Shouldered Oar Films
History is told one story at a time
What is a Shouldered Oar?
What the name means
The name Shouldered Oar Films comes from a poem by Seamus Heaney, about a failed Irish rebel from the 1700s, named Wolfe Tone.
“I was the shouldered oar that ended up far from the brine and whiff of venture, like a scratching-post or a crossroads flagpole, out of my element among small farmers.”
Heaney uses a metaphor from The Odyssey to describe a man finally set adrift and trying to right himself in turbulent times.
“Go then, taking your well shaped oar, until you come to those who do not know the sea… at whatever time a fellow wayfarer falls in with you and says that it is a winnowing fan you are carrying on your heroic shoulder, there and then plant in the ground your well shaped oar and perform a perform a splendid sacrifice to Poseidon.” —The Odyssey.
We are buffeted about by the times we live in today, and we search for some understanding in the same way that heroic Greeks and failed Irish rebels tried to understand their times: through a story.
Video Highlights
You Have To Go Out… produced for the Nantucket Shipwreck and Lifesaving Museum
30-second ad for the Inquirer and Mirror newspaper
30-second spot for the Community Preservation Committee
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