This short film from 2016 is the official video accompaniment for Jóhann Jóhannsson’s “Flight from the City,” the opening track from his sublime final album, 2016’s Orphée.
Orphée traces a path from darkness into light, inspired by the Orpheus myth. A story about death and rebirth, the elusive nature of creation and art and the ephemeral nature of memory. It’s an album about change, love and art — a reflection of our relationships, as is the film Flight from the City, directed and produced by Clare Langan.
The film itself has been further described as a reflection on “connection, love and separation” that “focuses on the bond between a mother and daughter.”
Released this past March (to coincide with International Women’s Day), Ama is a short film by French free-diver, dancer, and underwater filmmaker Julie Gautier. As related by the website Colossal, “The piece is titled after the Japanese word for ‘woman of the sea,’ which is also the name for Japan’s traditional shell collectors. The film is a metaphoric nod to these united women, while also representing the relationship that connects women from all over the world.” Gautier herself describes the film this way:
Ama is a silent film. It tells a story everyone can interpret in their own way, based on their own experience. There is no imposition, only suggestions. I wanted to share my biggest pain in this life with this film. For this is not too crude, I covered it with grace. To make it not too heavy, I plunged it into the water. I dedicate this film to all the women of the world.