|
Three
Follies
Produced
& Directed by Alison Denvir,
16-20/03/1994
(1
x 10 mins) Bournemouth University / B.A. Media Production Video Major
A
beautiful documentary examining the origins of three remarkable
follies in England and Wales: the Great Globe of Swanage, Dorset; the
concrete Sway Tower of Brockenhurst, Hampshire, and the Italianate
village of Portmeirion in Gwynedd. Owners and aficionados of the
follies describe their architectural value and appeal, whilst short
dramatic inserts reveal the aspirations of the architects themselves.
I
was only partially involved in the production of Alison's film, on
the tiniest scale, but I enjoyed every minute of it. I hitched along
during the filming at Portmeirion, and spent most of the day
exploring the locations used in The Prisoner. In certain shots,
Alison had me wandering around in the background, wheeling a
penny-farthing whilst wearing a multi-coloured cape.
For
the studio sequences, I created some prop architectural elevations
of Portmeirion buildings, to be seen on Clough Williams-Ellis'
drawing board. Also, my hand was used for stunt work! It was filmed
writing a letter in copperplate hand, the resulting footage edited
into the film to show George Burt as the creative scribe. Burt was
played by Bournemouth amateur actor par excellence, Frank Holden.
I
very much admire this film, and love Alison's choice of music. In
particular, her use of Dvorák's Serenade for Strings as a
title theme. It's a favourite of mine.
Contributors:
Robin
Plowman, Paul Atlas and Panthar Waterworth
with
George
Burt: Frank Holden
Judge
Andrew Thomas Turton Peterson: Christopher Mellows
Sir
Clough Williams Ellis: Derek Bell
Camera:
Kerry Chambers
Sound:
Brian Selby
Studio
Design: William Bentall
Post
Production: Sean Danischevsky |
