To most passers-by Jan was just another derelict — a nuisance, perhaps, if you even noticed him, but more likely an invisible blotch of human paint on the noisy canvas of the urban streetscape. To John Chester and Andre Miller, however, Jan was a person of immediate and immense interest: the target for their next guerilla philanthropic encounter.

Chester and Miller are the heart and soul of a daring experiment in random acts of kindness that they recorded as mini-documentaries and have now edited into a ten-episode series of true-story experiences for the A&E cable TV network. Since 1996 the two friends have been stopping strangers up and down the East Coast, offering to help resolve some problem in their lives. They call the exercise, and the show, “Random 1.”

“Let’s face it, helping people is selfish. We tell ourselves we do it to make the world a better place, but the fact is, it feels good.”

“Our mission is to try to make a difference,” says Chester. “And most of what we’ve done for people has worked, although sometimes things go horribly wrong.” Despite the occasional setback — included, without apology, to inject the TV series with an unsentimental dose of cinema vérité — Chester and Miller are hooked on what they call “the addictive thrill of encountering the unknown.”

“Let’s face it,” confesses Chester, “helping people is selfish. We tell ourselves we do it to make the world a better place, but the fact is, it feels good.”

Reality Road Trip

Fueled by their provocative vision and backed by a crackerjack team of producers, editors and post-production staffers, Chester and Miller have embarked on a philanthropic road trip-cum-filmmaking adventure that may inspire viewers to risk their own reality encounters. Chester and Miller challenge themselves and others to break through fear and isolation to connect with fellow human beings.

“Everyone likes the idea of helping people,” muses Chester, “but as soon as it gets hard, that’s where most people quit. I call that the wall. We try to take another step forward to pierce that wall. You have to have faith in people. Sometimes that’s all it takes — your belief in them — for a person who’s down and out to find a new direction.”

Of course, sometimes faith falls flat. “We’ve had bad outcomes,” admits Chester. “Say a guy doesn’t show up for a job interview we arranged. And because we travel from town to town, we can only spend a few hours with each person. We’re not their lifelong mentors. So we can’t be sure whether Bruce, the guy we found a new prosthetic leg for, will go to the clinic for his fittings. Sometimes people don’t follow up, and we see them back on the street a few weeks later, panhandling.”

Rusty Trucks and Lipstick Cameras

Chester and Miller have logged thousands of miles across Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio and West Virginia in a rusty green truck they call Jackie, unlikely-looking Robin Hoods buoyed by the goodwill of sponsors, donors and volunteers. Their support team follows in a loaned high-tech RV equipped with cell phones, PowerBooks and wireless Internet to function as a mobile command center.

Once Chester and Miller determine what assistance their random pal needs, the mobile team swings into action. They’re creative problem-solvers and expert matchmakers who locate companies and individuals willing to offer a product, service or connection to help a stranger. No money changes hands; as Chester puts it, “We’re not the prize patrol. What we do is share the person’s story to get donors interested. Like this Russian guy who needed a visa sponsor to help his family come over — they found him an introduction.”

Videocams capture the entire process, from first meetings on the sidewalk to bouncing jaunts in the green truck to furious networking in the RV. “We shoot with six cameras simultaneously,” explains Chester. “We have two manned cameras with us in the field, plus two lipstick cameras in the truck and two in the RV.” Back in their Baltimore studio, the post-production crew uses a state-of-the-art Final Cut Pro Xsan network to edit the raw videotaped encounters into compelling documentary episodes.

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