From The East

From Carl:

Next Monday we are to watch a feature length experimental documentary, the presentation of which will take the entire class.

Chantal Akerman's "D'Est" (From the East) (16mm, color/sound, 1993) was motivated by the fall of the Soviet Union, Akerman feeling the need to travel through Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Bloc, to capture on film a landscape, a people, about to be transformed, perhaps, by change.

The film will take the entire class time. (Screening starts at 11am sharp!) To get you to start thinking about the film, you will need to do 3 short readings.

1) "On D'Est" by Chantal Akerman.
The directors thoughts on her motivation for making the film; her thoughts and connections to the subject matter.
You can find this reading on the content page of the D2L site.

2) "'D'Est': Akerman Variations" by Catherine David
An essay on Akerman's film. It also touches on the 3 room installation version of the film that Akerman made.
You can find this essay on the Electronic Reserve, under my name in the E Reserve section of the Library Catalogue

3) "Akerman Chronology," detailing her remarkable career and influences up to her making of "D'Est." She cites, for instance, Michael Snow and Jonas Mekas as central influences. You can find this essay on the Electronic Reserve, under my name in the E Reserve section of the Library Catalogue

The screening of "D'Est" is presented as a companion to a program of films by Russian filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa that is being offered as part of the free Experimental Tuesdays screening series at the UWM Student Union on February 20. Loznitsa has been documenting the transformation of his country since the fall of the Soviet Union. His haunting documentaries are notable for their observation, their suggestion, the beauty of his photography. Not required, attendance at this Tuesday evening screening is strongly encouraged, especially for those interested in shooting film, in documentary/nonfiction, in pictorial composition. (I will be sending -- at least one -- email to you all about this.)

Comparing his and Akerman's approaches to their subject matter - their sense of time, the activity of their cameras, their editing styles - could make for a most interesting blog entry.

I'll be emailing you some questions regarding "D'Est" -- offered as prompts for your thinking, or perhaps reference points - prior to Mondays class.