Stories from the Joseph Smith Birthplace, Chapter one: Lights of Christmas and erecting the obelisk (2020)

Inspired by the story, told to me several years ago, of the erection of the massive granite obelisk at the Joseph Smith Birthplace, I set out to evoke the souls and stories of that place. I see the film as a short story written with the camera, a re-interpretation and rendering of the past. Using archival images pulled from the Joseph Smith Birthplace website, and images from "Stories from the Book of Mormon," an illustrated children's text, I try to lift into song the actions and movements of those who carved, moved and hoisted that stone (apparently one of the largest single blocks of granite anywhere) as well as the mythic figures of the Mormon tradition, including Joseph Smith - who is said to have witnessed visions here in South Royalton, Vermont. It was my instinct to title this work "Chapter One" due to how dense the evocations of this story are for me. Ethan crafted his song from the completed footage I sent him and we both worked quickly - I uploaded it on December 8, the same day the obelisk was erected in 1905.