CREATIVE EXPRESSIONS
Runtime: 72 minutes
From dancing and drawing to animation and poetry, creativity comes in many different forms. These six stories from around the world feature Deaf artists who use their talents to make a meaningful impact.
Program lineup:
IMAGININGS
RITE OF IDENTITY
SAY NOTHIN’ BUT A WORD
RUARIDH
HANDSCAPE
LIBERTY
ID: A poster for “Imaginings” with the title in white with rainbow edges, in center, superimposed over a black and white image of a line of six people walking abreast down a sidewalk with buildings visible behind them. Additional film details in white text across the bottom.
IMAGININGS
Short | Netherlands | 13 Minutes | American Sign Language
Director: Anja Hiddinga
In this creative, kinetic collection of signed poetry performances, a group of six young Dutch Deaf signing artists known as “Kitchen Light” perform different pieces that give unique perspectives on topics including discrimination, equality, and their hopes and dreams for the future.
ID: A poster for “Rite of Identity”, with the title in black, superimposed over an illustration of a young girl laying on the grass as she looks at her smartphone. Clouds drift above her. Subtitle under title: “by Youmee Lee, music by Michael McMillan, sound design by Katie Cobos.”
RITE OF IDENTITY
Short | United States | 5 Minutes | American Sign Language
Director: Youmee Lee
In this lovely autobiographical animated short, a young Deaf girl attends a mainstream school and is soon overwhelmed by having to navigate a world that is not fully accessible to her. Blessed with exceptional talent as an artist, she finds solace and joy in her drawing.
Content warnings: Identity
ID: A poster for “Sany Nothin’ but a Word” with the title in white text across a black bar in the center. Above the title is an image of two people facing each other while standing in front of a parked car in the night time. Below is an image of a police car with its lights flashing. Text across the top: “Isaiah Moore, Casemi Childress, Will Raver, Eliot Masters.” Subtitles around the title: “ A Chantav Taylor film” and “Actions speak louder than words.”. Additional file details in white text across the bottom.
SAY NOTHIN’ BUT A WORD
Short | United States | 16 Minutes | American Sign Language
Director: Chantay Taylor
Set in 1986, this riveting drama centers on Jeremih, a Deaf black painter who must navigate a tense racially charged confrontation with police on the very night his art is being celebrated. Filmmaker Chantay Taylor’s storytelling aims to rewrite the narrative of how black men are seen in history (and on-screen) and illustrate that there is more than what meets the eye when it comes to a diverse community and their art.
Content warnings: Adult, Profanity, Racism, Violence
ID: A poster for “Ruaridh” with the title in white and printed sideways along the left edge, superimposed over an image of the back of a woman staring out in the distance. Subtitle above the H on top left corner: “empty street films presents…” Subtitle on bottom left corner: “ A short documentary film by Will Clark.”
RUARIDH
Short | United Kingdom | 10 Minutes | British Sign Language
Director: Will Clark
This beautifully crafted documentary short paints a vivid portrait of Ruaridh Lever-Hogg, a Deaf artist from the Scottish Highlands. As Lever-Hogg describes his creative process and personal background, we gain a better understanding of how his Scottish Highlands identity has informed his work.
ID: A poster for “Handshape”, with the title in pink superimposed over artwork with multiple hands in motion with several Kanji characters on one of the hands. Additional film details across the bottom.
HANDSCAPE
Short | China | 19 Minutes | Chinese Sign Language
Director: Yiru Chen
Xia Qing is a Deaf boy in China with cochlear implants who wants nothing more than to be a dancer, but faces resistance from his traditional mother, who fears he is wasting his time. When he gets the opportunity to audition for a dance company, he must decide if he has the confidence to pursue his dream, no matter what.
Content warnings: 12+ years or older
ID: A poster for “Liberty” with the title in white across the top left corner, on an image of a black man’s face with the outdoorsy background blurred. Subtitle under the title: “Short film by David Ellington.” Text on the bottom left corner: “Photo: Samuel Ash from the film ‘Liberty’ by David Ellington.”
LIBERTY
Short | United Kingdom | 11 Minutes | British Sign Language
Director: David Ellington
Deaf British actor/performer David Ellington performs his powerful poem “Liberty” that draws on visual vernacular, sign mime and BSL to explore topics of equality, freedom, division and unity. Ellington’s commanding presence takes center stage, bringing life to his compelling original work.