An archive of letters from black soldiers stranded in Liverpool after WW1 (exploring rostrum techniques)
Ignored and Forgotten – letters from black servicemen stranded in Liverpool after WWI
In 2016 Liverpool Central Library was presented with an archive of documents that recorded the plight of black soldiers left destitute in the city after WWI.
I wanted to explore how an archive that is very specific (letters) and which contained few photographs could be given another dimension through the use of rostrum techniques. In my opening sequence I took a still photograph and created an explosion effect with added movement to set the scene and provide drama ahead of introducing the letters. The follow-up photograph was then manipulated to create a passage to draw the viewer into an individual’s experience: to achieve this, a solidary solider gazing into the distance was superimposed on an original photograph. Sound effects were then added to give a further emotional dimension.
Rostrum techniques and sound scaping were also used on the actual letters. Important words were extracted and highlighted to focus the viewer’s attention on the men’s plight. To establish a greater emotional connection between viewer and subject matter, photos of the men were extracted from documents, cropped and retouched, with their names added underneath. Although excited by the artistic potential of Photoshop and After Effects, the challenge was to ensure that the ‘created’ material was not gimmicky, untrue or disrespectful.
Black History Archive short – scripted by Catherine Leen, as read by Helena Short