A lovely exploration of loss and the passage of time by photographer and filmmaker Joe Wheatley. Shot on Super 16 and Super 8mm film, “RONA” offers a brief glimpse into the life of Wheatley’s grandmother, a semi-professional singer who passed away in 2016. After a series of ‘happy accidents’ and the discovery of a trove of audio recordings, still negatives and home movies, Wheatley was ultimately able to combine his grandmother’s personal archive with his own memories of her:
“I had some film stock left over from a short film I was making and I just felt that I had to document her house before inevitable changes would happen. It was not only for sentimental reasons but it was a bit of a time-capsule and it’s an interesting modernist design. I was blown away when the rushes came back. It looked great. I wasn’t really sure if i’d ever do anything with it, but it was nice to have.”
Watch “RONA” above. See full credits as well as some of her old photos below!
Featuring Rona Wheatley
Written, Produced, Directed & Edited by Joe Wheatley
Cinematography: Rik Burnell & Joseph Bird
Additional Material: Rona Wheatley, Jack Wheatley, John Wheatley, Simon Wheatley
Music: Rona Wheatley and Harry Hunt
Digital Colourist: Joseph Bicknell @ Cheat
Sound Design & Mix: Thomas Bacon
Special Thanks:
Joseph Bird
Adam Jones
Aarti Mahtani & Cinelab London
Bruce New @ SonyaTV
Karen & Rob Smalley @ Scene Studios
Chris Wetton @ BESQ
Mark Wheatley
Nathan Tetty
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