~ Videopoems ~
Videopoetry, filmpoetry, cinepoetry, poetry-film… the label doesn’t matter. What matters is that text and images enter into dialogue, creating a new, poetic whole.
The Haunted Palace by Edgar Allan Poe
Jeanette Seah and Daniel Nudds directed this “Final project from the VFS Digital Design Program” at the Vancouver Film School. I’m not sure how well the video fits the poem, but the animation is too gorgeous not to share.
Dún Chaoin by David McLoghlin
[Update: embedding disabled — watch on Vimeo]
A wonderful evocation of an artist and a place, with original music and a poem for the narration. I strongly recommend expanding it to full-screen. The director, Lanka Haouche Perren, describes it as follows:
7 minutes non-narrative documentary exploring the work & methods of the renowned Irish artist Maria Simonds-Gooding who has been based in Dún Chaoin, Co. Kerry, Ireland, for the last 40 years. It features a poem by award winning poet & writer David McLoghlin, narrated by Dominic West.
More examples of McLoghlin’s work may be found at his website. And be sure to check out Maria Simonds-Gooding’s website as well.
Ars Poetica? by Czeslaw Milosz
A Moving Poems production (with fingers crossed that Milosz’s heirs aren’t too litigious). The audio is Milosz himself, not the same translation as the one that made it into the Collected Poems (which you can read here).
This was “found video” rather than something deliberately planned and acted to go along with the poem, though of course I edited it to make a better fit.
Seven-Year-Old Finds Her Murdered Mother’s Naked Body by Lyn Lifshin
Bob Borgatti (editor of Slipstream) says,
This is a segment from the film “in/word/out” by Robert Borgatti and Paul Lamont. It is a visualization of the poem “Seven-Year-Old Finds Her Murdered Mother’s Naked Body” by Lyn Lifshin. Lifshin performs the voice-over narration for the piece.
Check out Lifshin’s website for her bio and abundant links.
The End of the Day (La Fin de la Journée) by Charles Baudelaire
An experimental short to which the poem was added at the end — which to me makes for a more satisfying blend than most videopoems where words and images are tightly matched.
This is an experimental short movie made in a week (from the concept to the final release). This movie doesn’t want any interpretation. The poem was chosen after the filming. Finally was composed the music. The basic idea is to show some scenes before go to bed leaving an unhappy impression.
Levitation by Gerhard Rühm
Hubert Sielecki made this damn-near perfect videopoem for a piece by Austrian writer, composer, and visual artist Gerhard Rühm.
The Jump by Susan Balboni
If the author is the same Susan Balboni who is an established voice-over actor for American television (and also a writer), it’s kind of surprising that the reading is by someone else. A fine videopoem nevertheless. Alan Marino says,
A piece I put together for the Lstudio.com Imaginings series produced and directed by Intelligent Life Productions’ Ron Qurashi. Ron presented me with a poem written by Susan Balboni which he wanted me to marry somehow to this Phantom camera 1000 fps footage of a horse clearing a jump. Got the idea of isolating the horse and placing it in a timelapse cloudscape with poetry reading and music by my friend, Kevin Sullivan. Compositing was painstakingly executed by SFX artist Austin Wallender.
Suitcase by Jane Hirshfield
Animation by John Eickholt for MotionPoems.com (see also their YouTube channel).
Catalan Ballad (Balada Catalana) by Vicente Balaguet
A splendid little animation, which Laen Sanches has also made available with French subtitles and without any subtitles. (The original is in Spanish, not in Catalan.) Ines Cuesta helped with the illustrations (and provides additional credits at the link).
Doña Josefina Counsels Doña Concepción Before Entering Sears by Maurice Kilwein Guevara
Best bilingual poem ever? Well, maybe not, but the last line is perfect.
For background on Guevara, see the Poetry Foundation site.
