Projects matching: Daniel G Hughes

Synopsis

A community based docuementary that explores the influential history of the English market town, of Lutterworth, in Leicestershire. The intention of the film was to create an awareness and to celebrate the influential past of the town, exploring the folk that have worked and resided in Lutterworth.

In doing this film takes a look at the how the town has in the past shaped the world we live in today. Whittle On talks about Sir Frank Whittle who worked tirelessly at Lutterworth's Ladywood Works. He eventually went onto develop one of the most important inventions of modern times; the jet engine.

Amongst other historical figures Whittle On also discusses the work of John Wycliffe who with help from others is thought to have translated the bible from Latin to English.

Synopsis

When I was given a college brief to produce a short about an everyday activity in a style of my choice, I was immediately drawn to the beauty of time-lapse photography. I as a visual artist see every morning as an inspiration, be it a bright sunny morning, or dull and misty winter mornings especially with a frost or snow covering. At this time of day, I was intrigued by how many of the early morning activities would be perceived in time-lapse photography. In particular, as for a number of my projects, I was inspired by the works of Ron Fricke (Baraka, 1992) and Godfrey Reggio (Koyaanisqatsi, 1983, both of which are renowned for using this haunting style of cinematography.

Matutinus (early in the morning) is an experimental short, which I wrote to depict the start of a day and how it can start off really well and can go onto to turn out bad. Images of people going about their daily business go into the not so 'fluffy bunny' images of graveyards, domestic arguments and civilised madness. At this time of the day the landscape can be transformed into a somewhat mesmerising atmosphere and can in a way it can be the calm before storms ahead. As the day goes on many people experience an uphill struggle, be it at work or at study. Matutinus shows my vision of this through a series of time-lapsed photography and experimental imagery.

Synopsis

One of Life's Players is an experimental short which I shot on Super8, a format that has intrigued me for a long time, it is based around a prose I wrote a few years ago. Written in the prose are a number of quite upfront and powerful statements. 'in the circle of life we co-exist with an assemblage of unadulterated attractions and fascinations'. Through the diverse and haunting beauty of film I wanted to depict images that an audience can relate to events in there lives and the surrounding world we live in. It has not plot and perhaps to some it might be hard to understand.

One of Life's Players will be reminiscent of films such as Baraka (Ron Fricke, 1992), Koyaanisqatsi (Godfrey Reggio, 1983) and Man with a Movie Camera (Dziga Vertov, 1929), which don't really have a traditional narrative drive. These experimental masterpieces rely on the use of stunning cinematography to allow the audience to create their own story. One of Life's Players portrays images such as an empty room with just a fireplace, and a photograph spattered with blood to depict how life can often take a turn for the worst. Sometimes a lifetime can often feel like the blink of any eye, One of Life's Players depicts this by using images like a young woman's eye, which transforms into an old woman's eye and other similar juxtapositions. Although some of the imagery isn't always blatantly obvious. I'm hoping perhaps One of Life's Players will fuel thoughts about how at times we as a fast moving species tend to take the planet and its abundant fascinations for granted.