"A Shift in Perception"
"A Shift in Perception" is a humanistic, informal examination of living with blindness.
Taking an experimental approach to documentary making, conversations with three blind South Australian women are illustrated using a broad range of camera techniques on Super8 film (predominantly in black and white). The makers use stop-motion animation, time lapse and many other methods of abstraction to invite the viewer to celebrate the beauty of the women's unique perspectives.
With voices set in the midst of an experimental score by composer Alex Carpenter, the film washes over its audience like a dream; a heightened sensory experience. Described by Realtime OnScreen magazine as "a visual treat" the women's insights and the filmmakers' artistic approach are memorable, evocative and poignant.
Director's Statement
"This film came about as the end product in a Community Cultural Development project for the City of Port Adelaide Enfield, in South Australia. The project was designed as an investigation into living with blindness, and the irony of presenting this on film was glaring back at us from the beginning of our involvement.
"Choosing to work on Super8 film for its nostalgic quality and afforable film aesthetic, eight different cameras were put through their paces. We embraced the unpredictable nature of working with obsolete and often cantankerous technology, and the subject matter allowed us to take advantage of soft-focus and other image quality abherrations (including a self-developed roll of film) that suited the topic perfectly.
"Working with a very flexible brief, Emma Sterling and myself began by conducting informal interviews with Edna, Rhonda and Leanda... three blind women who had been selected as participants in the project. Stories were explored over a series of weeks before audio was recorded, creating the dialogue for the film, and the inspiration for the visual ideas. Working without a printed script, the shot list was executed, and not until the editing process did the 'bigger picture' crystalise. Working with a budget which only covered film cost and developing, our fascination with the subjects and camera technique drove us onwards. Three months of production and ten rolls of film later, we proudly surfaced with the end result.
"We hope that the humanistic and personal nature of the film, its characters and its contemplative, dialogue-free passages will reach into the viewers' subconscious. We can only hope that it encourages its audiences to engage their imaginations and shift their perception of blindness away from commonly negative stigma."