Soldier Brother (Web Site)

With Soldier Brother, Toronto artist Kaitlin Ann Jones contemplates a lifetime as she watches her 20-year old brother serve in Afghanistan. She stays in touch with him during the months he’s away via instant messaging – shorthand vernacular that’s at odds with the complexity of her circumstances and the depth of her emotion.

This interactive documentary delves into what it’s like for Canadian families coping in contemporary wartime. Through an exploration her brother’s possessions and their shared text messages, Jones examines the nuance of sibling relationships; her displaced role as ‘big sister’ in the face of what her brother is doing; the deficiencies of instant communication; the conflict of her own emotions; and the haunting, indelible feeling that there’s no turning back.