Second Nature in New York   Date: Wednesday 19 November, 7:30 PM Location: MonkeyTown, 58 N 3rd Street (Williamsburg) Tickets: $5 / $10 Minimum Reservations: www.monkeytownhq.com Second Nature Humans and animals are sometimes no more than an inch apart. Literally, because they share habitats, or figuratively, because some people behave like animals and animals sometimes have human characteristics. Beginnings, Roy Villevoye (The Netherlands 2005, 18:40 min) In Beginnings, Villevoye plays with the genre of documentary without strictly complying with its rules. Many people regard his films, which on previous occasions were often made in cooperation with Jan Dietvorst, simply as documentaries, although this is what Villevoye is precisely trying to avoid. No voice-overs, no condensation of time using specific methods of editing, no unambiguous story that has to be told – in fact none of the characteristics of a standard documentary can be found in a film such as Beginnings, and yet we immediately think we understand what we are watching. We recognize the images, because we have seen 'naked and exotic people in the jungle' before; this will probably be about their typical customs and ideas. However, the viewer has been put on the wrong track here. Villevoye seems to want to say something about how much culture is left when we are naked in a forest. A great deal, as it turns out. Je Suis Une Bombe (I Am a Bomb), Elodie Pong (Switzerland 2006, 6:38 min) Pong presents a young woman wearing a panda bear costume. The woman dances around a pole, in the manner of striptease performers. At the end, she takes off her panda head and says repeatedly 'je suis une bombe'. In her videos Pong paints a kaleidoscopic picture of her own generation. She remains a bit aloof, but never severs the ties with her protagonists – she knows, after all, that she herself is deeply involved. Wir sind dir treu, Michael Koch (Germany 2005, 09:05 min) The Swiss football team FC Basel's crowd animator gives his all for the team: he decides what music to play at matches and choreographs the fans to peak performance. It's all about the energy and emotion he transmits to the fans and how he directs them. Or is it rather the game itself that the fans follow? Rubber Johnny Chris Cunningham & Aphex Twin (United Kingdom 2005, 06:01 min) Johnny is a hyperactive, shape-shifting mutant child, kept locked away in a basement. With only his feverish imagination and his terrified dog for company, he finds ways to amuse himself in the dark. Rubber Johnny is the latest creation from the UK's most imaginative filmmaker, Chris Cunningham. The hallucinatory experimental short film features music by legendary electronic composer Aphex Twin. Who I Am And What I Want, David Shrigley & Chris Shepherd (United Kingdom 2005, 07:03 min) A scribbled, strangely funny but highly unsettling examination of the human condition. The story of a man who bares his emotions, history, hang ups and desires in all of their dysfunctional absurdity, and then leaves us to assemble not only his identity but to question our own. The Bug Man, Marco Pando (The Netherlands 2006, 5:32 min) The Cockroach and the Beetle are insects that have very symbolic meaning in the world as small creatures of fantasy and imagination. I have created this story as a result of my desire to be honest. For this reason, I posed as political figure that makes promises, and has to fulfill his words. The symbolic transformation of the Bug Man who is displaced from the city (cockroach) to the country side (beetle) can be seen as a process of survival and rebirth. (Marco Pando) Rabbit, Run Wrake (United Kingdom 2005, 05:00 min) A dreamlike but dark story of lost innocence and the random justice of nature, told with curious images from a distant childhood. When an idol is found in the stomach of a rabbit, great riches follow, but for how long? Smile Heavy, Seth Scriver (Canada 2005, 3:23 min) Smile Heavy was made as a music video for the band Black Moth Super Rainbow's song Smile Heavy. The animation is an action adventure love story drama based on the fight between the good the bad and the oblivious. |
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