Synopsis

U.K., 2016; 87 mins

“If I didn’t understand it, it would defeat me,” says John Hull, referring to the blindness that took his sight away at the age of 45. This probing sensorial experience of a film follows the respected Australian-born academic and theologian as he grapples with his condition, forcing him to change everything about his life, from the way he teaches to the way he connects with his children. Gorgeously photographed and beautifully crafted, Notes on Blindness employs actors, who lip-sync Hull’s actual audio recordings, to provide an intimate, fascinating and sometimes frightening account of Hull’s challenges and triumphs, anguish and acceptance. From Sundance and Rotterdam 2016, Notes on Blindness has been called “immensely creative and poetic” (Cineuropa) and “elegant, evocative and deeply affecting” (Screen Daily).

director bio

Peter and James have been working together for the past six years on a range of fiction, documentary and cross-platform projects. During this period they have adapted John’s diary material into a series of award winning short films. The first of these, ‘Rainfall’, won the Best Short Documentary Award at Hot Docs 2013. This was followed in 2014 by the Emmy Award-winning short, also entitled ‘Notes on Blindness’, which screened at Sundance Film Festival and won Best Documentary at Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival.Notes on Blindness is their first feature.