THIS IS WHO I AM: REMEMBERING WITH 16MM FILM AND DIGITAL VIDEO
Ages 16-21
Winter 2017, Johns Hopkins Homewood
In this experimental filmmaking workshop fellows will use 16mm film and digital video to make short movies based on significant objects in their lives. These could include a photograph, a piece of jewelry, a toy; any object that not only reminds but actually embodies a memory. The workshop will take inspiration from the art of Joseph Cornell, who developed a unique practice of assemblage. He collected objects and fragments of objects he felt belonged together and arranged them in shadow boxes as a way of expressing his ideas (see sample works). This workshop will also use simple boxes as containers. Objects placed in them may be originals, belonging to the fellows, or may be similar items that recall the originals. A variety of objects will also be provided for fellows to choose from. After collecting and arranging these fragments of memory, fellows will shoot each box from a variety of angles to explore its contents. Each fellow will then write and record a voice-over reflecting on the meaning and importance of their assemblage. Fellows will learn the basics of digital video and audio, and have the increasingly rare opportunity to work with film, a distinct art medium. Individual projects will be shot in video. Fellows will work together on a group box and shoot that collaborative assemblage with 16mm film. Finished films will be shown at a public screening and shared on the program website. Limited to 8 student fellows.
John Mann is a documentary filmmaker and Senior Lecturer in the Film and Media Studies Program at Johns Hopkins University. His works include the documentaries Shelter: Conversations with Homeless Men, Nicodemus, and Locust Point; the dance for the camera shorts Breathe In…Breathe Out and It Goes Without Saying; and the recent autobiographical short "if...then...”
Les Gray studies Cinematic Arts at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and hopes to inspire the community that inspired her.
Brian J. McConnell is a junior at Johns Hopkins University majoring in Film and Media Studies and Economics. He also contributes to the Hopkins film community through Studio North, JHU Film Society, and as a teaching assistant. He hopes to make movies in the future.
