St. Olaf will soon be hosting a special screening of the recent documentary feature film, Almost There. The film paints a portrait of Peter Anton, an 83-year old artist, and his relationship with the film’s directors: Dan Rybicky and Aaron Wickenden.
The film follows Anton’s strife, success and determination in his later years as a creative entity. One such cause of strife being his struggle to keep his home, that is full of years’ worth of artistic work, in the face of eviction. During this time, Rybicky and Wickenden attempt to help him fulfill his last wish: to share his story with the world.
Despite many obstacles, Anton — with the support of Rybicky and Wickenden — remains dedicated to sharing his art. As put by Anton himself, “The artist who suffers is common. It’s called fortitude.”
Almost There has been positively received at film festivals, both local and international. It was an Official Selection at the Cork International Film Festival in Ireland and won the Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award at the Geneva Film Festival in Illinois.
Almost There will be screenedat St. Olaf on Wednesday, March 9 in Regents 150 followed by a question and answer session with both the co-director/producer, Dan Rybicky, and the film’s environmental cinematographer David Schalliol. Schalliol is a professor in the Sociology department at St. Olaf College whose writing and photographic work has also appeared in publications such as The New York Times, and in various exhibitions around the world.
