Expressing the Earth Feature Documentary Film

My name is Norman Bissell, and I am a writer and the Director of the Scottish Centre for Geopoetics, a voluntary membership organisation based on the Isle of Luing in Argyll, Scotland. Expressing the Earth will be a feature documentary film about geopoetics as the creative expression of the Earth in the arts, sciences and thinking and in arts/sciences collaborations. It will trace the origins of Geopoetics in Scotland and France, and show where it is today and where it's going. It will reveal how geopoetics inspires creative people internationally who are concerned about the climate and ecological emergency facing life on Earth.

Geopoetics is a big idea whose time has come. It is attracting artists, scientists and environmental activists all over the world by its creative vision for the Earth and all its creatures. We hope you will support us by joining the Scottish Centre for Geopoetics and by donating to our crowdfunding appeal to help us to make our feature documentary film Expressing the Earth. All donated funds will go towards the costs of making the film, including travel costs by public transport, payment of the film-makers and other film-making expenses such as accommodation and subsistence for the film crew and equipment hire.

We need to raise our target of £8,000 by Tuesday 1 February 2022 so that we can start making the film with a view to completing it in 2022. All donations are very welcome, however small, and all donors will receive a credit at the end of the film. The Scottish Centre for Geopoetics will match all donations received so your contribution will be doubled! It was founded in 1995 and now has 100 members in different parts of the UK, Europe, Australia and North America. It has produced 10 issues of its annual journal Stravaig so far and has organised conferences, creative walks, workshops and regular Geopoetics Conversations online. You can find out more about us on our website at www.geopoetics.org.uk and at www.normanbissell.com.

Ellen Francis will edit and co-direct the feature documentary film Expressing the Earth. She edited and directed the short video to promote this crowdfunder and recently completed a BA (Hons) in Film Production at SAE Institute Glasgow. She has produced and directed short films, documentaries and music videos. Her recent graduate film, Lupa, was accepted for Official Selection at the London Lift-off Film Festival, was a semi-finalist at Lonely Wolf International Film Festival and won the bronze award for Short Film Under 30 Minutes at Chinh Youth Film Festival.

Norman Bissell will write the screenplay and co-direct the feature documentary film Expressing the Earth. He was awarded an Incubator commission to write a feature film screenplay The Last Man in Europe about George Orwell’s last years writing Nineteen Eighty-Four on Jura working with DigiCult Ltd. He has attended screenwriting courses online and at the London Screenwriters’ Festival. He was awarded a Creative Scotland artist’s bursary to write his novel Barnhill published by Luath Press as is his poetry collection Slate, Sea and Sky. He is the Director of the Scottish Centre for Geopoetics, has collaborated with artists and scientists and is an experienced teacher and performer of his work. Website: www.normanbissell.com.

James Murray-White will be a producer on the feature documentary film Expressing the Earth. He is an experienced film-maker and multi-media artist who has worked across theatre, journalism and reviews, and now focuses on creating powerful and moving films for a range of projects, campaigns and clients including as a senior producer for Cambridge TV. Based in Cambridge, UK, James has also lived and worked in Scotland, Eire, Mongolia, and the Middle East. His passions include exploring ecological connections, anthropological spaces, and creative responses to issues. He is filmmaker in residence with GroundWork Gallery in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, documenting their award-winning work with artists exploring environmental issues. He founded the Extinction Rebellion Rewilding group on Facebook which now has 22,000 members. Website: https://www.sky-larking.co.uk

We would be very grateful for all donations, however small, to help us to reach our target which would enable us to start making this timely and important film.Whether you can afford to donate or not, please spread the word by sharing a link to our crowdfunding appeal on social media e.g. by using the share tools and by following and sharing our campaign posts on Facebook and Twitter etc.

Thank you for supporting us.