Reflections on the creative process

As the main project has now come to end, each woman who has taken part reflects on their discoveries and experience throughout...

From Angie

There was once a woman - who had lived most of her life in London but this Saturday she, I,  have been living in my new home of West Wales for a whole year!  Being a part of the Llan project was really significant for me. I believe the Universe had responded to my feelings of loss and looking for a new connection by guiding me to participate in the project. Starting in October, when I was very low, mourning the loss of my friends in London and not knowing who I was anymore, I had retreated into a period of reflection and self-healing. The project offered up an opportunity to reignite my creative fire and channel the deep thinking and self-discovery I was experiencing.

Meeting the other women in the project, those telling their stories and those facilitating and filming us was something I needed. It very gently revealed a space and a time for me to believe in myself again. The communication and relationship building was both nurturing and nourishing.

The period of six months for the project had seemed long at the outset but suddenly, there the 4 of us were in March, with Tracy, eagerly, excitedly, waiting to watch our films! It was a joy to see what the other women had created. I was deeply moved by the honesty, the courage, the insights and the fun we had all clearly experienced. It all went so quickly, I wish there had been more time really, as once my creative juices got flowing the ideas just kept on coming. When I'd completed and seen my film, although delighted and moved and stunned by my achievements, a small part of me did think "Hmm, I could have done 'such and such' there" and "oh that' would have worked brilliantly"

And now, well, I have set up my workbench and tools in our conservatory overlooking the valley that gives me so much peace and inspiration for life and started making silver jewellery again. I continue to write my monthly emails updating friends and family of our progress in our new home and business adventures. I would love to come together with the women of Llan again in a year’s time to reflect on what has passed and make another film!

From Pamela

TO BEAR WITNESS                               

                     

To bear witness to myself

is..

Beautiful,

To see myself

is…

Deeply Revealing

To listen to

My own story

Told how I needed it telling

is…

So satisfying

There are no words.

Just tears

(or smiles, or sighs, or laughter)

If I try

to

Find some words,

They might be…

‘profoundly healing and satisfying and a glorious affirmation’.

But those are just words.

To tell my life

so

It ends with hope and love

Brings closure.

To tell my life  

so

It may begin again

Brings hope.

To be seen,

To be heard

(For that is what a film may do, I discover,)

Means it is imprinted

Forever

As the life I lived.

What better gift might there be?

It is a Llan place

It is a sacred place.

From Sheila

The experience of working with Valley and Vale to produce a short video about my home life has been wonderful.  The combination of the very professional help from the Tracy and her team and the amazing support from my own family was very humbling.  To have a camera crew come into your home and make a permanent record of whatever you'd like to show them is quite something!  For many years now I have been banging on an alternative parenting drum, trying to encourage parents to think about how they parent their children in terms of their emotional well being as opposed to their other achievements.  The Wisechild Video is an amazing sample of the product I'm selling.  Before we made this video I had no proof of the relationship I share with my children or how fun and relaxed they are, now I do.  It has given me so much more confidence to talk to people, now I can say, look at the video see what I'm talking about.  And people are looking, the video has had more than 6000 views.

From Suzanne

Being part of this project has been incredible. It has expanded my ideas of what I thought I was/am capable of and has made me bolder in trying new things. In my art practice, the use of film and sound have now become a possibility, and this is incredibly exciting!! I enjoyed making the film so much that I want to continue doing this in some way. I feel like a child again exploring new areas of wonder and delight! The home stuff and its frustrations are still there but the whole process has reminded me that everything in my life is material that can be used in creating something. It has been incredible getting feedback from others too, who have said, "I feel like that". It feels good to know that others may find the film, and indeed the other films too, helpful in some way. It has been wonderful working with the other women too and I hope we will all stay in touch. I am so grateful to have had this opportunity and have loved every minute of the process, and working with such incredible and talented professionals too.