At the Rio Theatre on the nights of Sept. 21 and 22, friends and family of students in UBC’s Film Production Program gathered to celebrate the screening of 20 short films. The festival is named Persistence of Vision, and this year was its 35th anniversary. The festival was divided into two programs, named Iris and Retina to stay on theme. The first showcased films made last year for class, while the latter provided a space to display work made independently of the program by its students.
Leif Bergsma, whose film “Alberta Gothic” was featured in the POV Festival’s Retina program, is a third-year BFA film production student. He described the special community that gathered for the festival and what it means to him.
“With Persistence of Vision, it's about the breadth of content that’s here at the festival. But at the same time, it's also the persistence in seeing through your vision and the work. [The festival] is a culmination of a very long period of work.”
“Alberta Gothic” was a personal project, not a class assignment, and the added freedom allowed the small crew to film in the abandoned town of Sharples, Alberta. When it began playing, I was transported from the sticky-floored theatre, cushy seats smelling endearingly of popcorn, to the familiar plains of Alberta, where I grew up. But the familiar is twisted with a haunting confusion — the film is shot through with apprehension as the main character grapples with loss and a mysterious figure following him in the dark.
Bergsma grew up experiencing wildlife in both BC and Alberta. “I honestly thought that the prairies and Alberta’s nature was secondary to BC,” Bergsma shared. But after spending time driving far from any city, he realized that the prairies had a lot to share, and were underrepresented in Canadian media.
“There's this beauty in the prairies, but there is also this duality, a violence almost inherent in the prairies … When it's day, there is the biggest blue sky possible, but when it turns to night, it's pitch black.”
Bergsma said he was going for something like a Bosch painting. “The massive extent to which things are escalated, it's a reflection of [the main character’s] mental state.” He intentionally made things unclear to infuse “a sense of dread.”
The film definitely delivered. I never knew what was coming next, nor quite understood what I had just seen. Details from the main character’s past are sprinkled between scenes of suspense and you get the sense that someone important has been lost. But as we delve deeper into the woods we are just hoping to get out alright.
The films in the Retina program were broad, diverse and at times unconventional, “Alberta Gothic” falling into place among other politically charged, outlandishly odd or pleasantly sweet films.
As the matinee concluded, we transitioned to the Iris program after a short intermission. Incidentally, if you are ever on Broadway and Commercial in need of a bite to eat while the sun sets picturesquely over the vintage Rio Theatre, I recommend crossing the street for a couple slices of pizza. You might very well feel like you're in a film of your own.
Back in the dark theatre, the broad range of films demonstrated the diversity of languages, themes and political issues that UBC students are exploring.
The first night of the festival concluded with “After Death, After Life,” directed by Melrose Yan. The film follows a young woman who frequently sees a Chinese opera ghost in her dreams. As the film progresses, we learn it is the old fortune teller, keeping a promise to the woman’s late mother to look after her, behind the mask. The film addresses loneliness and loss through the spiritual themes of gods and the underworld.
Inspiration for the film came from a dream Yan had while on a trip to southwest China. “Its a very mystical place, that area. The people there believe that gods are not up in the sky but among people. So they try to help each other,” said Yan. From this deeply spiritual place came the first draft of the film.
“[The name of the Iris program] is a reminder that we are telling our own personal stories, from our perspective, our region. Stories that are close to our heart and not something that is going with what the market wants, it's our own stories,” said Helen Shen, producer of “After Death, After Life” and a fourth-year film production student.
Yan and Shen faced challenges making the film feel authentic to China. Filming in Vancouver, actors, sets and especially the ghost’s dance all proved difficult. Yan ended up being the one in the costume. “It’s really hard to find someone here who can do [Chinese opera dancing]. So in the end, I had to act myself — it was me dancing on screen.”
The element that really brought the whole project together was the sound. Created partially by Yan, the music is a key component of the storytelling, and adds to the striking appeal of the film. Yan agreed, saying that, to him, “sound and music sometimes [are] more important than visuals in film.”
Yan concluded the interview with a message to young artists.
“I’d like to speak on behalf of the young generation of filmmakers that the world is tough, it’s not really friendly to art making. But I want to say to all passionate artists, filmmakers, musicians, if you still have that passion inside you, just go with it, pursue it. Because when you're young, you have lots of energy to do crazy stuff and basically defy the norms of reality. Keep on making wonderful stuff.”
