Color Film

Although notions of ‘documentary’ tend to bring to mind images of personal stories or information about far-flung places, sometimes the most surprising can be those that probe ideas or areas which are, on the face of it, somewhat unremarkable.

Such is the case with Meghan O’Hara’s film, since few things are more omnipresent than colour. It’s all around us, in its many shades, yet it is a surprisingly curious beast. O’Hara gives us an insight into the oddly subjective nature of colour – from the differences in the way the urbanised West perceives hue compared with countries where distinctions between each shade are less relevant, to the striking effect a name can have on paint sales.

More importantly from a cinematic perspective, she treats us to an eyeful of some of the finest colours in the spectrum, from the graceful artistry of a plane crossing an unclouded sky to drops of red dye forging their own unique pattern through water to a vat of yellow paint so pure it makes you want to reach out and dip your finger in it.

O'Hara also uses her camera to show how easy it is for our vision to be 'tricked'. A sensory treat for the eyes that borders on the sensual and which also contains some surprising insights about the nature of perception.