“To Build a Home” presents a series of stories that explore the breadth of human experiences and their relationship to home.
About
From global migrations to individual journeys, the film navigates the complexities of personal identity, family dynamics, and cultural influence to uncover a universal truth in the infinite number of ways it’s possible to build a home.
How to build a home?
I aim to tell a story in which people who span across age groups, genders, races, and places of origin can all share their personal perspectives of home. To achieve this, I’ve traveled the world interviewing participants in their native languages. Candid, unrehearsed conversations in an individual or partnered format give way to intimate explorations around varying perceptions of home.
Who builds a home?
My personal struggle to define home has been with me my entire life. Although raised by an immigrant mother with rich cultural ancestry, I never learned the language I heard spoken over the phone to my grandmother each day. Moving eight times before the seventh grade made it difficult to develop a sense of security with any particular place or people. And to really drive the metaphor home, the final house I lived in before going out on my own was demolished in order to build a bigger parking lot…
What makes a home?
What can turn a house into a home? Is it a shared language, space, or person? Perhaps the sense of safety or routine? Maybe even a smell, sound, or taste? These are some of the questions I’ve begun asking as I search for the common characteristics that can make a place into a home.
Why build a home?
My identity — or more accurately — the lack of one connected to a particular place, people, or culture has led me to investigate the qualities of belonging. While my conversations around the world yield diverse points of view, I aim to uncover both the universal and unique ways in which one can build a home.
To Build a Home is currently in production.
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© Mike Godlewski