About Flight: The Surly Bonds of Earth

James Loran Gillespie
Canada, experimental, 2003
10 mins. (16mm)

In this collage of simple images from everyday life, such as feet and butterflies, birds and flowers, the pedestrian nature of human origins is found at play amongst images of a compromised nature. From vignettes of machine-fed birds that mirror a fascination with wings, this film reflects on some of the darker fruits of humanity's desire for the capacity for flight. Using both colour and B&W stock, "About Flight" is mainly processed by hand and modulated with colour tints, toning and both in-camera and darkroom effects.