Private Project

Old Henry's Bones

Can a human being really live for 134 years, as locals of a small town in upstate New York maintain about a notable citizen, the filmmaker’s ancestor Henry Francisco? This story traces the borders of certainty through a legend rooted in nationalism, the quest for longevity and belief in the hereafter.

Framed as a genealogical quest, Old Henry’s Bones is a work of popular historiography, mapping a topography of nostalgia and conviction in rural America.

  • Andrew Francisco
    Director
    Fallow Land Bears Sweet Fruit
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    20 minutes 54 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    August 28, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    5,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Andrew Francisco

I have been making narrative-based multimedia projects for more than twenty years. This work has been in exhibitions, festivals and individual screenings around the world. I enjoy experimenting with language and meaning.

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Director Statement

Old Henry's Bones invites the audience to consider some of the questions that have occupied human thought for centuries: How do we create historical “truth?” Is the possibility of an objective history merely an illusion?

This film is about the practice of popular history and the largely affective realms of genealogy, faith and nationalism. Like previous projects, this film is also about how people create meaning and purpose for themselves, the difference between living and merely existing.