Eastern Townships filmmaker, writer and photographer Louise Abbott, with the help of her husband Niels Jensen, who is also a photographer, has wrapped up her most recent film The Mountains of Potton. The film was originally supposed to be a photography project for the Potton Heritage Association highlighting the various mountains within the Potton region in all four seasons, but Abbott realized the potential the project had to be made into a short film. 

“It quickly became clear that some of the aerial views that Neils largely took (…) would be the most interesting for viewers. It really gives viewers a unique perspective of the mountains, most have not seen aerial views of them,” said Abbott. 

After being asked by the Potton Heritage Association to do a presentation of the photographs, Abbott thought it would be more interesting for viewers to create a short film out of them.

“I incorporated at least a thumbnail sketch of the history of the mountains of Potton in the film. I looked at the geology through interview excerpts with Derek Booth, a retired professor from Bishop’s University (Lennoxville). I looked at conservation and included excerpts with an interview with Joël Bonin from Nature Conservancy of Canada,” explained Abbott. 

Abbott mentioned that she hopes that the film will encourage people to appreciate their local landscapes and to start thinking about preservation. 

“And also make people think about conservation. I looked at the conservation status of some of the mountains and I think that message is coming through to people based on the comments I’ve gotten,” she noted. 

The film also has an educational aspect to “sensitive” people to the natural history of the area. 

“Just the existence of the eight mountains, to be honest, I had a childhood connection to Potton, but just for a few years in my early childhood. I was aware of the major mountains, like Owl’s Head, Elephantis, and Sugar Loaf, but I really wasn’t aware of some of the other ones, like Hawk and Bear a little bit. Just giving the locations of the mountains, I included a topographical map so it will be very clear to people where the mountains are located,” noted Abbott. 

Abbott said that looking at the natural history of an area isn’t an aspect that is often covered. 

“But I think that landscapes are becoming more important because they’re becoming more developed and degraded,” noted Abbott. 

Having spent some of her childhood in Potton and exploring the area for other projects, Abbott said that making the short film was a natural fit. 

“And it was a project that we could do on our own, over time, in all four seasons, and take the time that we needed, so it was a meditative project I think to do,” added Abbott.

The Mountains of Potton can be viewed in both English and French on Vimeo. 

Listen to the interview below: