#6 - EXPERIMENTAL SCREENS: AVANT GARDE FILM, VIDEO ART, AND NEW MEDIA

"For what its worth: it's never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be.  There's no time limit, stop whenever you want.  You can change or stay the same; there are no rules to this thing.  We can make the best or the worst of it.  I hope you make the best of it.  And I hope you see things that startle you.  I hope you feel things you never felt before.  I hope you meet people with a different point of view.  I hope you live a life you're proud of.  If you find that you're not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again."

                         __ The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0421715/

THE FILE EXPERIENCE:  AN INTRODUCTION (SECOND EDITION)

Experimental Screens: Avant Garde Film, Video Art, and New Media

Chapter 9:  (pgs. 300-329)

"Over the past century, many adventurous filmmakers have used film to go outside the bounds of traditional narrative and documentary forms, combining images of the seemingly mundane, the usual, and even the bizarre in order to address and challenge their audiences in fascinating ways (pg. 302)."

          In Maya Deren's Mishes In The Afternoon (1943), she uses everyday utilitarian objects in a constant repetitive manner throughout the film.  This technique serves to give these objects greater significance.  Some of the objects of significance used in this film are:  a flower, a key, a knife, a mirror, and a telephone.  All of these images when strung together force the audience to look for a deeper meaning.  Also, the use of black and white film gives it an erie almost other-worldly feel.  There is no dialog, but there is a musical soundtrack that was added to set the tone and mood.  This avant garde movie allows the viewer to use their own personal perspective to interpret what is being conveyed.  There a dark sinister underbelly is revealed as the audience turns these images over in their minds. This genre of film making is considered a form of art, therefore, leaving it open to interpretation.         

"Most historians consider Meshes In The Afternoon (1943) by Russian-born Maya Deren and her Czech husband, Alexander Hammid, the beginning of the American avant garde's historical prominence (pg. 307)."

          Widely used during WWII for reporting and documenting events, the 16mm camera, which was light in weight, quickly became the favorite vehicle for artists wanting a more hands-on way to capture images.  Maya Deren adopted this type of film and use of camera in her films.  This type of film gives a more home movie effect to the action.  In Meshes In The Afternoon (1943), Maya Deren uses this form of film making to explores female subjectivity and the trappings of domesticity along with domestic violence being perpetrated against women.

"Outside of North America, experimental film impulses have often been incorporated into narrative film making and theatrical exhibitions rather than confined exclusively to autonomous avant garde circles (pg. 309)."

          Aspects of avant garde and experimental film making has made it into the more traditional main stream narrative films and also into theatrical films as well.  The use of the Internet and YouTube have made it easier for filmmakers to have their work viewed by millions of people.  Work that, in the past, may never have been view at all.  The use of digital editing has also made it easier to incorporate and combined many different types of media and speeds of film along with still  and digital photography as well.  With all of the new types of media technology, including special effects, that are available today, filmmakers have few limitations.  If you can think of a concept, you can create it on film. 

"While filmmakers continue to experiment using Super 8 and 16mm (and Super 16) formats, a radical shift to use and interrogate new technologies was driven by the introduction of consumer video formats (pg. 310)."

          Video technology became available in the 1960's with the introduction of the Sony Portapak.  As the cost of video production came down and this media became widely available, activists, video producers, and home movie buffs took advantage of this new and more affordable media.  Music videos became hugely popular and were used to launch stations on cable networks like MTV and VH1.  As the use of computers and video production merged, the film making industry exploded.  The Internet has taken video viewing to a whole new level with the introduction of YouTube.  As a result, millions of people have instant access to video clips, movie trailers, movies from  film archives, documentaries, still photography and sound bites.  The viewing public can now be active participants in the multi-media revolution.  Also, teachers, who want to make learning a richer and more diverse experience, can introduce multi-media into their classrooms for a more interesting experience for both the teacher and the students. 

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4002812108181388236#

Works Cited

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) - IMDb." The Internet Movie Database (IMDb). Web. 02 Apr. 2011. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0421715/.

"Meshes of the Afternoon." Google Videos. Web. 02 Apr. 2011. <http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4002812108181388236#>.