I Am a Map

Experience and heredity etch a permanent record on our bodies and souls. In these four films from around the world, we meet people who struggle, overcome and come to terms with their personal topographies. In Mon Beau Sourire (My Beautiful Smile) (5 min.), Angèle Diabang Brener shows a glimpse of the Senegalese tradition of dying women's gums black. Mark Aitken uses a creative and evocative narrative style to tell the story of one woman's journey from Vietnam to London in Until When You Die (29 min.). Three visually impaired women share their experiences in Dan Monceaux's evocative short film A Shift in Perception (16 min.). In Stopping My Stutter (31 min.), Dylan Wyn Richards follows the painful yet joyous journey of Martin Thomas, a man attempting to stop his stammer. (KLC)