Experiencing Interruptions?

No Fussing: A Pap Story

A young filmmaker recounts his grandfather’s life story through the use of digitized photos, 8mm film reels, 35mm slides, digital camcorder cassettes, personal interviews, and more spanning the 1930s to the 2020s.

  • Graham Burrell
    Director
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 4 minutes 37 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 20, 2025
  • Production Budget:
    1,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States, United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States, United States
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, Film
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Graham Burrell

Graham Burrell is a Philly-based filmmaker who has had a deep passion for the craft ever since he was old enough to say the word “camera.” Burrell solidified his drive for filmmaking when he was only in the third grade and he won his first film festival at the age of twelve. Throughout his high school and collegiate career, Burrell created countless short films and won numerous festivals; he graduated with a double major in Film Studies and Media and Communication and a minor in Philosophy from Muhlenberg College in 2021. Since then, Burrell has worked as a Video Producer for a company outside of Philadelphia and devotes every second of his free time to creative passion projects. He has over a decade of filmmaking experience and has written, directed, and edited over 25 short films and one feature-length film. These films have been accepted into festivals over 40 times and have won over 20 different awards. He has currently garnered over 6 million views online, has films available both on Amazon Prime and DVD/Blu-Ray through Amazon, and has been contacted by educators across the globe for permission to incorporate his films into their curriculum. His daily passion continues to be creating stories that are both entertaining and meaningful.

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Director Statement

On May 7th 2024, my grandfather unexpectedly passed away from a massive heart attack. I grew up living next door to my grandparents and my grandfather (whom I referred to as my “Pap”) had an immeasurable impact on the life of both myself and my mom; he was our hero. In the difficult days following his passing, my entire family had no idea how to process this immense loss. I decided to write a mini-essay about my Pap’s life, detailing a slew of stories I had heard about his upbringing, personal memories, and testimonies to my Pap’s one-of-a-kind character.
The following month, I felt ready to record a video of myself reading this essay. I had planned to turn this recording into a simple, 10-minute video that I could post to social media.
My partner convinced me to incorporate some photos into this project (my partner works as an archivist so she has a high-quality photo scanner which she taught me how to use). I began to look through my grandparent’s house in search of any photos, which is when I discovered…my grandmother kept everything, and I really mean everything. There were literal mountains of scrapbooks, photo albums, 35mm slides, and more, spanning from the early 1940s when my Pap was just a child, all the way to the present. I embarked upon the arduous task of scanning hundreds of these photos. I eventually discovered a collection of VHS tapes and Hi8 Cassettes filled with home movies that spanned from the 1980s to the mid-2000s. I thought there would be no way to preserve these tapes, but my partner and I quickly found a device that plugged into a VCR or camcorder and digitized all of these precious memories. Finally, I found a massive box filled with 8mm film reels. Again, I thought that any attempt to digitize this film would be hopeless, but I quickly found a device that scanned each cell of the film reels frame by frame. What I discovered in these 8mm reels shocked me: there was footage of my grandfather in his 20s with his pet monkey named Jocko, whom my Pap had told me countless stories about throughout my childhood. There was footage of my Pap’s time in the US army. There was even footage of my Pap proposing to my grandmother on Christmas Day of 1964 and their eventual wedding ceremony the following summer.
What had started out as a simple video for YouTube soon ballooned into a feature-length documentary detailing my Pap’s entire life; utilizing the 8mm films, digital camcorder footage, and hundreds of photos, I was able to paint a vivid picture of a life well lived. I was able to bring so many of my Pap’s stories to life in a way I had never imagined possible. I recognize that it is a very rare treasure to have such a wealth of photos and film footage spanning the length of eight decades, and I think that truly sets this film apart from anything else like it. I hope everyone who watches this documentary will see why my Pap was my hero. In the age of superhero franchises, I present my own superhero film: the life story of my Pap.