Hey kids, guess what?
CINEPLOSION's very own sound man, Bobby Missile, has just unveiled a set of solo optical audio arrangements for the viewing public.
Normally we would balk at non-VHS based work around here at the CINE Lab, but jeepers creepers, how 'bout a good ol dose of object-induced hysteria to water down the brainbox:
Something about part two has a real film-like quality, even though its off an iPhone. Maybe its just the oldtime shade of the chair?? Or does the cat add some sort of organic quality??
The classic 1952 flick, "Neighbors" from Norman McLaren comes to mind. Known for Pixelation, or the moving and stopping of objects/camera to create movement, and also for very intricate sound techniques that may include piercing dots onto the optical track of the film strip. Most older film actually uses a light-based optical system, so its literally possible to "draw" sounds onto the film strip! Neato!!
Jiminy Crickets, Len Lye also comes to mind too if we're talking classic animation. "Free Radicals" is perhaps his most famous, although I'm in more of a Tiki lounge frame of mind so lets take a peek at "Colour Flight" from 1938 :: yep 1938 ::
====>>> contemporary avant-garde film, video and performance art ##
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Friday, January 13, 2012
New Release "Cat Cadg"
Following a Premiere Showing at the Arkansas Shorts on January 7, 2012, CINEPLOSION Production's "Cat Cadg" is officially released to the Internet.
A live, single take, audio/visual collaboration using analog security camera technology and improvised audio. Two young cats, Leo and Vern, must escape entrapment in this thrilling battle against the odds.
"Cat Cadg" may be considered the third part of a trilogy of videos, following "Sports on Fire" and "Bird Nest."
A live, single take, audio/visual collaboration using analog security camera technology and improvised audio. Two young cats, Leo and Vern, must escape entrapment in this thrilling battle against the odds.
"Cat Cadg" may be considered the third part of a trilogy of videos, following "Sports on Fire" and "Bird Nest."
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Crispin Glover's "What Is It?"
__
I had always known Crispin Glover to be an "eccentric" actor, in the same vain as Steve Buscemi, Jack Nance and others, but never quite realized the extent of his counter-cult until viewing a showing of his first directorial feature, What Is It?, several years ago at the Oak Street Cinema in Minnesota.
What Is It? is the first film of Glover’s planned “It” trilogy, a loosely connected trilogy based on the essence of humanity and what it means to be a living, thinking organism in a world of disarray and allusion. What Is It? is a film that questions who we are, and the division between the internal and external self. The majority of the characters have Down’s syndrome, but are acting roles of “normal” persons; the Down’s syndrome is merely a circumstance of the performer, and not at all a condition of the plot or narrative within the film. Here we are shocked by a rare glimpse of truth, forced to look beyond the obvious condition of the actors, and into the roles that they portray.
As an experimentalist at heart, I have never warmed up to or particularly understood narrative cinema for several reasons: One is that there are no more than a handful of actors in the World that can effectively handle heavy and extensive dialog-- all but an elite few appear contrived or fake, in no way reflecting what it would actually be like to live in that particular situation. The other main reason is that reality itself is typically far more interesting than a narrative film, and if I wanted that, I’d simply go outside and walk around for 90 minutes. For me, “reality” portrayed in fiction film is generally quite boring, and does little to expand our culture.
By using practically all actors with disabilities in What Is It?, Glover effectively transcends the usual fakery of acting, using the disability as a sleight-of-hand to distract the viewer into a lulled state of genuine narrative interest. Not to mention, the features of these characters are much more cinematically appealing than “normal” faces, and work toward maximizing the visual potential of each scene. The characters become both actors and “props,” to tantalize our voyeuristic sensibilities.
Another element that these actors create is a natural sense of psilocybinistic free-fall, while as the film progresses the mind is tricked into seeing the disabled actors as “normal” people, and we begin to identify with them as we might our "normal" selves. If we allow our minds to relax during the viewing of the film, it can legitimately feel as though you, the viewer, has Down’s syndrome as well.
Visually, the film is overwhelmingly stunning, mixing elements of Fantasia, Un Chien Andalou and Plan 9 From Outer Space. There are also other narrative and stylistic elements similar to noted disability films, such as Freaks, Even Dwarfs Started Small, and The Elephant Man. All and all, the film is much more fantastic that anything “reality” could conceive of, making the overall work highly intriguing, thought-provoking and enjoyable.
The extremely visual and unusual nature of the film does overpower during the first initial viewing, and tends to offset the true meaning behind the film. This is not at all a criticism, although is does make it difficult to properly review, as repeated viewings are all but impossible given the screening limitations of the film. It is widely known that Glover will only show this film personally, and that no copies are available for rental or elsewhere.
That said, after the first ten minutes of the film, I was convinced that it may be the finest film I had ever seen, and was content to relax and enjoy the ride. This is certainly one of the most groundbreaking films of our time, and well worth any rare opportunity to see.
d.anderson 2011
I had always known Crispin Glover to be an "eccentric" actor, in the same vain as Steve Buscemi, Jack Nance and others, but never quite realized the extent of his counter-cult until viewing a showing of his first directorial feature, What Is It?, several years ago at the Oak Street Cinema in Minnesota.
What Is It? is the first film of Glover’s planned “It” trilogy, a loosely connected trilogy based on the essence of humanity and what it means to be a living, thinking organism in a world of disarray and allusion. What Is It? is a film that questions who we are, and the division between the internal and external self. The majority of the characters have Down’s syndrome, but are acting roles of “normal” persons; the Down’s syndrome is merely a circumstance of the performer, and not at all a condition of the plot or narrative within the film. Here we are shocked by a rare glimpse of truth, forced to look beyond the obvious condition of the actors, and into the roles that they portray.
As an experimentalist at heart, I have never warmed up to or particularly understood narrative cinema for several reasons: One is that there are no more than a handful of actors in the World that can effectively handle heavy and extensive dialog-- all but an elite few appear contrived or fake, in no way reflecting what it would actually be like to live in that particular situation. The other main reason is that reality itself is typically far more interesting than a narrative film, and if I wanted that, I’d simply go outside and walk around for 90 minutes. For me, “reality” portrayed in fiction film is generally quite boring, and does little to expand our culture.
By using practically all actors with disabilities in What Is It?, Glover effectively transcends the usual fakery of acting, using the disability as a sleight-of-hand to distract the viewer into a lulled state of genuine narrative interest. Not to mention, the features of these characters are much more cinematically appealing than “normal” faces, and work toward maximizing the visual potential of each scene. The characters become both actors and “props,” to tantalize our voyeuristic sensibilities.
Another element that these actors create is a natural sense of psilocybinistic free-fall, while as the film progresses the mind is tricked into seeing the disabled actors as “normal” people, and we begin to identify with them as we might our "normal" selves. If we allow our minds to relax during the viewing of the film, it can legitimately feel as though you, the viewer, has Down’s syndrome as well.
Visually, the film is overwhelmingly stunning, mixing elements of Fantasia, Un Chien Andalou and Plan 9 From Outer Space. There are also other narrative and stylistic elements similar to noted disability films, such as Freaks, Even Dwarfs Started Small, and The Elephant Man. All and all, the film is much more fantastic that anything “reality” could conceive of, making the overall work highly intriguing, thought-provoking and enjoyable.
The extremely visual and unusual nature of the film does overpower during the first initial viewing, and tends to offset the true meaning behind the film. This is not at all a criticism, although is does make it difficult to properly review, as repeated viewings are all but impossible given the screening limitations of the film. It is widely known that Glover will only show this film personally, and that no copies are available for rental or elsewhere.
That said, after the first ten minutes of the film, I was convinced that it may be the finest film I had ever seen, and was content to relax and enjoy the ride. This is certainly one of the most groundbreaking films of our time, and well worth any rare opportunity to see.
d.anderson 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Summer Solstice Party
If you read this blog, you're invited to the party:
Donations of food, drink or $$$ accepted for the Hot Springs Documentary Film Institute.
Donations of food, drink or $$$ accepted for the Hot Springs Documentary Film Institute.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Captain Ahab in Hot Springs National PArk
On Tuesday, April 17, 2011, Los Angeles' "Captain Ahab" visited The Exchange in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas. This rather eccentric performance outfit is perhaps best known for their track "Snakes on the Brain," which was featured in the 2006 film, "Snakes on a Plane." They also gained popularity with a host of other pop dancehall tracks such as "Girls Gone Wild" and "Malibu Beach Party."
Known for catchy beats and a scantily-clad energetic hype-man, Wikipedia aptly describes, "While their lyrics are satirically misogynistic, their live performance is thoroughly homoerotic." At least one unassuming young patron received a facefull of sweaty chest hair by inching a bit too close to the stage.
On this electric Tuesday night, tornado sirens could be heard howling in the background as a stoic cast of locals waited in the dark halls of their DIY underground performance space. At first, they were treated to a much more intellectual and experimental version of the band than what appeared in 2006, as the show kicked off with a stately puppet show that invoked a true sense of historic honor for the occasion:
Continued, CINEPLOSION projections began to morph with the band's own montage images, creating a swirling atmosphere of disoriented mind-expansion:
At some point in the performance, all controls on our CINEPLOSION panels began to malfunction as if out of a 1980s SciFi thriller. Like Ahab himself, our technicians struggled to maintain afloat, yet the kinetic energy of the storm seized control. The following images were incomprehensibly generated, possessed, as a severe thunder storm plummeted the venue overhead:
Beware, Ladies and Gentlemen. We nearly slipped into a portal beyond our very own conscious, out-of-control and out-of-mind, an electric pulse through the spine, skull and Heavens. Dorothy, watch your back. Dorothy, see you at Radio Shack.
Known for catchy beats and a scantily-clad energetic hype-man, Wikipedia aptly describes, "While their lyrics are satirically misogynistic, their live performance is thoroughly homoerotic." At least one unassuming young patron received a facefull of sweaty chest hair by inching a bit too close to the stage.
On this electric Tuesday night, tornado sirens could be heard howling in the background as a stoic cast of locals waited in the dark halls of their DIY underground performance space. At first, they were treated to a much more intellectual and experimental version of the band than what appeared in 2006, as the show kicked off with a stately puppet show that invoked a true sense of historic honor for the occasion:
Continued, CINEPLOSION projections began to morph with the band's own montage images, creating a swirling atmosphere of disoriented mind-expansion:
At some point in the performance, all controls on our CINEPLOSION panels began to malfunction as if out of a 1980s SciFi thriller. Like Ahab himself, our technicians struggled to maintain afloat, yet the kinetic energy of the storm seized control. The following images were incomprehensibly generated, possessed, as a severe thunder storm plummeted the venue overhead:
Beware, Ladies and Gentlemen. We nearly slipped into a portal beyond our very own conscious, out-of-control and out-of-mind, an electric pulse through the spine, skull and Heavens. Dorothy, watch your back. Dorothy, see you at Radio Shack.
Friday, April 8, 2011
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
In appreciation and acknowledgement for our many dedicated viewers who are recent stroke victims, CINEPLOSION has teamed up with 1-800-STROKES to bring you the following announcement.
LIVING WITH RISK:
LIVING WITH RISK:
Monday, March 28, 2011
Ultra-hip finds...
I wish we'd gotten our dirty CINEPLOSION hands on these tracks before they got ofiical videos...
Sugar and Gold "Bodyaches" - These dudes did a CINEPLOSION at "The Exchange" in Hot Springs National Park, AR, a while back, but to my knowledge the video either didn't record properly or became lost to some sort of un-labeled tape void. FUTURE ESTATE SALERS BEWARE!
Birds and Batteries "Lightning (UTNG Version)" - This is a super track from a somewhat lesser-known but relentlessly touring outfit. Picked it up at a show once, and it really socked it for me. This clip is essentually a music video for Len Lye's 1935 Colour Box. Lye is one of the great pioneers of early hand-made cinema, and I love his stuff. But for me... the film and the song are too good for each other. I'd suggest watching the movie silent, and then listening to the song in darkness.
For another way-cool Len Lye film, search out "Neighbors" 1952
Black Cherry "Radio" - This swanky UK outfit breezed into Hot Springs National Park during the 2011 Valley of the Vapors Independent Music Festival, playing a sleeper, early-evening gig at the Star Gallery downtown. I picked up their rare "The Preface" EP. Mega cool--
Actually, Black Cherry's "Fake Blood" is by far my favorite on the album, and tore it up live. This song doesn't seem to have a video yet... hmmm....
Sugar and Gold "Bodyaches" - These dudes did a CINEPLOSION at "The Exchange" in Hot Springs National Park, AR, a while back, but to my knowledge the video either didn't record properly or became lost to some sort of un-labeled tape void. FUTURE ESTATE SALERS BEWARE!
Birds and Batteries "Lightning (UTNG Version)" - This is a super track from a somewhat lesser-known but relentlessly touring outfit. Picked it up at a show once, and it really socked it for me. This clip is essentually a music video for Len Lye's 1935 Colour Box. Lye is one of the great pioneers of early hand-made cinema, and I love his stuff. But for me... the film and the song are too good for each other. I'd suggest watching the movie silent, and then listening to the song in darkness.
For another way-cool Len Lye film, search out "Neighbors" 1952
Black Cherry "Radio" - This swanky UK outfit breezed into Hot Springs National Park during the 2011 Valley of the Vapors Independent Music Festival, playing a sleeper, early-evening gig at the Star Gallery downtown. I picked up their rare "The Preface" EP. Mega cool--
Actually, Black Cherry's "Fake Blood" is by far my favorite on the album, and tore it up live. This song doesn't seem to have a video yet... hmmm....
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Czech "mapping"
Whoa, this one knocked me off my rocker. Over in Prague the art of video "mapping" man-made objects is taking off. Light shows, puppetry, phantasmagoria and the like have a long history here, so this is no surprise.
Oh yeah, Jan Svankmajer lives there too!
Family folklore has swirled that I've got stake in a castle somewhere in those Czech hills... one of these days I'd ought to find it!
The 600 Years from the macula on Vimeo.
Oh yeah, Jan Svankmajer lives there too!
Family folklore has swirled that I've got stake in a castle somewhere in those Czech hills... one of these days I'd ought to find it!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
FLEX Performances- CINEPLOSION/Nugent/Justice
The idea of “CINEPLOSION” has morphed a bit over time, and the latest real-life occurrence occurred at the Palomino Pool Hall patio in Gainesville, FL on Thursday, 17, 2011. I had been penciled in for the gig, but backed out just a few weeks before due to a case of the “practicalities.” Well by golly if I didn’t get a little queeze in the gut; you know, the kind like maybe you took a wrong turn somewhere or missed your exit? Yes, I’d learned this lesson before-- as a Minnesotan might say, “if the road’s plowed, drive it.” So recant, I did, and was off to Florida with a sigh of relief.
It was a super swell drive. I left Hot Springs at about 8pm, a bit past the 10am I’d planned, and made it just past Birmingham, Alabama for my first stint. Took a snooze in the far corner of a Wal/Mart parking lot from 4:30-10am, then booked it to Gainesville.
I got into town just a bit late for Phil Solomon’s show (reviewed in past post), then got to meet the whole FLEX crew and the next day a chill day before the show.
Wow, what a rare pleasure to have ample time to prepare. I sorta felt obligated to pull out all the stops with the gear, just ‘cause I’d traveled a long way and kinda wanted to bust out my best. Problem is, my getup it all hardware-- plugs and gadgets; do-dads and googliematts. Taming and patience required. So I got there at 2pm, and started projecting at 11pm-- successfully mobilizing 80% of my technological availabilities. 80 percent?! Whaaa-wooooo! A new record..!
Gainesville native, Andrew Downs was my DJ, and it proved to be the perfect combo. His setup is all cassette audio tapes, and mine is all cassette video tapes, so we managed a complete audio and visual analog tape set. Thumbs up to Andrew Downs, and for FLEX and Palomino crews for hooking this one !
Next up for live projects was Patrick Nugent, who’s “Merry-Go-Round” premiered at the IndieGrits festival in Nugent’s home-base of Columbia, South Carolina. Wizard gizzards, did FLEX find a diamond in this one! The installation consists of a large painted screen, cosmically cobwebbed precisely to coordinate with fragmented, mutating images on the projection. The resulting installation is a repressed adolescent boy’s neurological mind meltdown, as sex advice and protocol electrocute the third eye..
Patrick Nugent bowling at FLEX.
The third performance of the festival provided the perfect swam song to the weekend. Festival organizer, Amanda Justice, came armed with a backpack of VHS tapes and a killer naturally-birthed VJ name. Yes, I can attest the local thrift outlets professionally scoured, and tape pirates best move on to the next town for holy grail “Swayze Dancing” tapes or other such finds. Those gems are in the hands of Justice, waiting to whirl with the whizz and click of a rewind, pause and play.
Somewhere along the line I mentioned that it was pretty unusual to have two VHS VJ’s in one room, and heard in response, “Oh... I just thought that’s how it was ALWAYS done.” And at first I was baffled but then a little charmed. To know that “Bohiemias” still exit were a competent, art-going patron can be tricked into believing VHS-mixing is a standard, practical art form. Ah, it just melts my big ‘ol analog heart.
Photo credits: FLEX/Jessie White
Reviewed by d.anderson 2011
It was a super swell drive. I left Hot Springs at about 8pm, a bit past the 10am I’d planned, and made it just past Birmingham, Alabama for my first stint. Took a snooze in the far corner of a Wal/Mart parking lot from 4:30-10am, then booked it to Gainesville.
I got into town just a bit late for Phil Solomon’s show (reviewed in past post), then got to meet the whole FLEX crew and the next day a chill day before the show.
Wow, what a rare pleasure to have ample time to prepare. I sorta felt obligated to pull out all the stops with the gear, just ‘cause I’d traveled a long way and kinda wanted to bust out my best. Problem is, my getup it all hardware-- plugs and gadgets; do-dads and googliematts. Taming and patience required. So I got there at 2pm, and started projecting at 11pm-- successfully mobilizing 80% of my technological availabilities. 80 percent?! Whaaa-wooooo! A new record..!
Gainesville native, Andrew Downs was my DJ, and it proved to be the perfect combo. His setup is all cassette audio tapes, and mine is all cassette video tapes, so we managed a complete audio and visual analog tape set. Thumbs up to Andrew Downs, and for FLEX and Palomino crews for hooking this one !
Next up for live projects was Patrick Nugent, who’s “Merry-Go-Round” premiered at the IndieGrits festival in Nugent’s home-base of Columbia, South Carolina. Wizard gizzards, did FLEX find a diamond in this one! The installation consists of a large painted screen, cosmically cobwebbed precisely to coordinate with fragmented, mutating images on the projection. The resulting installation is a repressed adolescent boy’s neurological mind meltdown, as sex advice and protocol electrocute the third eye..
Patrick Nugent bowling at FLEX.
The third performance of the festival provided the perfect swam song to the weekend. Festival organizer, Amanda Justice, came armed with a backpack of VHS tapes and a killer naturally-birthed VJ name. Yes, I can attest the local thrift outlets professionally scoured, and tape pirates best move on to the next town for holy grail “Swayze Dancing” tapes or other such finds. Those gems are in the hands of Justice, waiting to whirl with the whizz and click of a rewind, pause and play.
Somewhere along the line I mentioned that it was pretty unusual to have two VHS VJ’s in one room, and heard in response, “Oh... I just thought that’s how it was ALWAYS done.” And at first I was baffled but then a little charmed. To know that “Bohiemias” still exit were a competent, art-going patron can be tricked into believing VHS-mixing is a standard, practical art form. Ah, it just melts my big ‘ol analog heart.
Photo credits: FLEX/Jessie White
Reviewed by d.anderson 2011
Saturday, March 5, 2011
FLEX- Mark Toscano curated show
Opening the 2011 FLEX Fest in Gainesville, FL, was a curated show by festival juror and Academy archivist, Mark Toscano. These works ranged from 1957-1975, and were all shown on 16mm, sans one early PortaPak video. What is most striking to me, upon reviewing the program after the fact, is that each film in itself represents a historical document that now lives beyond it’s time. Each film is a vignette of a time, an idea, a concept. We live and think based on the world around us, and experimental film, more than perhaps any other medium, takes us into the visual minds of the past. There is a pureness to experimental media that cannot be achieved by the superficial nature of narrative films, or even traditional documentaries. This is “cinema of the mind,” and it is a rare treat to see works made by true fringe, unheralded artists from times gone by-- films simply are not made like this in our current age, experimental or otherwise.
The late 1960s and early 1970s were a time known for “acid” films, which I’ve always found very misleading. While the vision for creating a particular piece may be encouraged by mind alternating substances, the technical process of creating a 16mm film is far too complex to be credited to them alone. And while a case can be made that viewing these films can be enhanced by substances, I would defiantly fist-fight anyone in the street who claimed they could not be fully enjoyed without.
Two of my favorite "acid" films in the program were Daina Krumins’ “Aether” (1972) and Ben Van Meter’s “SF Trips Festival” (1967). Both films were breathtakingly crisp on vibrant, deliciously reversal, 16mm film-- and represent a time and place when mind-expansion was much more en vogue, when there was more to our reality than body, car and iPhone. “Aether” is a candy apocalypse, terrorizing yet ever so sweet. A technicolor apparition from the center of the moon. If it were possible to see "aether" itself, not only as a gas compound, but as a real being with aspirations, conscious and soul-- it may very well look like this film.
“SF Trips Festival” documents an art festival in line with a more homespun “Burning Man.” This film consists of thee exposures on one reel of film stock, meaning that the film was exposed, rewound, re-exposed, rewound, and re-exposed again. The beauty of the film is that all three exposures are meticulous and calculated, yet fatefully random. One exposure is mainly color streaks and abstractions, while the other two contain more recognizable objects and people-- with Van Meter taking obvious care to frame each image to balance the overall final product. While the film is certainly “experimental,” there is a true organic documentary quality to the film, with a feel that you’ve been sucked into the scene rather than just examining the petri dish.
As a vintage video junkie, “Turning Over” (1975) by Morgan Fisher was a real thrill. It had a very deadpan William Wegman style, that just seems to shine in the light of grainy b/w videotape. Essentially, the video is a document of Fisher’s car “turning over” at 100,000 miles-- overly analyzed, hyper-hyped, hilarious in a British-comedy sort of way. Just as the old saying goes, “people remember you if you wear the same clothes every day,” people will also remember your film if it stretches a single moment out for 15 minutes. Love it!
Also worth mentioning, “Picasso” (1973), made as a sort of anti-homage to Pablo Picasso. Chis Langdon was said to be very disfavorable towards Picasso, and rapidly made this film within the scope of several hours. The most memorable part of the film is an inane, incessant looped recording of Picasso himself in his doddering years, mumbling something about children needing to do something or another. “King David” (1970) was an engaging documentary on a black egomaniac “Mr. T” style character in 1970s San Francisco, making me wish more filmmakers would champion their local eccentrics. Mike Henderson’s “Dufus” was a charming psuedo-documentary, staging variations of stereotyped black identities. At one point, Henderson flashes the “self” title card and childishly scampers into the frame, buck-naked and scared, as in a teenage anxiety dream. What is a self anyway? Are we to simply scroll down the list until we find the right persona? Who do you think YOU are, Bub?
Full program:
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2011
THE TOP SECRET SPACE , Gainesville, FL
CURATED SHOW: Mark Toscano
The Maltese Cross Movement (8:00/16MM/1967) Keewatin Dewdney
Logos (2:00/16MM/1957) Jane Conger Belson Shimane
Brummer’s (10:00/16MM/1967) David Bienstock
S.W.L.A. (6:00/16MM/1971) Rob Thompson
Aether (4:00/16MM/1972) Daina Krumins
Mirror People (5:00/16MM/1957) Kathy Rose
Picasso (3:00/16MM/1973) Chris Langdon
King David (9:00/16MM/1970) Robert Nelson & Mike Henderson
Turning Over (13:00/VIDEO/1975) Morgan Fisher
SF Trips Festival--An Opening (9:00/16MM/1967) Ben Van Meter
Dufus (8:00/16MM/1970/73) Mike Henderson
Throbs (7:00/16mm/1972) Fred Worden
Reviewed by d.anderson 2011
The late 1960s and early 1970s were a time known for “acid” films, which I’ve always found very misleading. While the vision for creating a particular piece may be encouraged by mind alternating substances, the technical process of creating a 16mm film is far too complex to be credited to them alone. And while a case can be made that viewing these films can be enhanced by substances, I would defiantly fist-fight anyone in the street who claimed they could not be fully enjoyed without.
Two of my favorite "acid" films in the program were Daina Krumins’ “Aether” (1972) and Ben Van Meter’s “SF Trips Festival” (1967). Both films were breathtakingly crisp on vibrant, deliciously reversal, 16mm film-- and represent a time and place when mind-expansion was much more en vogue, when there was more to our reality than body, car and iPhone. “Aether” is a candy apocalypse, terrorizing yet ever so sweet. A technicolor apparition from the center of the moon. If it were possible to see "aether" itself, not only as a gas compound, but as a real being with aspirations, conscious and soul-- it may very well look like this film.
“SF Trips Festival” documents an art festival in line with a more homespun “Burning Man.” This film consists of thee exposures on one reel of film stock, meaning that the film was exposed, rewound, re-exposed, rewound, and re-exposed again. The beauty of the film is that all three exposures are meticulous and calculated, yet fatefully random. One exposure is mainly color streaks and abstractions, while the other two contain more recognizable objects and people-- with Van Meter taking obvious care to frame each image to balance the overall final product. While the film is certainly “experimental,” there is a true organic documentary quality to the film, with a feel that you’ve been sucked into the scene rather than just examining the petri dish.
As a vintage video junkie, “Turning Over” (1975) by Morgan Fisher was a real thrill. It had a very deadpan William Wegman style, that just seems to shine in the light of grainy b/w videotape. Essentially, the video is a document of Fisher’s car “turning over” at 100,000 miles-- overly analyzed, hyper-hyped, hilarious in a British-comedy sort of way. Just as the old saying goes, “people remember you if you wear the same clothes every day,” people will also remember your film if it stretches a single moment out for 15 minutes. Love it!
Also worth mentioning, “Picasso” (1973), made as a sort of anti-homage to Pablo Picasso. Chis Langdon was said to be very disfavorable towards Picasso, and rapidly made this film within the scope of several hours. The most memorable part of the film is an inane, incessant looped recording of Picasso himself in his doddering years, mumbling something about children needing to do something or another. “King David” (1970) was an engaging documentary on a black egomaniac “Mr. T” style character in 1970s San Francisco, making me wish more filmmakers would champion their local eccentrics. Mike Henderson’s “Dufus” was a charming psuedo-documentary, staging variations of stereotyped black identities. At one point, Henderson flashes the “self” title card and childishly scampers into the frame, buck-naked and scared, as in a teenage anxiety dream. What is a self anyway? Are we to simply scroll down the list until we find the right persona? Who do you think YOU are, Bub?
Full program:
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2011
THE TOP SECRET SPACE , Gainesville, FL
CURATED SHOW: Mark Toscano
The Maltese Cross Movement (8:00/16MM/1967) Keewatin Dewdney
Logos (2:00/16MM/1957) Jane Conger Belson Shimane
Brummer’s (10:00/16MM/1967) David Bienstock
S.W.L.A. (6:00/16MM/1971) Rob Thompson
Aether (4:00/16MM/1972) Daina Krumins
Mirror People (5:00/16MM/1957) Kathy Rose
Picasso (3:00/16MM/1973) Chris Langdon
King David (9:00/16MM/1970) Robert Nelson & Mike Henderson
Turning Over (13:00/VIDEO/1975) Morgan Fisher
SF Trips Festival--An Opening (9:00/16MM/1967) Ben Van Meter
Dufus (8:00/16MM/1970/73) Mike Henderson
Throbs (7:00/16mm/1972) Fred Worden
Reviewed by d.anderson 2011
FLEX FEST
Just recently finished up nearly a full week at the 7th FLEX, Florida Experimental Film Festival, in Gainesville, FL. Roger Beebe is the founder/curator, and a longtime figure at various experimental fests-- including several times at Bearded Child, which toured to Gainesville several years back.
I’ve worried that ultra-alternative American cinema may be slipping for venues-- with note-worthies like MicroCineFest, PDX, CINEMATEXAS, HiMom!, Thaw in Iowa City and others disappearing or taking leaves in recent years. Thankfully, FLEX has been there to pick up the slack during these turbulent times, along with TIE, Experiments in Cinema and now newcomers like Strange Beauty. Roger strongly hints that his rein of terror may be coming to the end, but hopefully the vision will continue, as we NEED venues such as these for the sake of our fleeting intellectual underground culture.
As I can, I’ll post a few notes on the event, held Feb. 17-20, 2011.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
American Falls- Phil Solomon
I arrived in Gainesville, FL, a couple days before FLEX Fest to catch a rare viewing of Phil Solomon’s “American Falls.” Phil was a professor of mine at the University of Colorado, and a lifetime committed to abstract storytelling has granted him the rare ability to conceptualize life into art.
“American Falls,” shown at the University of Florida's Harm Museum as a three-image single projection, was originally commissioned as a larger-scale installation at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Know for utilizing celluloid-specific chemical processes to degrade images in order to strip them down to a transcendental “truth,” Solomon quipped that this digital project was his “farewell to cinema.” But in reality, the project may be described as a “welcome to new cinema.” This is a project that requires utilization of both film and video, as all footage was run through Solomon’s trademark film processes, yet requires a computer’s precision to sequence and justify properly. On screen are three images that relate, as a cinema sandwich, but combine to constitute a full meal. Unlike what would be achieved by three projections dictated by a single channel, Solomon will often offset the timing of images to create a wave, pop or flow. The dynamic nature of the chemical process and optical printing of the singular images rumbles the oculars alone, but combined with the rhythm of three oscillating and unified images, our sights are positively overwhelmed-- the further disassociation from plain vision allowing the viewer to strip away language and enter the realm of pure thought.
Thematically, there are no images that stretch beyond the late 1960's, but the project itself remains very contemporary. Artistically manipulating clips from the classic "Greed," with the Kennedy assassination and a wide array of iconic American images, there is a sense of unity and a defining struggle, a "barrow ride down the Niargra Falls."
Solomon began conception for "American Falls" at a time widely thought to be a low point for liberals and progressives, during the high point of the George W. Bush administration. However, the length of time needed to complete the work stretched into the beginning Obama years, altering its scope. Rather than “falling” endlessly into an abyss of regress and regrets, there is a fleeting sense of hope and perhaps even an eery “pride” for the entire culmination of what America has become. But yes, there is also a terror, a fear, an unknown. As water must hit the ocean floor, it must also be there to splash the surface. America will always change and adapt to the hauntings of the past, but what has gone will always remain, waiting to be rediscovered.
Solomon described his first visits to Washington in preparation for the project, and there is a clear sense that the ghosts of America touched his inner soul. The filmmaker thrives by carving down to the “impression” of the image, where often nothing can be seen but the bubbling outlines of a shadow. Here is where the essence lies. The ghosts of Capital Hill are speaking in his work, the pressure and power of leading a Nation whisper it’s regrets, conceits and triumphs faintly into the ears, through the eyes, and out of the Spirit.
Ah, America!
For more on this project, visit www.philsolomon.com
Reviewed by d.anderson 2011
Saturday, February 5, 2011
February events!
Friday, Feb 11- "Mental Mission" live set at Star Gallery in Hot Springs, Arkansas!
Thursday, Feb. 17- CINEPLOSION Ocular Analog Dance PArty**
after-event for FLEX, Florida Experimental Film/Video Festival, Gainesville, FL
Saturday, Feb. 19- "Emptiness in My Heart" CINEPLOSION original music video ** screens at Strange Beauty Festival in Durham, NC!
Thursday, Feb. 17- CINEPLOSION Ocular Analog Dance PArty**
after-event for FLEX, Florida Experimental Film/Video Festival, Gainesville, FL
Saturday, Feb. 19- "Emptiness in My Heart" CINEPLOSION original music video ** screens at Strange Beauty Festival in Durham, NC!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Modern Times
“And there was a time,” he thought, “when a copy of Eraserhead was so terribly hard to find. When all that we had were a very few scraggly, out-of-print tapes floating around, probably from when some long or half-defunct, single-office-smoking-lounge of a company, put out a few in the late 1970s.”
“But now,” he thought, “we must work so much harder to be original. And yet, that which is original is not properly recognized. We are overwhelmed with options. Our lives no longer lie, we have all the facts. We are the same as you in Moscow, Prague or Vancouver, BC. Yes, we are all connected as one; our selves categorized by one witty autobiographical paragraph. Yes, to live. Oh, to live," he thought.
“But now,” he thought, “we must work so much harder to be original. And yet, that which is original is not properly recognized. We are overwhelmed with options. Our lives no longer lie, we have all the facts. We are the same as you in Moscow, Prague or Vancouver, BC. Yes, we are all connected as one; our selves categorized by one witty autobiographical paragraph. Yes, to live. Oh, to live," he thought.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
2010 Year in Review
Wow, it has finally come to an end, and....
WHAT A FUCKIN AMAZING AWESOME YEAR IT HAS BEEN FOR CINEPLOSION!!!!!!!!!
2010 was a monumental year, cummon now! We had to fire on all cylinders, and did everything possible to make the most of the precious time we have. Think you don't have enough time? Well this is the most you'll ever gunna get, buddy. Make'er count!
Here is a list of CINEPLOSION events and projects, or film related activities pertaining to CINEPLOSION associates. Please contact if you notice any errors or omissions.
*****
01/01 New Video: “Your Love So Cold” with William Blake Watson
01/01 New Video: “Sports on Fire”
01/09 “Your Love So Cold” and “Sports on Fire” at Arkansas Shorts, Malco Theatre, Hot Springs, AR
03/01 New Video: “Bird Nest”
03/17-03/21 Live Video Installation during VOV Music Fest, Hot Springs, AR
03/05 CINEPLOSION for No Funeral at The Exchange, Hot Springs, AR
04/30 Dan Anderson guest judge for UCA Film Fest, Conway, AR
05/07 CINEPLOSION with Blue Screen Skyline at Low Key Arts, Hot Springs, AR
06/04 CINEPLOSION “Point Break” at Low Key Arts, Hot Springs, AR
07/02 CINEPLOSION “The Outsiders” at Low Key Arts, Hot Springs, AR
08/13-8/15 Arkansas Underground Film Festival (programed by Dan Anderson), Malco/Low Key, Hot Springs, AR (most ambitious experimental/underground project of 2010)
08/21 “Sports on Fire” plays at Basement Media Festival, Cambridge, MA
08/21 Live Projections for Kitty Rhombus, Hawks & Oxen, Cemetery Improvement Society at Hexagon, Minneapolis, MN
08/28 CINEPLOSION and Bearded Child Film Festival, Medusa, Minneapolis, MN
09/06 Video Installation at The Gallery@404B, Hot Springs, AR
09/09 Mental Mission, Mission 1 “Happy Birthday Miss Arkansas” at The Exchange, Hot Springs, AR
09/11 Live Projections for Blue Screen Skyline at Maxine’s, Hot Springs, AR
09/15 Mental Mission, Mission 2 “Remember, I Love You” at The Exchange, Hot Springs, AR
09/17 CINEPLOSION Japanther After Party, above Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
09/23 Mental Mission, Mission 3 (failed) above Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
09/25 “Your Love So Cold” plays at Dallas Video Fest, Dallas, TX
10/11 Mental Mission, Mission 4 “Please Don’t Forget” at Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
10/15-10/24 19th Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival (programed by Dan Anderson), Malco Theatre, Hot Springs, AR
11/05 Video Installation “Soaps” at Art Church, Hot Springs, AR
11/07 Mental Mission, Mission 5 above Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
11/09 New Video: “Emptiness in Your Heart” for Zak Solo
11/16 Mental Mission, Mission 6 live at The Dandy House, Fayetteville, AR
11/17 Mental Mission, Mission 7 live at The Lemon Drop, Springfield, MO
11/20 Mental Mission, Mission 8 live at Medusa, Minneapolis, MN
12/21 New Video: “Smithereens” for Gay Beast
*****
THANK YOU ALL and lets make 2011 the most amazingly badass collossal year ever!! The Revolution starts with YOU and ALL YOUR FRIENDS!! Oh thank heaven for 2011!!
WHAT A FUCKIN AMAZING AWESOME YEAR IT HAS BEEN FOR CINEPLOSION!!!!!!!!!
2010 was a monumental year, cummon now! We had to fire on all cylinders, and did everything possible to make the most of the precious time we have. Think you don't have enough time? Well this is the most you'll ever gunna get, buddy. Make'er count!
Here is a list of CINEPLOSION events and projects, or film related activities pertaining to CINEPLOSION associates. Please contact if you notice any errors or omissions.
*****
01/01 New Video: “Your Love So Cold” with William Blake Watson
01/01 New Video: “Sports on Fire”
01/09 “Your Love So Cold” and “Sports on Fire” at Arkansas Shorts, Malco Theatre, Hot Springs, AR
03/01 New Video: “Bird Nest”
03/17-03/21 Live Video Installation during VOV Music Fest, Hot Springs, AR
03/05 CINEPLOSION for No Funeral at The Exchange, Hot Springs, AR
04/30 Dan Anderson guest judge for UCA Film Fest, Conway, AR
05/07 CINEPLOSION with Blue Screen Skyline at Low Key Arts, Hot Springs, AR
06/04 CINEPLOSION “Point Break” at Low Key Arts, Hot Springs, AR
07/02 CINEPLOSION “The Outsiders” at Low Key Arts, Hot Springs, AR
08/13-8/15 Arkansas Underground Film Festival (programed by Dan Anderson), Malco/Low Key, Hot Springs, AR (most ambitious experimental/underground project of 2010)
08/21 “Sports on Fire” plays at Basement Media Festival, Cambridge, MA
08/21 Live Projections for Kitty Rhombus, Hawks & Oxen, Cemetery Improvement Society at Hexagon, Minneapolis, MN
08/28 CINEPLOSION and Bearded Child Film Festival, Medusa, Minneapolis, MN
09/06 Video Installation at The Gallery@404B, Hot Springs, AR
09/09 Mental Mission, Mission 1 “Happy Birthday Miss Arkansas” at The Exchange, Hot Springs, AR
09/11 Live Projections for Blue Screen Skyline at Maxine’s, Hot Springs, AR
09/15 Mental Mission, Mission 2 “Remember, I Love You” at The Exchange, Hot Springs, AR
09/17 CINEPLOSION Japanther After Party, above Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
09/23 Mental Mission, Mission 3 (failed) above Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
09/25 “Your Love So Cold” plays at Dallas Video Fest, Dallas, TX
10/11 Mental Mission, Mission 4 “Please Don’t Forget” at Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
10/15-10/24 19th Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival (programed by Dan Anderson), Malco Theatre, Hot Springs, AR
11/05 Video Installation “Soaps” at Art Church, Hot Springs, AR
11/07 Mental Mission, Mission 5 above Low Key, Hot Springs, AR
11/09 New Video: “Emptiness in Your Heart” for Zak Solo
11/16 Mental Mission, Mission 6 live at The Dandy House, Fayetteville, AR
11/17 Mental Mission, Mission 7 live at The Lemon Drop, Springfield, MO
11/20 Mental Mission, Mission 8 live at Medusa, Minneapolis, MN
12/21 New Video: “Smithereens” for Gay Beast
*****
THANK YOU ALL and lets make 2011 the most amazingly badass collossal year ever!! The Revolution starts with YOU and ALL YOUR FRIENDS!! Oh thank heaven for 2011!!
Monday, December 27, 2010
Top Experimental Comps of 2000-2010
Over the past ten years, I've been lucky enough to come in contact with various states of experimental media.
Here are my picks for top domestically and individually available compilations of the past decade:
By Brakhage: An Anthology (2-disc DVD)
Stan Brakhage produced over 350 groundbreaking and moving visual therapy art films over his nearly 50 year career. This disc is a must for anyone at all interested in art and culture, or has any pulse at all. www.criterion.com
ETC: Experimental Television Center 1969-2009 (5 disc set)
Words cannot express how cool this is. A collection of video art produced at the obscure upstate New York video center over the past 40 years, using one-of-a-kind equipment designed by Nam June Paik and others. $60 w/shipping, but the best money I’ve ever spent. http://www.experimentaltvcenter.org/etcdvd.html
Starlight Dynamic Video Mix Tape (2001) out-of-print
This tape (only released on VHS!) contains three of my all-time favorite movies, “Confederation Park” by Bill Brown, “The Moschops” by Jim Trainor, and “Mark Roth” by Animal charm. And the other movies are great too! www.peripheralproduce.com
Illegal Art DVD-R
“Illegal” media comp with rare, unfindable work by Todd Haynes, Brian Boyce, Negativeland and others. Mega cool and very odd.
http://www.illegal-art.org/video/dvd.html
Cartune Xprez 2006, 2008, 2010
An outstanding collection of wacky DIY underground animation. Christopher Doulgeris and Peter Burr compiled three DVD comps over the past few years. Featuring work by Amy Lockhart, Jim Trainor and others. http://www.cartunexprez.com
Here are my picks for top domestically and individually available compilations of the past decade:
By Brakhage: An Anthology (2-disc DVD)
Stan Brakhage produced over 350 groundbreaking and moving visual therapy art films over his nearly 50 year career. This disc is a must for anyone at all interested in art and culture, or has any pulse at all. www.criterion.com
ETC: Experimental Television Center 1969-2009 (5 disc set)
Words cannot express how cool this is. A collection of video art produced at the obscure upstate New York video center over the past 40 years, using one-of-a-kind equipment designed by Nam June Paik and others. $60 w/shipping, but the best money I’ve ever spent. http://www.experimentaltvcenter.org/etcdvd.html
Starlight Dynamic Video Mix Tape (2001) out-of-print
This tape (only released on VHS!) contains three of my all-time favorite movies, “Confederation Park” by Bill Brown, “The Moschops” by Jim Trainor, and “Mark Roth” by Animal charm. And the other movies are great too! www.peripheralproduce.com
Illegal Art DVD-R
“Illegal” media comp with rare, unfindable work by Todd Haynes, Brian Boyce, Negativeland and others. Mega cool and very odd.
http://www.illegal-art.org/video/dvd.html
Cartune Xprez 2006, 2008, 2010
An outstanding collection of wacky DIY underground animation. Christopher Doulgeris and Peter Burr compiled three DVD comps over the past few years. Featuring work by Amy Lockhart, Jim Trainor and others. http://www.cartunexprez.com
New MATTHEW SILVER video!
In a world of blind chaos and encouraged mediocraty, it can often seem a though few people around us really “get” it. The world at heart is not as simple as it seems, but not as complicated or important as we think our trivial routines and preoccupations may be.
Performance artist and filmmaker, Matthew Silver, knows what’s up, even if nobody knows it but him. Here’s his latest:
Back in 2008, we brought Matthew out to the Bearded Child Film Festival in Minnesota. In real life, he has a very distinct calmness about him. He is channeling his creative outlets, and is a real inspiration for all. Thanks, Matthew!
Performance artist and filmmaker, Matthew Silver, knows what’s up, even if nobody knows it but him. Here’s his latest:
Back in 2008, we brought Matthew out to the Bearded Child Film Festival in Minnesota. In real life, he has a very distinct calmness about him. He is channeling his creative outlets, and is a real inspiration for all. Thanks, Matthew!
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Just Released! GAY BEAST - Smithereens
Yowie kazoweeee!! CINEPLOSION has just released a brand new video for Minneapolis-based, GAY BEAST!
Yes sir, in anticipation for the new album, “To Smithereens,” to be released March 2011 on Skin Graft Records, our team of technicians compiled videotape of frontman, Daniel Luedtke, during a visit to the Great White North this past November. The footage was taken at the artist/musician’s loft and apartment in Southeast Minneapolis, consisting of an attic printshop-turned-movieset and various domestic nooks around the living space. In advance payment for the video, we graciously and eagerly accepted a collection of Luedtke’s topnotch DANIMAL GRAFFFIX prints, distinctive imagery mostly chronicling highlights of the Minneapolis DIY music scene from the past half decade.
Once back in Hot Springs, local heartthrob and blue collar Arkansan, Justin Castleberry (drummer for Man Against Fire, Mother Hug, The Holly Shakes and others), was summoned for a studio shoot. Hardened by a lifetime of lumber cutting and window installation, Mr. Castleberry proved the perfect subject for our roboerotic fantasy.
Within the video, a somber yet lustfully determined Luedtke is portrayed as the voyeur of thoughts, meticulously devouring each carnal mindwave like a rich kid’s rib dinner. The large, imposing male figure is lifelessly crushing in posture, a Pure Body pulsating with strength and cool primal vigor. It is not the person or soul that beguile the viewer, but the raw form, the seductive structure, itself.
Luedtke’s wade through malcontent, tenacious domesticity is finally idealized at the climax of the video, as budding tension spills from the hands of the masculine Beast.
(Technical Note: Upgrade your view setting to 480p, tab in lower right corner... compression is delicate on this one...)
Risque, eh? Naw, just another day in the CINE LAB...
A tip of the cap, and kiss for your mother:
CINEPLOSION Productions 2010
Yes sir, in anticipation for the new album, “To Smithereens,” to be released March 2011 on Skin Graft Records, our team of technicians compiled videotape of frontman, Daniel Luedtke, during a visit to the Great White North this past November. The footage was taken at the artist/musician’s loft and apartment in Southeast Minneapolis, consisting of an attic printshop-turned-movieset and various domestic nooks around the living space. In advance payment for the video, we graciously and eagerly accepted a collection of Luedtke’s topnotch DANIMAL GRAFFFIX prints, distinctive imagery mostly chronicling highlights of the Minneapolis DIY music scene from the past half decade.
Once back in Hot Springs, local heartthrob and blue collar Arkansan, Justin Castleberry (drummer for Man Against Fire, Mother Hug, The Holly Shakes and others), was summoned for a studio shoot. Hardened by a lifetime of lumber cutting and window installation, Mr. Castleberry proved the perfect subject for our roboerotic fantasy.
Within the video, a somber yet lustfully determined Luedtke is portrayed as the voyeur of thoughts, meticulously devouring each carnal mindwave like a rich kid’s rib dinner. The large, imposing male figure is lifelessly crushing in posture, a Pure Body pulsating with strength and cool primal vigor. It is not the person or soul that beguile the viewer, but the raw form, the seductive structure, itself.
Luedtke’s wade through malcontent, tenacious domesticity is finally idealized at the climax of the video, as budding tension spills from the hands of the masculine Beast.
(Technical Note: Upgrade your view setting to 480p, tab in lower right corner... compression is delicate on this one...)
Risque, eh? Naw, just another day in the CINE LAB...
A tip of the cap, and kiss for your mother:
CINEPLOSION Productions 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Tour Recap!
MENTAL MISSION shot thru the spine of America last week, sprinkling acidic visual madness on all supple pink brains in it's path. 1st Public Showing, Mission 6, 11/16/2010, was held at the Dandy House in Fayetteville, Arkansas. A historic and monumental moment to be sure, house show bonanza, mind-melting the bedsheets on fire. We were awarded a brand new, freshly-made and delivered pizza and crash couches for this virgin expedition. Hooray, feed n sleep. A reward for altering minds and realities, Hooray.
Mission 7 was held at the Lemon Drop art space in Springfield, Missouri, 11/17/2010. A delightful space in a delightful city, burning video waves into the whites of all eyes attending. "The real Mission begins and ends in your very own mind," red-eyed, giggly patrons were warned just before Showtime."The real Mission is that which is inside of you, that of your very essence that wishes to be told."
The Mission began with a bang, producing Phase 1-- the longest, and perhaps the best, individual phase to date. Yes, stops were pulled and a vortex was sprung. A buzz filled the space, perhaps proliferated by a prelude multicolored hulu dance display to the gods of video manipulation. Regardless, hulu hooping is now readily encouraged by MENTAL MISSION and CINEPLOSION Productions-- perhaps a resolution should be put in place for a pro hulu girl at every show... yes, perhaps.
Mission 8 was held 11/20/2010 at the infamous MEDUSA in Minneapolis, a name uttered with caution yet an unassuming pillar of midwestern, historical underground culture. MENTAL MISSION provided special visual projectile surrounding for several participating acts, including headliner GAY BEAST, which has an unreleased track in our CINEPLOSION labs currently awaiting visual enhancement. Look for a brand new Gay Beast video posted on these premises in the coming weeks!
Now, Ladies and Gentlemen, we will bring you a snippets from Mission 6, 7, 8:
Mission 7 was held at the Lemon Drop art space in Springfield, Missouri, 11/17/2010. A delightful space in a delightful city, burning video waves into the whites of all eyes attending. "The real Mission begins and ends in your very own mind," red-eyed, giggly patrons were warned just before Showtime."The real Mission is that which is inside of you, that of your very essence that wishes to be told."
The Mission began with a bang, producing Phase 1-- the longest, and perhaps the best, individual phase to date. Yes, stops were pulled and a vortex was sprung. A buzz filled the space, perhaps proliferated by a prelude multicolored hulu dance display to the gods of video manipulation. Regardless, hulu hooping is now readily encouraged by MENTAL MISSION and CINEPLOSION Productions-- perhaps a resolution should be put in place for a pro hulu girl at every show... yes, perhaps.
Mission 8 was held 11/20/2010 at the infamous MEDUSA in Minneapolis, a name uttered with caution yet an unassuming pillar of midwestern, historical underground culture. MENTAL MISSION provided special visual projectile surrounding for several participating acts, including headliner GAY BEAST, which has an unreleased track in our CINEPLOSION labs currently awaiting visual enhancement. Look for a brand new Gay Beast video posted on these premises in the coming weeks!
Now, Ladies and Gentlemen, we will bring you a snippets from Mission 6, 7, 8:
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Live "Mental Mission" samples! Tour dates!
"Mental Mission" will be plowing through the Midwest from Nov. 16-23, 2010. Each stop will include a live "journey to the center of the mind" mission, and a limited supply of VHS tapes of each night's set will be available for retail.
Dates:
11/16- Fayetteville AR (Dandy House)
11/17- Springfield MO (Lemon Drop)
11/18- Kansas City MO (tentative)
11/19- OFF
11/20- Minneapolis- Medusa
11/21- Madison, WI (tentative)
11/23- St. Louis, MO (tentative)
Dates:
11/16- Fayetteville AR (Dandy House)
11/17- Springfield MO (Lemon Drop)
11/18- Kansas City MO (tentative)
11/19- OFF
11/20- Minneapolis- Medusa
11/21- Madison, WI (tentative)
11/23- St. Louis, MO (tentative)
New Music Video!!!
CINEPLOSION has just produced a new music video for Zak Solo!
"Emptiness in My Heart" off the brand-spankin'-new Autopilot album was rung through the lab in Hot Springs National Park, and this is the result. Directed by Dan Anderson and Bobby Missile. Technology and editing by Dan Anderson. Zak Solo portrayed by Himself. CINEPLOSION Productions 2010
"Emptiness in My Heart" off the brand-spankin'-new Autopilot album was rung through the lab in Hot Springs National Park, and this is the result. Directed by Dan Anderson and Bobby Missile. Technology and editing by Dan Anderson. Zak Solo portrayed by Himself. CINEPLOSION Productions 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Mission 4
Editor's Note: "Mission 3" was potentially the greatest to date, but alas, was rendered a mute-- deaf and dumb to a world that could never contain it. No plans have been made to release this "failed" mission, although an archive of the complete 60 min VHS does exist in the known world and is available upon special request.
"Mission 4" was a grind, slow to develop but full on tenacious, spunk-soaked tremor. It proved the most prolific mission to date, producing 10 phases in 60 min, eight of which are now available on the Internet (Phases 2 & 10 omitted as of this writing). This mission was completed Monday, October 11, 2010, but it's release had been delayed until the conclusion of the 19th Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival. Entitled: "Please Don't Forget," this mission odes it's future to the past, rimming the realm of subconscious inevitability. The true truth lies in its analog stream of polarized magnetism; though venture not too near, as even your dulled liquid crystal display may have the power to pull a lost soul into it's void. Please Don't Forget:
"Mission 4" was a grind, slow to develop but full on tenacious, spunk-soaked tremor. It proved the most prolific mission to date, producing 10 phases in 60 min, eight of which are now available on the Internet (Phases 2 & 10 omitted as of this writing). This mission was completed Monday, October 11, 2010, but it's release had been delayed until the conclusion of the 19th Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival. Entitled: "Please Don't Forget," this mission odes it's future to the past, rimming the realm of subconscious inevitability. The true truth lies in its analog stream of polarized magnetism; though venture not too near, as even your dulled liquid crystal display may have the power to pull a lost soul into it's void. Please Don't Forget:
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Medio Mutante
Wow, just discovered one of my favorite bands making AMAZING videos.
Medio Mutante.
After a recent cross-country road trip these folks became top picks. Danceable yet chillable. Something that could be repeated almost to an eternity without getting repetitive or stale. Hypnotic. Fun. Mind expanding. Yes, something I enjoy for sure.
So here I look and they are doing some CINEPLOSION type moves, and I'm like,,,, whAAAAAaaaaaaa?!??????!????????!????
Geez, fellas... all us other experimental vid folks gotta up the game and hitch up the britches! Lordy!
Medio Mutante.
After a recent cross-country road trip these folks became top picks. Danceable yet chillable. Something that could be repeated almost to an eternity without getting repetitive or stale. Hypnotic. Fun. Mind expanding. Yes, something I enjoy for sure.
So here I look and they are doing some CINEPLOSION type moves, and I'm like,,,, whAAAAAaaaaaaa?!??????!????????!????
Geez, fellas... all us other experimental vid folks gotta up the game and hitch up the britches! Lordy!
Monday, September 20, 2010
Mission Two
Mental Mission completed it's second visual assignment on Wednesday, October 15. This proved to be a very difficult and taxing mission. The electronic vortex had somehow shifted, and our instruments struggled to maintain. Fortunately, out team made it out stroke-free, and caught several rare glimpse of eye twitched underside.
The full Mission Two, entitled= "Remember, I Love You," is estimated at one hour in length. A segment of this mission is thought to be lost-- perhaps hiding midway through a soap opera tape purchased at one Mt. Ida Thrift Shop--or perhaps gone the way of the wind for the sake our our own mischief . Either way, a somewhat more subdued and intense version, pounding in it's repetitive bland madness, has been collected and salvaged.
Now available on the Internet are three short clips from this mission. "Phase 1" is essentially a title card. instilling a sense of urgency in what must be done, and must be transmitted into your own Mind. Remember you must. Remember you must. Remember you must. Your mind and mine are now connected. For now until the end of time. "Phase 2" may be one of the more mentally unstable episodes to date. A moment of violence, cut and sealed. A loveable man slain by procedure, entombed by his own vain public entity. "Phase 3" is a momento from your heart to mine, from mine and then back again. Who are we without partners? Ah, not a "we," but a lonely one. Remember, I Love You:
The full Mission Two, entitled= "Remember, I Love You," is estimated at one hour in length. A segment of this mission is thought to be lost-- perhaps hiding midway through a soap opera tape purchased at one Mt. Ida Thrift Shop--or perhaps gone the way of the wind for the sake our our own mischief . Either way, a somewhat more subdued and intense version, pounding in it's repetitive bland madness, has been collected and salvaged.
Now available on the Internet are three short clips from this mission. "Phase 1" is essentially a title card. instilling a sense of urgency in what must be done, and must be transmitted into your own Mind. Remember you must. Remember you must. Remember you must. Your mind and mine are now connected. For now until the end of time. "Phase 2" may be one of the more mentally unstable episodes to date. A moment of violence, cut and sealed. A loveable man slain by procedure, entombed by his own vain public entity. "Phase 3" is a momento from your heart to mine, from mine and then back again. Who are we without partners? Ah, not a "we," but a lonely one. Remember, I Love You:
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Mental Mission
CINEPLOSION has officially organized a "Mental Mission" away team for special assignments. With each mission, the team will attempt a journey to the center of the mind; to find a place were time, space and dimension is a state of mind, merely an electronic wormhole away from reality.
On September 9, 2010, "Mental Mission" completed it's first mission, entitled, "Happy Birthday, Miss Arkansas." The mission was undertaken at the Exchange underground music venue in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas, as an experimental pilot voyage in preparation for public exhibitions.
Three short phases from this mission are now available through the Internet. A full 30 minute VHS version is available in very limited runs upon request.
On September 9, 2010, "Mental Mission" completed it's first mission, entitled, "Happy Birthday, Miss Arkansas." The mission was undertaken at the Exchange underground music venue in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas, as an experimental pilot voyage in preparation for public exhibitions.
Three short phases from this mission are now available through the Internet. A full 30 minute VHS version is available in very limited runs upon request.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Minneapolis update
Bearded Child Film Festival made a special appearance at an undisclosed location this past Saturday. The lineup included Phil chambliss' "The Paster and the Hobo," Jon Ennis' "Radio Active Beaver, Episode 1" and Matthew Silver's new work, "Love Comes Out of the Butt." The event celebrated 10 Years of the Bearded Child Film Festival featured CINEPLOSION live projections and live music from the Minneapolis underground, while encouraging spectators to dress in all white.
As a stoogie old avant-gardist, rarely does anything brick-shitting cross my desk. Well if I had a brick to shit it would be gladly passed, as MIKE ETOLL appeared on the scene and handed over a disk of brand new 2010 films. Wow, these unseen works knocked me flat with insane logic and the mental musings of a maniac. Somewhat similar to the work of Montreal's Volatile Works Collective and the Buharov Brothers of Hungary, mixed with a touch of Guy Maddin and maybe even Don Hertzfeldt. My word. Etoll is also said to have won a recent Jerome Foundation grant, which is a true tryumpt for Minnesota's grant community. The Jerome also funded Jason Wade's work-in-progress, Stabber, and makes me calm and elated for the future. Hopefully CINEPLOSION will get it's act together and release the work of these artists in the near future
With each visit to Minneapolis, I also forget how bad-ass the films of TREVOR ADAMS have become. Troll Eyes kicked me in the rear and made me wake up to this guy. Along with mega-genius BRYCE BEVERLIN and others, there is a scene here of artists that should be known and one day probably will-- whether it takes 100 days or 100 years.
Special thanks to JOSEF CARL BERNS for setting this all up, and to all the dedicated Grand Rapidians that showed to support-- it definitely made my day to know that Bearded Child has remained in the minds and makes me want to fire up this beast and role.
As a stoogie old avant-gardist, rarely does anything brick-shitting cross my desk. Well if I had a brick to shit it would be gladly passed, as MIKE ETOLL appeared on the scene and handed over a disk of brand new 2010 films. Wow, these unseen works knocked me flat with insane logic and the mental musings of a maniac. Somewhat similar to the work of Montreal's Volatile Works Collective and the Buharov Brothers of Hungary, mixed with a touch of Guy Maddin and maybe even Don Hertzfeldt. My word. Etoll is also said to have won a recent Jerome Foundation grant, which is a true tryumpt for Minnesota's grant community. The Jerome also funded Jason Wade's work-in-progress, Stabber, and makes me calm and elated for the future. Hopefully CINEPLOSION will get it's act together and release the work of these artists in the near future
With each visit to Minneapolis, I also forget how bad-ass the films of TREVOR ADAMS have become. Troll Eyes kicked me in the rear and made me wake up to this guy. Along with mega-genius BRYCE BEVERLIN and others, there is a scene here of artists that should be known and one day probably will-- whether it takes 100 days or 100 years.
Special thanks to JOSEF CARL BERNS for setting this all up, and to all the dedicated Grand Rapidians that showed to support-- it definitely made my day to know that Bearded Child has remained in the minds and makes me want to fire up this beast and role.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Special events in MINNEAPOLIS!
CINEPLOSION coming to MINNEAPOLIS:
Saturday, Aug 28 @ HEXAGON
CINEPLOSION live video projections:
* Music by KITTY RHOMBUS, HAWKS & OXEN,
* FUNERAL and the TWILIGHT, CEMETERY IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY
Saturday, Sept. 4 @ MEDUSA
BEARDED CHILD FILM FESTIVAL presents:
* Ultra-underground video works never before seen in Minnesota!
* Live video by CINEPLOSION & special guests!
* Mayhem & General Malarkey!
Saturday, Aug 28 @ HEXAGON
CINEPLOSION live video projections:
* Music by KITTY RHOMBUS, HAWKS & OXEN,
* FUNERAL and the TWILIGHT, CEMETERY IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY
Saturday, Sept. 4 @ MEDUSA
BEARDED CHILD FILM FESTIVAL presents:
* Ultra-underground video works never before seen in Minnesota!
* Live video by CINEPLOSION & special guests!
* Mayhem & General Malarkey!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Public Record, 1999-2017
For public record, films by Dan Anderson, 1999-2013
(Not including live performances)
Patas Monkey Revolt- 1999 (Montgomery Klinefelter w/Cri Du Chat)
Raw juvi-terror from the core of your inner being. Edited on two vcr's. Screened at the Really Independent Video Festival, Duluth, MN, 1999. VHS
En La Caja- 2000, 9min (Spanish, no subtitles) (Doug Hawkinson, Dan Anderson)
Two young spanish men dispute the ownership of a suit. Hi-8 video.
Emancipation- 2001, 11min (Montgomery Klinefelter)
Abraham Lincoln its driven to delirium by the insufferable, John Wilkes Booth, is an emancipation of Self. Hi-8 video.
The Little Business Man- 2002, 24min (as Montgomery Klinefelter, w/Montgomery Kedge)
A young man collapses into his own mind, in a paranoid transgression. Hi-8 video.
Time for Bed- 2002 (Montgomery Klinefelter)
Heartbreak of misplaced romance. miniDV.
Auto Domestication- 2003
Battle between the Id and Superego. Man Vs. Nature, super 8mm film. (on video)
Tea Party- 2003, 11min.
16mm film (edited on film, on video)
Cookies for Satan- 2004, 11min, Experimental Narrative (Dan Anderson)
Staring Aaron Coady (Sharon Needles), Shad Thompson, Brittany Gould (Married In Berdichev), Douglas Hawkinson. A man encounters the subconscious reality of his past, present and future.
The Joy of Leisure- 2004, 6min. Experimental (Dan Anderson)
Hand Processed Ektachrome 16mm color film. (Available on 16mm for screenings)
On Vacation- 2005, 6min. (Dan Anderson)
Two wealthy businessman (one man, one dog) take a vacation through Middle America. super 8mm (on video)
Idle Hours- 2008, 11min., Experimental Documentary (Dan Anderson)
Journey to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. super 8mm film (on film available)
Your Love So Cold- 2010 (music video w/William Blake Watson)
Sports on Fire- 2010 (Bobby Missile, Dan Anderson)
Bird Nest- 2010 (Bobby Missile, Dan Anderson)
Emptiness in My Heart- (w/Zak Solo, Bobby Missile)
Smithereens- 2010 (music video, Gay Beast w/Daniel Luedtke. Bobby Missile, Dan Anderson)
Food City- 2013, 11min (Dan Anderson)
Realities collide within the whirling vortex of a small Southern town. miniDV.
Daytime '1990- 2014 (Dan Anderson)
A remix of daytime television from late December 1990. VHS.
Majestic, 'o to Thee- 2017, 5min, super 8mm (Dan Anderson)
Experimental documentary chronicling the final days of the Majestic Hotel in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
Hope- 2017, 9-12 minutes, super 8mm (Dan Anderson)
An experimental documentary of the 2016 Hope Watermelon Festival in Hope, Arkansas.
Paris and the Caveman- 2017/2018, 16 minutes, 16mm and Super 8mm
Featuring Matthew Silver, with live music score by Fjord.
For purchase, screenings or synopsis, contact: bcfilmfest@gmail.com
(Not including live performances)
Patas Monkey Revolt- 1999 (Montgomery Klinefelter w/Cri Du Chat)
Raw juvi-terror from the core of your inner being. Edited on two vcr's. Screened at the Really Independent Video Festival, Duluth, MN, 1999. VHS
En La Caja- 2000, 9min (Spanish, no subtitles) (Doug Hawkinson, Dan Anderson)
Two young spanish men dispute the ownership of a suit. Hi-8 video.
Emancipation- 2001, 11min (Montgomery Klinefelter)
Abraham Lincoln its driven to delirium by the insufferable, John Wilkes Booth, is an emancipation of Self. Hi-8 video.
The Little Business Man- 2002, 24min (as Montgomery Klinefelter, w/Montgomery Kedge)
A young man collapses into his own mind, in a paranoid transgression. Hi-8 video.
Time for Bed- 2002 (Montgomery Klinefelter)
Heartbreak of misplaced romance. miniDV.
Auto Domestication- 2003
Battle between the Id and Superego. Man Vs. Nature, super 8mm film. (on video)
Tea Party- 2003, 11min.
16mm film (edited on film, on video)
Cookies for Satan- 2004, 11min, Experimental Narrative (Dan Anderson)
Staring Aaron Coady (Sharon Needles), Shad Thompson, Brittany Gould (Married In Berdichev), Douglas Hawkinson. A man encounters the subconscious reality of his past, present and future.
The Joy of Leisure- 2004, 6min. Experimental (Dan Anderson)
Hand Processed Ektachrome 16mm color film. (Available on 16mm for screenings)
On Vacation- 2005, 6min. (Dan Anderson)
Two wealthy businessman (one man, one dog) take a vacation through Middle America. super 8mm (on video)
Idle Hours- 2008, 11min., Experimental Documentary (Dan Anderson)
Journey to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. super 8mm film (on film available)
Your Love So Cold- 2010 (music video w/William Blake Watson)
Sports on Fire- 2010 (Bobby Missile, Dan Anderson)
Bird Nest- 2010 (Bobby Missile, Dan Anderson)
Emptiness in My Heart- (w/Zak Solo, Bobby Missile)
Smithereens- 2010 (music video, Gay Beast w/Daniel Luedtke. Bobby Missile, Dan Anderson)
Food City- 2013, 11min (Dan Anderson)
Realities collide within the whirling vortex of a small Southern town. miniDV.
Daytime '1990- 2014 (Dan Anderson)
A remix of daytime television from late December 1990. VHS.
Majestic, 'o to Thee- 2017, 5min, super 8mm (Dan Anderson)
Experimental documentary chronicling the final days of the Majestic Hotel in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
Hope- 2017, 9-12 minutes, super 8mm (Dan Anderson)
An experimental documentary of the 2016 Hope Watermelon Festival in Hope, Arkansas.
Paris and the Caveman- 2017/2018, 16 minutes, 16mm and Super 8mm
Featuring Matthew Silver, with live music score by Fjord.
For purchase, screenings or synopsis, contact: bcfilmfest@gmail.com
Monday, July 19, 2010
Underground/DIY Culture- The Emotron
While you'll be hard-pressed to find a classic "rave" outside Salt Lake City in 2010, underground DIY music and preforming arts venues remain-- and have thrived under the radar for the better part of a decade. Essentially, an underground or "house" show is an event that is all ages, typically BYOB, and typically a $5 donation or whatever you can afford. House shows stem from punk culture, allowing patrons and performers to rock and be rowdy without prejudice or limitations. Somewhere around the 2000/5, indie/hipster types began to redefine the definition of a house show, and it began to morph into more artsy type of entertainment.
What separates underground venues from alternative bars, dance clubs and non-profit arts spaces? Perhaps the main distinction is that the venue, by definition, is "illegal." These types of venues must rely on word of mouth, fliers and handouts-- and in more recent years, text messaging and the Internet. They cannot advertise openly, or risk a shut down by local city officials. However, as an illegal venue, virtually anything goes as a performer. An act can truly reach the boundaries of their craft, without worry. What are people gunna do, call the police?!
Unfortunately, house/DIY venues are rare to last more than a few shows before a shut-down occurs. Very similar to the old prohibition days of the speakeasies. Additionally, they are usually run by younger folk that move from year-to-year, and if the core moves, the venue often dies. Some prominent DIY venues that have lasted some time include Monkey Mania and later Rhinoseropolus in Denver, Medusa in Minneapolis, and The Exchange in Arkansas. San Francisco is home to the infamous traveling military bus, large enough to host bands, and traveling where the police are not. Mierda Verde in Madison, WI was once a model warehouse venue, before Rich Albertoni and "The Isthmus" shut it down for good. Virtually every state has at least one DIY venue of some kind, but you gots to go out and find it!
***
Performers at these venues are generally too outlandish or forward-thinking for the average crowd, and tour from house to house, warehouse to warehouse, making between $30-80 for an average gig. They are true mavericks of the road, and true artists of our times. Recently, I caught "The Emotron" in Hot Springs National Park, AR. He brings a show presence that is raw, primal and intensely "human." The show began with an "origin of life" style insect video, broadcast over 10 television sets surrounding a fenced-in nest. At an introductory climax of the video, The Emotron emerges, much like the first evolutionary fish from the sea. He could be Gollum's sleazy uncle, singing karaoke at your grandpa's VFW club. But, rather, he is at your local DIY club, vomiting and bellowing over maybe two dozen young hip culture vultures who, like it or not, are getting their minds permanently blown.
Hooray for Culture!
What separates underground venues from alternative bars, dance clubs and non-profit arts spaces? Perhaps the main distinction is that the venue, by definition, is "illegal." These types of venues must rely on word of mouth, fliers and handouts-- and in more recent years, text messaging and the Internet. They cannot advertise openly, or risk a shut down by local city officials. However, as an illegal venue, virtually anything goes as a performer. An act can truly reach the boundaries of their craft, without worry. What are people gunna do, call the police?!
Unfortunately, house/DIY venues are rare to last more than a few shows before a shut-down occurs. Very similar to the old prohibition days of the speakeasies. Additionally, they are usually run by younger folk that move from year-to-year, and if the core moves, the venue often dies. Some prominent DIY venues that have lasted some time include Monkey Mania and later Rhinoseropolus in Denver, Medusa in Minneapolis, and The Exchange in Arkansas. San Francisco is home to the infamous traveling military bus, large enough to host bands, and traveling where the police are not. Mierda Verde in Madison, WI was once a model warehouse venue, before Rich Albertoni and "The Isthmus" shut it down for good. Virtually every state has at least one DIY venue of some kind, but you gots to go out and find it!
***
Performers at these venues are generally too outlandish or forward-thinking for the average crowd, and tour from house to house, warehouse to warehouse, making between $30-80 for an average gig. They are true mavericks of the road, and true artists of our times. Recently, I caught "The Emotron" in Hot Springs National Park, AR. He brings a show presence that is raw, primal and intensely "human." The show began with an "origin of life" style insect video, broadcast over 10 television sets surrounding a fenced-in nest. At an introductory climax of the video, The Emotron emerges, much like the first evolutionary fish from the sea. He could be Gollum's sleazy uncle, singing karaoke at your grandpa's VFW club. But, rather, he is at your local DIY club, vomiting and bellowing over maybe two dozen young hip culture vultures who, like it or not, are getting their minds permanently blown.
Hooray for Culture!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Analog Explosion
cinePLOSION!!! produced three analog short film experiments between Dec.'09-March'10. They were all completed without computers, with the exception of transferring them to be seen here, and some minor edits by William Blake Watson on "Your Love So Cold."
"Sports on Fire"
visuals: Dan Anderson, script: Bobby Missile, music:Bobby Missile/Anna Wingfield.
"Bird Nest"
visuals: Dan Anderson, script: Bobby Missile, music: Bobby Missile
"Your Love So Cold"
visuals/direction: Dan Anderson, music/editing: William Blake Watson
"Sports on Fire"
visuals: Dan Anderson, script: Bobby Missile, music:Bobby Missile/Anna Wingfield.
"Bird Nest"
visuals: Dan Anderson, script: Bobby Missile, music: Bobby Missile
"Your Love So Cold"
visuals/direction: Dan Anderson, music/editing: William Blake Watson
cinePLOSION!!!
cinePLOSION!!! is a multi-media visual dance party. It is an offshoot of the Bearded Child Traveling Film Festival. The idea is to present experimental film and live media in a way that is interactive and fun. Traditionally, experimental film has been shown in underground venues where the audience sits and watches in a darkened space of some kind.
However, in the 1960s and 70s film began to merge with the party culture of the time. Andy Warhol was one of the first innovators, with his "Exploding Plastic Inevitable." He would project 16mm film footage of The Velvet Underground over the band playing live, often wheeling the projector closer and farther from the stage in a cart to change the aspect of the projection. One of their most noted performances was at the 1967 Ann Arbor Film Festival in Michigan, just before Warhol & Nico's widespread fame. He was also one of the first to produce double projection movies, in which two projections would be shown side-by-side via two separate projectors. "Chelsea Girls" is his most famous double projection.
During the 60s/70s era, "liquid slides" and other psychedelic visual projections were common place at parties and alternative club settings. These ideas originated from the magic lantern shows, which date back to the mid/late 1800s. A magic lantern was essentially a slide image "shadow" that could be manipulated in various ways by a skilled illusionist. Today, artists such as Ken Jacobs and Courtney Hopkins have used magic lantern techniques in academic and other cultural settings. Jacobs' "Nervous Magic Lantern" is said to produce a 3D image that can be observed even with one eye closed. (traditional 3D requires the perception of two eyes for full effect.) The flicker image of this work is also cautioned as potentially inducing epileptic seizures.
Today's premiere multi-visual traveling performers include Projexorcism, Bill Brown/Sabine Gruffat, Roger Beebe and Potter-Belmar Labs. Holiganship has traveled extensively with animated visuals, while Animal Charm pioneered VHS mixing in the early 90s.
The current version of cinePLOSION!!! is completely computer free, utilizing dated video mixers, security camera, and feedback loops. Performances began in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas in Feb. 2009 (sans one 2005 showing at the High Noon Saloon in Madison, WI). The the visuals are manipulated by Dan Anderson (your author), and a rotating mix of collaborators that have included Bobby Missile, Shane English, William Blake Watson, Micheal Shaefer, and others. Below are a few samples of performances:
First Show, Feb. 09 at Low Key Arts:
No Funeral, March '10 at the Exchange:
Blue Screen Skyline, May '10 at Low Key Arts:
Free form projection, May '10 at Low Key Arts:
However, in the 1960s and 70s film began to merge with the party culture of the time. Andy Warhol was one of the first innovators, with his "Exploding Plastic Inevitable." He would project 16mm film footage of The Velvet Underground over the band playing live, often wheeling the projector closer and farther from the stage in a cart to change the aspect of the projection. One of their most noted performances was at the 1967 Ann Arbor Film Festival in Michigan, just before Warhol & Nico's widespread fame. He was also one of the first to produce double projection movies, in which two projections would be shown side-by-side via two separate projectors. "Chelsea Girls" is his most famous double projection.
During the 60s/70s era, "liquid slides" and other psychedelic visual projections were common place at parties and alternative club settings. These ideas originated from the magic lantern shows, which date back to the mid/late 1800s. A magic lantern was essentially a slide image "shadow" that could be manipulated in various ways by a skilled illusionist. Today, artists such as Ken Jacobs and Courtney Hopkins have used magic lantern techniques in academic and other cultural settings. Jacobs' "Nervous Magic Lantern" is said to produce a 3D image that can be observed even with one eye closed. (traditional 3D requires the perception of two eyes for full effect.) The flicker image of this work is also cautioned as potentially inducing epileptic seizures.
Today's premiere multi-visual traveling performers include Projexorcism, Bill Brown/Sabine Gruffat, Roger Beebe and Potter-Belmar Labs. Holiganship has traveled extensively with animated visuals, while Animal Charm pioneered VHS mixing in the early 90s.
The current version of cinePLOSION!!! is completely computer free, utilizing dated video mixers, security camera, and feedback loops. Performances began in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas in Feb. 2009 (sans one 2005 showing at the High Noon Saloon in Madison, WI). The the visuals are manipulated by Dan Anderson (your author), and a rotating mix of collaborators that have included Bobby Missile, Shane English, William Blake Watson, Micheal Shaefer, and others. Below are a few samples of performances:
First Show, Feb. 09 at Low Key Arts:
No Funeral, March '10 at the Exchange:
Blue Screen Skyline, May '10 at Low Key Arts:
Free form projection, May '10 at Low Key Arts:
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Cookies for Satan
This is just a clip from a flick called "Cookies for Satan." This was about 2003/4, 11minutes, shot on super8mm. Some video in the full short. The actual movie is composed of three "nightmares" that the main character encounters while suffering from a severe "reality attack."
This may have been the most memorable clip, but the other scenes have full cryptic intensity as well.
Hope to release on cinePLOSION!!! some day, with five similar film shorts never posted online.
Premiered at Cinema Nova in Brussels, Belgium. Later showed at the Brainwash Movies Fest in Oakland, CA.
Notice that Sharon Needles is featured, and is now a bit of an online drag celebrity. Look up the name on youtube-- truly underground and hilarious.
This may have been the most memorable clip, but the other scenes have full cryptic intensity as well.
Hope to release on cinePLOSION!!! some day, with five similar film shorts never posted online.
Premiered at Cinema Nova in Brussels, Belgium. Later showed at the Brainwash Movies Fest in Oakland, CA.
Notice that Sharon Needles is featured, and is now a bit of an online drag celebrity. Look up the name on youtube-- truly underground and hilarious.
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