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The Genius of Insanity: Five Films From Joao Cesar Monteiro

JULY 30-AUGUST 5, 2010

"I think my film represents above all the proof, to those who want to understand and accept it, that poetry can't be filmed, that it is useless to try." —João César Monteiro

Look at a photograph of the underappreciated Portuguese auteur João César Monteiro, who died in 2003, and you will see a man resembling a cross between Nosferatu and Woody Allen. Its no wonder then that his cinematic fingerprints are some of the most memorable you’ll ever see. It's not clear under what influence Monteiro worked, but he was certainly international cinema's randiest rapscallion. Practicing his own brand of slowed-down slapstick, his films puncture preconceptions about power and age, beauty and desire. Never has the cinema dared to depict obsessiveness so unblinkingly and with such contained irony. Join us in sharing these indelible images as we honor the legendary man from Portugal who is remembered both for his madness and for his acts of overwhelming cinematic charity.

Special thanks to Haden Guest at Harvard Film Archive for organizing the retrospective, as well as Instituto Camoes Portugal


"Though far less of a household name, João César Monteiro was for Portuguese cinema what Luis Buñuel was for Spanish, a gleefully caustic satirist and libertine whose targets may have been the usual suspects of sexual, religious, and political propriety, but whose means of attack against them were highly unusual." —Art Forum

Read more about Monteiro and this series at the Village Voice

Read a conversation about the series with Series Curator Haden Guest (Harvard Film Archives)
 

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Vincent Moon Retrospective

AUGUST 20-26, 2010
Director in attendance!
 
His real name is Mathieu Saura, but it's under the name of Vincent Moon that music fans from all over the world know the 30-year-old filmmaker, who has reinvented the music video as a documentary. After studying under photographers Michael Ackerman and Antoine D'Agata, the young music aficionado became increasingly interested in moving images. The combination of music and film could easily have ended in MTV-land. But according to Moon, the usual music video has long been stuck in this limited marketing world.
 
Starting in 2006 with his Take Away Shows, Moon has offered a non-commercial alternative: small, short films that capture musicians in the alleys, hallways and elevators of the real world, without amplifiers or special effects. The Take Away Shows paved the way for larger film projects and Moon's far-reaching résumé, which now includes concert films and documentaries, all equipped with the special shadow/light aesthetic that give his images a special abstract quality.
 
Moon's greatest strength may be his ability to capture music without superfluous embellishments. He is a sonic adventurer, constantly seeking new musical treasure chests. He not only discovers, he participates, with his camera as an instrument: while in Seattle for this retrospective Moon will, with a single extended tracking shot, produce a new one-shot film with local Seattle musicians.
 
 
 
 

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Live at the Film Forum

September 2010-May 2011

Cinema is a collaborative art form that combines writing, theater, performance and visual art in the creation of something unique. The final edit of a film may be fixed, but cinema has a long history of integrating live performance, from the earliest Magic Lantern lectures and live scores that accompanied silent films to avant-garde performers today.
 
Northwest Film Forum is proud to continue LIVE AT THE FILM FORUM, a showcase of dynamic new work that expands cinema beyond the limits of the screen. This season brings together dozens of Northwest artists who wield paintbrush, chisel, musical instrument and camera to make innovative works of art. These projects bridge disciplines, connect artists with audiences and integrate the temporary with the lasting qualities of film. Enjoy performances and projections that engage the senses to create ephemeral and exceptional living cinema.

Stay tuned for the announcement of our 2010-2011 season.

 

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