As a grassroots arts, culture and heritage organisation ourselves, we were delighted to be invited by Bolton-based filmmaker, Brett Gregory, to support his documentary that celebrates the life, challenges and poetry of Horwich local, Peter Street.
Our very own Peter Firth, with his soft and melodious Bolton accent, was a perfect choice as narrator for the film.
Apparently, it took 7 months for Brett and his production company, Serious Feather, to finally complete the unique non-profit 40 minute documentary shot entirely in Bolton: ‘Autism and the Arts: Poetry with Peter Street‘.
Brett explains:
Primarily, this is because, even though we applied, we received no external funding from anywhere, and so we had to pay for everything ourselves.
Fortunately, compassionate people pull together during times like these, and we’re indebted to Peter Firth for accepting the duties of the film’s ‘Narrator’, and Andy Blundell for guiding us in the right direction when it came to sourcing evocative locations throughout the borough.
As a consequence, the documentary is of a very high standard, which he is understandably very proud of. In fact, while it’s currently available to watch for free on Serious Feather’s YouTube channel, it’s also been acquired by an online distributor in the United States, which is a tremendous endorsement of the skills of everyone involved in the production. Furthermore, the film has already received a glowing review from creative and digital commentator, The Geek Show.
Brett sums up what this means to him:
The film’s representations of art, autism and working-classness, as well as the region’s unique landscape, architecture and cultural heritage, will soon be reaching the living rooms and laptops of thousands of people who live thousands of miles away, and who’ll be hearing about Bolton for the first time in their lives.
Working with Brett has been an extremely rewarding experience for Peter too, who can add voice-overs to his growing creative CV.
Peter reflects on his involvement:
Working with Brett on such an interesting film was a fantastic experience. Knowing Peter Street and having read his books made it even more special. I always knew my Bolton accent would come in handy one day!
This just goes to show that creativity in visual arts is live and kicking in Bolton, even in spite of the challenges in raising any level of funding for a worthwhile and showcase local production that’s now attracted international acclaim. The town’s new slogan is “Born to Perform“, so let’s hope the major institutions and funders do actually stand by this to find ways to fund local talent as a part of the town’s wider growth and regeneration strategy.
Written by Julia Uttley & Brett Gregory.