Blind Photographer Finds Beauty in New German Volkswagen Film

Creative production company DECON director TJ O’Grady Peyton explores the strength of the senses in an inspiring docu-short for Volkswagen AG, out of Grabarz & Partner, Hamburg, produced by Bubbles Film. The piece peers into the unique creative vision of blind visual artist Pete Eckert, who transformed his disability into an art form to allow sighted people a glimpse into the world of the blind. The short highlights Eckert’s creative ability to leverage his aural and touch senses to capture striking abstract visuals that showcase his unconventional photography techniques while also capturing the unique beauty of the Volkswagen Arteon. 

To encapsulate Eckert’s technique as it unfolded in real time, O’Grady Peyton took an unorthodox and artistic approach, embracing the shoot’s unstructured and intimate setting to discover the most authentic moments. “Those moments of magic can’t be something that you plan for all the time,” notes O’Grady Peyton. “You need to allow yourself the opportunity to find and capture them on the spot as they happen. We also had a very small crew to maintain an intimate atmosphere on set. The lack of control which is often the case with small numbers was definitely a constant challenge.”