From
their first creative engagements twenty years ago with community theatre,
and on into experimental performance, complex online projects and now short
films, Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy (desperate optimists) have remained
acutely aware of performance and narrative along with the seductive charge
inherent in the various languages of cinema and the desire to ground their
work in a feeling for lived, shared experience, place and purpose.
Gareth
Evans
FILM
2008
Left-Handed
Feature film in development with North West Vision and Media
2007/08
Joy
UK
| 2007 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 9mins
Joy
is a companion piece to All Day and All Night
and was shot in Handsworth Park, Birmingham on 28th October 2007 using the
participation of local members of the community.
All
Day and All Night
Currently in postproduction on
All Day and All Night which was filmed in October
2007 and will be ready for screening in May 2008
2006
Daydream
UK | 2007 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 |
29mins
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/Daydream.html
2006
Now We Are Grown Up |
11mins 40secs
UK | 2005 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35
2005
Leisure Centre
UK/IRL | 2005 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35
|
17mins 40secs
2005
Town Hall
UK | 2005 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35
|
10mins 35secs
Currently in post-production.
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/TownHall.html
2005
Twilight
UK | 2005 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35
|
5mins 20secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/Twilight.html
2004
Revolution
UK | 2004 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 9mins 53secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/revolution.html
2004
Moore Street
IRL | 2004 | Swahili/English | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 5mins 45secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/moorestreet.html
2004
Who Killed Brown Owl
UK | 2004 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 9mins 23secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/BrownOwl.html
VIDEO
2002
Night Bus
www.desperateoptimists.com/nightbus/index.html
2001/2002
London Framed
www.desperateoptimists.com/london_framed/index.html
Apt#801
Shot on DV and transferred on to 35mm
3mins
2000
No Motive
17min video
1999
Shot
7
Directed and edited a 9 minute film for Urban Shots,
a live outdoor event as part of Weimar 1999 Cultural Capital programme.
Shot on 16mm and transferred to DV
9mins
1997
BLIPVERT
Shot on Hi8 and transferred to 35mm
45 seconds
ONLINE
2003
Wirecrossing
www.wirecrossing.org.sg
2003
Home Turf
A moving image project commissioned by the Hayward and Moving South.
2002
Domestic
A
Shooting Live Artists commission.
Minute By Minute
www.desperateoptimists.com/minute/index.html
2001
All you need to make a film is a girl and a gun
www.darklight-filmfestival.com/site/stray
Haverhill2000
www.haverhill2000.com
map50
www.desperateoptimists.com/map50_website/web1/index.html
2000
lostcause1-10
www.desperateoptimists.com/lostcause
AWARDS, NOMINATIONS AND SELECTIONS
Joy:
nominated for a European Film Award to be announced on 6th December 2008.
Joy: winner of the Prix UIP Rotterdam 2008.
Who Killed Brown Owl: shortlisted for the 13th Kodak/BAFTA Short Film Showcase.
Who Killed Brown Owl: joint winner of the Best British Short Film Award at the Edinburgh International Film Festival 2004.
desperate
optimists nominated for the 2003/04 Paul Hamlyn Award.
map50:
shortlisted for a transmediale.02 award (in the image category).
map50:
shortlisted for competition during the Viper International Festival 2002.
desperate optimists received an Honorary Award from Dartington College of
Arts. The Award was presented to the company at the Graduation and Awards
Ceremony on November 8th 1997.
PUBLICATIONS
AND DVDs
Best
v Best: DVD containing a selection of award winning short films tha includes
Who Killed Brown Owl.
Made
in Liverpool 06: Book and DVD documenting the Made in Liverpool programme
at the Liverpool Biennial 2006 including Daydream.
Civic Life: DVD and book that reflects on and features the complete Civic
Life series of short films.
Ireland at the 26th Sào Paulo Bienal, Light on the City: The Cinema of desperate optimists, by Ben Slater.
Stalking
Memory:CD-ROM was distributed in December 2000 with the On Memory
issue of Performance Research (Vol5 No3).
British Art: Defining the 90s Art and Design, Profile No 4 - Performing
Questions, An interview with Adrian Heathfield.
Curating: The contemporary Art Museum and Beyond Art and Design, Profile
No 52 - Showtime, by Lois Keidan.
Entropy: Experimental Culture from the Margins to the Edge, Volume one,
Issue three - Upping the Stakes, desperate optimists in conversation with
Entropy.
Performance Research: On Refuge, Volume 2, No. 3. Autumn 1997 - Photogrammetry,
Prepared Pages by desperate optimists.
Performance Research: On Refuge, Volume 2, No. 3. Autumn 1997 - Performing
Displacement: desperate optimists and the Arts of Impropriety, by Andrew Quick.
LIVE
PERFORMANCE
2002
Kitchen Sink
A collaboration with final year Theatre students from Lancaster University
which premiered at the Nuffield Theatre, Lancaster on February 12th 2002.
2000
Time-bomb
A collaboration with the Dublin Youth Theatre which premiered at Project Arts,
Dublin on November 6th 2000.
1999
Urban Shots
A large scale site-specific event written by desperate optimists for Theaterhaus
Jena which premiered in July 1999 as part of Weimar '99.
Bull
A quartet for four performers that took place in a roofless Icehouse in downtown
Phoenix, Arizona.
1998-99
Play-boy
Play-boy premiered at Prema Arts Centre, Uley and then toured throughout 1998-99,
including a two week run at the Young Vic Studio, London and performances
in Dublin, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Amsterdam, Helsinki and Stockholm. Funded by
London Arts Board and the Arts Council of England.
1997-98
Stalking Realness
desperate optimists received a commission from Arnolfini, Bristol to make
Stalking Realness. The piece premiered at Arnolfini at the end of October
1997 before embarking on a national and international tour including a two
week run at the Young Vic Studio, London and performances at Berlin, Utrecht,
Rotterdam and Finland. Stalking Realness was funded by London Arts Board and
the Arts Council of England.
Evidence
The company were invited to participate in a European Theatre Festival, transeuropa
Ô97 in Hildesheim, Germany. Here they worked with other European practitioners
to produce an International Co-production in a large, dis-used Bosch Factory
in the city of Hildesheim. The production called, was a very successful part
of the festival.
1996-97
Indulgence
desperate optimists worked in residency in Dublin, Ireland as part of a commission
by Project Arts Centre, funded by the Irish Arts Council. There they premiered
Indulgence as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival. They then embarked on a
national and international tour up until May 1997. Indulgence was performed
37 times including a two week run at Young Vic Studio, London and performances
in Utrecht and Rotterdam, NL and Hildesheim, Germany. Indulgence was funded
by London Arts Board and the Arts Council of England.
1996
In November 1996 desperate optimists delivered
the Steve Rogers Memorial Lecture as part on Now '96.
1995-96
Dedicated
In 1995 desperate optimists were artists in residence at The Showroom Gallery,
East London throughout the month of March. The residency culminated in the
presentation of Dedicated to capacity audiences over 3 nights. For this the
company received a commission from The Showroom Gallery. In October 1995 desperate
optimists worked in residency at the CCA, Glasgow to rework Dedicated for
touring. Dedicated was performed 21 times including performances at the Battersea
Arts Centre, London and peformances in Dublin and Denmark. Dedicated was funded
by the Arts Council of England and the Eastern Arts Board.
1993
HOPE
HOPE toured both nationally and internationally during 1993 and 1994. In total
HOPE was performed 18 times including performances at the ICA, London and
the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, London and performances at Project Arts
Centre, Dublin. HOPE received a Barclays New Stages Award and was commissioned
by the ICA Live Arts Department as part of the Acts of Faith season.
1992
Anatomy of Two Exiles
Throughout 1992/93 desperate optimists toured this production both nationally
and internationally, performing 15 times including performances at the ICA,
London. In 1996 desperate optimists were invited to bring Anatomy of Two Exiles
to the USA as part of a tour by the ICA. Since then they have performed the
production 5 times in the USA but also in Aarhus, Denmark and Antwerp, Belgium
and Manchester, England.
AUDIO
2000
Crimescene
desperate optimists were commissioned by ArtsOnline.com to produce a 3min
audio piece that was premiered on their web site on 31st December 2000.
RE:PLAY
Audio work for local radio with young Welsh people. Broadcast on radio Cerdigion.
RE:PLAY was commissioned as part of the Restless Gravity International performance
festival.
1999
Livestream
30 minute audio sequence mixing music and text broadcast by Gaialive as part
of Alan Howley's Livestream sessions.
www.torkradio.com
1998
The Club Scene
desperate optimists received a commission from TORKRADIO (produced by Chris
Dorley-Brown and Bob Jaroc) to create a 2 hour piece of work to be broadcast
live as part of a continuous 72hr live webcast that happened between 16th
and 18th October at the Junction, Cambridge.
www.torkradio.com
NEWS
We
are delighted to announce that our debut feature film
Helen had its world premiere at the Edinburgh
International Film Festival on 19th June. Helen
was nominated for a Michael
Powell award and had extra screenings as part of Best of the Fest. Helen
received its international premiere at the Sydney
Film Festival. Please check out the Helen
website for more details.
We are
delighted to announce that our short film Joy
was awarded the Prix
UIP Rotterdam at this years 37th
International Film Festival Rotterdam. Joe was at the festival to accept
the award (see
pic) and Joy now goes forward to the
European
Film Awards to be announced in December.The
jury said of Joy:
‘This is a wonderfully cinematic short film where content and form are
in perfect balance. With its deliberate slow-motion and skillfully choreographed
construction, Joy takes us on a journey not just across the public
park of its setting, but on an intriguing imaginative journey.’
Joy also received the Best Live Action Short Award at the Darklight
Film Festival.
The complete
Civic
Life DVD is now available to buy on DVD from the UNBOUND
website.
Who
Killed Brown Owl features in the Best
v Best DVD the first DVD release from Shooting
People.
Revolution features in the Darklight
Compendium Vol. 1 DVD.
Revolution
and an interview with desperate optimists
can be seen on Film
Network.
On October 5th Alex Fitch talked with Joe on Resonace FM's i’mreadyformycloseup.
Daydream was short-listed for a 'Tiger Short Film Award' at the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2007.