From: Thomas Beard (email suppressed)
Date: Sun Jun 11 2006 - 12:36:05 PDT
Ocularis
at Galapagos Art Space
70 North 6th Street, Brooklyn
http://www.ocularis.net/
Mood Alterations
Monday, June 12 at 8 PM
The MadCat Womenıs International Film Festival makes a pit stop in Brooklyn
with these alternately loving and disturbing 16mm portraits from Austria,
France, Germany, Mexico and the US. Filmmakers use editing, optical printing
and camera movement (or lack there of) to create an ethnographic study of
Romania, a musical peek at a girl on the verge of puberty and a pulsating
found footage bonanza, among other stories.
donıt leave without news
Christine Khalafian, 18 min, 2005, Armenia/US
Russian children do cartwheels, men play soccer, nomads wander the land, a
tightrope walker impresses tourists, and villagers embark on a pilgrimage to
a buried relic. Shot in modern-day Armenia, the traveling filmmaker captures
chance encounters, conversations from field recordings, interviews, and
narrative insights offered on the way. No famous landmarks or distinct
ethnic symbols clue in the viewer. Eschewing the obvious relationship
between sound and image, this travelerıs fantasy creates an amalgam of the
harshness of life in a struggling post-Soviet republic.
Contemplating the City (Contemplando La Ciudad)
Angela Reginato, 4 min, 2005, Mexico
Perfectly without affect, a girl sings along with a pop tune, transporting
herself through space and time to Mexico City circa 1978.
Picture Again
Linda Christanell, 9 min, 2003, Austria
Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray star in this sultry reframing of Double
Indemnity. Freed from the confines of Billy Wilderıs narrative, the film
links this classic Hollywood film noir to Christanell's own stunning footage
taken in the streets of Berlin and Madrid.
The Influence of Ocular Light Perception on Metabolism
Stella Friedrichs and Thomas Draschan, 5 min, 2005, Austria/Germany
A rhythmically edited found-footage celebration of nature. Set to a driving
beat with snippets of found sound, this is nature like you have never seen
it... Come and take a colorful, sexual five-minute ride.
Bubonic Prairie
Mary Beth Reed, 3 min, 2005, US
An elegant hand-painted swath of color and texture.
Ice/Sea
Vivian Ostrovsky, 32 min, 2004, France
Ostrovskyıs latest tour-de-force combines her signature style of montage
cinemamixing found footage with her own shot footage. Ice/Sea offers a
hyperactive and hilarious seaside romp from Patagonia to Odessa, Rio to
Vietnam, and elsewhere. The rollicking at a channel-surfing pace proves
experimental cinema can have a joyous edge and a sense of humor. The
soundtrack has an ingenious tidal flow of found and created sound that
propels this rambling document of sheer, sandy fun. Ostrovsky, who grew up
in Rio de Janeiro, has captured the essence of how life is a beach--the
commingling of families, couples and playmates, the languorous
sun-worshiping repose, the irresistible compulsion for leering, the
cavalcade of characters, and the surprises beyond the inevitable
sand-in-your-suit. The celebrated avant-gardist has wryly advised, ³Wear
your flip flops.² Watch for a cameo appearance by fellow filmmaker Ulrike
Ottinger.
Curated by Ariella Ben-Dov.
Ticket Price - $6
http://www.madcatfilmfestival.org/
About Ocularis
Ocularis is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization that provides a forum for
the exhibition of independent, experimental and documentary film/video and
new media, as well as international and repertory cinema. Established in
1996 as a rooftop film series catering to local audiences in North Brooklyn,
it has since evolved into a weekly cinema, a producer of collaborative
film/video work and a summer open-air screening series.
-- Thomas Beard Program Director Ocularis at Galapagos Art Space 70 North 6th Street Brooklyn, NY 11211 http://www.ocularis.net __________________________________________________________________ For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.