Gil Clemens

Gil Clemens is a character who sees UFOs regularly. He sees them on his commute. He sees them while running errands. He sees them so often that it has become almost routine. But Gil knows this is far from normal. So he writes down each and every sighting.

My friend Ian Kennedy and I came up with the character Gil Clemens almost ten years ago. We decided to make a series of short films. The filmmaker follows Gil around town while Gil recounts some of the many, many UFOs he’s seen in his life.

My favorite thing about Ian’s depiction of Gil was his unassuming nature. Gil was not out for fame. He also did not need to know why he kept seeing these unidentified craft. He was merely a witness. And he kept good notes.

Ian is no longer with us. I feel confident that the two of us would have made more Gil Clemens videos had he lived. After Ian died I decided to make a third Gil video to try to explain Gil’s absence. Gil sent the filmmaker a cryptic text, a possible explanation being Gil was finally able to catch a ride on one of the UFOs he saw so often. That is how I like to imagine Gil: an interplanetary explorer, not in it for fame or glory but simply the joy of discovery.