A man falls in love with a woman. A quasi-dream-like sequence of images are intentionally placed on that fine line where reality borders with surrealism. This is the premise behind L-Iblaħ, a short film being premiered by artist Jimmy Grima and produced by The Rubberbodies Collective.

L-Iblaħ presents a story that innocently echoes Malta’s way of resolving its dormant, winter season with its spirited, eclectic summer festivities. As the synopsis of the short hints, Grima is fascinated with the context of the island, its myths, landscapes, light and colour and its passive rhythm and the sudden change from winter to summer.

The result is a 10-minute short film based on texts created by old-time collaborator and filigree artist Kevin Attard, who also features in the film as protagonist.

For the film, Grima collaborated with Mark Dingli as a director of photography. Mario Sammut, aka Cygna, was responsible for the sound design, with two tracks from the recent project Lost Voices by Andrew Alamango also featuring in the film. Geneva Corlett was responsible for the costume design.

The project includes an installation created by Grima around the short film that is being co-curated by Vince Briffa.

The installation presents the short film to mark the journey and highlight the qualities of performing arts and film by creating a visceral experience with the visitor actively participating in the artwork. The installation is being produced and supported by St James Cavalier, Valletta, in collaboration with The Rubberbodies Collective.

L-Iblaħ runs at St James Cavalier, Valletta, between July 12 and August 12.