We were delighted to have a sold-out event for this screening and apologise to those who were on the waiting list and those who contacted us asking for tickets. It was amazing that so many people came up to the hills on a beautiful Autumn day for this gathering and conversation. Peter McFarlane gave a beautiful opening speech about his brother and it was amazing to have him and some of the McFarlane family at the screening to offer insights into Robert and his work. 

Mira Soulio spoke so openly about her experience of working with Robert in the making of this film, and it was amazing to have her insights into Robert’s approach to his decades-long career as a freelance photographer and how he stored and managed his archive. 

Hugh Freytag, who not only worked on the film as a cinematographer but who also processed many rolls of B&W film found after Robert’s death, shared a set of slides and talked about what he knew about some of the images, many of them colour images not shown in the film. Local camera and film processing store Photoco Camera House were integral to the supply of these slides but also critical in processing many rolls of colour film, as was another local photography store, Black and White Photographics. It’s amazing to see how the local photography community got together to process these never-before-seen images. 

There was a lot of interest in our on-site darkroom and it was so great to meet photographers and enthusiasts who came out to support Mira and to honour Robert McFarlane’s legacy. Thanks very much to everyone involved!

(photos by Sam Oster)