Bodysong

Simon Pummell's majestically ambitious work culls images from over 100 years of archived footage, in order to encompass the whole of human experience in his representation of the life process. Incorporating film and digital mediums, and black and white and colour photography, the film is accompanied by a remarkable score by Radiohead's Johnny Greenwood. Pummell selected images that he imagined would remain profoundly resonant even 500 years hence, depicting stages of life that humans experience universally. Arranged according to the cycle of life and development, the images are organised according to birth, growth and play, sexual discovery, nourishment, war, death, and transcendence. This stringing-together of cultural archetypes weaves a kind of updated mythology, reflecting a humanistic belief in the interconnection of all humankind. Inspiring and visually astounding, the filmmakers manage to touch upon a multitude of fundamental, existential questions with their far-reaching, all-encompassing narrative. BODYSONG was the recipient of the Best Documentary Feature Award at the British Independent Film Awards.