New York (Southstreet Seaport / Staten Island Ferry)
For film-maker Jem Cohen, virtuoso with 8mm and 16mm celluloid, the commission from Rotterdam provided his first opportunity to get to know about working with digital video. He focused his attention on recent developments around the New York South Street Seaport, a traditional port area where the harbour activities have disappeared to be replaced by an artificial harbour as tourist attraction. Cohen wants to question the worldwide tendency to change any potential tourist location into a theme park. Without wanting to be didactic, he wants to provide an impression of replacing historic places by an artificial replica, a false notion of history. (GjZ)Jem Cohen (1962) lives in New York and works in independent theatre. His work (films, videos and installations) swings between experiment, documentary and narrative fiction.
Also in this combined programme
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Cargo
Film-maker lived for a month on a container vessel that visited several ports in the Near East. Report of an adventure.
-
The Carfax Fragment
Diary of an essayist with historical and literary interests. About the shipping out of criminals and the arrival of Count Dracula.
-
11 November, Saint Petersburg
Poetic video diary from St. Petersburg. About invisible underwater light and fish that scratch in plastic bags.
Film details
- Country of production
- Netherlands
- Year
- 2001
- Festival edition
- IFFR 2001
- Length
- 15"
- Medium/Format
- Betacam SP PAL
