Film: A heartbreaking love affair between a 97-year-old and MS Paint

All us young, hip twenty-somethings who predominantly “work” on the internet are well-versed in the confused questions our grandparents like to fire at us whenever we meet. “Explain to me again what it is that you do?” they’ll ask. “And that makes money how?” “But what happens if the internet stops working? And this is all done on computers is it?” Pipe down grandma and take a lesson from Hal Lasko, a 97-year-old grandfather who’s been creating pixellated masterworks on MS Paint for going on 15 years now.

Hal was once a graphic artist in the days before digital; a creator of fine hand-rendered typography and ornate script. Later in life his eyesight faltered and the computer is now the only way he’s able to create work – the magnification allows him to paint unhindered. This beautiful short from Josh Bogdan explores Hal’s relationship with his computer and the way’s it’s changed his life. Careful though, it’s a pretty moving 10 minutes of film.