Ashleigh McArthur

FRAMING MOTHER

2020   I   Documentary   I   14 minutes   I   United States   I   Australia

Throughout history, idealised portrayals of motherhood have obscured an often harsh reality: for up to one in five women, pregnancy and early motherhood are psychologically debilitating experiences.

Set to a haunting score by Meredith Monk, Framing Mother interweaves the intimate stories of three women with iconic images of domesticity to elucidate the gaps in our collective understanding of new motherhood, and challenge the myth of the ‘perfect mother’.

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Direction, production, cinematography & editing: Ashleigh McArthur
Music: Meredith Monk
Production assistance & location sound: Michelle Mehrtens
Sound postproduction: Weronika Razna & Dan Olmsted

LOOK AT THE FISH

2020   I   Experimental   I   6 minutes   I   United States   I   Australia

Inspired by John Berger’s seminal essay Why Look at Animals? (1980), Look at the Fish takes the viewer on a sensorial journey through the aquarium, prioritising the perspective of its inhabitants to reveal the space as - ultimately - a site for the observation of the human species.

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Direction, production, cinematography & editing: Ashleigh McArthur
Music: Megan Jurek
Production assistance & location sound: Alex Rafi
Sound postproduction: Dan Olmsted

THE NEST

2020   I   Documentary   I   10 minutes   I   United States   I   Australia   I   South Korea

When Adriana’s maternity leave runs out, her husband JT assumes full-time care of baby Leo. Under the watchful eye of 'the nest' - a 24-hour baby cam - JT grapples with the challenges of raising Leo thousands of miles from the couple’s extended family. Set in the heart of Silicon Valley, The Nest is a humorous meditation on the role of technology in modern parenting.

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Co-direction, production, cinematography & editing: Ashleigh McArthur & Yeon Park
Sound postproduction: Megan Jurek

PAT'S STUDIO

2017   I   Documentary   I   5 minutes   I   Australia

Antenna Documentary Film Festival
St Kilda Film Festival
Revelation Perth International Film Festival
The Other Art Fair
Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival
Fine Art Film Festival, Venice Institute of Contemporary Art
Virgin Inflight Entertainment

The story of an artist, her work and the end of a love affair with the city that inspired it, Pat’s Studio showcases an unsung hero of Australian art and a bygone era in Sydney's Inner West.

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Direction, production, cinematography & editing: Ashleigh McArthur
Featuring: Pat Harry OAM
Music: Kira McCaig