DOXA program | sun may 26

IT'S A LIVING
Curated by Judy Robertson and Tami Wilson of Cineworks Independent Filmmakers Society

It used to be that a person's work reflected something of their lifestyle and values. Today it is more likely that employees' tasks are completely incongruent with the lives they lead. From lugubrious tasks such as opening and closing doors to noble assignments aimed at saving humanity, the workers in these films use humour and candour to help us better understand the modern meaning of work.

Community Sponsor: BC Government & Service Employees' Union

Day Job
Director: Britta Gordon (USA, 2001, 7 min, 16 mm film)

A series of insightful moments in the life of "doorwoman" Lynette Weil, as she presides over the lobby of an apartment building on Manhattan's East Side.

Atomic Ed and the Black Hole
Director: Ellen Spiro, (USA, 2001, 27 min,video)

Atomic Ed is a former Los Alamos National Laboratory scientist who is now the founder of an unofficial museum of the nuclear age called The Black Hole. Over thirty years ago, Ed quit his job making "better" atomic bombs and began collecting what he calls "nuclear waste," non-radioactive, high-tech discards from the Los Alamos National Laboratory. By transforming his ironic collection into a genuine museum and second-hand store, Ed hopes to reveal a hidden history of government waste that was, literally, thrown in the trash.

Final Clearance
Director: Paul Barron (UK, 2000, 23 min, video)

A gang of second-hand furniture dealers makes a lucrative living by selling the possessions of the recently deceased. Alf, the illiterate van driver, is unable to read maps and is convinced that whole streets have been moved in a conspiracy to confuse him. Tempers flare, memories are erased and riches discovered in this poignant documentary in which tragedy and comedy go hand in hand.

Egg Lady (Olu Kundze)
Director: Una Celma (Latvia, 2000, 26 min, 35mm film)

Aina, the Egg Lady, spends each day breaking up to 20,000 eggs by hand for a Latvian bakery. She has done this for nearly twenty years. The repetitious job allows her time to think - about her first love, her son in jail, and the changes she has seen in her lifetime. The straightforward documentary style combines saturated colour cinematography with languid camera movements to form an honest and charming portrait of an average, hard-working woman.

Running time: 83 minutes

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