Films & Collaborations
Metamorphis
A Short Film About Creativity, Frustration & Transformation
There comes a time in life when we begin to question who we are, why we are who we are, and whether that aligns with who we want to be. We look at our frustrations, our victories, and the experiences that shape us. Metamorphis is my creative interpretation of that journey.
The Story In this short film, I play an artist who is struggling with her creativity. Frustrated and unable to create the artwork she wants to make, I take a walk through the woods, where I encounter a mysterious white butterfly, played by Helaina "Lainie" Callahan. She introduces me to the possibility of transformation and finding my butterfly wings.
I return to my studio, hoping to create, but the frustration continues. My creative struggle deepens, and I fall into a period of depression. As I withdraw, the white butterfly retreats into a cocoon.
Eventually, something begins to change. My outlook on life shifts, and I start making positive changes for myself. I exercise, pray, cry, and begin reconnecting with who I am and what I want for myself. As I begin to see the light and find my way forward, the butterfly also emerges from its cocoon.
The film follows my journey back to creating after the death of my mother. In the final scenes, I build a pair of large butterfly wings and install them on a wall, where friends and family gather to take photographs in front of them. The film ends with a kiss from my husband, bringing the story to a very personal close.
The Meaning Behind It Transformation is at the heart of Metamorphis. The butterfly, the cocoon, and the wings are woven throughout the film as symbols of change and personal growth.
The white butterfly represents a guiding presence, while the cocoon reflects a period of withdrawal and change. As I begin making changes in my own life and finding my way forward, the butterfly also hatches. Our transformations happen alongside one another.
The wings represent more than the ability to fly. For me, they became a symbol of moving beyond frustration, reconnecting with my creativity, and allowing myself to become something more than I had been.
Behind the Film One of the most meaningful inspirations came from something that happened in my own life. While meditating, a painted butterfly landed on my wrist. I took it as a sign to create a pair of butterfly wings.
That moment became the inspiration for bringing the wings into the film. Using my sign-making equipment, I designed and constructed a large pair of wings, turning an idea into something real. In a way, my former creative world became part of this new artistic expression.
Metamorphis was created in collaboration with filmmaker Evan Knutson, with Helaina "Lainie" Callahan portraying the white butterfly. It combines film, visual art, symbolism, and storytelling to share a very personal chapter of my creative journey.
- Concept & Visual Art: Lynn Garwood
- White Butterfly: Lainie Callahan, Sparrow Dance Co.
- Filming & Cinematography: Evan Knutson (now Perspective Pro Studio)
Wave
Collaborative Film & Performance | A Lynn Garwood Concept
Created during the pandemic, Wave grew out of a time when isolation and depression felt like a wave of water passing over my head. I developed the idea as a visual expression of that experience through movement, music, painting, and the landscape of Lake Michigan.
Filmed along the shoreline at sunrise, Lainie Callahan (of Sparrow Dance Co.) and I move through the sand with Lake Michigan as our backdrop. The song "Wave" by Beck provides the musical backdrop, reflecting themes of isolation and separation.
Throughout the film, I create a large-scale painting of a woman's face. The painting becomes part of the performance, eventually being submerged beneath the water. Along with other paintings of the same woman. Other scenes show Lainie and me falling lifelessly down a sand dune before the film closes with aerial footage of us floating together in Lake Michigan, captured by drone.
Wave brings together dance, painting, music, and the natural landscape to tell a visual story about a difficult period in time.
Creative Team
- Concept & Visual Art: Lynn Garwood
- Dance Performance: Lainie Callahan, Sparrow Dance Co.
- Filming & Cinematography: Evan Knutson (now Perspective Pro Studio)
Wave
The Ladies of Wave
When I created Wave, a collaborative film project during the pandemic, I produced a series of large-scale drawings of a woman as part of the visual storytelling. More than five of these drawings were featured in the film, where they were submerged in Lake Michigan. Once filming was complete, we retrieved them from the water.
Created specifically for the project, these drawings became part of a story told through movement, water, music, and film.
I'm now making these original drawings available for purchase. Each has its own history as part of this unusual creative project.
If one catches your eye, feel free to reach out for details.
Soon Available to Own an original painting from Wave