Private Project

The Ant Colony

In an inner-city park, buzzing with wildlife but hemmed in by elevated freeways, a game is being played out on an ornate abacus. Within this space of controlled chaos, where the insects have taken over but are constantly disturbed by park-goers, the game is a bridge between the natural world and the industrialised world, the hive mind and the individual. It’s uncertain whether the participants are working together to solve a complex equation or if they are in competition. Or perhaps there was only ever one player, trying to see both sides?

  • Natasha Cantwell
    Director
  • Wanda Gillespie
    Sculptor
  • Sean Molloy
    Key Cast
  • Lauren May
    Key Cast
  • Jack Palmer
    Music and Sound
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short
  • Runtime:
    2 minutes 23 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 12, 2023
  • Country of Origin:
    New Zealand
  • Country of Filming:
    Australia
  • Language:
    English, No Dialogue
  • Shooting Format:
    16mm
  • Aspect Ratio:
    4:3
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Edmonton Underground Film Festival
    Edmonton
    Canada
    October 20, 2024
  • Ruthin International Arts Festival
    Ruthin
    United Kingdom
    June 28, 2024
  • Festival Oodaaq
    Rennes
    France
    May 18, 2024
  • Experiments in Cinema
    Albuquerque, NM
    United States
    April 25, 2024
  • Permanente.ciclo
    Buenos Aires,
    Argentina
    March 17, 2024
  • The Union Bank: of a thing that could not be put back
    Melbourne
    Australia
    June 10, 2023
Director Biography - Natasha Cantwell

Spanning music video, fashion photography and art projects, Natasha Cantwell’s work openly embraces awkwardness while drawing from the absurdity of human behaviour. Her 16mm experimental films have screened at festivals and exhibitions worldwide, including Experiments In Cinema in the U.S. and the European Media Art Festival and Stuttgart Filmwinter Festival For Expanded Media in Germany.

Holding a Bachelor of Graphic Design and a Postgraduate Diploma in Art and Design from the Auckland University of Technology, Cantwell has guest lectured at Unitec and the Manukau Institute of Technology in Auckland, New Zealand. She has also presented at Semi Permanent Design Conference in Sydney, Australia as the senior photographer for Frankie Magazine.

Alongside her art practice, she produces and curates for festivals and galleries, including the Auckland Underground Film Festival, Channels: The Australian Video Art Festival and the Victorian Archives Centre Gallery. She is currently based in Melbourne, Australia.

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