Creithiau – Original Version (Welsh Language)
“Down. Down into the valley… is a long never ending street that runs from Blaenrhondda to Porth….”
Creithiau is a film we created as part of an S4C/Ffresh short film competition that was looking for films that reflect contemporary Wales.
Being a company that’s proudly based in the heart of the South Wales Valleys, we wanted to portray its history, beauty and unique quirks. We aimed for a raw, emotive and honest reflection of the area we love; not the crass, painful manufactured images screened on recent reality television shows.
Local resident and poet Nicholas McGaughey penned a beautiful poem in Welsh about the Rhondda, citing distinctive oddities that only the native population would relate too. It’s poignant message describes what has been lost, but also the vibrant culture and colourful characters that still remain.
To accompany Nicholas’ moving words we traversed our local area to capture the landscape and landmarks. We shot hours of footage and time-lapses, we’re ecstatic with the results. It was definitely worth holding down our cameras in the rasping wind at six in the morning!
Below is English language version of the film. Enjoy!
Creithiau – English Language Version