Four works, from four different nations with four different approaches to the theme of mobility will come together in Brazil for Impakt Abroad's new programme: On The Move. This programme presents some of the best works that were entered into the Impakt Festival 2009 dealing with movement and mobility, and will be screened on different locations throughout November and December as part of the arte.mov festival.

The On The Move programme features: Interstices by Michel Pavlou, Empire's Border I by Chen Chieh-Jen, Jalkeilla Taas (aka Up And About Again) by Maarit Suomi-Väänänen and Ketamine/Behind the Light by Carsten Aschmann. Four very different works. But, each in their own way, very beautiful.

The filmmakers haven chosen cinematographic styles fitting to their
respective subjects. Interstices and Empire's Border I are both shot
in black and white, but whereas Michel Pavlou films in a grainy, high
contrast style, Chen Chieh-Jen's film is much smoother and colder. In Empire's Border, we hear the stories of Taiwanese women and the
trouble they had to go through to apply for a US visa (which most of
them eventually did not receive). They are filmed at an empty airport, emphasizing the cold and heartless way these women were treated during their application interviews. Interstices consists of a series of scenes edited to the rhythm of the trains' sliding doors. Here, Pavlou's dark style helps us focus not on the people on the train, or on the publicity panels scrolling by, but on the spaces in between.
Ketamine and Jalkeilla Taas are both filmed in colour and have a more positive feel to them. In Ketamine we see shots of beautiful scenery with voices in the background talking about the beauty of our Earth and the achieving of true wisdom. Aschmann takes the viewer on a trip in this film, along beaches, through valleys and
tunnels to Venice, where so many artists have traveled over the years to search for beauty and inspiration. In Jalkeilla Taas we are also led through a beautiful landscape, this time in Finland. But here, it is not about the beauty of the land, the nice view. We see an old, almost-falling-apart Datsun, covered in snow, driving quietly down a hill. Suddenly there are explosions. Something snaps. A Finnish rockband sings "WAKE UP! WAKE UP!" while the car is drifting, almost spinning out of control. Then, all is quiet again. We are left with questions, What happened? What caused this sudden snap? What made the car go crazy like that? And why?

For more information on the On The Move programme, click here.

Written by: Nikki Gijselhart