When we reached out to Charles Purdy (Nova Scotia oyster fisherman and the subject of our latest film), it took him a day to respond via email with a yes. When we spent the day with him, he never looked at a phone or a computer. He wasn’t against email and technology, but he was more interested in being present. He was always engaged, smiling, working, happy.
As we release a film about this remarkable man (and as is the case with so many of the films we make), we are hoping to find an audience for a story that is about everything that social media and being on the internet watching videos is not. It is a conundrum I battle often with our entire series: Twitter, Facebook and instagram don’t make me happy, they decrease my quality of life, and yet I rely on them for my living and the dissemination of my work.
I say to myself, “just make something good” and that will be enough.
I worry that each film is just another piece of media on the pile — A pile that can make real stories and people seem so fleeting.
I hustle and tweet to make sure there is an engaged audience, willing to watch these snippets of a life well spent.
I honestly don’t know which is the best route.
What I do know is that Charles Purdy is real and I got to meet him. I tasted the oysters and I felt the salty wind off the bay. I had an experience that made me want to get off my phone and engage, and we tried to translate that into a film.
If you watch the movie, I hope you get inspired, if you don’t watch the movie… great… Spend those 6 minutes being happy. Jjust don’t spend it looking at your phone. And if you want to meet Charles, and hear his stories in person, taste his amazing oysters and feel the wind off the bay…he’s on Malagash Road. The sign will be on your right coming from town. Im sure he’ll be happy to meet you.
On the Shores of This Bay from The Perennial Plate on Vimeo.