Taking on an original poem by Tiana Clark which offers a poetic response to murders that shook the world - that of Emmett Till & Trayvon Martin, Savannah Leaf (previously featured with her short film FIN) explores her personal feelings as a mixed-race woman traversing the space in modern America. Shot on 16mm film, mostly black and white shots reminiscent of work of Khalid Joseph and Luis Bunuel are interwoven and move seamlessly with the rhythm of the poem. In her personal statement Leaf says:

'The Ayes Have It has a unique Free Association pattern, that at times may feel random. But the words of the poem have a unique resonance with me, having lived in London, the Bay Area, and Miami. I can vividly remember being in Florida for the killing of Trayvon Martin and reading the news documenting all the details of the trials. I can also distinctly remember riding bart in Oakland just a few weeks before Oscar Grant was murdered at Fruitvale Station, and then following the case across the media. So when I read this poem I could tell Clark’s stream of consciousness is not random — it is a reflection of what she has gone through and seen in the media. This film is derived from my own associations to the words of the poem, a reflection of my own experiences, the stories from others, the media and history. Untamed. Unfiltered. Insensitive. Truthful.'

www.savanahleaf.com