The Screening of Matt Ottley's 'The Tree of Ecstasy and Unbearable Sadness'

Followed by the official opening of the exhibition

THURSDAY 1st February 2024 - 5:00pm for 5:30pm

The Lighthouse Toowoomba is immensely proud to announce Matt Ottley's truly incredible The Tree of Ecstasy and Unbearable Sadness will be making its premiere as a full exhibition in The Write Gallery from Thursday 1st February. The official opening will include a screening of the accompanying film at The Strand Cinema, a Q+A session with Matt, and book signing at the gallery. 

The 50-minute film of The Tree of Ecstasy and Unbearable Sadness was created by Matt Ottley to offer a further sensory insight into the experiences of one boy’s journey into mental illness. Matt wants people to be able to ‘feel’ what psychosis is like at a visceral level. He produced the music and the book first, then created the film, realising that this would be the perfect format for people to fully appreciate the breadth and depth of the work.

The film combines footage of the recording of the work (by Brno Philharmonic Orchestra and the Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno), along with the narrated text and imagery from the book reframed by Matt in a ‘Ken Burns’-like cinematic treatment, all set to the symphonic work. At a time when the world is moving so fast, this film invites audiences to slow down and immerse themselves in the painted images and the music, and so to be drawn deeply into the young boy’s journey. Its aim is to both spark
and encourage ongoing discussion around its various challenging themes, and offer reassurance to young people and adults struggling with the social isolation so often associated with mental illness.

This film was awarded a ‘Special Mention’ at the 2023 Bologna Ragazzi CrossMedia Award.

Events starts 5:00pm with refreshments at The Strand Cinema
5:30pm screening
6:30pm Q+A with Matt Ottley
Then 7:00pm to The Write Gallery for the exhibition opening and book signing. 
Tickets are no longer available for this event. If you would like to be notified of a second screening of the film, please email hello@thelighthousetoowoomba.org 

Note that the exhibition does remain open in The Write Gallery until Thursday 29 February, and is open Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 3pm