Brief Synopsis for the Final Film

Borderland

While making a cliché film aesthetisizing decaying rural areas and abandoned buildings, two film students stumble 

across a group of people living in the woods behind an old run down house.

Initially, fear and precaution causes the filmmakers to flee the situation in the woods, but interest overwhelms them, 

as the prospect of a much more interesting film presents itself.

The filmmakers return to the secluded group to observe them- filming from afar and taking photographs of their 

ritualistic, tribal behavior. 

Eventually they decide to make outright contact with the tribe members and initiate this contact with what appears 

to be the youngest member- who is also the least troubled by their presence.

The filmmakers return to the group repeatedly- first by exploiting the curiosity and inhibition of the youngest 

member, but eventually making contact with the group as a whole.

The members of the group are hostile and confrontational at first, but slowly they become complacent with the 

presence of the filmmakers and allow conversation to take place.

In doing so, it becomes readily apparent to the filmmakers that this groups alienation from civilization is a chosen 

and purposeful act of resistance.

The group members cite an inclination towards a radical political agenda, and in doing so, they sought a secluded, 

removed existance in order to live by the rules and politics they feel should govern all of society-rules that now 

govern their little society.

Through the filmmaker’s interaction with the group, it becomes very apparent that they are by no means primitive or 

uncivilized- little things are revealed to the filmmakers that make them (and the audience) completely question their 

conception of the idea of “otherness”.

 (Possibly something like; one of them went to college, they have their own library of books, etc.)

At this point, the filmmakers are implicated as naïve and exploitative- representing the exact things this tribe of 

people wished to alienate themselves from.

In their naïve misunderstanding of everything this group is directly opposing by purposefully diverging from 

traditional civilized life, the filmmakers misguidedly convince the youngest member to come back into regular 

society with them.

But, after one ride in a car and lunch at a bar where he was the object and focus of judgment and speculation, he 

realizes his complete and total alienation from this culture, and wants to go back.

The filmmakers reluctantly oblige to take him back (they were stupidly hoping to get some neato ‘tarzan meets the 

big city’ kind of shots) but as soon as he returns, it is made adamantly clear that he no longer belongs with his tribe 

now either because he is tainted- a double alienation. 

Without warning or explanation, the tribe attacks and kills him.

The film ends suddenly as the filmmakers briefly witness this event while fleeing for their lives. 

 

 

Inadvertent and purposeful Inspirations

Sounds:

http://www.myspace.com/teethmountain 

www.myspace.com/psychicills

http://www.myspace.com/suncitygirls

Inadvertent (seems to have influenced Linden as well):

Justine Kurland

Purposeful:

Hanna Linden (contemporary)

The manifesto agreement

AMERICAN  SURREALISM AS ASYLUM  
DIEDRICH DIEDERICHSEN

http://backissues.textezurkunst.de/NR65/DIEDERICHSEN_e.htm

---

by founding this google document, i forthwith issue the call
for the renewal of 
"the (ANTI-) MODERN
SPIRITUAL
RADICAL LEFTIST
ANTI-NORMAL
and NON-BOURGEOIS constant in Surrealism
- which, the author(s) hope, will suffer from their divulging its structures
no more than it already has from the fleeting attention of a few spoiled brats."
ahem ahem bat for lashes, harmless hipster culture, dash snow, and you and me

by editing given google document you are heeding this call
you are refusing to make any more boring art
refusing to reproduce narcissistic fashion culture and theory-gloss it into "art"
refusing above all to be objective alone
an objective fashion narcissism machine
you are agreeing to the founding
of strange hermetic logics
which will lop the feathered (un)dead heads
off of bat for lashes, harmless hipster culture, dash snow, and you and me

I hereby agree to a harmfully obsessive, 

neurotic, neuro-toxic, 

up-rooting of my own boring, passive, culture-sucking tendencies.  

I wish to kill the spoiled brat in culture 

and kill the brat in me and you. 

Nothing is off-limits. 

Nothing produced will be harmless.

it will be a spectale: 

dirty filthy- like pork rinds. 
_______________________________________________________________

(Its a google document we are sending back and forth and editing)

So I got admittedly behind on the blog-posting starting off this semester, but I wanted to make sure I had something valid to say before I just started to post away.  Coming out of the review last semester, I was really excited where I left off, and in turn, where 'leaving-off' left me.  I finally knew exactly what needed to be done for this semester to finish this project, and I was excited to figure out how to go about doing it.  Leaving off with the review, I knew I wanted to go in the direction of the final set of photos and the oppositional theories they presented to the historical ideology of the landscape paintings.  But there was something not being addressed in those photos, that caused them to not quite work.  I understood the critiques they were getting of "fashiony" or "youthful trendy" (and though I didn't disagree with those statements) they were not problematic to me in the same way they seemed to be to others- so I  knew that was an area of focus that needed contending.  But largely, the final culminating idea for this project is ultimately going to be a film.  The film from last semester was interesting- ideologically speaking-but it didn't have the hook, the rapture, the obsession, the photos seemed to be carrying through.  This next (and final film) has to incorporate elements from the photos- but it needed to be determined what was and wasn't working exactly, in order to move ahead with the film.  All this being said, I should address now, that I have taken on a partner.  This is someone who I have continuously bounced ideas off of since the I.P. began.  He also has an interest in this final film because of it's alignment with his thoughts on his own work.  Being that he is a very talented artist and film maker, it seemed natural to enlist him.   Bringing in another person is slightly nerve-wrecking given the fact that ultimately it is my work, my show, and my graduation that is dependent on it's success, but I am convinced that my partners ability to push me (a little over the edge) and push ideas and limitations in general, will produce something (dare I say) really remarkable, hopefully radical.  He wrote a short, off-the-cuff  manifesto for this film so we both understood what we were taking on- and agreeing to. (I'll post it).  And also an article that is addressing the way in which we plan to go about working on this. We are still gathering the ideas together, the equipment, the crew, and the 'actors'.. and will be starting the physical filming soon (by the end of january/beginning of february was the date we set- and we are still on track).  As for the pictures, I planned on shooting a whole new round of them while on the set for the film so they are directly related to the film and final ideas (and I am still planning this) but I will be honest in saying, it doesnt feel right to move on from the last set of photos yet.  maybe I have grown too attached to them- but I am not done with them yet.  I have been making a series of drawing/painting/photos with the images.  Some are just drawing/paintings, and some are a foundation of drawing/paintings with the original photos printed overtop- these will most likely end up as an experiment...but it still feels worth doing because it is allowing me to obsessively work with and through these images and the topics in them (which will no doubt transition into the the final film/pictures). 

BUT! How do these images relate to the first set (below) and the movie for that matter?

OK well, glad we have another semester....