Yo (Love is a Rebellious Bird)

Yo (Love is a Rebellious Bird)

Anna and Yo are unlikely friends with an unbreakable bond. When the pair first met, Yo was 73 and Anna 24. Through archival footage, interviews, puppets and insects, filmmaker and entomologist Anna Fitch with husband Banker White, create a joyous and artful celebration of friendship.

Director

Anna Fitch
Banker White

Runtime

78 Minutes

Country

United States

Classification

Unclassified 15+

Anna and Yo are unlikely friends with an unbreakable bond. When the pair first met, Yo was 73 and Anna 24. Anna spends a decade obsessively building a detailed 1/3-scale version of her friend’s house after losing her. It’s just big enough for Anna to squeeze through the door, and inside lives a puppet of her friend Yo. Through archival footage, interviews, puppetry and insects, filmmaker and entomologist Anna Fitch, with husband Banker White, portray an unconventional life. Born in Switzerland in 1924, Yo (Yolanda) was an unusual and curious child whose frustrated parents sent her to art school. Immigrating to Australia then America, she finds freedom, family and a life full of experimentation. This joyous and artful homage to friendship asks how we keep memory alive after those closest to us have died. Winner of the Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution at Berlin.

“For its creators, the film goes from a work about living to a reflection of mourning, and eventually, a way of keeping someone alive through memory.”

Variety

“Joyful, creative documentary portrait of grief, love and friendship.”

Screen Daily

Berlin - Silver Bear Outstanding Artistic Contribution

San Francisco

Revelation Perth

Trailer

Play Trailer

Film Credits

Director

Anna Fitch & Banker White

Year

2026

Country

United States

Language

English

Type

Feature Documentary

Program Strand

World Documentary

Producer

Anna Fitch, Banker White, Sara Dosa & Hannah Roodman

Cinematographer

Banker White & Andy Mitchell

Editor

Banker White

Music

Tyler Strickland

Film Source

First Hand Films

Genre

Art, Biographical, Documentary & Women

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