David Rimmer retrospective at the Cinematheque

Screening tomorrow night at the Pacific Cinematheque is the first of two evenings of the films of Canadian experimental filmmaker David Rimmer. The first evening is preceded by a book launch.

evening i

I had the joy of watching Variations on a Cellophane Wrapper a few years ago at the Cinematheque as part of their Summer of Love festival. This little gem works from a piece of appropriated stock footage in which he progressively processes the same loop through sequences of positive and negative variations and optical manipulations. The resulting footage is mezmerizing in it's shifting moods and emotions and the figures and scenes that materialize before your eyes. It progresses to a climax with an apocalyptic feel of a conflagration of fire.

David Rimmer was in attendance that screening so I presume he'll be there again. During the Q & A he related an interesting anecdote of going to the NFB seeking funding to finish the film. He screened what he had to a representative at the NFB, who after watching the film commented that he was the cameraman of the footage that Rimmer had appropriated. In spite of this Rimmer ended up receiving funding for the film.

Another point of note is the music for this was recorded at SFU's Sonic Research Studio very likely using their Moog and Buchla modular systems so this is in interesting point of reference to Vancouver's early electronic music scene.

Of similar note is the work of Philip Werren which was reissued a few years ago on Josh Stevenson's Cast Exotic Archives label.

More thoughts around the second night in the next few days.