Mary Gerretsen - Directing Samples

Mary Gerretsen

Director(s): Mary Gerretsen

The two films in my directing sample are short character driven documentaries entitled, 7/8ths of the Way There and The Art of a Lost Trade. I directed both of these films over the last two years and they have won 7 awards collectively, including best documentary and best director. 7/8th's of the Way There Description: Meet George and Kathy. He's a quirky, fun loving, terminally ill man preparing for penile implant surgery, and she's a deep-thinking workaholic who wants to plan for their uncertain future. With the clock ticking and nothing to distract from his prognosis, George reflects on the family he’s loved and lost, from the father who fondled him to the daughter whose ashes he spread, while Kathy begins to face the inevitability of a life without the man and the work she loves. Imbued with humour, this meditative look at a marriage facing mortality shares universal questions of loss, love, death, and sex, all through the eyes of a curious couple on the way to accepting the end. The Art of a Lost Trade Description: A short documentary that illuminates clockmaking and it's craftsmanship history and future through the personal stories of Los Angeles based artisans JP and Nik as they struggle to survive a family-run small business in the face of growing obsolescence. The film touches on issues of corporatization, homogenization, the loss of individuality in the modern world, and the environmental and social impact of overconsumption.