A Lens to the Soul: The Photography of Andrew Kilgore

WORDS / MORGAN COOK

Dan Robinson and his film crew have been hard at work for years now, busy trying to create a film that accurately embodies and symbolizes the life and the work of photographer Andrew Kilgore.

Four years full of researching Kilgore’s work, capturing film, and conducting interviews has finally lead to the documentary’s completion. On Sunday September 28, The Fayetteville Public Library will be premiering A Lens to the Soul: The Photography of Andrew Kilgore at 2:00 P.M. There will also be a Q&A session with Robinson and Kilgore immediately following the film.

The idea for this documentary was born after Robinson’s wife Amanda saw his slideshow called Ineffable Connections and decided that the collection “needed to be seen by a much wider audience”. So in 2010, Robinson, his NWA media company Fiery Moon Productions, and owners of the collection, Hershey and Denise Garner started the project.

“In studying his work I was amazed at the scope of it,” Robinson said, “and I have a new appreciation for connecting with others through photographs. It has also been amazing to work with these beautiful photographs, and then to see the subjects, often at community meals, and feel like I know them even though we haven’t met.”

Over the next four years, Robinson conducted countless interviews with Kilgore, his subjects, and even President William Jefferson Clinton. “It was a challenge keeping the vision and working to completion over four years, but the highlight of working on this film was definitely having the opportunity to interview President Bill Clinton. He had wonderful things to say about Andrew’s work and his perspective on how we can help those who Andrew advocates”, Robinson said.

Robinson said it was also challenging trying to shape eight hours of interview footage and 1,000 photographs into a film that was to be only an hour with 250 photographs. But he did it, with thanks to the “great community support and the Fayetteville Public Library. They were very supportive in helping us complete the film.”

The documentary is said to be of interest to anyone who loves photography and sociology, and especially those with a “heart for advocacy of underserved populations”.

Robinson said he hopes that through the film people will see that “our common humanity outweighs our differences, and that through advocacy photography like Andrew’s, we can better understand those who are around us, especially those who need our compassion and understanding. We need to take the time to connect with those who are different from us, so that we can have a stronger connection as a society.”

For more information on the film and Andrew Kilgore’s work, visit the film’s website.