From: Jonathan Walley (email suppressed)
Date: Tue Jul 22 2008 - 12:23:00 PDT
Jake,
I was in Madison as a film studies grad student from 1996-2004, and was
involved in avant-garde film programming for much of that time. I did a
couple of series at the Madison Art Center, a very nice venue dedicated
to modern and contemporary art; all screenings were well attended, with
audiences ranging from 40 to over 100. The Art Center has since morphed
into the larger Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (MMOCA, the most
strained acronym since DUMBO), but there are still agf screenings
there. Tom Yoshikami is a grad student in film studies (which is in the
Communication Arts Department) who has been doing screenings at MMOCA.
I'm sure he'd be interested in hearing from you - you can tell him I
gave you his name. Here's a link to the MMOCA's recent screening
schedule, including films by Roberts Breer and Nelson, and a tribute to
Helen Hill:
http://www.mmoca.org/events/filmseries/index.php
Getting in touch with the film studies folks at UW would be worthwhile,
as many of them get involved in programming. And there's always the
UW-Cinematheque, in operation since about 1998, which shows a
staggering variety of film work in an excellent venue. It is typically
run by film studies faculty members, but a lot of input and work comes
from grad students. It's quiet during the summer, but during the school
year the Cinematheque mounts major programs - one of the first, in
which I participated (along with fellow Frameworker and Madisonian Jim
Kreul), was a Warhol retrospective.
http://cinema.wisc.edu/index.php
Starlight Cinema, an alternative student screening series at UW that
has been running forever, has always been receptive to avant-garde
cinema:
http://www.union.wisc.edu/film/starlight.html
Around the time I was wrapping up my work in Madison, a lot was going
on cinematically - new micro venues popped up, an "arts district"
(including the MMOCA) was in development, and the Wisconsin Film
Festival had really grown. I've not had my finger on the pulse of
Madison film culture since about '05, but I'm sure you'll find the city
very receptive to avant-garde film screenings. Good luck!
Best,
Jonathan
Jonathan Walley
Assistant Professor, Cinema Department
Denison University
Granville, Ohio 43023
http://www.denison.edu/academics/departments/cinema/jwalley.html
On Jul 18, 2008, at 2:36 PM, Jake B. wrote:
> This might be a bit specific for this board but here it is: In 13 days
> I'll be leaving Chicago for the smaller, more manageable city of
> Madison. My goal in moving there is to establish something of a
> regular screening series dedicated to Avant-Garde cinema (as well as
> having an affordable apartment with a porch and back-yard). Seeing as
> how I'll be something of a new fish in the pond, I seek contacts as
> well as advice on how to get this modest project off the ground. I'm
> aware that Bill Brown and Sabine Gruffat have recently moved there
> (feel free to contact me). I'm also aware that former LaSalle Bank
> cinema programmer Mike King has recently moved there as well (no idea
> if he'd have any interest...) Once again, if anyone has any advice or
> contacts, I'd be greatly appreciative.
>
> -Jake Barningham
>
> __________________________________________________________________ For
> info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.
>
__________________________________________________________________
For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.