Did I know you? Did I know everything about you? These are the questions the filmmaker asks herself when her sister Vivian, five years her junior, suddenly dies. Is a person always themselves? And what does it mean to be “authentic”? Vivian was a young, beautiful woman with great potential, busy discovering the world around her. Like many of her peers, she was figuring out who she was and what she could contribute to the world. This documentary, at once raw and poetic, sees the filmmaker attempt to get inside the head of her sister, who cut her own life short at the age of 24. The images slide from reality into fantasy, from subconscious into dreams and reflections, blending into a coming-of-age story about the search for identity. Both sisters are taking on their own demons – but are their battles really that different? The lines that divide them gradually fade, merging into one amalgam being that the audience can no longer separate. In the end, all that remains is their connection.

Vivian, Vivian is the intimate portrait of a close sisterly connection and an ode to vulnerability. In the end, all that remains is their connection.

I make films that try to create a deeply sensory experience. An experience that transports the viewer to another state of mind, another reality, or another time, making them think about the world we’re living in. Through film, I aim to explore what moves people at their deepest core. Often, the images slide from reality into fantasy, from the subconscious into dreams and reflections. In Vivian, Vivian, I’m trying in every way I can to understand what my sister went through. I’m looking for answers and explanations. But more than that, my search is driven by the futile longing to bring my sister back to life. It’s a search that manifests in different ways. Dryly factual, with a detective-like obsession. Fragmented like a stream of consciousness. And sometimes even merging our two personalities into one.

Vivian, Vivian is an intensely personal cinematic poem that asks questions that touch upon the universal struggle of every young adult. It’s a filmed essay on the importance of searching, and allowing yourself to accept that not everything can be controlled.

Vivian, Vivian is written and directed by Ingrid Kamerling, for her bio and filmography please visit ingridkamerling.com.

Vivian, Vivian will be screened locally and internationally. Like the Facebook-page to stay up to date with current screenings.

Vivian, Vivian can be seen at the following film festivals:
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