Director – Morgana McKenzie
Producer – Max Retik, Lee Marshall, Morgana McKenzie
Cinematographer – Morgana McKenzie
A struggling painter sets out on a do-or-die journey to paint the Mojave. With 72 hours to capture a perfect desert landscape, she finds herself disrupted by the hostile environment and a bizarre monolith that won’t seem to go away.
Director’s Statement
En Plein Air explores the journey of an artist grappling with the complexities of perfectionism during her search for authentic expression. Drawing from my own experiences as a filmmaker and painter, I feel true artistic growth stems from one’s ability to adapt and embrace the unexpected. This film, centred around a painter’s 72-hour odyssey in the Mojave Desert, is a reflection of that journey.
Her rigid methods are challenged by the harsh desert environment and the mysterious presence of a monolith that persistently disrupts her process. Through her struggle with this enigmatic rock, the painter’s journey becomes a metaphor for the battle with perfectionism and the need to find one’s own voice.
My hope for audience members is to feel through Iris’s journey that true creative freedom lies not in rigid adherence to one’s own vision, but in the ability to welcome and learn from the unexpected
