PAN [2013]

PAN showcase at Arnolfini, Bristol

18 April 2013

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At the PAN showcase in Bristol’s Centre for Contemporary Arts, the Arnolfini, the noise/dance crossover is in full effect. After a bout of silence from the noise scene and decreased activity in pop-up tape labels, gradually there has been a exodus of noise artists (or are they now producers?) creating abstract music with the structural and genre conventions of contemporary dancefloor orientated electronica. The music at the PAN showcase is not ground breaking by any means, but what is significantly different is the situation in which the music is received. A floor show, in an art centre, featuring artists form a noise label who’ve recently been making waves with jungle mixtapes; it’s no wonder the audience’s expectations are skewed from the outset.

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Ray Harryhausen: Special Effects Titan [2011]

Ray Harryhausen: Special Effects Titan [2011]

Dir. Gilles Penos

Originally published in Take One Magazine on 19th February 2013 

Animated Exeter 2013 has chosen to open this year’s festival with what might seem like an unusual choice of films. RAY HARRYHAUSEN: SPECIAL EFFECTS TITAN is a detailed and engaging insight into the career of the most influential special effects artist and stop motion animator in motion picture history. The film doesn’t deal with the type of hyper real animation you might expect to be canonised in an animation festival. Instead it focuses on the wider influence of the animation industry, and reminds us of the central role it plays in contemporary mainstream cinema. Continue reading

971 Horses + 4 Zebras [2012]

971 Horses + 4 Zebras [2012]

Curated by Jordan Baseman, Gary Thomas

Originally published in Take One Magazine, 20th February 2013

As its Surrealist title suggests, 971 HORSES + 4 ZEBRAS is a dazzling and confounding compilation of animations and experimental films co-curated by featured artists Jordan Baseman and Gary Thomas of Animate Projects. Continue reading

McCullin [2013]

McCullin [2013]

Dir. David and Jacqui Morris

Originally published in Take One Magazine, 22nd January 2013

McCULLIN is a documentary depicting the career of internationally celebrated photojournalist, Donald McCullin. Director/producers David and Jacqui Morris present a fascinating portrait of McCullin’s lifework by combining archival footage with exclusive interviews. Seldom do the filmmakers need to accentuate the emotion captured in McCullin’s photographs, to do so would be to do them a disservice and stifle their depiction of the truth. The directors’ tactful approach to their medium allows McCullin to use his own compelling, yet modest allure to describe his experiences and dilemmas while photographing some of the worst human atrocities post World War II.

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Dear Esther [2012]

Dear Esther [2012]

Dir. thechineseroom

Originally published in Take One Magazine, 2nd January 2013

In video game theory, “narratological” and “ludological” are terms used to categorise a game’s design ideology. A ludological game is one in which the laws of the game are its governing force, whereas a narratological game relies largely on its story as the player’s motivation. These definitions have long been a topic of discussion for theorists as they try to agree which is the best way to understand video games.

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Indie Game: The Movie [2012]

Indie Game: The Movie [2012]

Dir. James Swirsky and Lisanne Pajot

Originally published in Take One Magazine, 7th December 2012

In the 1960s, the invention of the home movie camera revolutionised the world of film. The affluent history of cinema is hugely indebted to the camera as a consumer product. The camcorder’s independence from studio control and totalitarian marketing statistics turned their consumers into producers, and gave birth to new strains of cinema that went some way towards defining film as the art form of the 20th century.

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Possession [1981]

Possession [1981]

Dir. Andrzej Zulawski

Originally posted in Take One magazine, 27th November 2012

The promiscuity of Anna, played by Isabelle Adjani, is the focal point in Zulawskiʼs 1981 banned video nasty POSSESSION. However, filing this film under “exploitation cinema” is a far too convenient solution to the questions of female sexuality highlighted by the film.

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