settima

ShortFilm

Lights (Marie Menken, 1966)

Dec

1

National Christmas Lights Day

Lights (1966)

A display of what appear to be red, yellow, green and blue bell-shaped Christmas lights among silhouetted tree branches. DP: Marie Menken.

Christmas lights for National Christmas Lights Day (USA)

 

It took experimental filmmaker Marie Menken three years to shoot Lights. From midnight until 1 AM, she filmed New York's window displays during the holiday season, using her camera, motion, colour, and available light sources as her paintbrush.

“There is no why for my making films. I just liked the twitters of the machine, and since it was an extension of painting for me, I tried it and loved it. In painting I never liked the staid and static, always looked for what would change the source of light and stance, using glitters, glass beads, luminous paint, so the camera was a natural for me to try—but how expensive!”

– Marie Menken, c. 1966

Filming at night helped to avoid unwanted interruptions of people and cars, but turned out to be problematic for her hand-cranked #Bolex, which kept stalling in NYC's icy winter nights.

1999 A.D. (Lee Madden, 1967)

Nov

27

Cyber Monday

1999 A.D. (1967)

Mother Karen (Marj Dusay) taking a break from online food planning by shopping for a new wardrobe for everyone but herself. DP: Vilmos Zsigmond.

Shopping online on Cyber Monday

 

In the soul crushing future of 1999, one heroic nuclear family bravely fulfils their gender-specific duties. While Father Mike works in his computer-aided office, Son Jamie fails at computer homeschool and Mother Karen slavishly shops, cooks, and cleans as if the 70s never happened.

 

Thankfully, the future turned out to be even bleaker.

Weihnacht (Roland Klick, 1963)

Nov

24

Black Friday

Weihnacht (1963)

The miracle of Christmas, as seen in a fancy shop window. A dress shirt is on display among Sputnik-style decorations and an entranced toddler is reflected in a gilded mirror. From across the street, “Woolworth's” in neon text bounces off the window pane. DPs: Jochen Cerhak & Roland Klick.

A little boy takes in the magic of pre-Christmas, while the adults rush and worry about all that must to be bought.

Muloorina (David Cobham, 1964)

Nov

17

Guinness World Records Day

Muloorina (1964)

The Bluebird parked amongst the crew's Jeeps. DPs: John Daniell, Ross King, Frank McKechnie, Ian Millar & Bob Wright.

Short in gorgeous Technicolor, Muloorina tells about a small, arid town in Australia that one day finds itself on the world's stage. Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre, a local salt lake that hasn't seen a drop of rain in nine years, is the perfect spot for a landspeed record attempt by British daredevil Donald Campbell and his Bluebird.

 

A play of contrasts. The supersonic blue machine on the ancient white riverbed and the slowness of the eternal landscape versus something faster than should be possible. And meanwhile, the locals care for their land and animals, and wait for rain.

Kick That Habit (Peter Liechti, 1989)

Nov

16

National Andy Day

Kick That Habit (1989)

Andy Guhl of experimental Swiss music/art group Voice Crack playing metal wire strung along a room. DP: Peter Liechti.

Everything is noise. Everything is light. Everything is dark. Everything is motion. Everything is static. Everything is energy. Everything is lethargy. Everything is rhythm. Everything is chaos. Everything is silent

Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe (Les Blank, 1980)

Nov

8

Cook Something Bold Day

Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe (1980)

Herzog prepares his left suede Clarks in Alice Waters' restaurant kitchen. DP: Les Blank.

After boiling for five hours in a concoction of #garlic, herbs, and stock, the shoe was ready to eat and #Herzog could keep his promise to fellow director Errol Morris.

“More shoes, more boots, more garlic.”

– Werner Herzog

Jaanipäev [St. John's Day] (Andres Sööt, 1978)

Nov

5

Bonfire Night

Jaanipäev (1978)

The neatly stacked pyre on jaanipäev with Tallinn's dreary socialist Plattenbau on the horizon. DP: Andres Sööt.

As long as they can remember, jaaniõhtu is when Estonians gather to celebrate midsummer. It started, they'll tell you, 4000 years ago when Kaali appeared. Ever since, come rain or shine, come socialism or capitalism, the people gather and light bonfires in its remembrance. Some sing the songs of the elders, memory willing. Others see this as their moment to shine. As a great musician perhaps. A faithful worker. Or a lover, for jaanipäev; #midsummer night.

“Come, this party is for hard-working people!”

Fall 2 (Bas Jan Ader, 1970)

Nov

2

Look for Circles Day

Fall 2 (1970)

Ader plunging into an Amsterdam canal. A bridge and its reflection in the water form an imperfect circle (source).

“All is falling”

– Bas Jan Ader

ねこぢる草 [Nekojiru-sō / Cat Soup] (Tatsuo Satō, 2001)

Aug

30

National Grief Awareness Day

ねこぢる草 (2001)

Nyāko taken away by Jizō with little brother Nyatta telling Nyāko to come back home. DP: Masaru Takase.

Nyatta is not ready to have Jizō take away his big sister Nyāko to Ne-no-kuni, the land of the dead. The kitten grabs his sister's paw, resulting in her soul being ripped in two and leaving Nyāko in a state of limbo. The cats' mother then sends the two off on a mission to buy fried #tofu. Maybe now Nyatta can find a way to put Nyāko's divided soul back together. But first, there's a circus to visit!

 

ねこぢる草 is based on works by mangaka Nekojiru / ねこぢる (1967—1998) whose trademark crudely drawn #cats caused a ripple in Japan's underground #manga circuit. Nyatta and Nyāko continued their surreal adventures by way of widower Yamano Hajime after Nekojiru's tragic suicide in 1998.

R​… ne répond plus [R… no longer responds] (Jean-Pierre Dardenne + Luc Dardenne, 1981)

Aug

28

Radio Commercials Day

R… ne répond plus (1981)

In the nice room for special occasions a small boy is eating next to a large greying woman wearing an apron who in her turn eyes a younger woman who looks exactly like her tuning the radio. It's prominently placed next to an oversized, sensual cornucopian glass bowl, overflowing with oranges. DPs: Jean-Pierre Dardenne & Stéphane Gatti.

R… ne répond plus is Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne's exploring the airwaves. Some is clearly political. Radio Schwarzi Chatz (“Radio Black Cat”) and the feminist witches from Wellenhexe (”[radio] wave witch”) have important messages, unheard of in the mainstream media. Others broadcast in languages on the verge of extinction, so may that tongue survive in a world that – already forty years ago – was rapidly homogenising.

“This is called the comeback of reality.”

And then there are those, they're unnamed, who travel the land and across the borders with walkie-talkies – those too are radios, two-way – using their meandering frequencies to hold on to reality. It's all very elusive, but it's there. Maybe #radio is not dead. We just need to learn how to tune into that Enochian frequency again. It's real after all.