more than two weeks. This is pure madness - or delusion. How could I do all of it by myself...?

But this project means so much to me that I will continue with it and forget the Sakamoto competition. 

The present situation does reflect what the film is about: we never know, and we should let things unfold by themselves. I will keep on shooting the film, since I have already shot a lot in Vietnam and before. It is just that I may not be able to finish it in time for the competition. I perhaps will ask them if I can still use Sakamoto's music, even if the film is completed after the deadline, since I really got inspired by his music.

Steve advised me to "prioritise what's important, add value to your resume and the compensation. Sometimes taking more than you can chew isn't worth it."
But Steve isn't an artist - he does photography for a hobby, but as creative as he is - his photos are very beautiful, he doesn't live off it and has a stable job.

Such comments actually motivate me to follow my path. The question here isn't of priority or to take "more than I can chew". I have never done any project to list it on a resume, even though in this case, I decided to do it for the short film competition. Often in my work, I have to face the question of whether I should do it, whether I am skilled enough to do it. When Nicolas Liautard asked me to write the music for a play, when until then I had only written songs, when Régine Chopinot called that morning for a dance project with her and Jean-Paul Gaultier, when Jo Kanamori asked me to compose full scale dance piece, when the Berlin Symphony commissioned me a piece for orchestra when I had never written anything for more than 5 instruments... If I had listened to the voice of reason, I wouldn't have done on tenth of what I have done until now.
As Gavin said to me later in the day: "The voice of reason only keeps us safe and unexciting most of the time anyway, but the inner voice brings you to a miraculous place that your mind can't even dream of!!!"

Merci Gavin. And merci Steve too.