This short art film which I directed and prepared the concept for was nominated in two film festivals and participated in two more. In this film we are exploring the acts of envisioning, constructing and inhabiting a space through performance and dance. The inspiration for the scenes of the film comes from the poem by Ethel Arnold Tilden, 'A poem for Pat who builds Houses'. The skills required to make the concept for an art film are basically directorial but very similar with those required to make an architectural composition or synthesis. As I had the opportunity to discuss in length in the inspirational interview made by film sessions podcast for this film, I began the process from preparing a story that drew inspiration from the poem. I then imagined the spatial expression of this story by creating various storyboard sequences. Simultaneously I had to imagine and compose a basic background music flow and link it to the storyboard. Then I selected parts of the poem to correspond to each scene. After having a robust music, space and story composition I had to communicate with the other participants of the project the dancers, the choreographer, the musician the cinematographer and the scenographer to make sure each part of the film was in tune with the central concept/idea. The most demanding task was during filming where everything fell into place and I had to coordinate all the people in charge of different art forms so the film would end to be a coherent art work.
A POEM FOR PAT WHO BUILDS HOUSES
You build in patterns too:
You fling wings wide,
Like wings of birds in flight;
In rhythm your chimneys climb;
Your cadenced roofs reach high,
Like music reaching for the sky,
And spread like melody-Like melody upon the wind of night;
Your windows make sweet balanced rhyme;
You tie your visioning-come-true
To earth with terraces, lest it should rise,
As swallows do, And melt into the skies.
To look at all is to look long.
And to be satisfied
-As if one heard a perfect song..