Searching for Similarities
TEN/28 is in the process of making two very different, important documentaries right now. We’ve talked a lot recently about the film on Stigma as we develop the full film and get ready to begin shooting in a couple of months. The other film hasn’t had much to report on as it is making it’s way through the long, slow process of editing.
That second project is about the Murals of North Nashville exhibit at The Frist.
It occurred to me the other day there is a sort of crossover in these two films I noticed.
First let’s talk about Brandon Donahue.
Brandon’s mural project for the Frist Curation, entitled “Rest in Peace” found similarity in Maya Lin’s Vietnam Veterans Memorial, to pay respects to local victims of homicides. He airbrushed 96 names showing 85 deaths in 2018 and another 11 in early 2019 in Nashville.
When we were at The Frist to interview the curator of the exhibit and one of the people involved with community education, we set up our gear near Brandon’s mural. Two women walked by at one point and one said to the other, “Ooh, look how beautiful all these names look!”
I politely stepped away from the plaque that explained the piece and she took the unspoken cue and went over to read it.
I watched her face from a distance as she pieced together the beauty of the artwork with the raw and real stories behind each name.
“Oh my goodness, how did I not know about all of these?!?” She said.
I left it alone. There are layers to that question I was not permitted to answer at that time.
Here is the mural by Brandon Donahue. Photo by LeXander Bryant
The image, like all the murals leaves a film over one’s soul as they ponder the experiences that brought the artists to convey these truths in such ways.
About a week ago I posted a request on the facebook page for Second Chance Sober Living. I simply asked the community to provide the first name of someone they had lost due to drugs or alcohol. The names started pouring in. At first I had the thought of putting them in a short video allowing each name to appear alone on the screen for a few seconds to look at the frailty of life but as the names grew I didn’t know what to do with them all. Antony suggested another approach and constructed a collection of the names on his computer and sent it my way.
Upon opening the file I was immediately reminded of Brandon’s work. I recognized the absolute differences in the the circumstances but was still left empty as I realized the one glaring thing they both shared... life was lost.
Antony also had a profound realization as he looked at the names. He realized he saw names in the mix of people he knew and loved who shared the names listed. It took him to a place of asking what would life be like if the ones he loved were gone in the same manner. It was a sobering thought to have.
If you have lost someone to Substance Use Disorder I ask that you leave their first name in the comments below. Sharing the name can have a beautiful power. We will also take those names with the ones listed above and work them into a larger idea we have for the final documentary.
If you haven’t lost someone to this disease we ask that you try Antony’s exercise as you read the names. Putting yourself in someone else’s shoes could be a step toward us all getting rid of the stigma associated with Substance Use Disorder.
-Skip
