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film review
| 10/7/2009 5:30:00 PM Email this article • Print this article |
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Still from ‘David Dixon is dead,’ playing at Cornell Cinema this Thursday, Oct. 8. (Photo provided) |
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Cornell Cinema hosts David Dixon
Wylie Schwartz
On Thursday, October 8th, Cornell Cinema will host a preview of a double feature cinema/performance piece by artist and filmmaker David Dixon, who has been based out of Williamsburg, Brooklyn for years, until escaping, recently, to Cornell's graduate art program, which he likes to call "art camp.' In NYC he survived hand-to-mouth by managing a non-profit post-production facility specializing in video art, where he worked with many prominent artists including Ralph Lemon, Janine Antoni, Glenn Ligon, and Oliver Herring, refining his moving picture sensibilities and perfecting his editing technique. During this time his work expanded from looped gallery videos to feature length films incorporating documentary and fiction with emotionally rich characters and complex allegorical narrative development.
Tapping into the digital revolution, Dixon's do-it-yourself approach (writing, directing, editing and producing films while working with a small crew) offers beautifully executed low budget works using a meta/hybrid approach, combining characteristics from film's documentary and narrative forms, with elements of video art, performance, painting and sculpture. Dixon's first documentary premiered at MoMA, and was expanded into the film "Unloosened and Root,' which will be shown at Cornell Cinema with live director's commentary. Completed only weeks ago, his second feature, "David Dixon is dead.' (2006, 70 min) will be shown for the first time at Cornell Cinema. In a "real allegory,' "Unloosened and Root' (2009, 85 min) mourns the death of the mother, whereas, in the sequel, "David Dixon is dead.' the father attempts to rehabilitate meaning.
Ithaca Times: Tell us a little bit about your background and how you became interested in making films.
David Dixon: Artistically speaking, I started basically as a painter, which grew into video and sculpture, which grew into feature film. And I'm still a studio artist in the sense that I still make video, sculpture, photo, painting, and installation type work. The feature movies are a good form for me in that they are like big installations that you can put a lot of information into.
IT: What is your starting point for making a film?
DD: Like any art piece they come from everywhere and nowhere, a conversation, a book, an image comes to mind or an earlier piece leads to it. The initial idea, although seemingly singular, probably has a multiplicity of sources. The first oh-that's-nice moment for 'Unloosened and Root' came while camping, like in the movie, after having made a bunch of rock stacks around a campfire and thinking it would be a great installation, but how would you do that in a gallery with a real fire and everything. So then, there in the woods, alone, the simple horror story plot started to take shape and I began to wonder if I could really execute the idea, practically speaking, and it grew from there.
IT: Tell us about the works you will be showing at Cornell Cinema.
DD: In addition to 'Unloosened and Root' I'll be showing 'David Dixon is dead.' which is brand new. My name is David Dixon, of course, so the film is every narcissistic artist's fantasy of staging their own death. The film is both documentary and fiction, and in it my character, who is an artist and filmmaker, dies--not surprisingly--while working on one of his films. But before that he gives a public reading where he declares his wishes to have his skull cleaned, post-mortem, so that it can be included in an art piece. The movie then explores the repercussions of this, as the father comes to New York City to deal with the son's death. The father is really the hero of the story--not the "avant-gardist" "progressive" son--because, out of love, he carries out the son's wishes despite the fact they are in conflict with his own beliefs.
IT: In general, do you script the narrative before filming, or do you improvise?
DD: I definitely write everything down, script, storyboard, shot list, the whole thing. For the documentary parts, of course, not. The documentary elements are inexpensive and relatively easy to do--no crew, etc.--these parts generally get done first and the script is written around them. So I'm editing and writing at the same time - that's how it happened for 'DD is dead.' Then there is a distinct period of time blocked out for shooting the acted scenes, then months and months of editing and getting little pick-up shots to tighten everything up.
IT: Do you always show your work with director's commentary? Why? How important is this aspect to the viewing experience of your work?
DD: No, the live commentary is an idea that is specific to 'Unloosened and Root.' I consider the commentary as a performance of its own. It is not something that I would necessarily consistently do for other films. In the double feature format, like at Cornell Cinema, it works best. I consider 'D.D. is dead.' as a sequel to 'Unloosened,' the first is about the death of the Mother, the second about the Father and meaning. The commentary works well in that the authorial voice is finally silenced in the second because, thank god, he's dead, like shut-up already... The commentary is a commentary about commentary as well as being a commentary for the film. It's partially scripted and partially improvised, and calibrated to be an experience of its own. So as much as it covers part of the audio of the film, it becomes its own thing. Then the idea is you can buy the DVD and go home and watch the movie later by yourself, released from the concern as to what the director was thinking and just be concerned with what the film is thinking, if that makes any sense.
IT: How much of your footage and audio is appropriated? Original? Found?
In 'DD is dead' there is some art historical pedagogery that required some found images, or images that I didn't shoot or have shot, but then there are always rights issues that have to be dealt with. For that reason its best to shoot things yourself, and have a brilliant composer friend, like I do, for music. (Argentinian composer) Fernando Otero has allowed me to use a lot of his amazing music over the years. He's one of the characters, and plays the piano, in 'DD is dead.' For 'Unloosened' he and I went to my grandmother's church in Philadelphia to record the theme music on a big pipe organ there, amazing. Fernando can play anything with keys, strings, skins, or bits.
IT: What are your influences?
As far as moving pictures go, since I started in video art, Bruce Nauman and Paul McCarthy are pretty much the two that made me want to make videos. Then Warhol's movies like 'Poor Little Rich Girl' and 'Eat.' Right now it's Makhmalbaf's 'Marriage of the Blessed' and Bresson's 'Diary of a Country Priest.'
IT: Name one idea/movement/thing that you currently find culturally tantalizing?
DD: Feminism and 'Mad Men,' although I've only seen the first season, and Michael Jackson myth making--a friend described him as being like the Egyptian Pyramids--and most importantly, Iranian revolution for true democracy!
IT: What projects are you currently working on? And are there any other arts, which you would like to explore outside of film?
DD: I currently have two films in mind, one of which would be shot in France, the other an idea around the late, great John Hughes. Both of which are going to cost a lot more than the last two, so I've got to become real popular, real fast.
Both films will be screened on Thursday, October 8 at Cornell Cinema. "Unloosened and Root' will begin at 5:30pm, and "David dixon is dead.' starts at 7pm. For more information, visit www.cinema.cornell.edu or call 255.3522.
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