Fire of Waters
| Fire of Waters | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Stan Brakhage |
Release date |
|
Running time | 10 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Fire of Waters is an experimental short film by Stan Brakhage, produced in 1965.
Production
[edit]Fire of Waters was inspired by a letter Brakhage received from poet Robert Kelly, in which was written: "The truth of the matter is this that: man lives in a fire of waters and will eternally in the first taste."[1] Brakhage intended the film as "a play of light and sounds" on that theme.[1] The film contains footage shot in a lightning storm with a jerky handheld camera, occasionally showing the panes of the window through which the footage was filmed.[2] Unlike much of the director's work, Fire of Waters contains a soundtrack,[3] which has been described as "mushy, noisy and largely ambiguous - maybe rain, maybe paper rustling, maybe just dirt and water spots on the optical soundtrack."[2] The soundtrack actually consists of slowed down bird calls, wind, and speeded up audio of Jane Brakhage giving birth to daughter Myrenna[4] (an event originally documented, albeit silently, in Brakhage's film Window Water Baby Moving).
Reception
[edit]David E. James described Fire of Waters as one of Brakhage's most interesting films, in large part due to its use of sound.[3] Phil Solomon's experimental film Night Lights was inspired by Fire of Waters.[5] Daniel Barnett, in his book Movement as meaning: in experimental film, wrote of his first encounter with Fire of Waters, "I can't ever remember art making me so angry," citing the film's apparent incomprehensibility on initial viewing.[2]
Archive
[edit]Film elements for Fire of Waters are held by the Academy Film Archive as part of the Stan Brakhage Collection.[6] The film was preserved by the archive in 2018.[7]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b Brakhage Scrapbook: Stan Brakhage Collected Writings 1964-1980, edited by Robert A. Haller (1982) New York: Documentext, p245
- ^ a b c Daniel Barnett (2008) Movement as meaning: in experimental film, Rodopi, page iii-iv
- ^ a b James, David E. (2005) Stan Brakhage: Filmmaker, Temple University Press, p43
- ^ The Sound Cinema of Stan Brakhage, Los Angeles Film Forum, June 2010. Accessed March 10, 2011.
- ^ MacDonald, Scott (2005) A critical cinema: interviews with independent filmmakers, University of California Press, p205
- ^ "Stan Brakhage Collection". Academy Film Archive.
- ^ "Preserved Projects". Academy Film Archive.
External links
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