When creative minds come together amazing things can happen.<\/p>\n
And that always seems to be the case when local multidisciplinary artist Sandy McLennan and self-taught multimedia artist Beverley Hawksley get together. Recently, the two joined creative forces to create a short, dramatic film that will stimulate thought and leave the audience wanting more.<\/p>\n
Titled Leavings, <\/i>the 12-minute narrative film is based on poetry written by Hawksley and focuses on the death of one half of a loving couple as well as the private time in which the request for the provision of a burial shroud is fulfilled before news of the passing is shared with family and friends.<\/p>\n
The filmmakers see this story as an opening to a consideration of ritual, as practiced and as possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cI guess the birth of the idea came from some poetry I had written over the last 10 years or so,\u201d explains the eccentric and highly-talented Hawksley. \u201cAfter spending the last six moths of my mother’s life with her, I had kept journals and wrote poetry, which wasn’t always specific to that situation but just because it made me think about death and dying.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fast-forward to the piece of poetry that originally inspired the whole idea. Hawksley had emailed it to McLennan for editing, as she usually does with her work. Out of his response to that poem, a process was ignited.<\/p>\n
I think we both agree when it comes to making art it’s always a process. Something begins and it reveals the next wonderful thing. Generally you go with a direction that flows. With this film we just started writing down ideas. Set it up with the actors and had a general idea of what the action would be. And we all worked together to make the scene.
\nSandy McLennan<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\nThe actors who portray the couple are real-life husband and wife duo Jamie and Meg Jordan. Hawksley has worked with the Jordans for a theatre performance in the past and says she and McLennan knew they were capable of bringing the kind of emotion that was needed for the role.<\/p>\n
Certainly, there are challenges when creating any sort of short films, but for McLennan and Hawksley it wasn’t about only having 12 minutes to convey a message. For Hawksley, the challenge lied in working with a presence of stillness, as Leavings<\/i> does not have a lot of movement and activity. However, both concur that they were pleased with the outcome.<\/p>\n\n\t\t