“Only in deep darkness we fully appreciate the immense value of light.”
~ Johan Swinnen
A Collaborative Film Book, Art and Healing Project
The Wind Once Whispered is a collaborative, cross-cultural healing project that brings together film, poetry, fine art, and lived experience to explore how humans move through cancer, grief, trauma, and profound life disruption, and how we find meaning, connection, and resilience along the way. What began as a connection made at the Friday Harbor Film Festival in 2025, became a creative and reflective experience designed to help individuals navigate change, reconnect with their inner clarity, and rediscover their natural way of thinking in times of uncertainty. The project began with Belgian filmmaker Johan (founder of HOU(T) ME VAST), who, while grappling with his son’s cancer diagnosis, undertook a deeply personal journey running along the European coast. Along the way, he carried a hand-painted kite, adorned with ribbons representing others walking the cancer path themselves or alongside loved ones. The journey became both a physical and symbolic act of endurance, remembrance, and hope.
This journey inspired the award-winning film The Wind Once Whispered, which has been screened internationally and is accompanied by poetry reflecting the emotional terrain of illness, caregiving, grief, and healing. Why This Matters Now: Across the world, people are navigating: mental health stress, grief and loss, environmental anxiety and social and political uncertainty. Throughout history, the arts have helped societies process moments of change, and this project aims to continue the impact the arts can have: creating space for reflection, reconnection, and renewed resilience through creative expression. The Wind Once Whispered is invitation to participate with an international collaborative art and storytelling initiative exploring grief, resilience, and hope through: Film, Poetry, Painting, inspiring Journaling and Community participation.
The Film
Inspired by the cancer experience of his young son Pieter, Belgian cancer researcher Johan Swinnen undertakes an epic run of 1,494 km along the French coast. Drawing from his childhood memories of running with a kite through the fields, Johan attaches bows to the tail of a colorful kite he carries with him on his journey. The first bow is for his son Pieter, and hundreds more follow for people experiencing difficult times in their lives. Johan also sends messages to the kite on small pieces of paper, believing that paper is patient, even when words become too heavy to pronounce. Johan’s journey takes him on an emotional rollercoaster that reflects the ups and downs of life. Accompanied by poetic reflections that perfectly match the imagery, the film provides hope and confidence to those seeking support during challenging periods in their lives.
BELGIAN FILMMAKER MEETS AMERICAN PAINTER & DESIGNER
The American Edition
SHARING THE INSPIRED HEALING
At the 2025 Friday Harbor Film Festival, Johan met Pamela Hoke, a fine art painter, brand strategist, designer and cancer survivor based in Washington State. Deeply moved by the film, and recognizing its resonance beyond cancer alone. Pam saw The Wind Once Whispered as a universal story that speaks to any journey of loss, trauma, transformation, or healing.
Pam proposed the creation of an American Edition of the book with accompanying journal, expanding the reach of the original Dutch publication. The idea is offer some hope, comfort and inspiration during in a time of great uncertainty, grief and transition in the U.S. through visual art, reflection, and community engagement.
We are proud to have the Friday Harbor Film Festival as our partner to bring this unique and inspirational endeavor to our community!
What We Are Creating
The Wind Once Whispered | American Edition will include:
- A published book summarizing the film’s journey and poetry of healing
- An accompanying guided journal for reflection, grief processing, and resilience
- Eight original fine art paintings by Pamela Hoke, created specifically for this project
- A traveling exhibition of the original artworks and signed limited-edition prints, with special Kite flying, journaling and painting events
- Screenings, exhibits, and community conversations throughout 2026. Screening Events coming to Friday Harbor, August 15th and 16th
The book, journal, and artwork will be completed by June 2026, with exhibition and screening opportunities continuing throughout the year.
Impact & Purpose
Proceeds from the project will support:
- Hou (t) me vast | De Lange Tocht (Johan’s nonprofit organization)
- Pamela Hoke’s Social Purpose Organization, and her endeavors as a career painter , supporting creative healing, community dialogue, and nature-based resilience practices
This project is covers a broad spectrum of human encouragement and healing
- Holding space for grief
- Honoring resilience, overcoming challenges
- Creating language and imagery for healing
- Reminding people they are not alone
The Deeper Invitation
This project is rooted in a broader belief:
Creativity is essential in times of change, not optional.
As systems shift and uncertainty grows, artists and creatives play a vital role in helping individuals and communities process, adapt, and reimagine what comes next.
TWOW is both:
A personal experience of reflection and reconnection
A prototype for creative collaboration as a response to global change
It is an invitation to:
reconnect with your own creative intelligence
engage with others through shared experience
explore new ways of navigating disruption with meaning. A Call to Creative Partnership | We welcome ALL creative ideas and ways to connect with shared purpose, please contact us!
This work was shaped through real life, and transformed into something that can serve others. Now, it is ready to expand. TWOW (The Wind Once Whispered) invites artists, writers, creatives, organizations, and communities to collaborate, participate, support, and help us bring this experience to a wider audience. When creatives work together, we reflect change, we guide it, and ultimately inspire it to happen.