Climbing Eros
"Climbing Eros" takes place on a Greek island in the Saronic Gulf. The short film explores the stages of a pilgrimage through the eyes of director Charles M Pepiton and his young son who walk the island—from the deserted lighthouse on one end to the peak of Mt. Eros—whilst artist Rebekah Wilkins-Pepiton collects botanicals to create inks for painting. Each finds a means to reconcile with loss and return to the earth and to themselves. The film features two meditations written for the film by Damon Falke—one of confession, one of returning to materiality—that knit the threads of hiking and gathering around Jean-Luc Marion’s notion that “loving requires distance and the crossing of distance.”
-
Charles M PepitonDirectorKoppmoll; Laura, or Scenes from a Common World
-
Damon FalkeWriterKoppmoll; Laura, or Scenes from a Common World
-
Rebekah Wilkins-PepitonProducerKoppmoll; Laura, or Scenes from a Common World
-
Charles M PepitonProducerKoppmoll; Laura, or Scenes from a Common World
-
Charles M PepitonKey Cast"Himself"
-
Rebekah Wilkins-PepitonKey Cast"Herself"
-
JLW PepitonKey Cast"Himself"
-
Darrien MackEditorKoppmoll
-
Tana Bachman-BlandFilm Score
-
Project Type:Documentary, Experimental
-
Genres:Creative Non-Fiction, Cinepoetry, Cinematic Poetry
-
Runtime:16 minutes
-
Completion Date:March 1, 2022
-
Country of Origin:United States
-
Country of Filming:Greece
-
Language:English
-
Shooting Format:Digital
-
Film Color:Color
-
First-time Filmmaker:No
-
Student Project:No
-
Cadence Video Poetry Festival (Northwest Film Forum)Seattle, WA
United States
April 24, 2022
World Premiere
Official Selection -
Magic Lantern on MainSpokane, WA
United States
May 6, 2022
Screened w/ live string quartet accompaniment -
Art Video International Film Festival (AVIFF)Cannes
France
May 24, 2022
European Premiere
Official Selection -
West Sound Film FestivalBremerton, WA
United States
August 5, 2022
Official Selection -
AVIFF Special Screening at Open Window SchoolPretoria
South Africa
October 11, 2022
African Premiere -
Cinema on the Bayou Film FestivalLafayette, LA
United States
January 25, 2023
Official Selection -
McMinnville Short Film FestivalMcMinnville, OR
United States
February 24, 2023
Official Selection
Charles M Pepiton works as Producing Artistic Director for Square Top Theatre (STT) and Professor of Theatre & Dance at Gonzaga University. His films include STT's Without Them I Am Lost, Climbing Eros, Koppmoll, and Laura, or Scenes from a Common World. Read more about his work at www.cpepiton.com.