New documentary explores ‘The Balloonist’

THETFORD—Filmmaker Malcolm Quinn Silver-Van Meter grew up a quarter-mile from the Post Mills Airport, where at a young age, he saw hot air balloons rise through the morning mist. “As a kid, I called the sound of the hot air balloons filling up ‘the voice of dragons,’” Silver-Van Meter said in a recent interview. Over time, he grew to know the person behind the noisy aircraft: the late local collector, artist, and balloon maker Brian Boland. Next week, Silver-Van Meter’s short documentary about Boland, “The Balloonist,” will premier.