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Waiting Up To Meet The Wolf

6 minutes | Experimental Film | 2023
Director - Anthony Carr

Debut film weaving memories of the dark from the filmmaker’s childhood and adult life, with the short-lived history of the 19th century’s once ubiquitous Moonlight Tower. Waiting Up To Meet The Wolf examines how these towers helped shape attitudes towards darkness and what consequences that means for our future. Shot on 16mm and hand-processed using experimental eco-reversal techniques which directly reflect the subject matter, from developing in charcoal to flashing with light from car headlights, the film owes its very existence to that which it laments; the presence of unwanted light. Made with the help of a 2022 Greenlight Grant from MediaNet (Canada).

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​The overarching theme of the film is light pollution and a decline in true darkness, although this doesn’t become apparent until the second half. It’s a film of equivalents; of things standing in for something else, or directly referencing something else. The three film channels for example, match the three Moonlight Towers that are discussed in the film. Each channel shows a journey by car from one tower to another (A to B, B to C and C to A) over the duration of the film. The film’s ambient audio track was recorded during the day, but now accompanies nocturnal scenes. Along with the shaky visuals and interruptive transitions, these elements were designed to create a slight off-kilter viewing experience, echoing the widespread confusion or ‘nocturnal jet-lag’ felt by much of the animal kingdom when darkness is lost or altered. This is particularly noticeable in birds, light pollution affects bird behaviour from mating to nesting, hence the birdsong being heard at night.