Événement

Subverting, Censoring and Faking the Archive

"Subverting, Censoring and Faking the Archive" (shorts program), discussion to follow:
The Human Factor (30 mins), Crossed Out (28 mins), and I'm Leaving on Wednesday (10mins)

The last screening in the "Spotlight on the Archive" program presents three fascinating short films each of which challenge the status of the archival image to tell straightforward, "true" (hi)stories, and remind us that much of what we desire to perceive is unobtainable, misunderstood, or tacitly prohibited. The first film, The Human Factor, the most experimental of the bunch, takes a "found-footage" strategy, reappropriating 1950's educational and industrial films (acquired through the Prelinger archives), which represent the modernization of work in the home, office and factory, ultimately offering a subversive, ironic twist on the source material. The next film, Crossed Out implicitly builds its own case for archival preservation and historical accuracy through its investigation of a family matriarch who has taken to erasing certain people from the familial record. And finally, by faking the archival aesthetic to tell the story of a fleeting personal connection, I'm Leaving on Wednesday demonstrates the effective potential of that aesthetic to mythologize its subject matter. Please consider staying after the screenings to participate in a group discussion.