Ism, Ism, Ism: Poetics of Space: 8mm Films from Argentina
Ism, Ism, Ism: Poetics of Space: 8mm Films from Argentina
Friday, 19 January 2018 - 7:30 pm
At the UCLA Film & Television Archive, Billy Wilder Theatre, 10899 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90024
Tickets: $10 general; $8 seniors, UCLA Alumni Association members, & non-UCLA students; free for UCLA students and Filmforum members. Tickets available in advance at http://emarket.cinema.ucla.edu/ShoppingCenter/Details.aspx?ref=953 or at the door.
The arrival of Super 8, in the mid-1960s, meant the most radical expansion of the cinematic field of action until that historical moment. By means of these inexpensive, light and automated small-format cameras, cinema began a new stage, distanced from the specific and exclusionary technical knowledge of historical filmmaking, Super 8 proposed an inclusive and informal amateurism. Throughout Latin America, and in particular in Argentina (where Super 8 production remains active to this day), Super 8 was adopted early by occasional filmmakers, but, above all, by a handful of artists who saw in Super 8 an opportunity to capture personal explorations that would redefine the very limits of the technology. Driven by concepts from painting, music and philosophy, the films of this program compose a challenging panorama of what could be called an aesthetics of reduction, concentration and innovation carried out during the last fifty years of Argentine experimental cinema. -- Pablo Marín
La llegada del Super 8, a mediados de los años sesenta, significó la más radical ampliación del campo de acción cinematográfico a escala mundial hasta ese momento. Mediante las cámaras económicas, livianas y automatizadas del pequeño formato, el cine comenzaba una nueva etapa alejada ya de los conocimientos técnicos específicos para proponer una visión inclusiva y descontracturada del amateurismo. En todo el territorio latinoamericano, y puntualmente en Argentina (donde la producción permanece activa hasta el día de hoy), el Super 8 fue adoptado tempranamente por cineastas ocasionales, pero sobre todo por un puñado de artistas que vieron en esa tecnología una puerta abierta para plasmar exploraciones personales que terminarían por redefinir los límites mismos de esa tecnología. Potenciados por conceptos provenientes de la pintura, la música y la filosofía, los films de este programa componen un panorama desafiante de lo que podría llamarse una estética de la rducción, concentración e innovación llevada adelante durante los últimos cincuenta años del cine experimental argentino. - Pablo Marín
This screening is part of Los Angeles Filmforum’s screening series Ism, Ism, Ism: Experimental Cinema in Latin America (Ismo, Ismo, Ismo: Cine experimental en América Latina). Ism, Ism, Ism is an unprecedented, five-month film series—the first in the U.S.—that surveys Latin America’s vibrant experimental production from the 1930s through today. Revisiting classic titles and introducing recent works by key figures and emerging artists, Ism, Ism, Ism takes viewers on a journey through a wealth of materials culled from unexpected corners of Latin American film archives. Key historical and contemporary works from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, México, Paraguay, Perú, Uruguay, Venezuela, Puerto Rico and the United States will be featured. Many of the works in the series are largely unknown in the United States and most screenings will include national and area premieres, with many including Q&A discussions with filmmakers and scholars following the screening. The film series will continue through January 2018 at multiple venues, organized by Filmforum. www.ismismism.org
Ism, Ism, Ism is accompanied by a bilingual publication, Ism, Ism, Ism / Ismo, Ismo, Ismo: Experimental Cinema in Latin America (Jesse Lerner and Luciano Piazza, editors, University of California Press, 2017) placing Latino and Latin American experimental cinema within a broader dialogue that explores different periods, cultural contexts, image-making models, and considerations of these filmmakers within international cinema. Available worldwide, https://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520296084.
Ism, Ism, Ism is part of Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA, a far-reaching and ambitious exploration of Latin American and Latino art in dialogue with Los Angeles. Explore more at www.ismismism.org, lafilmforum.org, and www.pacificstandardtime.org.
Lead support for Ism, Ism, Ism is provided through grants from the Getty Foundation.
Significant additional support comes from the Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts.
Pacific Standard Time is an initiative of the Getty. The presenting sponsor is Bank of America.
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This program is supported by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission; the Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles. We also depend on our members, ticket buyers, and individual donors.
Los Angeles Filmforum is the city’s longest-running organization dedicated to weekly screenings of experimental film, documentaries, video art, and experimental animation. 2018 is our 43rd year.
