Liza Johnson

Shot in Portsmouth, the filmmaker’s hometown, in the wake of the 2008 recession, In the Air encompasses feelings of despair, exuberance, and hope. In the spirit of neorealism, Johnson collaborated closely with nonactors who play out scenes from the dismal reality of everyday life: April works in a scrapyard; Daphany serves customers at a fast-food window; and Lee spends the day waiting for school to be over. But the local circus school offers them all a departure from daily tedium and checked-out adults.

Combining elements of fiction and documentary, In the Air is not only a portrait of a place that has endured economic crisis for decades, but it’s also a closely observed study of human resilience that examines the force we’re capable of exerting in a deindustrialized world.

As timely today as it was when we first screened it in The Box in 2009, In the Air was made with the support of the Wexner Center’s Film/Video Studio (including a loan of the studio’s 16mm camera) and the collaboration of Portsmouth's Cirque d’Art circus school. (22 mins., HD video)