Prodigal by Kona Macphee
Alastair Cook‘s 11th filmpoem. His description at Vimeo is worth quoting in full:
Prodigal is a film of Kona Macphee‘s poem, which was born from Andrew Philip’s project for the second Hidden Door festival, held in Edinburgh in October 2010: I was asked to record a reading of the poem. As I read it, I felt its power and resolved to make a filmpoem. I commissioned a cello piece from Rebecca Rowe and we performed this live at the Poetry Association of Scotland‘s meeting on 9th March 2011, at the Scottish poetry Library. A new direction for these perhaps, the addition of live performance… but the work is as dark and mercurial as ever.
My Love for You is So Embarrassingly by Todd Boss
Deb Kirkeeide designed and animated this motionpoem for a poem by Todd Boss.
Cet Amour (This Love) by Jacques Prévert
I didn’t expect to like this, but I did. Noah Oros directs. English subtitles are included.
Fearless Laughter: Yusef Komunyakaa’s Advice to Young Poets
A video created by Sampsonia Way magazine for Rattapallax. Komunyakaa was interviewed by Elizabeth Hoover, and the video production and editing are by Glen Wood.
Walking & Falling by Laurie Anderson
The video is titled “Step,” filmed by Pascal Rekoert and released as a podcast by NYC’s Flexicurve Dance Company in 2008. Anderson recorded the spoken-word piece for her 1982 album Big Science, and that’s the recording featured here.
Condition of Fire: seven poems by JL Williams
Condition of Fire is the debut collection from JL Williams, published by Shearsman. The author’s reading of seven poems from the book is combined with a commissioned sound work by Luca Nasciuti in this new filmpoem by Alastair Cook.
Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti
Ten minutes of campy goodness: a silent-film-style adaptation of the classic poem directed by Adam Gollner, and starring Liane Balaban, Dave Lawrence, Tamar Amir, Miska Gollner, Jonathan Shatzky and Tracy Martin. You will probably either love it or hate it.
The complete poem, together with a free audiobook, is here.
What do animals dream? by Yahia Lababidi
http://vimeo.com/27277431
Another collaboration between the Belgian artist Swoon (videotreats, editing, music and production) and Egyptian writer Yahia Lababidi (poem and reading). Arlekeno Anselmo provided additional whispering and speaking voice in Dutch.
(Updated version of the video. Selected for and screened at Bideodromo, Bilbao (Spain), 2011; selected for and screened at Visible Verse, Vancouver, 2011; and screened at the Neustadt Festival, Oklahoma, 2011.)
Orphans by Raymond Luczak
The description at YouTube:
Why do so many Deaf people seem so clannish? In this clip, Raymond Luczak explains why in a poem from his book MUTE (A Midsummer Night’s Press). Naturally, it’s subtitled for those who don’t know American Sign Language (ASL).
I’m putting this in the Spoken Word category even though it’s clearly unspoken word. For more on the poet, check out his website. Luczak is also a filmmaker, with two documentaries and two ASL storytelling collections under his belt. Thanks to Nic at Voice Alpha, a blog devoted to the art and science of reading poetry, for this great find.
We’ll Go No More A-Roving, by Lord Byron
An amusing interpretation of Lord Byron’s ballad, directed by Kevin Jackson. (See Vimeo for the rest of the credits.) I was expecting some melodramatic ending, but thankfully that didn’t happen, and I ended up admiring this remix of a classic.
