~ September 2016 ~

In the Beginning by Zaher Mousa

On 14 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 0 Comments - Videopoems
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“Poetry is the only way to speak during a period of chaos.”
—Zaher Mousa

A film adaptation of a poem by the contemporary Iraqi poet Zaher (or Zahir) Mousa produced, directed and filmed by the Scottish/Iranian filmmaker Roxana Vilk, who has built up quite an interesting and varied body of poetry-related work in recent years: bio pics, interviews, and filmpoems, many featuring poets from the Middle East. (I’ll be sharing another example later in the week.) Among other credits, Maryam Gorbankarimi edited, and the sound design is by Peter Vilk with Ilhan Burutcu on the ney. The Scottish poet John Glenday is listed as the main translator, with assistance from Lauren Pyott and James Sandri (who was also the assistant director). The Vimeo description notes:

This film is a result of a commission from Reel Festivals as part of Reel Iraq 2013 and funded by Literature Across Frontiers and the British Council.

Filmed in Shaqlawa and Erbil, Northern Iraq in January 2013.

The plot summary at IMDb calls In the Beginning

an experimental film based on a poem by the acclaimed and award winning Iraqi poet, Zaher Mousa. The poem uses the form of a creation myth and explores the feelings of an Iraqi man living through the realities of life in Baghdad and how the continuing violence and conflicts have affected the way he sees the world around him.

In the Beginning was selected for screening at the 2014 ZEBRA Poetry Film Festival in Berlin. As for Reel Iraq 2013, it was apparently

an overwhelming success and audiences across the UK got a chance to engage directly with Iraqi poets, filmmakers, artists, writers and musicians.

Highlights included workshops in Erbil as part of the Erbil Literature Festival which led to the creation of new translations of Iraqi poets Zaher Mousa, Awezan Nouri, Ghareeb Iskander and Sabreen Kadhim and of Scotland based poets Jen Hadfield, William Letford, John Glenday and Krystelle Bamford. These new translations were performed at venues across the UK.

Musicians Khyam Allami and City of Salt performed to packed venues in Edinburgh and London, and filmmakers Parine Jaddo and Hayder Daffer presented their work in cinemas across the country.

Reel Festivals also commissioned two films based on another poem by Zaher Mousa, “Born to Die,” from filmmakers Alastair Cook and Marc Neys (Swoon). I shared them in a post back in 2013.

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Black Hands by Robert Minhinnick

On 13 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 3 Comments - Author-made videopoems
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From the Welsh environmental campaigner, essayist and poet Robert Minhinnick comes this searing example of what might be called photojournalistic poetry film, as the Vimeo description explains:

A poem by Robert Minhinnick illustrated with unique footage taken during his visit to Iraq. Visiting the notorious Amiriya bunker. Harrowing, moving and dark.

Peter Thorp edited, and the audio samples and loops were created by Peter Morgan. The film was produced (by Sonicsustain and Subjective Realities) in 2005, but refers to a horrific incident from the earlier Gulf War of 1991 — and a propaganda line about “smart bombs” that also debuted during that earlier invasion, and which went largely unchallenged by mainstream journalists in the US and UK. In fairness to them, it was difficult to gain accurate information because of the way the Pentagon severely restricted the movements of journalists on the ground, part of an ultimately successful attempt to mute public opposition to military aggression which would later find full expression during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, when it was formalized under the Orwellian label embedded journalism. Reporters who refused to cooperate with the Pentagon were targeted by US missiles and tank fire. Given how dangerous the whole region has now become for journalists, and how mendacious the official justifications for warfare have always been, our need for the prophetic witness of poets is greater than ever.

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Here, Bullet by Brian Turner

On 12 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 2 Comments - Documentary, Interview videos
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This week at Moving Poems we’re marking the 15th anniversary of the US Congress’ nearly unanimous passage of the Authorization to Use Military Force on September 14, 2001, which launched the modern era of essentially endless, unlimited war. How better to begin than with Iraq War veteran Brian Turner‘s justly famous poem “Here, Bullet“? In an interview recorded at the 2009 Poetry International Festival at Rotterdam, Turner acknowledges the influence of Philip Levine’s poem “They Feed They Lion.” The video concludes with his recitation of the poem.

The Art of Poetry Film with Cheryl Gross: “Wayne the Stegosaurus” and “Cigar Box Banjo”

On 10 September, 2016 by Cheryl Gross with 2 Comments - Animation, reviews, The Art of Poetry Film with Cheryl Gross

Wayne the Stegosaurus
poem: Kenn Nesbitt
co-directors: Aran Quinn, Jeff Dates
3D lead artsts: Rob Petrie, Jeff Dates
produced for Motionpoems
2014

Wayne the Stegosaurus is a delightful, airy children’s poem written by Kenn Nesbitt. The animation is rendered beautifully and produced by The Mill, a Chicago-based production company.

The poem is intended for children. I watched it a few times looking for a clue if the artists were withholding a nightmare. No such luck. Just a plain and simple video poem intended purely to entertain.

The animation is delightful. Pastel hand-painted watercolors move about. The action appears to be frame-by-frame and alludes to a stop-motion effect. I may be wrong, but since this is a high-production studio, Wayne the Stegosaurus was probably completely done on computer. It’s a treat to see the artist’s hand at work and it would be nice if this had been done “old school,” but no matter how it was done, the outcome is magnificent and charming, and the viewer can’t help but fall in love with it.

That being said, there is nothing to analyze or rip apart. It’s perfect in its simplicity.

Then I stumbled upon Cigar Box Banjo by Kim Addonizio. The content is much grittier and more to my taste.

Cigar Box Banjo
poem: Kim Addonizio
voiceover: Johanna Braddy
director and sound designer: Danny Madden
editor: Mari Walker
performers: Hannah Elder, Jon Thibault, and Iere Castagne
produced for Motionpoems
2015

The editing is terrific. The footage is seamlessly woven together and reads like an indie film, powerful and poignant. It’s well done, not at all corny, and a good mixture of old and new footage. The song “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground,” written and performed by Blind Willie Johnson, is a perfect addition and allows the piece to flow very nicely. I also have to mention that the design on the entire piece is sophisticated and exciting to watch. I found it refreshing, and I have nothing negative to say on this one either. I liked watching both videos back to back.

Aside from both being poetry films, Wayne the Stegosaurus and Cigar Box Banjo are very different. Wayne embraces a colorful, safe world, while Cigar Box tells an entirely different story. But both are well written and visually outstanding — examples of video poetry at its finest.


Editor’s note: A huge congratulations to Cheryl — and to her collaborator, the poet Nicelle Davis — for having a film accepted for ZEBRA, the world’s foremost poetry film festival, for the third time in a row! Active Shooter Event will be screened at the ZEBRA Poetry Film Festival Münster|Berlin, October 27-30, 2016 at the Schlosstheater cinema in Münster, Germany. —Dave B.

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out of shadow by Amaal Said

On 9 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 0 Comments - Author-made videopoems
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what are you making your way out of?
maybe skin, maybe shadow.

An author-made videopoem by photographer and poet Amaal Said, featuring Annina Chirade, editor in chief of Rooted In Magazine. The About page on Said’s website gives some insight into her motivations:

I am a Danish-born Somali photographer and poet, currently based in London, UK. I’m concerned with storytelling and how best I can connect with people to document their stories. I have photographed mainly Women of Colour in an attempt to widen representation. I started with taking as many pictures of family members because I wanted to remember them, however far they were. I’m still so fascinated with the way we can use photographs to bring people closer.

The photography grew out of the writing. There were things I could photograph better than I could describe. I am a member of the Burn After Reading poetry collective and a former Barbican Young Poet. I won the Wasafiri New Writing Prize for poetry in 2015.

I Was Born Red / Terlahir Merah by Gandiva Arungirora

On 8 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 0 Comments - Author-made videopoems
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-BAAqHuyXk

A bilingual Indonesian videopoem by the artist duo Gandiva Arungirora: Gracia Tobing (who also wrote the text) and Navida Suryadilaga. Additional credits include Chairul Karyana ‘Aceh’, art direction; Rizkita Daratri, director of photography; and Tesla Manaf, music and sound design. Tobing told me in an email that the part of the voiceover in Indonesian is a translation of the English part, but that it includes metaphors that don’t necessarily translate well. The over-all message deals with self-acceptance and identity, and how we define ourselves by where we come from, where and how we happen to have been born. Tobing also indicated that they are very interested in videopoetry and are hard at work on more videos, so keep an eye on their YouTube channel.

Ich lebe mein Leben im wachsenden Ringen / I live my life in widening circles by Rainer Maria Rilke

On 7 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 1 Comments - Videopoems
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Rilke’s “primordial tower” (uralten Turm) is given literal shape in this otherwise wonderfully suggestive film of a video installation based on the famous poem from the Book of Hours. The film, directed by the artist Pat van Boeckel, takes a kind of call-and-response approach—which seems highly appropriate, given the subject matter—by having a voiceover of the poem at the very beginning (with the English translation by Joanna Macy and Anita Barrows in subtitles), followed by the installation in a kind of reverse ekphrasis. According to the Vimeo description, the installation was “Made for art project Internationales Waldkunst in Darmstadt.” Max Richter composed the music.

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earth acceleration by Mark Goodwin

On 6 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 2 Comments - Videopoems
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Here’s something fun and different: a collaboration between poet Mark Goodwin and filmmaker Martyn Blundell featuring Goodwin and his love of balancing on rails. He elaborates on this in a lyrical blog post for Longbarrow Press, who recently brought out his fourth collection, Steps, which “explores themes of climbing, walking and balancing,” according the post. Among other interesting observations, Goodwin says:

To walk along a handrail by the side of a footpath is to disobey. This is, I feel passionately, what poetry should be. Poetry is just next to the conventional ways (or habits) of being human … but it disobeys, which only goes to show those conventions more clearly, even celebrate them … but certainly challenge them.

Do read the rest. Goodwin has also recorded, mixed and produced a ten-track album of poems from Steps, available as a free download.

Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival Releases the 2016 Shortlists

On 2 September, 2016 by Sou MacMillan with 0 Comments - contests, festivals and other screening events

The Longlist for the 2016 Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival is now up! In addition, finalists for the Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival are now up and public — these are the front-runners in this year’s poetry movie competition, the best of the best films submitted, and the finalists whose work will be screened at the 2016 Awards Ceremony and Viewing Party.

The Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival is a competition meant to highlight poetry and visual art at the intersection of film. The festival, due to take place in Worcester on October 22nd, 2016 focuses on short films that illustrate original poems, all of which are non-performance based (read: no footage of the poems being performed). This year Rabbit Heart received over 350 submissions from 39 countries, across 6 continents – and the top of the crop will be screened right here in Worcester, MA. The shortlists can be viewed at the Doublebunny website by choosing Shortlists 2016 from the dropdown menu for Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival.

Rabbit Heart will be awarding $800 prizes in seven categories this year: Best Overall Production, Best Animated, Best Music/Sound, Best Smartphone Production, Best Under 1 Minute, Best Valentine, and the Shoots! Youth Prize. The gala awards ceremony and viewing party will be at Nick’s Bar in Worcester, MA on the evening of October 22nd.

About Doublebunny Press:

Doublebunny Press is a small independent press that serves the New England area through poetry design, layout, and production of fine books and posters. Doublebunny also supported Omnivore Magazine, a poetry and arts monthly which, during its three-year run, published poetry and articles by over 150 authors, and carried a national subscription base.

Doublebunny has a history of great spoken word events in Worcester. They combined forces with The Worcester Poets’ Asylum to present V Day to the city in 2002 and 2003, and the Individual World Poetry Slam in 2005. In 2014, Doublebunny brought the inaugural Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival to the city, and in 2016 they plan an even more exciting show for Worcester, inviting the imagination of poets and filmmakers to once again take center stage.

About Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival:

Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival is the only outlet in North America for poetry on film in 2016, and the only festival that asks that the author of the poem participate in the making of the production. Rabbit Heart has attracted international attention over the last two years, including the honor of a showcase in the CYCLOP festival in Ukraine in 2014, and in 2015 and 2016 films from the festival have been featured at the pro.l.e series in Barcelona, Spain. This year Rabbit Heart received submissions from 41 countries over 6 continents, and the judges are currently in the thick of stellar work!

Once again Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival has been honored with a grant from the Worcester Arts Council (This program is administered by the Worcester Arts Council, for the Local Cultural Council – an agency supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency).

Save the date for Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival 2016: October 22nd. Tickets are now on sale online at http://doublebunnypress.storenvy.com/
Tickets for the 2014 and 2015 festival sold out very quickly – Doublebunny is expecting high demand again in 2016.

To learn more about this event, please go to www.doublebunnypress.com and click on the menu link to Rabbit Heart Poetry Film Festival. You can also visit Rabbit Heart on Facebook to check out news about poetry in film, and fun weekly featurettes like the 100 Delightful Things in Worcester Project.

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Motionpoems’ Season 7 poetry films to premiere in October

On 2 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 0 Comments - festivals and other screening events

https://vimeo.com/98679430

Autumn in the northern hemisphere usually brings the highest concentration of poetry film festivals and screening events worldwide, and this year, Motionpoems is set to join the fray, with the long-awaited world premiere of their Season 7 films to be held on October 27 in Minneapolis. (There’s also a Rooftop Sneak Preview scheduled for October 20.) Visit splashthat.com to reserve your tickets.

Motionpoems is the world’s only poetry film company. For our seventh season, we’ve partnered with Cave Canem to produce a series of films based on fantastic poems by Black poets. We’ll premiere them for the first time on October 27 at the Walker Art Center Cinema (1750 Hennepin Avenue), and we want to see you there. NOTE: There are TWO showings: One at 6pm and one at 8pm. Reserve your seats today for a $10 donation! They go fast!

This does mean that it will conflict directly with the ZEBRA Poetry Film Festival in Münster (October 27-30), where I’m sure at least a few of Motionpoems’ films will be screened.

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At Thirty by Paula Bohince

On 2 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 0 Comments - Videopoems
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A poem by Paula Bohince adapted to film by Thibault Debaveye for Motionpoems, who refer to it on Facebook as

our first crowdsourced voiceover! Thanks to our voiceover artists John W. Goodman, Jeannie Elizabeth, Louis Murphy, Amy Miller, Jennifer Jabaily-Blackburn, Veronica Suarez, Carrie Simpson, Michelle Meyer, Juliet Patterson, Will Campbell, and Clare McWilliams.

Debaveye’s description on Vimeo:

Feeling empty. Null and void. Finding a new identity.
“At Thirty”, a visual poem about this feeling of being there but not being present.
Non-existent silhouette of ordinary people as they go about their lives in everyday chores.

See Motionpoems’ upload for the full credits, and visit their website to read the text of the poem and a brief interview with Bohince.

If I Could Tell You by W. H. Auden

On 1 September, 2016 by Dave Bonta with 0 Comments - Videopoems
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https://vimeo.com/180747404

This is Holocene, a film by Berlin-based photographer and filmmaker Esteban Iljitsch that juxtaposes Auden’s poem (in Tom O’Bedlam’s almost too-perfect reading) with footage of Iceland for a powerful meditation on time and mutability. The Vimeo description:

It’s been two years now since we took off to Iceland with some cameras, a raincoat and a five-wheel-hooptie.
In the never ending summer days we lost sense of time and space, got dizzy walking around sulfur fields, had lobster soup next to black beaches and accidentally rejuvenated our feet in a hot spring.
There must have been reasons for all this – if we could tell you, we would let you know.

Concept: ESTEBANxILJITSCH
Director/DP/Edit: Esteban
Actor: Manuel Iljitsch
Factotum: Hannes Kleager
Colorist: Nicke Jacobsson
Sounddesigner: Moritz Staub
Voiceover: Tom O’Bedlam
Poem: „If I Could Tell You“ by W.H. Auden

Thanks to the great people involved who made this possible and Anna for pushing me to finish it!!!!

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