Fox Keeper

One morning he found a fox in a trap. Its paws were already bloody from digging at the bars.

He looked at it a while, the broad ears, the thin snout. Then he let it out. It wasn’t going to eat the crops. And if he left it there his father would kill it.

He had lettuces, some peppers to sell that day at market. They looked good. Still, he knew before he started: the money he made wouldn’t pay for gas.

That afternoon, after the heat, the shouting, the fight on the highway, after eating his mother’s food, he lay on his bed in the dim cube of his room and thought of another fox. Away from the farm. He would bring it food, teach it tricks. Keep it with him.

video: https://vimeo.com/476808116

"Fox Keeper" formed the basis of a dance performance by Nostos Tanztheater in Mannheim, Germany, 2020 (choreography Christina Liakopoyloy; dancer Martina Martin; video Gothamfotografia; music Pepe Pereira; voice Joseph Franciosa). The video from the performance was selected in the London International Monthly Film Festival (February 2021), the Athens International Monthly Art Film Festival (March 2021) and the London International Music Video Awards (March 2021), and was awarded Best Cinematography, Best Dance and Best Music in the Los Angeles Experimental Film & Music Video Festival (2021).

https://soundcloud.com/margaret-wesseling