A Simple Rhythm

A Simple Rhythm is the first feature film from Canadian director and camera operator Tess Girard. Her films have won several awards and have been shown at festivals all around the world, including Vancouver, the International Film Festival in Toronto, and Hot Docs and BAFICI in Buenos Aires. In this feature-length debut, Girard is concerned with the natural rhythm and timing synchronization of nature. Rhythm keeps our hearts beating, connects us with the world and synchronizes us with the pace of nature. But how do we actually define it? How can we understand its enigmatic essence? This meditative, philosophical documentary offers the interesting assumption that there is an almost magical rthythm beating through every human heart, affecting the world around us and connecting us with others. The film combines images and sounds in order to form an impressive communication of the hidden meaning in everyday things and affairs. Whether it be light gleaming on the street, flowing water, flowering trees, or raindrops, the director reveals new meanings and contexts in the current operations of nature. The topic is also covered by a variety of experts, such as musician Charles Spearin, mathematical theorist Steven H. Strogatz and Roger D. Nelson, the director of Global Consciousness Project. (Academia Film Olomouc)