The PDX Fest, Day 4.4
Posted by: db
The Tailenders, DV, 72'00, Adele Horne
Pvt. Boro, DV, 8'50, Alma Boro
Unfortunately, I had to skip this screening. I was in need of serious caffiene-ation and the feel of chill air across my face. Without it, I was doomed to a rapid descent into slumberland. Hopefully someone else will chime in about these films. The Tailenders sounded particularly intriguing.
You will find the program description for these films here
The PDX Fest, Day 3.3
Posted by: db
Brother Boy, DV, 16'00, Jalal Jemison (pre-feature short)
This wonderfully strange, carefully constructed effort completely entranced me. A brief glimpse into the life of two brothers and their father. Characterizations are left ambivalent enough that it is difficult to pigeon-hole them or form definitive attachments to any particular character. The acting is consistently good throughout, but each of the principal actors also stand out at different moments of the film. Part of that feeling might come from the story line structure which gives each character a key moment to become the key focus in the story. Very nice work with outstanding production values and lush and exceedingly careful cinematographic constructions.
Wild Tigers I Have Known, HD, 98'00, Cam Archer (feature)
This is a pretty amazing work. Complicated characters (aren't we all? Hello Hollywood, are you listening?), extremely subtle conflict development, be-a-u-ti-ful cinematography that flows and connects with the narrative structure in wonderfully surprising ways, outstanding use of color to influence mood in a rather surreal fashion, fascinating depictions of desire and the confusion that such intense desires can generate, excellent mood shifts that take the narrative in unexpected directions, fever dreams that blur the real and the imagined, and an acting style which always kept things slightly askew. I really liked this film, though a minor complaint is that it did drag in a few places because of certain structural repetitions. It is a film full of heart and very fresh narrative development. While the characters are active in their existence, they also exhibit a strong sense of entrapment within the world that surrounds them. For this reason the film reminds me of numerous issues that Fassbinder dealt with in several films, some of my favorites being "Berlin Alexanderplatz," "Why has Herr R Run Amok," "Bolwieser," and "The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant." Fassbinder is also appropriate to bring up in the context of his unwavering tenacity for dealing with complicated and controversial sexual issues. The big difference between his work and this film is that Cam, while he doesn't shy from such issues, is far less brutal with his characters, nor does he fall into the almost debilitating fatalism that pervades Fassbinder's work. This makes Cam's work much more hopeful and progressive than the works by Fassbinder I've managed to see.
The PDX Fest, Day 3.2
Posted by: db
Arachnogasmic! Short films by Martha Colburn
The first thing I must say about Martha is that she has the kind of acerbic and challenging wit that I truly enjoy. Never sour or bitter, but most certainly sharp and biting, she is hilarious in her observations and summations of the observed. This wit definitely infuses her films, though I can imagine many audiences being so shocked by her materials that they would miss this wit entirely. Fortunately, that wasn't the case with this PDX Fest audience, at least after a few of her films had shown. There seemed to be a collective discovery that emerged over time, an understanding that, while dark, her work is also very very funny.
I'm not going to comment on specific films, though I will list my favorites. Instead, I want to talk about an overall impression of her work.
Martha's films are raw and rough, with an intense DIY aesthetic. Her past work has strong and direct connections with a strain of punk/skronk/noise music that I've always sought out because I find it to be both hilarious and liberating. Her films have music in them from the group Red Balune, for instance, and people like Mick Hobbs and Jad Fair (to name a couple), and I would say her work would also have strong affinities with other groups like Ron Pate and His Debonairs, Shockabilly, KrackHouse, or any number of Shimmy Disc artists. A lot of those people have an extraordinary ability to create distorted and disturbed narratives that revel in their crudity. Her DIY aesthetic runs at the same pace so a collection of her work this large verges on the edge of onslaught. But, having seen this program, I wouldn't have missed it for any reason but an accident that left me unconscious or a death in the family.
I will make a brief comment on one of the films shown, however, because it demonstrated a very nice shift from the one-stop intensity of her older work which is more akin to pop songs than extended compositions. "Spiders in Love: An Arachnogasmic Musical," while containing stylistic affinities with older work, also presented more extended and inter-relational riffs, as well as a more nuanced pacing. For me, this helped her work become much deeper and more multi-layerd. I have no idea if this is an avenue she will continue to explore and develop but, if she does, I can see that evolving into much longer works with extended structures and more deeply developed themes. That kind of change might blow my mind right out of my brain pan though, so I guess I better be careful what I wish for!
My favorites from the program:
Skelehellavision
Groscher Lansangriff: Big Bug Attack
Cats Amore
Spiders In Love: An Arachnogasmic Musical
There's A Pervert In Our Pool!
I Can’t Keep Up
Evil Of Dracula
The PDX Fest, Day 5.1
Posted by: db
1pm Screening: David Gatten
"Secret History of the Diving Line, A True Account in Nine Parts (Parts 1-IV)"
Included: "Secret History of the Diving Line," 16mm, 20'00; "The Great Art of Knowing," 16mm, 37'00; "MOXON'S MECHANIK EXERCISES, OR, THE DOCTRINE OF HANDY-WORKS APPLIED TO THE ART OF PRINTING," 16mm, 26'00; "THE ENJOYMENT OF READING (LOST & FOUND)" 16mm, 16'00;
I'm going to skip this show to catch up with this all-consuming week of film viewing. Anyone wish to comment on these films? I know I'd like to see them, based on last years work screened by David but, alas, the need to make choices intervenes.
The film I am most disappointed about missing is "Moxon's Mechanik." Sounds quite amazing.
For PDX Fest program info on the films go here: David Gatten.
The PDX Fest, Day 3.1
Posted by: db
1pm Screening: "Shorts Program #1"
underground + experimental
Here Take these Drugs, DV, 1'00, Andy Spore
Marv Newland like line animations. Crude, jiggly, and constantly morphing, this is wonderful animation wrapped around a quick, short premise.
Inhale Exhale, DV, 7'00, David Borengasser
Nice, initially meditative visualization/motion study of falling samaras. A strange thing started happening while I was watching it, however. It started getting quite creepy for me as the buildup of individual samras spining toward the camera suddenly strarted to remind me of a moth infestation that took place it Portland in the mid-70s. It was beautiful at night watching those moths swirl under streetlights, but as you approached the lights you quickly discovered you were walking on and crushing thousands of dying moths. If you stood directly under the light they immediately surrounded and crawled all over you, like in a movie about insect plagues. Visually this piece also reminded me of a quite stunning section of Canadian filmmaker Chris Gallagher's "Undivided Attention," though without Gallagher's interest in humor.
28 Years In the Implicate Order, DV, 1'00, Pascual Sisto
Sorry, I don't remember this piece
Five County Fair, DV, 8'05, David Ellsworth
Very nice exploration of a county fair that uses extensive shutter experimentation. Strong visual composition and excellent juxtaposition of sound. Quite a tactile experience.
This Video Edited By Computer, video(?), 1'30 min, Jesse England
Fun, surprisingly sweet and sentimental piece; quite amazing when you consider it was edited by the computer, not just on it. Liked this piece a lot.
Bobby XP1, DV, 3'45, Tommy Becker
Quite funny and bizarre sense of humor in this piece. For me it harkens back to some of the crazy stuff by groups like ant farm (http://arts.ucsc.edu/faculty/Lord/AntFarm.html) or individuals like Portland underground video artist Michael Lastra, which is stuff I like a lot.
The White Bunny, DV, 7'00, Katja Straub
Highly stylized (1930s?) with beautiful production values. The video comes across like a real fairy tale with undertones of darkness and visceral dream qualities. Katja does a great job of balancing--actually, hovering might be a more appropriate description--between what is apparently real and what is not. Beautifully shot and acted with not a single word spoken. Very strong work.
Square Millimeter: Cars, DV, 2'00, Luke Lamborn
First of two films by Luke; very simple and surreally funny; appears like a loop at first, but you realize it is an entire auto line passing around a curve, one color following another. Will it ever end? I liked this piece.
Tops, DV, 5'30, Brian Nelson
An OK, Eames-like film focusing on wooden tops. Quite nice exploration of the material qualities, and beautiful tops they are. But, ultimately, I got a bit bored.
Drew Getting Hit by a Car on Belmont While Eric Watches, DV, 1'00, Andrew Francisco
First of two pieces by Andrew. This is a completely bizarre and seemingly random impact video; I don't know if this guy is an impact addict like David Leslie (implist and impact) or just completely unlucky, but this is absolutely hilarious even if it looks like it involves serious pain.
not listed in the program:
Drew in India On the Banks of the Ganges During Monsoon Season Getting Bitten by a Monkey, or something like that. Just as funny as the first installment. Also, like the first installment, the end result seems to come out of nowhere, or at least innocence. I think that is one of the things that makes these two pieces so funny.
Shoot, DV, 2'30, Joe Nanashe
A funny concept at first: let's shoot the camera with a gun! Increasingly creepy if you imagine yourself in the cameras' position. Certainly disrupts any sort of voyeuristic pleasure principle!
For Laika, DV, 1'00, Bryan Boyce
More great humor from Bryan. Laika, the first animal in space, dreams of her future adventures (most of the time). This is The Right Stuff for the REAL first astronaut!
Animal Animal, DV, 1'50, Tommy Becker
Aggressive and charged tone poem. Not to everyone's taste, I'm sure, but I liked it.
Jawswipe, DV, 2'30, Jesse McLean
Nice, fun idea for the first 45 seconds; less interesting for the remaining 1&3/4 minutes. Basically just sawtooth wipe patters timed to sync with an amateur interpretation of the "Jaws" musical theme.
Hotel Pinball Venus, DV, 1:00, Anne McGuire, Katya Knyazeva, Stan Yan
No recollection of this piece.
(Dis)Placement, DV, 5'00, Aaron Valdez
Very nice technique but ultimately rather empty feeling. I sensed no connection between the home movie footage and the manipulations going on so the piece quickly began to feel like little more than an exercise.
Square Millimeter: Houses, DV, 2'00, Luke Lamborn
Luke Lamborn's second piece, also very nice. Great compositing. For some reason I kept thinking of Swedenborg during this piece, or at least Peter Blegvad's Kew. Rhone. interpretation of one of the philosopher's ideas: "Angels fucking shed light." Don't ask me why, 'cause I don't know.
I'm in the Mood, DV, 4'30, Bryan Konefsky
This was a fairly simple split-screen piece, but I found the combination of images and sound oddly affecting. On one screen is a street performer named Shakey Jake, on the other a wind-inflated effigy. While visually uncomplicated, the audio created by Shakey Jake turns this piece into something I can't quite pin down.
Five More Minutes, DV, 17'00, Dena Decola + Karin Wandner
A searing gestalt film concerned with a loss which can never be regained, the trauma that loss can generate, and the struggles and wrenching emotions one goes through when trying to confront all these issues at once. This piece was rippingly honest and raw--at one point the actress can't go on with the scene and, rather than leaving this on the cutting room floor, the disruption to the narrative flow is left in for all to see. Quite impressive and brave work. I was reminded of three equally raw works during this film: Moe Ginsberg's "Coming Apart" and his equally devastating "The City Below the Line" (both contained on the Kino DVD release) and The Plastic Ono Band, where John Lennon bares his heart and soul. Not easy works, but deeply rewarding.
Lanka, DV, 6'00, Kevin Allen
A quite beautiful road movie of sorts. The sense of traveling through a country was well-captured, and there was also some very nice metaphorical uses of image that helped this piece transcend being a simple travelogue. Very tactile manipulations of imagery contribute to the beauty of this piece. I'd like to see it again.
Diagrams 1-5, DV, 5:00, Colin Polombi
These five pieces were interspersed throughout the evening's program. Two were particularly strong. I believe they were Diagrams 1 and 4. I liked these pieces because they had resonance beyond their components, creating a feeling of connection and empathy in me. They also really seemed truer to the signature which ended each piece: "Made for me." The personal nature of these two pieces I liked held true to the intimacy such a postscript engenders. Unfortunately the remaining three segments were less satisfying as they came across as a bit too reflexive and ironically "witty" rather than genuine. Whether any of the segments are "genuine" at all is anyone's guess, but the two which struck me as strongest seemed so to me.
The PDX Fest, Day 2.2
Posted by: db
7:15pm Screening: "A Quest of Origins - Films by Larry Gottheim"
Included: "Our Television Traveler," 16mm, 17'00, and "Tree of Knowledge (Elective Affinities IV)," 16mm, 58'00
This program got off to a rocky start with projection problems, but Larry handled them with grace and great humor. This proved to be fortuitous as his humor probably helped to defuse potential over-serious analysis as well as open the viewing experience to the amount of play going on in his mind and the films we ended up seeing.
The first piece shown, "Our Television Traveler," appeared to be made up of loops of specific lengths. These loops built on top of themselves with each repeat. For instance, the first loop seemed comprised of footage showing second and third stage rocket separations in outer space. This visual loop was combined with an audio loop of a Spanish conversation. When these two loops repeated for the second time, a third loop was added in, and so on for perhaps five total loops. This is very dense work, so multiple viewings are in order and I can't attest to the accuracy of my breakdown of the film's structure.
The second piece, "Tree of Knowledge (Elective Affinities IV)," also appeared to be structured in a loop pattern, but a much more extended pattern that appeared to also loop back on itself, repeating the opening scene as the ending scene. As to whether there was an actual fulcrum point in the film, I am uncertain. This piece was far more complex than the first and, based upon its construction I would guess that repeat viewings would reveal new subtleties each time. Part of that comes from our brain's struggle to make connections between what is being seen, what is being heard, what is remembered from earlier moments, and what is anticipated from upcoming moments. I feel Larry affirmed this experience when he spoke about returning to these works himself as a result of the restoration they recently underwent. Having not watched his older work for some time, he implied that he was discovering (rediscovering?) connections and layers he had not seen before or forgotten about.
It was quite interesting to hear direct responses from other people after viewing another of Larry's films ("Harmonica") in the workshop sponsored by the Cinema Project which took place at the Northwest Film Center. Consisting of one continuous take of a man improvising on harmonica in the back seat of a moving vehicle, I was very pleased to hear people talking about breaking away from the performance to notice the surrounding events such as loose fabric in the vehicle flapping in the wind, houses or guard rails passing by, hills in the distance prominent at one point but then the harmonica player's hand slapping his knee taking prominence at another. I think one of the great strengths of Larry's work is the space it allows for film audiences to learn to observe on an experiential level rather than pursue or be fed specific objectives. Some people will discover this in his work and others won't. That will probably also determine whether they like his work or not.
The complexity of Larry's work perhaps explains why I find myself being so vague on what was actually going on within his films. They are so open that one finds personal points of relation (personal justification of relations?) that are consistently shifting. At the same time, because of the finite material included, the pieces feel very closed. I found myself shifting between those two states of mind, finding connection and drifting from connection. In his workshop Larry said "I am a mass of contradictions." That was a very revealing comment which helped me better understand how the work was affecting me personally--besides reminding me of my own mass of contradictions. I expect I would react to his work differently with every viewing, not only because of the new connections I make with each viewing but also as a result of whatever emotional condition I happened to be in at the time. Though I've seen hundreds, if not thousands, of films by now, I've not experienced that many films, experimental, avant-garde, narrative or otherwise, about which I would make that claim.
Wearing Shorts on Saturday
Posted by: wise
you expect a shorts compilation with the title "friends and neighbors," featuring local filmmakers to be a distilled microcosm of the personalities and styles found in our fair city, and unsurprisingly, that's exactly what you got on saturday afternoon. I've long believed that the best part of the ethos, zeitgeist, je ne sais qois, ya ne znayu, or whatever bullshit tag you want to put on what's going on artistically in portland is the sense of electicism and daring, with a fair amount of humor and/or Lefty Outrage thrown into the mix.
while i only have two friends on the program (for one film, The Great Crane-Off), i feel like the variety and unpretentiousness of all of these filmmakers make them seem quite the neighbors, emblematic of the prototypical Portland, the city that's just so Gosh Darn Friendly.
we started with (i believe) Representing Abstraction, a beautiful, silent parade of film effects, water stains, burn marks, and more flickering past you in the form of animated stills, with a slowly changing color palette that finds warm browns and yellows to dark blues and reds. I found it both eerie and fascinating.
After the 16mm nostalgia-inducing "Happy Times", we were treated to a brilliant one-two punch to the gut in the form of "3 Out Of 4" and "Staring Newscasters". The former, a 1 minute ode to rotating advertisements and proper nutrition, paired nicely with latter's re-tooled footage of local news anchors, resulting in a subversive hilarity out of seemingly nothing.
But as far as subversive laughs go, there was no denying the standouts of the program, a set of unsettling and darkly humorous films by the Olsen Brothers, "Acmos L'equilibre Enegetique" and "Sacrificio Del Uno Mismo." the first, acting as a stage-setter, poses as found footage of an early 20th-century medical education film, with french narration. Our patient, though, happens to have a bulbous, maniacally smiling clown head, and his innards seem stomach-churningly soft and goopy. "Sacrificio," on the other hand, starts slowly and builds to a surreally visceral climax. A "normal" subject's metamorphosis is documented as a violent, disturbing transition between mankind and clownkind that has the viewer simultaneously laughing and cringing. "Unsettling" hardly does it justice, and the end, with its super-saturated colors and Central and South American religious homage, is downright brilliant.
Continuing the eclecticism, no Portland artistic event is complete without a nod to our liberal underpinnings, and this came in the form of "Air", a too-short look at racism and the Asian experience in America, centering around a specific incident of on-air racism from a New Jersey station. I wished that there was more time and resources available for this subject, because it has a long and untold history in this country (and especially in Portland's history), but the format here only allowed the film to be a short primer and came across more as an advertisement for KBOO than anything else. "Brave New Girl," set to a song by le tigre, said more with less. Rife with suggestive symbolism as a woman chows into a tableful of Betty Crocker dessert classics, pain, sublimation, violation, and exploitation are all brought to the fore without a word other than the samples in the musical track. I found it moving and raw.
"Self Portrait With Johnny," while not explicitly political, touched on the immigrant's life in America, and was also quite moving in its understatement, tracing the thoughts of one half of a post-war era couple as they move between central California and Portland. The simple outlines and warm colors were very evocative and helped universalize the narrative theme.
Of course, there was so much more to talk about, so much more than i have the words for. The surreal gay porn mashup of "Anatomy of a Line," the dark tone return to abstractionism of "Suture," the beautiful electro-color palette of "Best Not Sleep Through It All," the earnest hilarity of "The Great Crane-Off." I wish i had the words and the energy to talk about them all; each so different, and each so very, very, Portland.
Post-Invitational
Posted by: josh
Wow. There is good reason that this is such a popular event. Those films were entertaining, exciting, experimental, engaging... I could go on. My absolute favorite was "You Come Home to This, Portland, Oregon" by Orland Nutt. He animated hundreds (thousands?) of still pictures of Portland homes, emphasizing certain design elements that the homes have in common. That sounds simple, doesn't it? It was simple, I suppose. But it was poetic and beautiful.
There were a bunch of other films worth commenting on, but I'm no completist. I will leave the detailed reviewing to DB, who will do an admirable job with that, I'm sure.
The night ended on a very strange note, as Ted Passon went up front and gave an extended introduction to his film. He described the intense affinity he discovered he had with fellow filmmaker Vladimir. He had seen her work the previous year, and claimed to discover that he was actually Vladimir, trapped in the body of Ted. His film consisted of a clip from The Little Mermaid, with Passon's head pasted over the Mermaid's. And we all sang "Part of Your World." Experimental, baby! And also fun.
But then I went home, not to the victory party at Rake Gallery, where the winner of the audience vote was to be announced. So, this is the reader participation part of our program. Please tell us who won, and anything else interesting from the party at Rake, in the comments. Goodnight!
Invitational time!
Posted by: josh
Despite several of the UrbanHonking crew being in attendance at the "Friends and Family" shorts presentation earlier today, we have been unable to blog the shit out of it, due to an experiment we participated in prior to the event, the details of which I will not go into at this time.
I am now sitting in the theater, eagerly anticipating the start of the Invitiational. I'm quite sure every seat will be filled by the time we get rolling. We were given viewmasters and bingo cards as we entered. All sorts of equipment is laying about, including various guitar amps, and a slide projector. What is in store for us at the PDXFF Invitational?
DAY 3--Shorts Program #1 Notes
Posted by: j_john
My first day of the fest. I don't usually get the opportunity to attend these kind of events so I wasn't sure what to expect. Since it was a shorts progam, I'll keep this brief.
I walked in on a trippy, repeating image of what appeared to be flower petals falling down. Next up was "Five County Fair", which contained some great sound editing at a rural county fair. A few shorts in a row then featured computerized voices, which seemed a bit excessive, but they were funny and a reminder of the need for human/computer cooperation.
Other shorts of note for me:
"The White Bunny" was a fresh, foreign perspective on things, with some great dream sequence cinematography on a train.
Luke Lamborn's two segments, "Square Millimeter: Cars" & "Square Millimeter: Houses" were highlights for me--the combination of the wonderfully conveyed simple uniformity of life, and the strikingly abstract chaos stayed with me throughout the night. Check out lucidstraw.com to see these and other videos.
"Jawswipe" (it's exactly what it says it is) was cute but ultimately too trivial for me.
"Hotel Pinball Venus" deserves mention as probably the only short where I couldn't figure out what it was, or when it was actually starting (and for that matter, ending).
"Five More Minutes" seemed to require some prerequisite film to explain the dynamic of its two characters. I felt left on the outside of this one.
"Drew Getting Hit By A Car On Belmont" & its companion piece (not sure of the actual title, but it was something like "Drew Getting Bit By A Monkey While Trying To Take A Photo") were great, brief moments captured in apparent, non-scripted video documentation.
Well, that's all from me for now--excited to see the local shorts tomorrow!
The PDX Fest, Day 2.4
Posted by: db
9:30pm Screening: five films/videos
Films and videos screened: "Twenty Minutes," 35mm, 3'00, Kevin Jerome Everson; "Branson: Musicland USA," 35mm, 10'00, Peter Sillen; "Grand Luncheonette," 16mm, 5'00, Peter Sillen; "High Plains Winter," video, 10'00, Cindy Stillwell; "Who Is Bozo Texino?," 16mm, S8, video, 55'00, Bill Daniel.
"Twenty Minutes"
Afraid I have no recollection of this film. It is described in the program as follows: "Twenty Minutes" is about understanding materials and Leonardo Da Vinci."
"Branson: Musicland USA" and "Grand Luncheonette"
Since both of these are by the same filmmaker, I'll combine them into one review. Personally I enjoyed "Grand Luncheonette" more than "Branson: Musicland USA." But both are pretty nice films. I think the specificity of the former helps as it is about a hot dog storefront in Times Square on the edge of extinction, whereas the latter is about the vibe of an entire city. Also, I found the MTV stylings of "Branson" (blurred shutter speeds, editing based primarily on motion and composition) a bit distancing, though I was pleased that the film chose to go "off the tour bus" to at least approach some of the downsides of this kind of "designed entertainment." "Grand Luncheonette" was also more successful for me because the film seemed focused on capturing a moment in time, and the loss--historical and neighborly--that the closing of the Luncheonette would engender, and which has been almost completely devastated in the "mallification" of Manhattan. I'd like to see "Grand Luncheonette" again. I'd be less inclined to revisit "Branson".
"High Plains Winter"
This video had several surprises in store for the audience. What starts as a landscape study turns into coverage of skiers pulled by horses in a contest to grab hoops and negotiate jumps and obstacles, which then morphs back into an experimental landscape study. This is kind of a strange film, but I liked it. I call it strange in regard to the unexpected turns it takes and how it depicts the landscape wherein it takes place. But the film is quite accessible and experimental at the same time. I particularly liked how, during the races, the filmmaker returns to moments just witnessed, but not quite fully experienced because of their startling brevity, and during that revisit, breaks the action down into its dramatic components. One example would be when a horse slips and falls on ice, dumping and injuring its rider. I also liked the initial poetic depictions of the truly harsh winter landscape that can be quite life threatening if one doesn't take care to respect it. Lastly, I also liked the revisiting of that landscape, during less harsh times, and the more formal method of framing and analyzing that landscape.
"Who Is Bozo Texino?"
There is a lot of energy in this piece, and most of it is upbeat. When questioned by an audience member about how the piece didn't deal with any of the darker issues of being a hobo, Bill readily admitted that it was kind of a puff piece in that respect. I'm glad he said that because if he hadn't so readily admitted it I think I would have had trouble just accepting the film as is, even though I was grooving on the experience. But with Bill's caveat in mind, this really is a film full of joy and respect for personal choice, as well as recognition for personal achievement regardless of what society thinks of "the hobo life." The film hops around quite a bit, suggesting a quest to find out who is Bozo Texino. It is almost as if one day Bill said "let's hop on a train and try to find out who this train tagger is." While that is the form the film takes, this is a film that Bill has spent years building. The film is rough and bumpy--appropriate for a film shot on box cars and flatbeds, and built on moments captured over years of travel--and that helps to charge the film with a pretty raw energy. At times, though, there was also a kind of ghostly feeling to the film, as if I were witnessing people I'd never see again, or wonder if I ever really met them. Shadows from figures in open boxcar doors, the sun shining and casting their shadows on the passing and variegated surfaces, feet extending out from under the camera and bouncing precariously on a speeding boxcar, people on blankets at the opposite end of the boxcar from the camera, all contributed to this feeling of temporary and fleeting meetings. On the other end of the spectrum, conversations with taggers and the elusive character of Bozo were quite intimate and collegial. People, like in all true "communities," seemed to be aware of the goings on of other members of the community, if even only tangentially or through hearsay. This is not a "direct message" film, but there is much to be gleaned from it about personal pride, hubris, shared life choices, and nomadic existence. Also distinctions. There is a great section of the film where people talk about the differences between hobos, tramps and bums. This is a very important section in my opinion as, being a film about outsiders, the personal distinctions help to confront societal homogenizations that reduce people to things, wiping out their perceived humanity in a flash. This film does a lot to confront such superficial readings, even if it is a puff piece as Bill said.
I don't want this review to get too long, but I'd also like give mention to the visual and editorial qualities of this film. As I mentioned, there is great energy in this film, but there is also a sharp sense of progression and focus that is not easy to cull from such diverse, random, and long term collections of material. It must have taken a lot of dedication to bring this film to completion.
The PDX Fest, Day 2.3
Posted by: db
"Out of Sync" performance and installation at the Rake Gallery
I stuck around at the Guild to see the films so this did not allow me enough time to attend the installation/performance. Please visit the PDX Fest site to read about "Out of Sync."
Hopefully someone who attended will chime in about this event.
(Josh and Mike stopped in briefly and took some pictures)
The PDX Fest, Day 2.1
Posted by: db
5pm Screening: 'Lay Down Tracks' + shorts about labor
I was quite excited to see a program of films dealing with issues of labor. Considering how much time labor consumes from most of our lives it has always been surprising to me how uncommon discussions or depictions of labor are in this country. But I am being naive, I suppose. This is America, birthplace of "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" and crap like 'Nicole and Paris on the Road.' Anyway, I digress.
This program proved to be a very mixed bag and, even though the program contains my favorite film so far from the festival (including the two programs that followed this one), I was pretty disappointed with the selections overall. But on to specifics.
Meeting with a Mortician, DV, 3'05, Tom Hanson
The description for this video is "a brief glimpse at a very mysterious profession." This thin description is appropriate as this is a very thin video. Technically it is pretty unsophisticated and, to be blunt, I don't think it is really ready for festival inclusion.
Getting Up: American Street Art Culture, DV, 15'00, Colin Brown
A surprisingly dull video on a very interesting and socially challenging topic is how I would sum this piece up in one sentence. But that wouldn't be completely accurate and I would hope someone would challenge me if I limited my review to such brevity. Perhaps I just have a good hangover from last year's doc on Ron English, which was both hilarious and charged. This video does start picking up when it interviews a professor, from SFSU if I remember correctly, who has great wit and offers socially trenchant commentary on the forms, implementations, and what the work means for both sides: artists for freedom, and "arbiters" of taste and social control. The graffiti artists themselves come across pretty poorly, however. For creators of "vibrant" art, they aren't very vibrant, and seem more fed up than excited about much of anything. The first interviewee does get animated toward the end of the video when talking about "the only thing that will kill graffiti is legalizing it," and it would be nice to see more of this and the professor's kind of content. The best part of the video is the art itself and, once the video gets into stride, it actually starts working quite well.
Tales From the Vertical City, DV, 13'00, Morgan Currie
I absolutely, unequivocally, loved this video. This is the closest thing to a perfect film I have seen since I don't know when. And, since I can't actually think of anything I'd want to see changed, or that stuck out as askew from the rest of the film, perhaps I should call it a perfect film. I'm just speaking for myself, of course, but let me count the ways:
- brilliant cinematography, composition, and sensitivity to color and architectural space--while watching this video I kept thinking of Robbie Mueller's work in Wender's "The American Friend" and how he dealt with the colors of Berlin (btw, Wender's talks about this a bit on the recent dvd release of "TAF"). The visualization in this video feels very grounded and connected with the content. This works very explicitly, but connected on a very subconscious level for me. By that I mean I wasn't sitting in my seat going, "ooh, how beautiful" or, "look at that shot!" Rather, I was connecting with the spaces and places being filmed in a very visceral and direct way.
- no narrator or voice over--this video is beautifully pure; no omniscient narrator telling me what to think or feel; no overbearing voice-over from the people depicted; just direct captures of real exchanges between the people depicted. This was absolute bliss for me. I am so fucking tired of technique taking precedence over content--that's just so TV (or Michael Bay). This video exhibits a wonderfully refreshing and respectful balance between form and content. An aside here: years ago I programmed a film series at the bar Tin Pan Alley in NYC. One of the evenings was dedicated to the work of Hermann Schlenker. I didn't expect his films to wow the audience, but as I admired the directness and purity of the films (people working at daily tasks overlaid with locally, or at least appropriately local music), I thought it might make for a unique night of viewing. Not only was that latter assumption correct, but each of the films screened received extended and robust applause that exceeded any of the other films screened during that series, and most other film screenings I've seen for that matter. That kind of reaction would be entirely appropriate to this video that Morgan has created.
- respect for the characters lived lives--this video just feels extremely honest to me, and completely gutted of filmmaker ego. Again, I think of that night at Tin Pan Alley because content in this video takes precedence over any "stylings," and this is an all-too-rare quality in contemporary filmmaking in my opinion. Not to say I don't like stylized work, or to suggest that this film doesn't submit to certain stylistic choices or depictions but, in this case, all work in service of the experience of the video in a marvelously nuanced way. This film breathes, slowly and steadily, like a living thing.
Lay Down Tracks, 16mm, 60'00, Brigid McCaffery and Danielle Lombardi
This is the film which, so far, has caused me the most consternation. The cinematography is great. Sensual, lyrical, intimate, almost ambient and dreamlike at times. The content and choice of people investigated is challenging and thorough. But editorially, this film is a mess, and I became increasingly frustrated as I sat through it. I can appreciate the "experimental" nature of the film's construction, and sometimes it works very well (particularly with the Chimney Sweep and Carney stories), but I was simply too confused too often by vague imagery that bridges stories being told by different people; who's world is this? who am I hearing? why did they put images from that person's life over that other person's voice? And the brevity of certain quotes was even more irksome. A little bit about the construction of this film for clarity. There are several characters who operate as the focus of this film: a semi-disabled male Carney, a young female Truck Driver, a young male Chimney Sweep, a (possibly) near retirement male Railroad Executive, and a female Riverboat Pilot. Each is covered for their discrete stories, and then each of their stories is broken up and intermingled. So far, so good. The problems occur, however, in how these stories are broken up and intermingled. Most of the time it seems completely arbitrary and, even more frustrating for me, a piece of extreme brevity (a one sentence quote from the Riverboat Pilot, for instance) is dropped between more extended pieces (say from the Railroad Executive and the Truck Driver). There is no connection between the content of the three pieces, so why are they even next to each other? I don't even know if the example provided is accurate because the same thing happened so many times I lost track. A very frustrating experience because, as I said at the beginning, all the pieces are there (visual/content) but they are assembled so chaotically that they undermine any inherent qualities of the source material.
Bumper
Posted by: kmikeym
Last night I filmed the bumper:
But this morning, totally unrelated, Ian Lynam sent me a link to the .mov file (he is the guy who made it): PDXFF3_web.mov
Thoughts on Shorts
Posted by: josh
What makes a good short film?
Not that I think there's a formula. But there must be some basic criteria. What gets a short accepted into a film festival? What is considered "success" for a short? When do you know your short has hit the big time?
Don't misunderstand -- I like shorts! I've enjoyed about half of the shorts I've seen so far in the PDX Film Fest. But I think I lack the critical faculties to appreciate them fully.
Thoughts? What is the soul of a short? What makes or breaks a short? How is watching shorts different from watching longer films, and how is it different from evaluating and enjoying a drawing or an installation or a tapestry?
White Rainbow's PRISM at the PDXFF opening party.
Posted by: steve
Crystal Visions filled the room.
End.
Opening Night Review
Posted by: db
The PDX Fest got off to a fine start tonight. The evening was made up of the first screening, a short titled 'Two Week Vacation' and a feature titled 'Old Joy,' followed by the Opening Party and an installation titled 'PRISM.'
Short: 'Two-Week Vacation'
Feature: 'Old Joy'
The short by Jerome Everson which opened the evening was only 1'15 in duration, and really only consisted of two ideas--collisions, so to speak--but it played out with such a gentle spirit that it was quite seductive. Unfortunately, I found the overall theme of the piece to be not all that different from a lot of commercials I've seen: two dollops of beauty wrapped up with an somewhat trite and ironic bow. So, I'm kind of torn on this one. Loved the imagery. Found the taglines (titles) simplistic and coy. But it was only one minute and fifteen seconds long--not much time to provide deep ideas (this one being, basically, that we fantasize of vacations in the Brazil but end up painting the house instead).
The feature by Kelly Reichardt is a film I also feel somewhat torn about. There are some wonderful, wonderful moments in the film which not only transcend traditional narrative, they reverberate and add a quite subtle depth that I really admire. Yet there were also several points in the film where the cinematography seemed to disconnect from the tone of the moment, kind of like an actor shooting scenes out of order and offering up divergent emotional tones which just don't gel when the scene is pieced together.
Nathaniel Dorsky does a wonderful job of describing such moments in his book 'Devotional Cinema.' I am thinking particularly of his discussions of Ozu and Antonioni--for instance the scene in (La Notte?) where the audience sees the mother in the foreground while the three principal characters appear in the background. These are moments where a film can slip its bindings and truly transform into something oblique yet stunningly profound. In 'Old Joy' there are many scenes which move into this area, but the few missteps--a shaky camera in the car, a couple of 'NYPD Blue' type of camera movements at the hot springs--were disappointingly disruptive for me and felt like moments where the film slipped out of the filmmakers hands rather than slipping any bindings. In many ways this is real nitpicking on my part and I am doing a disservice to the majority of the film which excels at escaping these limitations, reaching into deep and subtle places usually too scary for commercially-oriented narrative features and thus usually dealt with in a very heavy-handed way. 'Old Joy' manages to escape that trap and, for that reason alone, I expect this film to grow on me over time.
I'm less forgiving of the ending of the film, however. While one could call the ending a well-executed homage to a film trope of the 70s--the confused lost soul destined to be left wandering alone or chewed up by "the machine"--Dirk Bogarde in 'Death in Venice' or in Fassbinder's 'Despair'; Warren Oates in several films; Jon Voight in 'Midnight Cowboy'; or, as mentioned by the director in the post-film Q&A, the ending of 'Fat City'--I found this part of the film to be more derivative than homage. It answered too many questions for a film that, for the most part, is about questions rather than answers. In doing so, it undermines the all-too-rare experiential challenge of the film. Again, I am being pretty harsh and nitpicking in this particular critique. Few filmmakers ever come close to reaching the kind of openness and subtlety this film strives for and often achieves (Dorsky mentions three, maybe four; I'd add maybe five or six other names to that list), but I cannot deny the disappointment I experienced when the few specific missteps jarred me out of the moment. Regardless, 'Old Joy' is a film well worth seeing, not only for the direction and story line but also for the fine and understated acting which truly enhances the intimate spaces of this film.
The Party: free beer
The Installation: 'PRISM,' an "audio/visual live installation/healing experience"
The opening night party was fun. A lot of talkative people with, at least from those I met and chatted with, no interest in schmoozing for gain or influence pedaling. I had numerous inspiring conversations over the course of the evening.
I also really got into the installation at the event. Created by White Rainbow, I can only describe the installation as some kind of cross between the dream space of Marian Zazeela and LaMonte Young, the dream machine of Bryon Gysin, the abstract imagery of Man Ray (those wonderful explorations of grates and the patterns they generate when they cross), and the iconography of Kenneth Anger (specifically some of the Egyptian imagery of 'The Pleasure Dome,' if memory serves me correctly--or was it 'Invocation of My Demon Brother'?--both last seen by me over 20 years ago).
As I said, I really got into this installation. Its visual and sonic content and its architectural construction were quite stimulating. Within the installation space, which lived in a space separate from the bar and DJ areas, there were two "structures." These white structures intellectually evolved/changed from mountain ranges to tents to nomadic yurts with assistance from the soundtrack. Inside the mountains/tents/yurts, colored gels on spinning discs cast flickering and spinning light in repetitive yet, due to the spinning and rotating, random patterns. This was the Gysin dream machine aspect of the installation. I found the hypnotic effect strongest when I turned my gaze to the edges of these structures. At times, the color scheme evoked thoughts of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis).
The soundtrack for the installation didn't repeat while I was in the space, but the video did twice. Because of the random nature of the lighting in the "tents" and the asynchronous relationship between video and audio, there was no true repetition between the three primary elements of structure/audio/video, and the overall effect was quite relaxing, though there were moments where the intensity of the sound created unexpectedly transformative strength. Sonically, I was reminded of work by several different musicians: Jeff Grienke and Daniel Menche to name two. But these traces, occurring during different phases of the installation, helped to create a sense of progression that was, for me, easily converted into an abstract narrative of location (mountains/tents/yurts). One section of the soundtrack quieted to bells (cowbells on the Mongolian Steppes?) and ended with a cymbal that built to a nearly overwhelming swirling crescendo.
The visual elements for the installation were diverse but primarily abstract and pattern oriented, moving from expanding circles to grids passing across themselves and creating new patterns to more iconic imagery such as human shapes filled with contrasting abstractions and a closeup on eyes that evoked thoughts of the eyes on Buddhist temples. All of the more concrete imagery (the eyes, the human outlines filled with abstract imagery) evoked a very meditative central asian religious tonality, but the repetitive abstractions (expanding circles, intersecting grids), while quite beautiful and physically/optically effective, tended to evoke a more western grounding in illusion and trickery (think 'Anemic Cinema'). Colors were quite saturated, often blooming into massive blurs, and the combination with sound and structure resulted in an overall hypnotic and meditative dreamspace that was quite effective in attaining the self-described "healing" qualities of the installation.
In addition to the installation, I enjoyed several wide ranging and surprisingly deep discussions with people I met at the party. Often such party situations reduce to superficial pithiness (less kindly described as shallow uber-hipness) or longing eyes looking for someone to sleep with that night. But the people I met and conversed with were wonderfully genuine and very interested in talking about the evening's fare. These qualities made the party a genuine pleasure to attend. If I am making the party sound like a dry affair, it was anything but, for much humor and animated opinion entered the conversations. If I had wanted to go home with someone last night, however, these are the kind of people I'd want to be going with.
Filmmaker's Pack of Goodies
Posted by: kmikeym
I was surprised when I went to see Old Joy that in addition to a free pass being a filmmaker in the festival means I get a goodie bag! Some one inch buttons and temporary tattoos from Pabst, plus a poster of the festival and a DVD from the Peripheral Produce library (No. 13 - Something Like Fire, short films by Deborah Stratman).
The most valuable part of the package though is the part is the free program. Wonderfully printed by Pinball Publishing (except I'm not loving the metallic paint on cardboard, it's a little hard to read), it's great to have a handheld overview of the entire festival with names and descriptions of everything that is happening. It's the perfect launching point for looking up more information about the films and people when I'm back at my computer:
Official site of Old Joy. Kelly Reichardt's IMDB page, and on Amazon.com. The book Old Joy on Amazon (and Jonathan Raymond's other book ). Emmanuel Levy's full review of Old Joy (an excerpt is in the program).
And we're tagging all the photos with pdxff06 on Flickr, so you can keep an eye on things during the festival.
Old Joy Insta-thoughts
Posted by: josh
Instant live-blog reactions to Old Joy:
You can't help but notice the "liberties" the film takes with geography as it hops from St John's Bridge to I-5 to whatever. But who cares about that! I'm all peaced out by the slow p-ace and archetypal Oregon landscapes, wet and green and quiet. As someone who lives here, I felt this film channeling Oregon. For people who haven't seen this place -- well, it's the kind of glimpse that makes people move here. Show the 200 days of rain!
Nothing "happens" in Old Joy. Two guys who haven't seen each other in a long time go camping. Still, this film doesn't need anything to happen. We get character development, cinematography, an excellent soundtrack by Yo La Tengo, and ... well, that's all we get. Relax into it. Smoke a bowl.
Opening Night!
Posted by: josh
We're in the theatre! It's opening night!
My name is Josh, I'm one of the many people blogging the shit out of PDX Film Fest.
I'm not sure I'll be able to keep up the narrative when our feature, Old Joy, starts, but the pre-show update is:
We've got a full theatre, an excited vibe, and a mob of bloggers who are quickly growing restless.B
Bring on the PDX Film Fest!
More Press
Posted by: kmikeym
David Walker from the Willamette Week gives some love to the PDX Film Fest: You're just as likely to see a great documentary as you are to see a consciousness-expanding short that makes no sense--there's always something there to surprise, inform or challenge. And that's the beauty of PDX Film Fest.
And I missed it last Sunday, but the Oregonian profiled local filmmakers Orland Nutt, Colin Brown, Vladimir, and Gretchen Hogue.
Jeff Jahn of PORT covers the festival and even gives us a nice shout out: can't be at the festival? or maybe you just can't get enough of the festival? than tune in to www.urbanhonking.com for 24 hour festival blogging coverage.
A Few Words From Matt McCormick
Posted by: kmikeym
The 2006 edition of the Portland Documentary and eXperimental Film Festival is just a day a way, and for all of us who have been working on it, I must say we are glad to have finally gotten here. This year marks the 10th anniversary of Peripheral Produce (the Fest's 'parent' organization), and with a confused optimism that we pump our fists in the air in celebration. It is the night before the festival starts, and we here at Peripheral Produce HQ are buzzing with that combination of nervous energy and exhaustion. So many loose ends to tie up, so many little things to worry about, so many people to pick up at the airport. But I think we are ready. We are super excited that Urban Honking will be blogging the shit out of the festival, and eager to see what happens.
For those new to this whole 'Peripheral Produce' thing, here's a recap: Back in 1996, Peripheral Produce started as a monthly screening series that featured local experimental films. Shows were held at a little punk club called Thee-O (aka the X-Ray Cafe) and 14 people came to the first event. But as time progressed, audiences got bigger, as did our network of artists. Inspired by the great independent record labels of this region (K Records, KRS, just to name a couple), we decided to start our own video distribution label, and we released a compilation of short films called The Auto-Cinematic Video Mix Tape. That tape featured work from 12 different artists, including core Peripheral Produce filmmakers Vanessa Renwick, Miranda July, Animal Charm, and many others. We started really small, but have since released 14 titles and gained international recognition as a pretty important distributor of experimental cinema. Our videos can be found in places ranging from Netflix to the Museum of Modern Art, but what might be more important is that we created a new outlet for artists to share their work.
In 2002, the screening series evolved into the PDX Film Festival. Peripheral Produce started with the intention of creating an outlet for local experimental filmmakers to show their work. There wasn't much happening in terms of local film screenings in '96, but by 2002 the community was flourishing, and it was clearly time to streamline things into a larger, annual event. The festival made it a little easier to fund-raise (stress 'a little'), but what really made it more exciting was that it marked a big weekend celebration that filmmakers from across the country could attend. I think there is going to be something like 25 filmmakers from out of town attending the festival this year, which is totally awesome.
PDX may not be the biggest festival in town. There is no big institution or major publication pushing us along. No one on our staff is on salary, and many of the participating filmmakers even pitch in and help out. But perhaps that is what makes the festival truly special. A quick glance at this year's line-up shows that we have the Portland premiere of the film that both Entertainment Weekly and NPR's Fresh Air called "The best film of the 2006 Sundance Film Festival". Plus, we'll be screening the work of six artists who were featured in the prestigious Whitney Biennial, not to mention that we also will be featuring over 30 local filmmakers. But maybe the coolest thing about this year's fest is that Jon Raymond, the writer of that 'best film at Sundance' movie, is in fact a local kid who was screening work at Peripheral Produce shows since the very beginning, and is even on that first video release we put out.
So thanks for paying attention, and for blogging the shit out of us.
Matt McCormick
founder and director
Peripheral Produce and the PDX Film Festival
"And now, my favorite event of the year"
Posted by: kmikeym
printed in The Oregonian, Sunday, April 23, 2006
by SHAWN LEVY
It's coming.
No matter the evidence of your calendar, garden, rheumatism or allergist: summer, or at least the Hollywood summer movie season, begins in a mere two weeks. But that doesn't mean April will go out like a wimp. Not only is there a rich variety of big movies, art films and local products on tap this week, but there is also my absolute favorite Portland movie event of them all: the PDX Film Fest.
Curated by Matt McCormick, the PDXFF is the most Portlandy of all our local film fests, with an emphasis on DIY aesthetics, experimental art- and life-styles, and a puckish sense of adventure and fun that is almost completely absent from higher-profile (and higher-budget) events.
For five days the Guild Theatre becomes ground zero for Portland's -- and, indeed, the world's -- experimental film community. There are premieres and showcases of some important locally connected films such as the Sundance hit "Old Joy," written by Jonathan Raymond and directed by Kelly Reichardt, and "Who Is Bozo Texino?" by sometime Portlander Bill Daniel, who rode the rails and slept in hobo jungles to film it. There are several showcases of short documentaries, features and avant-garde films from around the world. There are surveys of the works of individual artists of international reputation.
And there is the Invitational.
How to explain the glory of the Invitational without sounding like I write for "Tiger Beat"?
Well, it's simply the single most fun night of the Portland movie year, bar none. How's that?
For the fifth time, McCormick has asked filmmakers from Portland and the rest of the planet to make short films expressly for this event. They are premiered for an audience, which then gets to vote on them and select the World Champion of Experimental Cinema. It is always a raucous, buzzy evening. And it should be especially so this year as the amazing Vladimir defends the two consecutive titles she has earned for her work in the medium of View-Masters. You've never seen anything like it, and you'll know full well when it's over how lucky you are to live here.
Oregonian: Above all, underground cinema
Posted by: kmikeym
The Sunday Oregonian had a great article on the PDX Film Fest and Matt McCormick.
A great description of Matt McCormick makes it sound like he needs to get in front of the camera: With his thatch of thick black hair, scruffy beard and intense dark eyes, McCormick has the look of Rasputin's younger, nicer brother.
eXperimental Film
Posted by: kmikeym
The PDX Film Fest is almost upon us. The full name is The Portland Documentary and eXperimental Film Festival, and while we all know what a documentary is, I find that I don't really have an expectation of experimental film. It would appear that I am not the only one, as even the Wikipedia article on experimental film is currently in dispute.
The image that defines experimental and avant-garde film to me is from Un Chien Andalou, in which a woman's eye is slit with a razor. Possibly the most disturbing image ever recorded on film (it makes my eye hurt just thinking about it). The Dadaists and Surrealists were the first to take to film as art in the 1920's, and their non-sequitur style seems to linger in my mind when think of experimental film.
I just feel so pre-conditioned to expect a narrative "good movie" when I enter a movie theater that I am worried I won't "get it". And then to think I'm going to be blogging the shit out of what I see (and possibly don't understand) makes me a little uneasy and a little excited.
Wikipedia mentions that experimental film is often made to test an audience's reaction. I feel like it's a test I am unprepared for (a little uneasy) in a class I like (a little excited).
Let's Blog The Shit Out Of It
Posted by: kmikeym
Last year some UrbanHonking folks blogged about the PDX Film Fest (Jona, Willow), but this year we're "official". I'm not sure if we are getting cute little press badges (note to self: make some cute little press badges!) but we are going to blog the shit out of the PDX Film Fest. Since I think we invented the term "blog the shit out of" I should explain what we mean.
The idea is for a group of bloggers to try and cover as much and as many aspects of something as possible. For a film fest that means the films we watch and the people we meet. But beyond just observations we can also research other work by the filmmakers, read their blogs, link to newspaper reviews, and talk to the filmmakers and festival staff to really cover everything.
The PDX Film Fest will be our first attempt at blogging the shit out of something and we're really excited about it.
