A few words on Storytelling and the Role of Symbolism Throughout the ages and especially in this century, philosophers and common folk alike have debated the existence of gods. But none can deny the existence of deity at the very least in human consciousness, providing guidance and inspiration to the masses through one very important mechanism: storytelling. Through fairy tales and fables, parables and poetry, we reveal to ourselves the moral of each story, and in so doing we fortify what it means to us not only to be good, but to be human. How do storytelling and symbolism fit together? We live in a world in which simple, basic objects familiar to everyone - for example, the sun, or a tree, or a knife - communicate a profound set of ideas to almost everyone, very often transcending language and even cultural barriers. When Romeo says "Juliet is the sun!", we immediately understand what is meant, and with just a few words, the sun becomes an effective metaphor of the warmth, light and radiance of Juliet's effect on Romeo, and a symbol of romantic love. Even more powerful is the use of symbols together with music, such as one might see in a play, an opera, a motion picture, a short film, or a music video. By making use of our faculty to reason by analogy, symbols and metaphors allow us to contemplate and shed light on concepts which previously may have been too abstract. We can think about what things are like, and in doing so, we get closer to understanding the way things are. Perhaps more importantly, symbols reach us in ways that escape our conscious awareness, and thus sustain us on very spiritual and emotional levels. In essence, symbolism is an amazing path for exploration. Storytelling has long been a passion of mine, be it through writing, painting, poetry, photography, music or filmmaking. Another passion of mine is symbol interpretation, which can also be expressed through many different avenues. Tarot, handwriting analysis, and dream interpretation are 3 facets that I've studied in earnest over the last ten years. I also enjoy analyzing themes and symbols in films. All this having been said, I invite you to enjoy my latest storytelling efforts in the form of a short film series called Reve. Susan Lien Whigham June 2010 sooziqueue@yahoo.com