My grandfather, Tom Watkins, is a 90-year-old harmonica player who lives in a retirement home in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 2016, I interviewed him to get his thoughts about the U.S. Presidential elections. When I finally got around to editing the footage in 2020, I found a different story altogether.
“You Handsome Dog (Don’t You Ever Die)” is the story of an old man who still yearns for his mother, Rose, who died at a young age from Tuberculosis while in a TB sanatorium. It is the story of grief and the transformational beauty that occurs when it’s allowed the space to express itself through music, stories, and a little bit of humor.
Project Links
Documentary Film Festival. Los Angeles & Toronto 