Zeke decides to sell everything he owns and make an art project about it. He soon discovers that some possessions are easier to get rid of than others.

Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Zeke Farrow

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

I was sick. I couldn't get out of bed. I was sleeping sixteen hours a day. Something was wrong with me. My doctor ran a bunch of tests and assured me there was nothing physically wrong with me. He told me I was depressed and I should think about adjusting my medications. I resisted at first, because when you're depressed, sometimes the easiest things - like picking up the phone and making more doctor's appointments - feel impossible.

So, there I was, lying in bed, and I looked around and saw all of my things, I'd collected over the years, my possessions. They were staring down at me... Like demons. And then it hit me. I suddenly knew what I was going to do. I was going to sell everything I own. I was going to sell everything I own and I was going to make an art project about it. There's nothing that gets me out of bed like a good art project. The thing about making an art project is... First, you need to make the rules. And then you need to break them.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

This film is my manifesto on how and why to make a work of art.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

When we started shooting, the questions I was asking were about my life - how I was feeling, my level of depression, my obsession with selling all my possessions, the stories about my possessions, how to decide what I actually needed to keep.

As we shot more and more footage of my subject - me - I realized that I was exploring another question without ever thinking of it. I was asking - What does it mean to be the documentarian and the subject...? What does it mean to be the writer and the character...?

These two layers of questions - the questions about my life and the questions about the work I was doing - layered on top of each other until my life was driving the project and the project was driving my life.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

So the film started as a documentary about me. It became a documentary about how I make art. I've written both documentary and fiction films in the past. Inevitably this film became a question about the difference.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

Most of the feedback I get is in the form of rejection emails. There are only a few people out there who take the time to respond personally to my work. Every once in a while I get a rejection with a note expressing the programmer's heartbreak that my film was unprogrammable. I always take the time to write an encouraging haiku in response... To heal their broken heart.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

Possessions has been rejected by 50 film festivals. It has been selected by 4. That's consistent with my point of view.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

I think it is unfair that people whose work no one cares about have to explain it, for fear that it will be written off as unthoughtful. I think very hard about my work. So it's nice to be asked to formulate my thoughts into words so that on the off chance anyone ever does a radio interview with me, I'll know who I am. Also, I'm hoping that after reading my thoughts, people will want to see my work.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

I need everyone to get on board with my work. That's why I make it. Of course, in a practical sense, I need anyone who can help me reach the biggest audience. I need anyone who wants to see more of my work in the future.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

I would like people to be surprised by my work.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

How did he make this film?

Would you like to add anything else?

One day this film - like all media - will be put out to pasture on the Interwebs. I hope everyone will remember its name - my name - and remember to watch it when it's available.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

Erica McIntire, who produced with me and shot it, just directed her first film. She was a real trooper to stick with me during the arduous process of making Possessions.

I'm currently producing my next feature film. I'm writing two new TV pilots. I'm also trying to get people to read and option my vast catalog of unproduced writing. I'm easy to find... If anyone wants to.

Interview: April 2019

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

Possessions

Zeke decides to sell everything he owns and make an art project about it. He soon discovers that some possessions are easier to get rid of than others.

Length: 17:43

Director: Zeke Farrow

Producer: Zeke Farrow

Writer: Zeke Farrow

About the writer, director and producer:

ZEKE FARROW won The Peabody Award for Best Kept Secret. Films he has written, produced, and or directed have played over 100 film festivals including Sundance, SXSW, and Telluride.

Key cast: Zeke Farrow (Zeke), Erica McIntire (Erica), Christine Woods (Christine)

Looking for: sales agents, distributors, buyers, journalists, film festival directors, producers

Facebook: Zeke Farrow

Twitter: @Zekeness

Instagram: @zekeness

Hashtags used: #POSSESSIONS #zfo1 #Zekeness

Other: IMDb

Made in association with: Zekeness

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Overlook Film Festival - New Orleans -

May 30-June 2