HERE IS another lovely short film from Kauri Multimedia, who made the short films about the lighthouse keeper and the hot air balloon menders, also seen on idler.co.uk.

This photo-film, titled Alma, is about young Etienne Bellanger, a violin luthier of Spanish city Zaragoza.

Here Ian Clark of Kauri Multimedia, who made the film, describes the genesis of the project:

We wanted to carry out a documentary close to home, not just in our town but in our own neighbourhood, to stay faithful to the premise that interesting stories can be found just around the corner.

We came across Etienne Bellanger in the old quarter of Zaragoza, a young and talented luthier from France who had moved to the city to pursue his dream. Spain is full of guitar luthiers, but it is rare to find violin, viola and double bass luthiers, even more so in the city of Zaragoza, where this tradition is unheard of.

Plenty of videos on artisans like to portray old people with ample experience, associating a rare skill or handcraft with older individuals, so we felt that it would be interesting to hear the point of view of a young craftsman plying his trade.

Once again, we decided to avoid the technical aspects of the profession and were more interested in Etienne’s take and approach to life and work. He was insightful and offered an interesting perspective on what it means to pursue a life working in something which will most probably not earn you a lot of money but will enrich you in some other way. We were very pleased to photograph and interview Etienne, a clear example of someone appreciative of his life and vocation.

ENDS