My ‘abstract’ film is something I’ve been thinking of making for a very long time. For a while now, I’ve been inspired by ‘The Art Of Landscape’, a UK TV series that ran from 1989-1990. Each episode has about 5 to 10 4-8 minute segments that show the beauty of the natural world (mountains, penguins, forests, etc), usually in dreamy montage. Each segment is accompanied by either ambient or classical music. It’s referred to as an “Audio/Visual collage”. I have 3/4 of them on VHS and watch them quite regularly; they are very therapeutic.

I didn’t want to replicate the series; sometimes it can get quite tedious. Instead, I just wanted to explore the idea of observing nature’s beauty, and I feel I achieved this in a way that was honest and true to form.

I decided to shoot at Darebin Parklands, a place I frequent to relax. I shot about 20 minutes of footage on my iPhone, ranging from establishing shots to tracking shots. I decided I would use the shots that I found most interesting for the final cut, rather than trying to create a narrative.

Lately, I’ve been making a lot of ambient/new age music. I’ve always been drawn to the idea of using my own compositions for my films; it feels more personal and honest. This is another reason why I have been meaning to make this particular project. The composition I created for this film was made on Logic. The music itself was made with Logic instruments (synths, drum machines), and I recorded the ambient water sounds that is used in the background at the parklands.

I like it, but I’m not totally convinced it works.