The Blocks is an animated short film made by the Rialto Community Drug Team group Step by Step with artist Gareth Gowran and his small production company Splitting Borders.
A group of five local women, led by Joanie Whyte, worked emotionally and
creatively on a process to explore the generational impact of addiction on family life. They invited Gareth Gowran into the journey to support them to develop a story and script that would be translated into an animated film. The result is an intimate depiction of life through the eyes and hearts of girls in Dublin sixty years ago. Rose, Margaret, June, Maureen, Joanie and Janet are keen to share the complexity of happy, content childhood memories mixed with the worries and fears of adult life that are bigger than any child’s ability to cope.

This project is proudly co-produced by the Rialto Community Drug Team, supported by the HSE and Canals Community Local Drug and Alcohol Task Force. The script was co-written by the Step by Step group and Gareth Gowran with the Splitting Borders production company. All character development, background design and animation was created by Gareth Gowran. All voice work was performed by local actor Phyllis Corish.

The Blocks Workbook