Film begins 45 seconds after color bars
Dust: A Sculptor’s Journey
This film is an intimate artist profile and first-person ode. It explores the life and work of Montreal's late great sculptor and print-maker Stanley Lewis for his contribution to Canada’s rich art heritage and also portrays his love for his beloved Boulevard St. Laurent, affectionately known as the Main. This cinéma-vérité documentary chronicles the last years of Stanley's eccentric life as he struggles with his health and creative legacy. His nostalgic boulevard, his cluttered dusty studio and his vagabond friends all serve as a backdrop for the perseverance of his artistic vision and the cultural landmarks fading around him.
This is a personal journal and homage to my friend Stanley.
Cinema Vérité and an old camera
This work was created over many years where initially we only had a cheap consumer camera. The essence and soul of the Main and Stan’s world is about the instant, the rough and the ready; our camera gave us a gritty dusty visual texture, it also allowed intimate access; not only to Stanley and his studio world, but to his people. Stanley was impulsive, constantly on the move, yet we also had a lot of time and filmed over many seasons till Stanley’s death. At the end our old camera began to groan – as can be seen in the final images - then the filter shattered, yet we carried on regardless. When Stanley died the camera finally broke.
Dust completes 7 years of exploring the shrinking Jewish enclave, one block along the Boulevard St. Laurent - from Bagg Street to Napoleon - in different media, from video, 16mm, super 16, stop-motion animation and still photography.
Appreciation of thanks
So much time and love has been given by so many of you, without whom Stanley’s story would not have been able to come to fruition, and for this I am entirely grafeful. The ultimate goal is for Stanley to be brought back to the public eye and for his artworks to be appreciated once more. Later we hope to have an interactive archive consisting of press clippings, archival footage, and how to view Stanley’s artworks held in Canadian institutions and around the world.
Jeanne Pope
This film is an intimate artist profile and first-person ode. It explores the life and work of Montreal's late great sculptor and print-maker Stanley Lewis for his contribution to Canada’s rich art heritage and also portrays his love for his beloved Boulevard St. Laurent, affectionately known as the Main. This cinéma-vérité documentary chronicles the last years of Stanley's eccentric life as he struggles with his health and creative legacy. His nostalgic boulevard, his cluttered dusty studio and his vagabond friends all serve as a backdrop for the perseverance of his artistic vision and the cultural landmarks fading around him.
This is a personal journal and homage to my friend Stanley.
Cinema Vérité and an old camera
This work was created over many years where initially we only had a cheap consumer camera. The essence and soul of the Main and Stan’s world is about the instant, the rough and the ready; our camera gave us a gritty dusty visual texture, it also allowed intimate access; not only to Stanley and his studio world, but to his people. Stanley was impulsive, constantly on the move, yet we also had a lot of time and filmed over many seasons till Stanley’s death. At the end our old camera began to groan – as can be seen in the final images - then the filter shattered, yet we carried on regardless. When Stanley died the camera finally broke.
Dust completes 7 years of exploring the shrinking Jewish enclave, one block along the Boulevard St. Laurent - from Bagg Street to Napoleon - in different media, from video, 16mm, super 16, stop-motion animation and still photography.
Appreciation of thanks
So much time and love has been given by so many of you, without whom Stanley’s story would not have been able to come to fruition, and for this I am entirely grafeful. The ultimate goal is for Stanley to be brought back to the public eye and for his artworks to be appreciated once more. Later we hope to have an interactive archive consisting of press clippings, archival footage, and how to view Stanley’s artworks held in Canadian institutions and around the world.
Jeanne Pope
Montreal Premiere
Film Festivals
Tellastoryfilms, in collaboration with Ontic Media and Denso Productions, presented Dust: A Sculptor's Journey, a film by JeannePope, on Montreal's eclectic sculptor, Stanley Lewis, at HotDocs Film Festival, Toronto 2011, which was its world premiere. The film was also screened at the Festival du Nouveau Cinema, Montreal, the Scottish Mental Health Film Festival, Les Rendez-Vous du Cinema Quebecois and the St John's International Women's Film Festival.
