SHOW AND TEAL “The film is my way of turning grief into art. It captures the beauty of North Carolina and tells a story about the ingredients that make life worth living which my dad instilled in me… family, community, music, food and nature.”
Photo credit: Left Side Up Films LLC
When Grief Becomes Art By Susan Finley
Combining elements of narrative, documentary and visual poetry to explore questions of how to fully live, Betsy Bertram, a student in Watson College’s Elementary Education extension program, recently created a featurelength documentary with filmmaker Matthew Chenet. The film, “Captain Scott B and the Great Adventure,” is about Betsy's journey through grief after losing her father in 2017. It premiered at the Carrboro Film Festival in November. Bertram wrote and co-produced the film, which examines how to cultivate a deep connection with the natural world, and, above all, how to enjoy the brief and wondrous time we spend on this planet. “When we started this project four years ago, we had no idea what we were headed towards as a world. I feel that in the time of COVID, there has never been a more important time to talk about grief and loss, and how we move through it and reconnect with joy,” Bertram said. “The film is my way of turning grief into art. It
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captures the beauty of North Carolina and tells a story about the ingredients that make life worth living which my dad instilled in me… family, community, music, food and nature. The film is a culmination of my writing, Matt’s vision and my dad’s wild camera footage. It’s an homage to the importance of adventure, a quest for the remembrance of everyday magic and a reflection on the meaning of a life well-lived.” Bertram’s experiences in developing the film led her to enroll in WCE’s elementary education program in 2021. “With my teaching degree, I hope to bring an outdoor, nature-based learning program into the public education system to offer all children the opportunity to connect with the natural world.” Captain Scott B and the Great Adventure’s universal message around grief, loss and resilience brings people together in a collective, healing experience that reminds us to seek the wonder in the present moment. To learn more, visit captainscottb.com.
