On Landguard Point (2012), film still
ON LANDGUARD POINT
(2012)
Heritage • Place • Community • Film On Landguard Point is a non-narrative, feature-length documentary exploring what “home” means in the East of England. Weaving together landscape, symbols, actions, prose and music, the film builds a layered reflection on what home is, how ideas of home are formed, and what it means to host others in our home. The film was released in cinemas and played at festivals during its general release in 2012.
Shot entirely across the eastern region, On Landguard Point unfolds as a patchwork of poetry, maps and fragments of story. It is intentionally partial, making no claim to represent everyone – or even the whole of a region – but instead embraces a multiplicity of voices and perspectives. Rooted in the histories and cultures of the East, the film sits at the intersection of live performance, community action and cinema.
At its centre is Landguard Point: a narrow peninsula between Felixstowe and Harwich. A site of national significance, it holds the memory of the last opposed invasion of England in 1667 and sits beside one of the UK’s primary global trade gateways. Here, Landguard Fort – first built in 1543 – still stands, shaped by centuries of defence. Alongside it, the docks receive a constant flow of goods and movement. The fort repels; the docks receive. Together, they form a living tension that runs through the film.
Billed as ‘an East of England adventure in real life and film’, On Landguard Point emerges from extended collaborations with individuals and communities across the region. Over three years, the project gathered stories, knowledge and lived experience through a series of public events and collective actions.
One of these, A People’s Peculiar, invited contributions towards a new encyclopaedia of the East of England, built entirely from local knowledge. From the many entries received, 205 were transformed into symbols – forming a visual lexicon of shared memories, stories and place-based knowledge. These symbols recur throughout the film. 205 became significant as the number of countries participating in the 2012 Olympics.
Another, Dig & Sow, involved 205 archaeological digs on common ground and in people’s back gardens across the region, each searching for traces of home. At the conclusion of every dig, a bespoke handmade silver charm – each based on one of the 205 symbols – was buried. This act – both literal and symbolic – of excavation, unleashing energy, and planting echoes throughout the film, connecting pasts and present.
On Landguard Point reflects not only on home as a place, but as something made, changeable and contested. It is also a film about trade: about producing and exporting, importing and exchange. From this emerges a broader reflection on migration, identity and defence – themes that underpin the work and resonate across its many layers.
On Landguard Point features a commissioned score by composer Michael Nyman, alongside filmed contributions from some of the world’s foremost performance makers and an eclectic mix of local communities, including young people, dockers, farmers, horse handlers, pigeon fanciers, archaeologists, historians, cake makers, tea dancers, bowls players, body builders, gardeners, flag bearers, majorettes, and mayors.
The film is guided by two voices. One is a narrator, who sets the scene before drifting into poetic reflection. The other takes the form of a family of bright red LED scrolling text displays, standing in the sea and beginning with the words:
Here is a map…
THE GUARDIAN
Feature: ‘On Landguard Point, the East of England Acts Up’
Robert Pacitti, 8 September 2011
'From flag raising to dulcimer playing, scarecrow–making to Elvis impersonating, professionals and amateurs will work together in a giant slice of community art.
This month, Pacitti Company will present a series of live public events with and for people living in the east of England. There will be, among other activities: unusual flag raising ceremonies around the coasts of Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex; a nighttime energy ritual performed on Dunwich Heath by a group of spinning trance dancers and local dulcimer players; a 20-strong gang of non-professional performers, including two tap dancers, a junior strongman and an Elvis impersonator, doing their thing on Clacton pier; and scarecrow-making at the Museum of East Anglian Life.
The project is called On Landguard Point and is part of Artists Taking the Lead – a major work at the heart of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. It takes its name from the place where Landguard Fort stands, site of the last successful defence of England in 1667. On Landguard Point explores notions of home, trade and defence across the six counties that form the east of England (Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex) and it has totally changed my view not just of how, but why I make art.
It seeks to challenge who the experts are in large-scale cultural production. Does it always have to be artists, curators, producers and technicians who make cultural activity happen? Why can't amateur enthusiasts, kids, seniors, even passing audiences create it, too? I've spent the last two years connecting with people from all walks of life who clearly prove that they can.
On Landguard Point is being made to the highest production values means allow. It is also a giant slice of participatory community art. How, then, have we moved out of the arthouse and on to the street without compromising anybody?
Well the answer is, we haven't. There are casualties, all of which sit within the professional cultural industries. The first of these is training as validation. I left school with no qualifications and while I did eventually get to art school I still didn't technically graduate. But this has always kept me hungry to not be outdone. I have huge empathy for young people who can't afford to go to college now, but I also want to share with them the many other ways to make extraordinary things happen. Of course money helps, but without wishing to sound glib, where there's a will there's a way.
The second casualty is the theatre itself, not just because there is greater competition from YouTube and mobile apps for content sharing, but also because the theatre often appears to have become lazy, producing elitist or non-challenging work.
The idea that high art is only enjoyed by the connoisseur within chic buildings has no place in my vision for what great art can achieve. I champion experimental work that may have small audiences, but there are many models to demonstrate its longer-term cultural value.
So why is On Landguard Point working? Well, one of the reasons is that we have built up trust. Over a two-year period we have met amateur groups, local authorities, regional businesses and key individuals across youth and social services and invited them to engage with the project. Because of its London 2012 context, On Landguard Point is a way to feel involved in something much larger, bolstered by the involvement of well- known participants such as Michael Nyman, who has written a soundtrack for the film that will be made of the project. The work itself is about creating a shared space for people to take part by excelling at what they do best, be they majorettes, brass bands, folk singers, or the many people who have helped out as volunteers.
So as routes into the arts are becoming increasingly difficult to access, perhaps those of us with existing skills sets and resources now have to serve larger cultural agendas than just our own work to help future generations gain a foothold. It may take an Olympic effort, but surely everyone could win.’
* The world premiere of the On Landguard Point soundtrack will be performed in concert by Michael Nyman and the Michael Nyman Band at the Spa Pavilion in Felixstowe on 23 September, as part of the On Landguard Point Felixstowe Weekender. For more details visit onlandguardpoint.com’
EDIBLE COMPASS
Robert Pacitti
Facebook post, 1st August 2011
‘Thank you mass feasters.
Thank you Graham the blacksmith.
Thank you Ben the black sniffer dog and the humans you live with.
Thank you hundreds of scarecrow makers.
Thank you teenage lads faking being scouts.
Thank you placard carrying and shouting protesters.
Thank you John Bowers.
Thank you electric and bass guitarists.
Thank you Dick Mannering.
Thank you architectural cake makers.
Thank you senior bowls team.
Thank you massive Suffolk Punch horses and the humans that walked with you.
Thank you red tractor driver.
Thank you mapmakers and technical drawers.
Thank you smoke bomb placers.
Thank you Museum of East Anglian Life.
And thank you to everyone who worked on all the complex organisation and filmmaking.
That was an On Landguard Point weekend to remember.’
EAST ANGLIAN DAILY TIMES
Review: World Premier of On Landguard Point
Andrew Cann, June 2012
‘One of the fears of reviewing is knowing the artist or knowing they’re from your town and hoping you’re going to like the piece to avoid having to write some unwelcome truths. I need not have feared so with Robert Pacitti’s first triumphal film On Landguard Point.
Ipswich-raised Pacitti has used the Cultural Olympiad opportunity to create a visually stunning film, exploring some of what makes the landscape here, both human and geological, so unique.
Pacitti distils, as a perfumer would, the essence of melancholia, insularity and the contradictory open mindedness and stoicism that underlies so much of our shared emotional palette in the coastal parts of Suffolk. I saw in the film a geographically and economically deterministic link between the bleakness and homely beauty of East Suffolk – our logistical links to the world and the peculiar (to here) nature of ourselves. It’s a delicate thing to do, pulled off with visionary beauty and exquisite empathy.
The beauty of On Landguard Point lies very strongly in its visuals and narration. Across much of the film Pacitti’s prose overlays a startling imagery. From synchronised swimmers, to singing fishwives, a brass band and the consistent use of black (black labrador, black flags and black huts). His use of quintessentially Suffolk imagery (such as the Suffolk Punches) neatly juxtaposes the beauty of our coast with a saturnine yet optimistic and embracing quality.
The use of music is strong. Michael Nyman’s score (an amazing coup) works well with the film although the loss of diction in opera singer Marie Angel’s voice is a real shame. Other pieces work equally, particularly the fishwives singing (I thought of Bowie’s video to Ashes to Ashes) and the brass band.
Pacitti says he hopes to make another film. I very much hope he does. His use of visual imagery is very strong and he has much to say about our interaction with place, home and connections. As a first film it is a triumph. With subsequent films his technique (he needs to learn more about cinematography in order to express his ideas even better) will improve.
I’m confident this film will be considered important in the small canon of films dedicated to our lives in the east. That’s some accomplishment from a first-time director.
So another boy from Ipswich returns a talented man. From what I hear Mr Pacitti, and his talented company, will be with us for some time to come. Welcome home Robert. Keep creating, remind us whom we are and tell our story - you are very welcome.’
Extensive video, photographic, press, marketing and making documentation exists for this project and will be accessible, in due course, as part of the Robert Pacitti Archive at the Theatre Collection at the University of Bristol.
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
On Landguard Point (2012), film still
CREDITS
Date: 2012
Duration: 83 mins
Place: East of England
Concept, director: Robert Pacitti
Research: Richard Eton, Julia Bardsley, Robert Pacitti, Sheila Ghelani
Texts: Robert Pacitti, Sheila Ghelani
Narrator: Robert Pacitti
Invited artists:
Carla Esperanza Tommasini, Dominic Johnson, Giovanna Casetta, Harminder Judge, Julia Bardsley, Kira O'Reilly, Rajni Shah
Composer: Michael Nyman
Original sound: Mark Peter Wright
Additional sound: John Bowers, Wendy Bevan and David McAlmont
Cinematography: Becky Edmunds, Lucy Cash
Editor: Hoping Chen
Sound designer: Dario Swade
Costume designer: Lucille Acevedo Jones
Executive Producer: Pacitti Company
Producers: Nicola Gallani, Pacitti Company
Cast (in order of appearance):
Woman in sea - Rajni Shah
Band on beach - The Southend Band and Suzie Shrubb
Gunman - Edward Wakefield
Woman with mirrors - Kira O’Reilly
Artist at easel - Helen Breach
True North 1 - Ramon Bradshaw Logan
Bleeding man - Dominic Johnson
O - Sheila Ghelani
I - Richard Eton
True North 2 - Annetta Bradshaw
End of pier performers - Clacton Musical Theatre Society: Ann Woolston, Barbara Tyries, Bethan Carney, C. Davies, Chris Fowlger, D. Sanghell, Gabrielle Tyler, Harry McCarthy, India Frank, John Elloan, Jonathan Surridge, Katherine Surridge, Leanne Symes, Norman Martin, Richard Taylor, Russell Henry, Sam McCarthy, Stephen Carney, Thomas Pey, Tracey Williams, W.R. Davies, Wendy Orton
Band on pier - Royston Town Brass
True North 3 - Diana Morden
Blacksmith - Graham Chaplin
Suffolk Punch horse handlers - B. Smith, Ed Daniell, J. Martin, M. Smith, R. Gibbs, S. Vander Meulen
Cartographers - Jane Dulieu, John Lamont, John Roberts
True North 4 - Robert Pacitti
Scouts - Arthur Horrigan, Charles Menaby, George Walker, James Bury, Jimmy Knott, Joe Green, Keiran Hogarthy, Nathan Garrard, Nathan McGeachie
Art scene investigator - Giovanna Maria Casetta
Cake announcer - Richard Manwaring
Cake presenters at Museum of East Anglian Life - C. Wright, Derek Lambert, E. Brown, E. Harnes, J. Lambert, K. Weston, L. Weston, M. Betts, Tony Betts, Tony Wright
Guitarists / Protestors - Antony Colles, Charlotte Jackson, Daniel Hanvey, Esther Pacitti, Holly Metcalfe, James Dunne, Jamie Mullan, Jay Scrivener, Jessica Metcalfe, John Bowers, Joseph Taylor, Matt Catling, Nathanial Blair, Paul Palmer, Paul Smith, Ryan Jordan, T. Burrows, Tamas Farkas, Tim Holden
Seated band - Great Yarmouth Brass
Marching band - TS Fearless
Majorettes - The Crystalette Twirlers
Mayor - His Worship, the Mayor of the Borough of Great Yarmouth Councillor Barry Coleman
Donkey handlers - Andy Parker, James Pearce
Photographer - Antonella Muscat
Woman with falcon - Julia Bardsley
Show swimmers - Show Swimmers, Great Yarmouth Hippodrome and Estelle Clifton
Edible Compass guests - All feasters who came to the table
Flour fight - Aaron Bedford, Aaron Culley, Aaron Wilson, Aidan Briers, Alannah Frances Conway, Amy Sheehan, Antonin Bardot, Bronwen Cottrell, Carter Carr, Charlotte Humphries, Christopher Taylor, Curtis Culley, Eilish Mullane, Dominic Crane, Ella Carter, Ellie Bird, Emily Bate, Emma Peake, Erica Belton, Fraser Jacobs, George Culley, Graham Culley, Grant Belton, Harri Green, Holly Winship, Iona Oliver, James Adams, Jenny Last, Jodie Woolnough, John-Jack Macca, Jonathan Christensen, Jordan Alderson, Joseph McGuchan, Justin Williams, Katie Cook, Laura Baillie, Lauren-Marie Flint-Johnson, Lauren Leggatt-Bulaitis, Lee Petchey, Leonora Sophie Cotton, Lewis Ward, Louise Merrin, Mason Iron, Monika Offord, Natasha Heal-Cohen, Nathan Garwood, Nicola Bowden, Nina Buchanan, Noor Ali Merza, Nykisha Brealey, Olivia Edwards, Patrick McGuchan, Rebecca Baillie, Ross Morley, Saffron Crisp, Sam Trenter, Sam Rhodes, Samuel Shepherd, Seth Spain, Siobhan Rudd, Sophia Yates, Summer Lane, Thomas Goodwin, Thomas Earl, Victoria Scott, Yasmin Abedi, Zoe Moles, ‘Escape Reality’ Parkour Team
Hooded body builders - Mark Maskell, Michael Raffell, Pacer Allen, Colin Williams, Aaron Wilson, Stand in Steve
Lady in waiting - Carla Esperanza Tommasini
Charm oracle - Naomi Brundish
Bird ringer - Oliver Slessor
Horned woman - Helena Hunter
Ritual dancers - Ania Paula Paez Pelaez, Anais Lalange, Konstantina Alexopoulou, Luke Pell, Paul Easterbrook
Dulcimer players - Reg Reader, Tim Knight
Silver haulers - Cristina Li Vigni, Eamonn Fitzgerald, Ian Chapman, Lou "Mando" Louis, Sara Ferguson, Uggy Brown
Women singers - Anna Tomlinson, Jordan Chandler, Lucy Tomlinson, Nancy Barnes, Pat Whymark, Tracy Elster
Archaeological diggers - Carole Green, Gemma Green, Chris Rama, Colin Fennell, Cordelia Wolsten-Croft, Dave Page, David Burch, Dawn Binks, Thomas Binks, Edward Laverack, Fran Sibthorpe, John Newman, John Stanford, Kevin Brown, Laure Bonner, Linda Cleave, Nigel Marsh, Pam Vintern, Peter Hart, Rae Bishop, Robert Gardner-Sharp, S.E.Phipps, Steve Brown, Susannah Robirosa, Taryn Brown, Trevor Chapman, Trevor Prentice
FlagsFlying performers - Craig Hudson, Emmi Edwards, Tiffany Charrington
Sound: Duncan Whitley, John Avery
Focus Pullers: Andy Hill, Jason Walker
Production Managers: Hannah Brady, Sarah Clarke
Steadicam Operator: James Layton
Lighting Landguard Fort: Pawel Polak
Production Manager: Marty Langthorne
Stage Manager, GreatYarmouth: Monica Yam
Stage Manager, Felixstowe: Natacha Poledica
Production Manager, Stowmarket: Nikk Turnham
Crew: Jacob Patterson, John Beeby, Nao Nagai
Props Maker: Michalis Kokkoliadis
Special Effects: Harry Stokes, Snowboy Systems
Text boxes: Karen and George Mayne, Event LED Signs
Flag printing: Keith Rodbard
Costume assistants: Ashlan Dowling, Karen Reed
Knitted hoods: Kathy Jolley, Diana Morden
Scarecrow making: Sam Weller and members of the public
General Manager: Jen Walke
Administrator: Sally Rose
Engagement Officer: Cad Taylor
Project Managers: Andrew Brumwell, Caroline Lawson, Justin O’Shaughnessy, Sally Rose, Tim Owen Jones
SGA Productions: Ellie Carter, Francis Watson, Jenny Smith, Julie Palmer, Mark Palmer, Sarah Gibbon
Marketing & Communications Manager: Charlene Katuwawala
Marketing & Communications Assistant: Anna Martinou
Symbol Designer: Joe Naylor
Charm Designer: Victoria Johnson
Volunteer support: Jodie Worton, Natalie Cringle
Accounts Administrator: Jo Hughes
Legal Services: Rupert Sprawson
Volunteers:
Abigail Tyrell, Aife Chowdhury, Amy Webb, Angela Mclellan, Catherine Akenust, Chloe Ward, Chris Francis, Chris Yarnell, Daisy Fox, Daisy MacGregor, Daniel Lee Harvey, Ellie Ramsden, Emma Thomson, Ewan Cadzow Webb, Finlay Kepler, G. Mackenzie, Hannah Rust, Ian Chapman, Ian Parsons, James Fury, Jenny Beaumont, Joff Hanson, Karin Read, Kathryn Daines, Lewis Gardiner, Lucy Ward, Matthew Gentle, Michael Jones, Patrick Brooks, Paul Mitchell, Peter Knight, Rachel Blackwood, Romicio, Rosanna Hiscock, Seth Spain, Shane Chambers, Stephen Lark, Zara Swanton
Animals:
Dogs: Maximillian (with Finian Perth), Dizzy and Daisy (with Michael O’Kill), Billy (with Andy Murtimer), Paddy (with Cathy Walton and Maltilda Milward)
Birds - Weighed & tagged bird (with Landguard Bird Observatory), Pigeons (with the Stambridge Pigeon Flying Club), Bert the falcon (with Trevor Fowles)
Horses - Ace (with Jodi Ladonikolas), Traveller’s Fortune (with Sarah Bardwell), Suffolk Punch horses (with the Suffolk Punch Trust)
Donkeys - Parkers Donkey World
No animals were harmed in the making of this film.
Thanks to:
Arts Council England, Access Cambridge Archaeology, Blackwing, Blyvalley Boarding Kennels & Cattery, Belfry Arts Centre, Bulimba Guesthouse, Candi Clouds, Choose Suffolk, Cover it up, Creative Arts East, Creative Partnerships, Haven Gateway, Crow’s Nest Café, CSV Media Clubhouse Ipswich, Culture Works East, DanceEast, Deben High School, Dorincourt Guest House, Dunwich Heath National Trust, Eastern Angles, English Heritage, Felixstowe Academy, Felixstowe Country Markets, Felixstowe Dock & Railway Company, Felixstowe History and Museum Society, Felixstowe Leisure Centre, Felixstowe Spa Pavillion, Felixstowe Tourist Information Centre, Felixstowe Town Council, Felixstowe Town Hall, Festivals Republic, Festivals Suffolk, Gemini Studios, Giller Pianos, Great Yarmouth Tourist Office, Haven Gateway Partnership, Harwich Haven Authority, House of Flowers, Ipswich Borough Council, Ipswich Community Gardens, Jack & Peter Jay – the Hippodrome Great Yarmouth, Kim Bolton Fireworks, Landguard Bird Observatory, Landguard Conservation Trust, Landguard Fort Trust, Landguard Partnership, Lattice Lodge, Leveltwo Youth Project, Manning’s Amusement’s Arcade, Royal Opera House Thurrock, Mobius, Museum of East Anglian Life, Music Sales Group, Natural England, New Image Studios, New Wolsey Theatre, NHS Suffolk, North Norfolk District Council, One29 Bar, Outreach Youth, Palmers Fencing, Port of Felixstowe, Prism Sound & SADiE, Residents Association Happisburgh, Richmix, Seachange Arts, Southend-on-Sea Borough Council, St Johns Ambulance Norfolk & Suffolk, Suffolk 2012, Suffolk Coastal District Council, Suffolk County Council, Suffolk County Council Grounds team, Suffolk Family Carers, Suffolk Schools Catering, Team East for Skills, The Little Ice Cream Company, Trinity Methodist Church Felixstowe, University College Suffolk, University of Cambridge, Visit Suffolk, Wayne McGregor | Random Dance, We Are Dan, What’s Up Bus.
Special thanks to everyone who made this possible including (alphabetically):
Adam Baker, all staff and volunteers at MEAL, All the Feasters at An Edible Compass, Andrew Gillman, Andy Fell, Andy Murtimer, Andy Smith, Anel Bennett, Angela McLellan, Anita Belli, Anne Beresford, Ant Cartwright, Anthony Roberts, Anton Benzlekamp, Artists Taking the lead panel, Billy Ball, Brenda Seymour, Brian and Molly Skipper, Brian Farrow, Bruce MacGregor, Bruce Monaghan, Cathy Walton, Celia Page, Charlie Manning, Chris Cracknell, Clare Baker, Daniel King, David Morgan, David Ralph, David Tolliday, Mayor of Felixstowe Doreen Savage, Dr Carenza Lewis, Dr Peter Bradley, Elli Chapman, Emma Dunton, Esther Mander, Ewa Justka, Finian Perth, Geeta and Rohit Verma, Griff Morgan-Jones, Helena Hunter, Howard and Chris Spurr, Hugo the night caretaker at Southend Pier, Iain Johnson, Jacqui Martin, jamie lewis hadley, Jane Cody, Jayne Knight, Jeremy Pembroke, Jessie Fotherby, Jo Whittle, Joe Mackintosh, John Brien, John Clarke, John Stebbings, Justin O’Shaughnessy, Kat Downes, Kevin Ryan, Kiss the Mistress, the Landguard Fort Volunteers, Laura Beardsell-Moore, Laura Norman, Lewis Wickwar, Lisa Harris, Liz Hughes, Liz Littlewood, Lyn Gash, Lynn Jones, Malcolm Kerby, Marie Angel, Mark Richards, Mary Neale, Matilda Milward, Matt Lane, Mike Sandle, Nicholas Dickson, Nigel Odin, Nora Gaston, Pat Chapman, Pat Grueber, Patsy Cane, Paul Ellis, Pauline Huckstep, Peter Gibbs, Pluck 'n' Squeeze, Professor Martin Jones, Reverend David Kemble, Richard Adams, Richard Bradshaw, Rob Salmon, Roger Nelson, Rosemary Clarke, Sam Dorling, Sam Macarthy, Sam Weller, Sandra Lodge, Sandra Meyrick, Sarah Holmes, Sarah Wynne - Landguard Ranger, Seamus Bennett, Sergio Paya, Sharon Charters, Simon Preston, Sonja Harms, Stephen Baker, Steve Cooney, Steve Howard, Steve Mannix, stitchers group, Sue Milnthorpe, Susan Robinson, Tania Harrison, Thom Shaw, Thomas Walden, Tim Clarke, Tony Butler, Torben Merriot, Trevor Fowles, Viyki Turnbull, Will Rowsell, and the many other people who made the project possible.
Context: The East of England’s contribution to Artists taking the lead, a major commissions project at the heart of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad funded by Arts Council England.