Craig Moore delivers ​Into The Arms of Sunshine

Filmmaker Craig Moore at Familia uses dance and poetry as the basis of his new experimental short Into The Arms of Sunshine. 

A story about two lost lovers, longing to be in each others arms again, the film captures that feeling of being apart from someone close to you and not knowing when you might see them again. Moore uses the sun as a source of comfort, a compass, that reassures our protagonists and guides them back to one another.

Set on the dry dusty landscapes of the west coast of South Africa, and with clothing by London fashion house TooGood, the piece has strong cinematic qualities and uses a series of well crafted visual metaphors to capture the different emotions one feels when longing for a loved one.

“Dance has always a great way to express emotion and the spoken word element that tells the story really elevates that emotion into a cinematic realm, by giving the movement and performance purpose”, says Moore.

“Ive always had a fascination with the sun, and the muted dry landscapes of the west coast of Africa felt like the perfect setting for this story. We filmed this during the lockdown last year and we were lucky to run into Sabine and Brin who were also stranded in Cape Town, at that time”. It was the perfect time to bring this idea to life and we all embraced this opportunity to create together.

“The idea to tell the story through dance and movement came from discussions with my stylist and creative collaborator, Anso. We wanted to capture emotion differently and using movement and dance allowed the performers to express themselves in unique ways, creating lovely shapes to their human form. 

“I wanted to create a story that was relatable from different angles and after two years of lockdowns, we all know that feeling of what it’s like to be apart from someone special”, says Moore. “The sun can be a real source of comfort, a metaphor for reassuring one in times of need and loneliness, a guiding light. Now with Spring/ Summer on our doorstep, and after a long hard winter, our spirits are lifted once again as we look to the sun. Our compass. It can heal hearts and lift the spirit. Into The Arms of Sunshine uses the sun, a source of positivity and optimism, to connect our two lost souls” 

Director Craig Moore is an award winning artist and director who works globally for clients such as Wrangler, Nike, Pepsi, Ted Baker, Adidas, Porsche and FIFA. His music video work has seen him collaborate with artists such as Dua Lipa, Wizkid, The Vamps, Sigala, Tinie Tempah and Paloma Faith. His work shows an innate understanding of movement and performance, and his use of natural light has become a key contributor to his authentic, beauty-driven style.

Actors Sabine Van Rensburg and Brin Schoellkopf are from the Montreal Circus in Canada. They also happened to be trapped in Cape Town during the lockdown of 2021, so we were lucky to have crossed paths for this project. I had originally intended to use ballet or contemporary dancers for the film, but Sabine and Brin brought something special to the piece and we instantly had a connection. As circus artists, they brought something really unique to their performance. 

Moore adds: "I wanted to create a film that was relatable in an emotive sense, the movement a metaphor for the emotion that comes from being apart from someone special. During the pandemic, so many people were separated and forced to be apart for long amounts of time. Sitting and waiting to be back in each others arms. Lovers, brothers, children, partners, friends, longing to be together again."

"There is something liberating about making an experimental film of this nature. I love giving dancers/performers the space to express themselves. There were so many beautiful moments and, with us being a small crew, we were able to be reactive and capture ideas for shots that simply arose from rehearsing or watching."

"It was a process we all really enjoyed. In commercials, we plan everything so much that it leaves little room to react to interesting and unique angles - perspectives that might materialise on the shoot. We were in the middle of nowhere with epic locations, brilliant performers, and a handheld camera setup. A very liberating approach and the result was a beautifully simplistic story with emotion and depth at its core."