I neglected to mention yesterday that Mark McElhatten did a great job of hosting the marathon of first day screenings. Today one less screening but 6-7 times more artists/filmmakers for Marc and Gavin Smith to wrangle.
SHU (Blue Hour Lullaby) Philipp Lachenmann, Germany, 2008, 12m.
The most eerie falling of night I have seen since 9/11. SHU’s slow aerial invasion of lights from air traffic made visible by the creeping of darkness. Or maybe an alien encounter? Lachenmann’s near perfect. One of the few pieces that needed no program notes.
Photofinish Figures (Il finish delle figure) Paolo Gioli, Italy, 2009, 9.12m.
Paolo Gioli’s use of photographic stills and overlays in Photofinish Figures is an interesting counter point the the Ken Burns effect or even Chris Marker’s use of stills in La Jette. In this piece I felt some of the impact of the approach wears off after a few minutes or when portraits are not the main subject of the photos. I’d like to see this again again on DVD to break it down a bit more.
A Thousand Julys Lewis Klahr, USA, 2010, 6.30m.
A Thousand Julys is the first of three works to be shown here in 2010 by Lewis Klahr. Klahr is one of the artists I was looking forward to seeing here and I got a chance to talk briefly to him. This work is more poetic, less narrative than the limited number of pieces I have seen before. It works well on the big screen.
Destination Finale Philip Widmann, Germany, 2008, 9m.
Thrift shop movie is clever in an Antiques Roadshow kind of way. It may have been more interesting to note France’s colonial influence on Vietnam and Indo-China rather than the when the 1st US Marines were deployed. They were flying Air France !!!!
Valleys of Fear Erin Espelie, USA, 2010, 22m.
Valleys of Fear was too dense for me to follow. Parts of it were beautiful visually. Another piece I’d rather watch more closely on DVD.
The Soul of Things Dominic Angerame, USA, 2010, 15m.
I couldn’t hear well enough from where I was sitting but I thought Dominic Angerame said he didn’t have time to compete the soundtrack for The Soul of Things and therefore it was silent. Would like to revisit this one, maybe even on a smaller more intimate screen.
Marie Karen Yasinsky, USA, 2010, 6m.
Skip to the part where a pack wolves tear another wolf apart.
Dissonant Manon de Boer, Netherlands/Belgium, 2010, 11m.
A film about changing the film cartridge while sound still records.
Ape of Nature Peggy Ahwesh, USA, 2010, 24m
I had seen parts a few of Ms. Ahwesh’s works on the web and was looking forward to this. Perhaps the two channel effect in a gallery setting would enhance this piece. I found it difficult to watch head on. In a gallery you could forgive the performances/acting and look at something else.
The Soul of Things is very intended to have live music played with the film. That is why it was silent. However, logistics at Views and arranging travel accomodations for my harmonica player prevented this from happening.
Otherwise I feel the film can stand alone without music
Thanks