A story of experimental film pip chodorovs free radicals offers a particularly personal take on the history of experimental cinema. Robert breer, and len lye, whose 1958 work of scratcheddirectlyonfilm animation gives free radicals its title. Dean took issue with this being subtitled as a history of experimental film. Artists and poet working in celluloid since before wwi have always found themselves in a no mans land. Laird barron gemma files has one of the great dark imaginations in fictionvisionary, transgressive, and totally original. If youre familiar with names like stan brakhage, robert breer, maurice lemaitre and ken jacobs then youre really going to enjoy this.
The movement was typified by more experimental filmmakers working at the. Rees tracks the movement of the film avant garde between the cinema and modern art with its postmodern coda. Voir is proud to announce the release of the new dvd free radicals a history of experimental film by pip chodorov. Begun in 1958 and completed in 1979, lye made the film by directly scratching the film stock. The film pays worthy homage to this fringe of cin ema, too often reduced to a hermetic citadel rather than a space open to the winds, where chance, a doityourself ethic, and humor. Last month we even shared a delightful, albeit brief, history of experimental cinema that touched on a few of the core concepts and definitive filmmakers of the genre. A history of experimental film, 2010, directed by pip chodorov, with stan brakhage, jonas mekas, hans richter, at turner classic movies. Edited by rouzbeh rashidi and maximilian le cain, it chronicles the history of experimental film society efs by compiling a series of essays, interviews and manifestos that set out and explore the ideas that drive and emerge from efs filmmaking. In the 70s she was the driving force behind the electric cinema in amsterdam, where numerous british and american filmmakers screened their work alongside their dutch colleagues. Experimental film society documents is now available. It begins with a short preface about the aims of the book, a lengthy introduction defining what, exactly, avantgarde is throughout history. Thanks for the a2a experimental film and documentary can share share the same mode of production.
A very brief history of experimental cinema no film school. Despite these brief forays into the avantgarde, however, weve never actually talked about making. A personal window into the history of experimental cinema, free radicals is a beautiful essay from a film community insider. Free radicals a history of experimental film 2010 youtube. The title free radicals also comes from the experimental film by len lye of the same name. Very loosely defined as any film that doesnt use narrative cinematic technique to achieve its goals, the. As someone who has little experience in artistic filmmaking and even less knowledge about it, a. Named after the experimental film classic by len lye, free radicals is an informative yet above all passionate film essay, as well as a fine introduction to the world of avantgarde film. A history of experimental film, pip chodorov offers an enthusiastic, accessible look at the genres big names.
Of the free radicals the highly reactive hydroxyl radical. Free radicals is a great hour and twenty minute film on the history of experimental film by pip chodorov. A history of experimental film 2011 film letoltesehez. It is in a constant state of change and redefinition. The world of experimental or avantgarde vanguard cinema has a history just as rich as narrative film it could be said that the two run on parallel tracks. Free radicals, by pip chodorov, on experimental film.
A history of experimental film 2011 filmmaker pip chodorov pays tribute to some of the 20thcenturys leading figures of experimental cinema, including stan brakhage, ken jacobs. Experimental film, experimental cinema or avantgarde cinema is a mode of filmmaking that rigorously reevaluates cinematic conventions and explores nonnarrative forms and alternatives to traditional narratives or methods of working. Meter has a long filmography including experimental films, documentaries and fiction. In mothlight 1963, stan brakhage 19332003 completely avoids normal filmmaking he doesnt even use a camera by sprinkling seeds, grass, dead moths, and bee parts directly onto the film stock. With pip chodorov, ken jacobs, hans richter, stan brakhage.
An underground film is a film that is out of the mainstream either in its style, genre, or financing. A short history of experimental film uc riverside department of media and cultural studies mcs 8. In this film essay, chodorov examines the lives and work of such experimental luminaries as hans richter, michael snow, peter kubelka, stan. Post jobs, find pros, and collaborate commissionfree in our professional marketplace. While usually associated with european filmmakers, america has its own rich tradition of avantgarde and experimental filmmakers. Named after the len lyes landmark experimental film of dancing lines and marks scratched into the emulsion, free radicals gives an informative and accessible introduction into the world of. I wanted to share a few of the films i love and introduce you to some of the free, radical artists who made them. Likewise, experimental films are sometimes made in disciplines outside of film, such as science. Named after the experimental film classic by len lye, free radicals is an informative yet above all passionate film essay, as well as a fine introduction to the world of avant. Experimental films are very different from featurelength hollywood fiction films. He said, he should be titled a a select, personal history of experimental film. Filmmakers such as ken jacobs, stan brakhage, robert breer, and jonas mekas share their vision as artists and personal filmmakers on the leading edge of experimental film mostly in the 60s, but this documentary covers a period from the 20s to the present. Excluded both from the art world and from the film industry, they bodly created a grassroots network for making and showing their films. In the reference books about film history, the genre of experimental film often gets a rather cursory treatment.
A history of experimental film 2012 08032012 us documentary 1h 22m user score. This is the experiment film completo ita by oh on vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them. I pointed out that it wasnt called the history of experimental film, but rather a history of experimental film theres a very semantic difference there for this movie makes no claim to be comprehensiveat the end of the film. The seemingly random interactions between a group of people touched by a tragedy go under the microscope in this drama from austrian filmmaker barbara.
Collecting image and sound and working it into a finished piece through response to the material andor the techni. Free radicals, by pip chodorov, on experimental film the new. This documentary provides a vivid introduction to one of the most important, yet perpetually marginalized, realms of filmmaking. Free radicals is a blackandwhite animated film short by avantgarde filmmaker len lye. A history of experimental film 2010 for decades, experimental filmmaking has been one of the most fruitful cinematic realms for artists to explore their visions freed from the confines of what we expect from the mainstream.
Where is a good online place for new experimental filmvideo. In his highly acclaimed history of experimental film, a. Currently you can find a little bit everywhere of both new and older experimental, independent and avant garde films. Film and avantgarde art movements in the early twentieth century, 2008. Filmmakers such as ken jacobs, stan brakhage, robert breer, and jonas mekas share their vision as artists and personal filmmakers on the leading. Search the history of over 431 billion web pages on the internet. Free radicals a history of experimental film kanopy. Reess a history of experimental film and video is an encyclopedic account of just that. What is experimental film, and why is it called that. Experimental film is a contemporary ghost story in which former canadian film history teacher lois cairnsjobless and depressed in the wake of her sons autism diagnosisaccidentally discovers the. Many experimental films, particularly early ones, relate to arts in other disciplines. This featurelength documentary provides a vivid, eyeopening, and appropriately personal introduction to one of the most important, yet perpetually m. Dna modification free radicals induce several types of dna damage including strand breaks, dnaprotein crosslinks and a large range of base and sugar modifications.
The dvd features 8 bonus short films by key filmmakers who appear in the documentary and it is subtitled in 8 languages francais, espanol, srpski, ceske, lietuviu. This featurelength documentary provides a vivid, eyeopening, and appropriately personal introduction to one of the most. Barbara meter is a pivotal figure in dutch experimental cinema. A survey of 90 years of abstract experimental film mostly the kind where they scratch into or paint directly on. The resulting figures of motion are set to music by the baguirmi tribe of africa. A history of experimental film kino lorber theatrical. Named after the len lyes landmark experimental film of dancing lines and marks scratched into the emulsion, free radicals gives an informative and accessible introduction into. The free radicals of the title are artists that, beginning in the 1920s and through the 1970s, have pushed cinema toward experimental visual poetry.
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