Gerben Zevenbergen’s short documentary tackles one delicate subject in a very mature and profound manner: blindness. There are lots of shorts and features depicting this disability, and not many of them manage to reveal all the parts of it. Most of the times the topic is used to give an example, or to foreground the hard life a blind person goes through; rarely do we get the chance to see an inspiring film, or at least one that has more hope than pity. 

 

'A Sense of Black’ comes to fill that niche, and Gerben Zevenbergen delivers one of the most powerful and inspirational documentaries we’ve seen in a while. The story of George Kabel, a man that suffers from Usher disease – that rare kind of disease that leaves you blind and deaf. His life seemed to be over when he discovered this about his body, but he manned up and walked forward. That’s how George became an artist, and a pretty good one, too. In 'A Sense of Black' we are presented with one of his conceptual art exhibitions that will definitely make you curious. Whoever is going to watch it will understand the ‘wow factor’ and the depths of his mind revealed on a table.

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Through George's work, everybody will be able to understand how hard it is to be blind, and how much we have to treasure the gifts we’re unaware of most of the times. This documentary does what it is supposed to do – it speaks to the core of one’s humanity, and it can make even the most stone-cold hearted person in the room become sensitive for a couple of minutes. George Kabel teaches us an important life lesson through Gerben Zevenbergen’s short – life is extremely important, and each moment, good or bad, has its importance. We only have to make the most out of it, and of course, to never lose hope.

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Written by Vlad A. G