Wholphin

Directed by: Aaron Woodley

Liner Notes:

Downpour is a film that uses old -fashioned puppets and stop-motion animation. Robert Crossman and Veronica Verkley were both first time animators, having never animated before and working “blind”. That is, they were not using video assist or digital software to guide them. Ms. Verkley was not only an animator but also the puppet designer, and Mr. Crossman an animator, and also the editor and the cinematographer. So in a way, this was a true collaboration between three filmmakers.

As the writer-director, I wanted to create a film that would be truly universal. I didn’t want sex, race, religion, culture or language to interfere with the basic story of I wanted to tell of human relationships and conflict (both grand and small scale). This is why the creatures are sexless, raceless and speak without language. I wanted anyone in the world, no matter who they were or where they were, to be able to relate and to apply their lives to it.

I’ve heard people describe it as representing the ongoing Israeli – Palestinian conflict, and also described as being about a married couple feuding then making up. Everything in-between too. And it’s right. It’s all of that. It’s a very simple story and a very complicated one all at the same time. Hope you enjoy it.

Biography:

Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, Aaron Woodley began his film pursuits at the age of seven studying the techniques of animation at the Art Gallery of Ontario. He continued his studies at York University in Toronto, where he wrote, directed and edited numerous films, including the award winning, Pipe Dreams in 1995. From there Aaron worked as an editor, stop-motion animator and writer for television. www.aaronwoodley.com

He became one of eight founding members to form the Paulus Film Group, a film and video collective comprised of fellow filmmakers Robert Crossman, David Greene, Daniel Hill, Drew Mullin, Eric Novakovics and Paul Russell. There, Aaron wrote and directed three very successful, award winning short films – The Wager in 1998, Bed & Breakfast in 2000 and Downpour also in 2000. www.paulusfilmgroup.com

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