Date of Award
Spring 5-5-2023
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
Department
Film and Media Studies
First Advisor
Kelly Anderson
Second Advisor
Andrew Lund
Academic Program Adviser
Andrew Lund
Abstract
DIY is a website and short hybrid documentary that explores off-grid living, the longing for authenticity and healing from trauma. It is also about clinging to memories, even ones that may be painful, and the desire to move on. The website, Bare Minimums explores healing through the written word, and the short documentary “Home Is Where You Park It” explores the processing of trauma through video. They are two different approaches that evoke completely different emotions and outcomes. Processing memories and trauma through these mediums shows a kind of nostalgia for what once was, mixed with uncomfortable feelings that anticipate the future. This project illustrates that creativity is much like the process of healing from trauma. It’s heartbreaking and messy and though the world has changed, we can still find beauty and awareness through going back and forward in time. One way that this idea is explored is through woodworking and creating a beautiful space with one’s own hands, a process I document on the website. The other way is through reflexive written narration and hybrid film.
Recommended Citation
Pollock, Rachel A., "DIY The Process of Healing from Trauma through Woodworking, and Living Off Grid" (2023). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/hc_sas_etds/1071