Millefiore Clarkes facts for kids

Millefiore Clarkes (sometimes called Mille Clarkes) is a Canadian filmmaker from Prince Edward Island. She is known for making music videos, short experimental films, and documentaries.

Clarkes also runs her own film company called One Thousand Flowers Productions. She chose this name because her first name, Millefiore, means "one thousand flowers" in Italian.

Early Life and Move to PEI

Mille Clarkes was born in Toronto, Canada. When she was 11 years old, she and her father moved to Prince Edward Island (PEI). Her father, Gerard Luther Clarkes, is a talented artist and composer. They have even worked together on film projects.

Today, Clarkes lives in Belfast, a community in Prince Edward Island, with her son.

Filmmaking Career

After studying philosophy at King's College in Halifax, Clarkes took a long road trip. She traveled across Canada, the United States, and Mexico, filming her journey along the way.

When she returned home to PEI, she had almost 70 hours of video! She taught herself how to edit films using a program called Final Cut Pro. This footage became her first film, Stalking Love (2005). It was a success and was shown at five film festivals.

First Big Film

Clarkes's first film, Stalking Love, is an experimental documentary. This means it explores a topic in a creative and artistic way, not just by stating facts. Clarkes said the film is less about love itself and more about what people think about love.

She explained, "If you ask people about love, their answer is very telling about who they are as a person."

Helping Other Filmmakers

Besides making her own films, Clarkes has helped support other artists. From 2005 to 2008, she worked at the Island Media Arts Cooperative, a group that helps local filmmakers.

She has also been a part of important groups like The PEI Council of the Arts and Women in Film and Television-Atlantic. She is one of the founders of The Island Film Factory, which helps create new films on the island.

Working with the National Film Board

In 2013, Clarkes directed a short film called Island Green. The film is about organic farming on Prince Edward Island and was produced by the famous National Film Board (NFB). It features narration by poet Tanya Davis.

Her Unique Filmmaking Style

Clarkes says she became a filmmaker by "happenstance and serendipity," meaning it happened by chance. She discovered her love for filmmaking while making a short film in college. She realized she loved observing the world around her.

"I was [...] a great lover of other people’s worlds. As a child I used to stay with friends and their families for days on end, absorbing their familial culture... I always loved entering in and out of worlds."

This curiosity is why she is drawn to making documentaries. Her style is often described as lyrical, which means her films are beautiful and poetic, like a song or a poem. She often focuses on the theme of "place" and how people connect to their surroundings.

Clarkes is an independent filmmaker, which often means working with a small budget. However, she sees this as a creative challenge. She believes that limits can make a film stronger.

"Some of the best moments on film come from what is left out, what is suggested rather than revealed."

For Clarkes, the most creative part of making a film is the editing. This is where all the video clips are pieced together to tell a story.

Awards and Recognition

Mille Clarkes has won several awards for her work.

• 2011: She received the Salute Award from Women in Film and Television Atlantic for her contributions to the film industry.
• 2012: Her short film December in Toronto was chosen as a Staff Pick on the video website Vimeo.
• 2013: She was named the PEI Filmmaker of the Year.
• 2012–2014: She won the award for Best Music Video at the Music PEI Awards for three years in a row.

Selected Filmography

Here are some of the films and music videos directed by Mille Clarkes.

Films

• Stalking Love (2005)
• Island Green (2013)
• Blue Rodeo: On the Road (2014)
• The Telling (2011)

Experimental Shorts

• December in Toronto (2011)
• Once again Toronto (2013)
• ACROSS America (2015)

Music Videos

• Catherine MacLellan's Frost in the Hollows
• Coyote's Proof of Life
• English Words' The People I Love
• Catherine MacLellan's The Raven's Sun
• Paper Lions' Philadelphia
• Paper Lions' My Friend
• Catherine MacLellan's Stealin'