[Frameworks] Experimental Editing - writings and films

[David Tetzlaff]

> Also for suggestions of key films that are exemplary of some “experimental” editing style or handle their editing in remarkable ways.

Don't know of any writings that discuss algorithmic editing per se, but I'd show 'Critical Mass.' Also, if the students are production  majors, they'll probably enjoy playing with Barbara Lattanzi's software "HF Critical Mass", "AMG Strain" and "EG Serene". http://www.wildernesspuppets.net/downloads.php

I'd show "Rose Hobart" by Joseph Cornell.

Other filmmakers might include Morgan Fisher, Arthur Lipsett, Craig Baldwin... Ken Jacobs' "The Doctor's Dream" is another interesting algorithmic piece (inside out).

Paul Sharits: "T O U C H I N G" "Peace Mandala" "Wrist Trick"

Ron Rice: "Chumlum" (multiple layers of superimposition replacing cuts)  

One film I would definitely show is 'The End', by Christopher Maclaine. Very complex idiosyncratic montage patterns. Maclaine was an amphetemine addict and J.J. Murphy once described the film as a kind of speed freak discourse where everything comes out all jumbled and crazy but somehow the threads can be tied together and it makes some kind of strange sense in the end. Also, the use of black leader as negative space is/was pretty radical. 

For undergrads, don't overlook the obvious: Deren's surreal match-on-action cuts in "Meshes..." "At Land" "Choreography for camera..."

Then there's Burroughs/Gysin cut-up technique. 

"La Jettee"

With Connor, it's easy to lump everything together into a generic found footage montage style, but in different films he took some pretty different approaches: "Marilyn Times 5", "Report," "5:10 to Dreamland" and "Breakaway" are probably more different than alike

If I were to include examples of 'mainstream' film, I'd show the beginning of 'Don't Look Now' and maybe Alain Resnais' "J'Taime, J'Taime" if you can find a copy. "Memento", of course. And now "Tree of Life".