Bring the past forward...

For our assignment with photo elicitation, I hope to use photographs that will bring feelings from the past to the surface. For example, my subjects are two people that never grew up with a father in their life - therefore, I plan to take a picture of a Dad holding his sons hand or playing with his son. In essence, an aspect of life that neither one of my subjects ever experienced. Another idea would be photos of the things that Dad's normally teach their kids - ride a bike, throw a baseball around, work on a car, or tie a tie. With these photos, I hope that Dave and Kyle will be able to free the emotions they have suppressed when I ask questions regarding what they feel missed out on. And it may be possible that they don't feel like they missed out on anything... they may feel like it was better without a father figure.

Another aspect of the film is the connection of lost brothers. The photos used for this aspect of the film will show what Dave and Kyle did growing up separately. To see what your brother did growing up when you had no idea he was around, would make anyone feel something. I believe if this "something" emotion will make the viewer feel what the interviewee is feeling as they speak.

I also would like to use photos of Dave's mom with their father and the same for Kyle. To see the person who raised you with the person who you never knew (who also helped bring you into this world) is very evoking. There are feelings of loss, of anger, of confusion and one feels as though their identity is missing a link. It's a very compelling emotion that can bring memories to the surface which tell a story better than our everyday, conscious knowledge.

This assignment will be something I plan to use in my actual film making process. I'd like to use this method to help open my interviewees up about their story. I believe it will be beneficial to all involved - me as the film maker, the subjects of the film and the audience who views it.

Raini S.