Film Notes

The latest segment of THE IMPROBABLE MADE POSSIBLE, a roaming series showcasing contemporary avant-garde cinema, FAREWELL FROM A DYING STAR attempts to make cinematic sense of direct observation and its wayfaring counterpart, speculative fiction.

This program marvels at mesmeric outlooks on place – as viewed by Chris Lynn in Baoying, China; Margaret Rorison in Baltimore, Maryland; and Brendan and Jeremy Smyth in Bali, Indonesia – and embraces the enigmatic materiality of celluloid as manifested in Marika Borgeson’s sun print, Josh Lewis’s vertical exposures, John Price’s outdated film stocks, and Robert Schaller’s handmade pinhole apparatus.

20th century histories are also affected in THE HANDEYE (BONE GHOSTS), which stages a very special séance between Robert Musil and Frans Anton Mesmer, and in PLACES WITH MEANING, which stresses a reverberating representation of the Microsoft font, Webdings.

Resonating throughout this program are the echo, as evoked by Emily Richardson, “that reflects the unheard elements present in the earth’s atmosphere,” and the projection, in the words of Toby Tatum, “of an improbable realm, stitched together from a kit of warring elements into a fantastic whole.”

Curated by Lorenzo Gattorna, THE IMPROBABLE MADE POSSIBLE has previously made stops at Spectacle Theater, UnionDocs and Antimatter [Media Art].

Josh Lewis DOUBT #2 (2013, 5.5 min, 16mm)
Toby Tatum A WORLD ASSEMBLED (2013, 3 min, digital)
Emily Richardson REDSHIFT (2001, 4 min, 16mm)
Chris Lynn BAOYING WINDOW (2013, 4.5 min, digital)
Brendan and Jeremy Smyth DEATH SONGS & CAR BOMBS (2013, 6.5 min, 16mm-to-digital)
Scott Fitzpatrick, PLACES WITH MEANING (2013, 3 min, 16mm-to-digital)
Margaret Rorison SCANSION (2012, 8 min, 16mm-to-digital)
Anja Dornieden & Juan David González Monroy THE HANDEYE (BONE GHOSTS) (2012, 7 min, 16mm, b&w)
Robert Schaller UNDER THE SHADOW OF MARCUS MOUNTAIN (2011, 5.5 min, 16mm, b&w, silent)
James Sansing VERSES (2008-12, 4 min, 35mm, b&w/color, silent)
Stefan Grabowski LONG WAY FROM HOME (2013, 2.5 min, digital)
John Price SEA SERIES 9 & 13 (2013, 5.5 min, 35mm)
Mary Ancel THE BRIDGE (2013, 1.5 min, digital, silent)
Marika Borgeson THE STARRY MESSENGER (2013, 19.5 min, 16mm, silent)

Total running time: ca. 85 min.

Thanks Lorenzo!