Schlagwort: film

Ode An Juni 2023

Now I start editing my 11th Ode an Juni / Ode to June film!

“In diesem Monat werde ich sehr viel unterwegs sein, Workshops und Filmfestival und Bokel, wo der geheimnisvolle Zirkuswagen steht und seinen Zauber voll entfaltet und wo ich eigentlich hauptsächlich die coolen netten Hühnchen abfilme!
I will be on the road a lot this month … a workshop, a film festival and Bokel, the Bokel, place of the mysterious gypsy caravan which is unfolding its magic … the place of funny and friendly free running chicken!
Und wo es das schönste Freibad von ganz Norddeutschland gibt! They have the most beautiful public pool of North Germany there!”

Shot completely on super 8 (what else …) … it will be about 20 minutes long. Here is some info about all my June films.

So Sachen / Such Things

This is a report about how things can go awfully wrong and in the end can become something beautiful and just … magically matching somehow.
Maybe it will be a bit too chemical and diving deep in photographical layers … but it will be funny too, promised!

I spent a week at my friend’s spot on the countryside and we had some very cool film and story ideas. Yes, sometimes I am not totally self-centered … with the right person there can be a swinging mood in the air vibes!!

We took a black&white TriX film (fresh from Kodak), filmed our ideas and then decided to develop it reversal. Meaning: positive. It is much more complicated than developing it negative. Which I do all the time using coffee and my breakfast remains and such things.

Reversal developing needs a very strong bleach to get rid of the first developed black silver. Then there’s a second exposure to light (the first exposure happened when the film was, well, exposed in the camera!) to activate the sleeping silver salt molecules which will then turn black when they get in contact with the second developer. Phew!
We used FOMA chemicals. FOMA is a czech factory that produces lovely stuff like foto paper, films and chemicals.

First developer, bleach bath, clear bath, and then: the moment when you shiver and open the tank lid and see: YES! Pictures! (a film that has just come out of a bleach bath looks milky-white with clear images). The rest of the procedure can be done in daylight.

So we rinsed it and then poured the second developer over the 15 meters of well-bleached film … and then Yell and Shriek: the emulsion began to fall off! To peel off! To run away in flakes!!! The images that we just saw just slipped away under our fingers! Out with you, developer! Some seconds in fix, no rinsing, just carefully hanging the long spaghetto to dry … and then scanned it the next day.

Now what happened here? I know that this bleach made from permanganate and sulfuric acid gives a lot of stress to the emulsion … softens it and makes it very sensitive and vulnerable – better not touch or rub too much! So was it the harsh and strong second developer that crushed it? Is the Czech soup too strong for a TriX?

Next day brings freshness in mind and mood. Somehow the two-third destroyed film appeared miraculous to us … and to the film story. We thought about defocussing, about stuff that happens in the corners of your eyes, of your consciousness, about second sight … and the film and the story melt, kiss and prosper!

This is just a little glimpse into it, I think the real film will be a longer one than usual and it will take a while. I am happy.

Watch a little Trailer on Youtube!!

Yksi Kaksi Kolme

Sometimes films just fall from heaven. I was ready, trees were sugared, friend was happy to help with camera, the dung heap – all odor and vapor. I count to three, yksi kaksi kolme in Finnish, so beautiful words, resembling to nothing else!
And the film came.
Double, triple exposed, two Dagies, three Dagies and my ever questioning how the hell does the universe ticktocktackle??

Here’s the film (German)

Here’s the film (English)

Ode To June 7

“Ode an Juni” is a kind of infinite life work shot on Super 8.
In 2008, I started to capture June, my ultimately favorite month, in picture and sound.
Diary film, Berlin portrait, life excerpt, colorful poem, something like that now every year.

Number 7 from this year’s June is almost ready!!!!!
I am just about to edit the credits!

Update: Here it is!!!

Lametta

Spontaneous filmmaking. Me and my lover, a super 8 camera, a TriX film, very bad German winter weather, a village, no people around, just one dog called „Bine“ (Biene = Bee) … some pun about merde and la merde and lametta … a tripod, no wind, good mood, a field full of fallen winter apples that I collected and used later for developing this very film.

And I must say: when I go out filming I make the experience that almost never there’s anybody feeling offended – could be because super 8 cameras look very much like toy cameras, could be because I smile, could be because I don’t come around with an army of a crew … I don’t know … well anyway that lovely old lady just popped out of her cozy house, smiled at the scenery and popped in again. Loved her.

Here’s the film >> X

Processing Happiness

I’ve been processing Super 8 films myself forever … I like it, diving into chemicals, the excitement of opening the developer tank after fix and watering and checking: pictures on it or not?! This evening I processed a black and white TriX using the Foma (Czech) reversal kit. But I processed it negative which means only the first developer and then fix. Yeah! Great! One cassette contains 15 m (50 ft) of film and they are now hanging zigzagwise through my room, drying nicely! Happiness is a warm film!

Workshop Last Day

Mission possible. More Super 8 makers & lovers!
Thanks Tsveta, Hans, Nick, Mathijs, Mariska, Britt, Judith, Matt, you were great!
To be continued …

This is Mathijs dumping an underwater camera and attracting ducks!!!!! Which was by the way a totally hard job because they somehow were afraid of the camera and instinctively felt it … We had to throw a lot of bread pieces (btw nederlandse supermarket bread is incredibly soft and sandwichfriendly but that is another story) and when the seagulls communicated that the area was safe then the ducks came … slooooowly ….
Filming needs patience but it’s always worth it.

This is Mariska and Britt checking a freshly processed color Ekta film!!

The Fruit Man on Alvarado Street

I love those fruit stands on street corners. They sell you a plastic bag for 3 or 4 or 5 $ filled with very yummy very fresh fruit like pineapple, mango, coconut, melon and orange. And then spice it with chilipowder and salt! And add fresh lime juice! Mmmh!

I just went down there to buy my daily lunch bag and I asked if I could film … of course I could, said the friendly Mexican man. Watch out for my fresh new film called „The Fruit Man on Alvarado Street“ 🙂

PS: Das Zeug schmeckt erst so richtig geil, wenn es einen Tag ordentlich durchgesuppt ist!!!!
Deborah, can you please translate it for me????