A Home Unfamiliar is an experimental collaboration in music and filmmaking conceived and directed by musician/multimedia artist Mobley. The project brought together 30 musicians and filmmakers from all around Austin, TX, to create a visual album over the month of April 2020. Each artist had two days to create their segment, having seen or heard only a small portion of the previous artist’s contribution. The finished product is a single collective work that explores each artist’s unique experience of profound isolation and interconnectedness. Today you can watch A Home Unfamiliar at Alamo on Demand. All proceeds will be going to Central Texas Food Bank and The Dawa Fund, an organization providing direct aid for people of color serving as artists, social workers, teachers, healing practitioners and service industry workers.
The list of collaborators is meant to highlight the depth of Texas’s talented and thriving music and film scene. At the helm was Mobley, whose new EP was scheduled for release in May but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Jim Eno shares his first solo work, after decades behind the kit in legendary indie act Spoon. They are joined by Shakey Graves and acclaimed composer Graham Reynolds, known for his work scoring Richard Linklater films. One of the filmmakers, Jonathan Horstmann, had to make a cross-country move and ended up creating his piece entirely from the passenger’s seat, while another, Shannon Wiedemeyer, didn’t have access to her professional gear in quarantine, so she shot hers on her childhood camcorder. See below for the full list.
On the idea behind A Home Unfamiliar, Mobely says "I came up with the project because, like so many, I felt bewildered and helpless in the face of the global pandemic. But I looked out and saw countless people working hard and braving incredible peril to get us all through this. The work I know best is music and filmmaking and I knew there must be a way to direct that work toward their crucial efforts. Pooling the talents of a bunch of musicians and filmmakers for a project like this seemed like a great way to raise some money for COVID-19 relief, but the radically collaborative nature of the project is also a compelling demonstration of the beauty and potential of collectivism. Virtually everyone involved has expressed how meaningful it’s been to contribute to something greater than themselves at a time like this."
Generous charitable donations were provided by Alamo Drafthouse, Franchise Charities, Karbach Brewing Co., Last Gang Records, Lyft’s LyftUp program and Ozarka® Brand Natural Spring Water. 101X, KUTX and Do512 added promotional support. All the artists donated their labor, with the goal of using their art to help those affected by the pandemic.
|
– Jose Escudero
|
|