PRESSKIT

Painting With Light in a Dark World

Produced on a low budget, with a small digital video camera, Painting with Light in a Dark World embraces the gritty, raw, edgy aesthetic of the urban wilderness in which it is shot. Containing a large proportion of nighttime outdoor footage saturated by the yellow, blue and green tinges of street lights, a noir sensibility is pervasive. Main character Peter Darren Moyle is no poster pin-up, and the realm he circulates in - a netherworld of food vans, drop-in centers, needle exchanges and back streets - is one where the dark side is rife.

The skeletal structure of the film is Peter's Darren Moyle's journey towards his first solo photographic exhibition. It begins with renowned photographer and critic Robert McFarlane's, critical appraisal of Peter's extensive existing body of work and proceeds to the selection process whereby both men are together poring over negatives on a lightbox in the chaotic confines of Peter's housing commission unit. When the selection is made, Peter makes the journey to the light, airy Double Bay residence of Robert, where further editorial decisions are made and the poignant stories of images told. Finally, the exhibition opening night looms large and a media frenzy including an appearance on Channel 9's Today Show and an interview with Triple J engulfs Peter, while Robert is busy hanging the work in the gallery. When the fateful night arrives, Photo Technica gallery is packed full of prostitutes, bikies, transsexuals, businessmen, art curators and bourgeoisie - an uncanny mix reflective of Peter's all round social capabilities.

Of course, with a character as animated as Peter Darren Moyle however, the exhibition storyline is inevitably eclipsed by the subversive tales of the artist's life and irrepressible pursuit of photography. As the camera follows Moyle in his nightly exploits, his life story candidly unfolds: how he ended up in the city; how he became a squatter in Wisdom Lane, Darlinghurst and set up a darkroom in his squat; what it is like existing in the underbelly on measly government benefits; the chaotic people he has fraternized with.

The emotional heart of the film is in fact Moyle's relationship with his deceased mentor, Pedro, an old Italian squatter with whom he lived for several years. In the course of the story, Moyle goes out to Rookwood Cemetery to visit Pedro's grave for the first time since the old man died in 1996 and finds only a blank headstone - a humiliation which he immediately resolves to amend.

The true rapture Peter Darren Moyle experiences through photography is symbolized by a scene in which he is depicted weaving his way through the nighttime city traffic on a bicycle, no hands, waving his camera around making long exposures, or 'painting with light'. Intoxicated by the beauty of the city lights, illuminated buildings, car highbeams, he is oblivious to all else but making radiant images of smeared luminosity.

Perhaps one of the most entertaining elements of the documentary is the characters themselves. Robert McFarlane, a greying and well-fed dignitary, with all the professional pomposity of the archetypal art critic is wiry poverty-stricken Moyle's physical and social opposite. The meeting of their converse worlds is truly comical, yet heartfelt as they communicate through a shared passion for photography which transcends all barriers.

Despite some bleak subject matter - generated by the impact of Moyle's photography and the underworld ambience of the locations in which scenes take place - the overall tone of the film is by no means one of desolation. The perspective of this documentary is one of creative vision and unique achievement in the face of deprivation and adversity. Effectively, Peter Darren Moyle's story represents a triumph of the human spirit. And his antics - such as stealing electricity for his enlarger from streetlights - (while sometimes illegal) are mostly heartwarming, inspiring and amusing. It is his unshakable sense of humour, absolute fervour for photography and unconditional love for life that has kept him buoyant when swamped by tragedy.

PUBLICITY

Sydney Morning Herald, December 22, 2001 (opens in a new window)
Sydney Morning Herald, article (opens in a new window)
Exhibition Invite (opens in a new window)