After Hurricane Katrina left the Gulf Coast in shambles, Barlow Jacobs and I knew we had to make a film. Being residents of Louisiana, we wanted to do something that would openly address the situation for those who live in New Orleans and the surrounding areas.

Together we created a fictional story that directly related to what was immediate and tangible in the post-hurricane environment. As we immersed ourselves in what was left of Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes, we discovered that the actual environment offered more than we as writers could have ever dreamed. And so our small crew embraced a style that in turn embraced the world around us and all of the people we met.

Hopefully the film reaches a point where the distinction between what is real and fictional no longer matters as much as the emotional and evocative nature of the film itself. Documentary or narrative, fictional or not, there exists a story and a mosaic of images and faces and voices that together make for a unique cinematic experience that transcends generic distinctions and arrives at the core of human experience, that of shared suffering, pity, and compassion. The film is a comedy and a celebration. But it is also an elegy and a lament for all the losses that cannot be counted and the suffering that will not cease but can only be soothed. Even still, hope is not a vain thing, and there is reason to celebrate. There is a spirit in this place that will not die, and so neither will New Orleans nor St. Bernard Parish. They will endure.

I believe that Low and Behold tells honestly the story of a few of those who are trying to endure.

Zack Godshall
Lafayette, Louisiana
10/06