MAEVE O'HAIR

I love the marriage of poetry, film and sound. Taking a poem I have written, and shooting an accompanying film, can give the written word added dimension and depth. Fusion of the verbal, visual and audible can occur in the most magical way. Those who may not read a book of poems may enjoy viewing a poetry film. I like the accessibility of it, where film brings poetry to a broader readership and spreads the beauty of the written word. An example of this is when one of my poetry films, Knitted Knockers, went viral quite quickly because a cohort of people identified with the subject matter. I want my poetry films to be visceral, relatable and easily found. The combination of moving image and spoken word is powerful. Technology can make poetry accessible to more people, which for me is everything.

My work can be viewed via the QR code here or at https://vimeo.com/showcase/9935460

SARAH O'KEEFE

I needed to up my entertaining game. My idol Anthony Bourdain, celebrity chef, author, and travel documentarian was visiting Cayman for a culinary event. His latest cookbook Les Halles had recently been released, and I was dying to meet him. The event was being held at an expensive hotel resort, and I couldn’t afford to buy pricey tickets when we had this mortgage looming. Instead, I devised a plan where I would casually run into him at the airport, because I knew when he was travelling. I brought my Les Halles cookbook to the restaurant, so that I could ask him to sign it during our impending casual run-in. As predicted, Anthony Bourdain was at the airport getting ready to take the 5:10 flight, but he never came to the restaurant. Instead, he went to the departure lounge bar, and it was busy. I tried to make it through security flashing my airport staff pass but it was no use, I wasn’t getting in. In a last-minute attempt, I saw one of the servers at the bar, gave her the book and she got it autographed for me. My dream of meeting Anthony Bourdain, telling him that I loved cookbooks and travel, that I used to write and that he could come to our place for a dinner party, was not to be.

Excerpt from A la Carte: recipes, dogs, and techniques for making butterflies talk

In my portfolio Talk Them, I use my family’s personal experiences to tell a non-fiction story about our time living abroad, and some of the challenges we have faced regarding our son Charlie’s long-term illness. Charlie has Cystic Fibrosis. As a first-time mother I found it difficult at times, but have always tried to look at the positive. It is important for me to advocate for those that need an extra bit of help, and I believe that story telling can give us the voice to do so. Talk Them also includes a screenplay for animation about a fairy with a prosthetic wing who dreams of being a singer.