A Mississauga artist has turned a small grant into an animated film that reimagines the city itself as part of the story.
Gordon Culley used a Matchmaker MicroGrant from the Mississauga Arts Council to create his new film, The Long Way Home, the organization announced this week. The short follows a young Vietnamese woman coping with a gambling addiction who takes the long way home at the suggestion of her Uber driver — a recovering gambling addict who shares his thoughts on the subject with her.
The story is ultimately one of hope, with the council describing the film's message simply: there is hope when there is love.
The project is also a love letter to Mississauga. Culley said he chose animation so he could create a dreamy and unique world of the city and fully realize his artistic vision.
Culley said animation gave him freedoms a live-action shoot could not. He taught himself Unreal Engine 5.6, software used to make games and high-end visual effects for movies and TV, allowing him to play every role himself, set the story anywhere, and add touches such as aerial shots and a Rolls Royce for the driver.
I was originally going to make this a live action production but I feel that in order to create a 'unique voice' in media when hundreds of hours are uploaded every second that trying something different can be a reward. I took it upon myself to learn Unreal Engine 5.6 which is software used to make games and High End VFX for movies and TV.
Culley made the remarks in a post on the Mississauga Arts Council's website.
The MicroGrant program that supported the film is funded through the efforts of dedicated volunteers with the Charitable Gaming program, according to the Mississauga Arts Council. The council thanked Rama Gaming House, the Mississauga Charitable Gaming Association, and Charitable Gaming. Community Good. for helping fund artist-led projects.
The program supports local artists pursuing projects across disciplines, giving creators like Culley the means to experiment with new tools and approaches — in his case, learning an industry-grade game engine to tell a distinctly Mississauga story.
