Japanese Experimental Films - 1970s

color and b/w, sound, 64 min
scans not available
A program of Japanese experimental films produced in the 1970s. Assembled by Takahiko Iimura and first exhibited at the Millennium Film Workshop ca. 1978. Reel 1: KIRI (Sakumi Hagiwara, 1972), 8 min. ...
Rental format: 16mm

About

A program of Japanese experimental films produced in the 1970s. Assembled by Takahiko Iimura and first exhibited at the Millennium Film Workshop ca. 1978.



Reel 1:

KIRI (Sakumi Hagiwara, 1972), 8 min.

A fixed camera photographs a fog-shrouded landscape. At first the screen appears almost totally white, but gradually the features begin to reveal themselves. Shot without the aid of time-lapse photography, the film bears a conscious resemblance to sumie paintings.

ORANDA-JIN NO SHASHIN (Photograph of the Dutch) (Isao Koda, 1976), 7 min.

Beginning with photographs of his own feet wading in a stream. Koda first establishes a labyrinthian 'photo within a photo' theme, then presents several variations involving speed, order, number of images, and color.

SYNC SOUND (Takahiko Iimura, 1975), 9 min.

Following the order of the academy's synchronization leader which is used for picture and sound to synch, the film adopts the system for its own order (or may be fallen out of order). Instead of using the order normal way which goes counting the numbers 10 to 3 to match at 0 the picture with the sound, the film replaces the number one by one to single dot sound which expected to be read by the viewer to have the imaginary synchronization. The film repeats until all the numbers are replaced by the sounds.

LUMIERE (Tsuneo Nakai, 1971), 3 min.

A single shot of the sea, played with an synchronized soundtrack and made to change in color.


Reel 2:

FEEDBACK (Nobuhiro Kawanaka, 1973), 8 min.

Photographs of a nude, arranged into stop-motion sequences on the left half of the screen, are juxtaposed with a close-up of the film itself passing in front of a viewer, gradually revealed on the right half of the screen. Again we are confronted with the basic conundrum that a moving series of still pictures creates the illusion of movement within the pictures themselves.

10 SEC. (Ryoichi Enomoto, 1973), 8 min.

A single ten-second sequence by a dancer has been photographed at several speeds, which are then replayed at different speeds with freezes and multiple exposures added. The short French phrases that appear between sequences are merely conjunctions and connectives, such as 'but what if,' 'and then,' etc. Here , as in 'Le Cinema,' the nature of motion captured on film is interpreted through dissection and reconstruction.

OBSERVATION (Hiroshi Yamazaki, 1975), 10 min.

The film is composed of two sequences: 1) A simple scene of a street corner taken from a window is given the appearance of dawn, then illumination, then blinding light through the use of a single gradual filter change; 2) Shots of the position of the midday sun on 27 consecutive days, taken through a dense day-for-night filter, are superimposed, creating an eerie arc of heavenly bodies.

ATMAN (Toshio Masumoto, 1975), 11 min

The title is a Hindu term meaning the World Soul from which all souls derive, or more simply, a principle of life. Matsumoto tried to 'create' a microcosm (with a devil figure at the center), by dividing a field into 10 equidistant concentric circles, marking 48 equidistant points on the circumference of each circle, and shooting the 'devil' from the resulting 480 angles.



"The proclamation of sensibility was the pronounced feature unifying the disparate films [in this program]: this sensibility is one dedicated to an acceptance of irony as an aesthetic integer. Seeming to duplicate the formal devices of 'the structural film', these films develop along a distinct principle of gratification." - Daryl Chin, "The Future of an Illusion (ism): Notes on the New Japanese Avant-Garde Film," Millennium Film Journal 1:2 (Spring-Summer, 1978), 87.

Films

  • Other films by this artist in our catalogue

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    Early Film Poems
    Experimental

    Early Film Poems
    Takahiko Iimura

    sound, 44 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
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    Ai (Love)
    Experimental

    Ai (Love)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 10 min
    Rental format: 16mm
    • Body
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    Iro (Colors)
    Experimental

    Iro (Colors)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, color, sound, 10 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Kuzu (Junk)
    Experimental

    Kuzu (Junk)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 10 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    On Eye Rape

    On Eye Rape
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 10 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Screen Play
    Experimental

    Screen Play
    Takahiko Iimura

    color, sound, 10 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
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    Desade
    Experimental

    Desade
    Takahiko Iimura

    black and white, sound, 10 min
    Rental format: 16mm
    • Body
    • Erotic
    • Arts / Artists
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    Sakasama (Upside Down)
    Experimental

    Sakasama (Upside Down)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, color, silent, 13 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Rose Color Dance
    Experimental

    Rose Color Dance
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 13 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Onan

    Onan
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 7 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Anma (The Massure)
    Experimental

    Anma (The Massure)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 13 min
    Rental formats: 16mm, DVD NTSC
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    A Dance Party in the Kingdom of Lilliput No. 1
    Experimental

    A Dance Party in the Kingdom of Lilliput No. 1
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 14 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Eye For Eye, Ear for Ear
    Experimental

    Eye For Eye, Ear for Ear
    Takahiko Iimura

    black and white, sound, 25 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
    • Films About Film
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    I Saw the Shadow
    Experimental

    I Saw the Shadow
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 13 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Taka and Ako
    Experimental

    Taka and Ako
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 13 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Experiments in New York
    Experimental

    Experiments in New York
    Takahiko Iimura

    DVD, color and b/w, sound, 29 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
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    Writing With Light: White Calligraphy
    Experimental

    Writing With Light: White Calligraphy
    Takahiko Iimura

    black and white, sound
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
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    White Calligraphy
    Experimental

    White Calligraphy
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 18.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    New York Scene
    Experimental

    New York Scene
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, silent, 35 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Summer, Happenings, U. S. A.
    Experimental

    Summer, Happenings, U. S. A.
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 28 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Face
    Experimental

    Face
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, color, sound, 20.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    For Filmic Meditation
    Experimental

    For Filmic Meditation
    Takahiko Iimura

    color and b/w, sound, 42 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
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    Filmmakers
    Experimental

    Filmmakers
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, color, sound, 30 min
    Rental formats: Digital file, DVD NTSC, VHS NTSC
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    Film Strips II
    Experimental

    Film Strips II
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 13.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Buddha Again (a. k. a. Cosmic Buddha)
    Experimental

    Buddha Again (a. k. a. Cosmic Buddha)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, color, sound, 16.25 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    A Chair & Blinking
    Experimental

    A Chair & Blinking
    Takahiko Iimura

    DVD (NTSC), black and white, sound, 8 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
    • Body
    • Minimal / Conceptual
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    Kiri (Fog)
    Experimental

    Kiri (Fog)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Film Strips I
    Experimental

    Film Strips I
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, silent, 11.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Yoko Ono: This Is Not Here
    Experimental

    Yoko Ono: This Is Not Here
    Takahiko Iimura

    DVD, color, sound, 18 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
    • Music
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    • Literarature / Theater
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    Shutter
    Experimental

    Shutter
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 25 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    The Pacific Ocean
    Experimental

    The Pacific Ocean
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, color, silent, 30 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    In The River
    Experimental

    In The River
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, color, sound, 19.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Performance/Myself (Or Video Identity)
    Experimental

    Performance/Myself (Or Video Identity)
    Takahiko Iimura

    color and b/w, sound, 29 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
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    On Duration in Film
    Experimental

    On Duration in Film
    Takahiko Iimura

    black and white, sound, 39 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
    • Structural
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    Models: A-2: Timing 1, 2, 3, 4
    Experimental

    Models: A-2: Timing 1, 2, 3, 4
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 11.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Models: B-4: Seeing, Not Seeing

    Models: B-4: Seeing, Not Seeing
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, 4 min
    Rental formats: 16mm, DVD NTSC
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    Models: A-1: 2 Min. 46 Sec. 16 Frames
    Experimental

    Models: A-1: 2 Min. 46 Sec. 16 Frames
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 9 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Models: A-3: Time Length 1,2,3,4
    Experimental

    Models: A-3: Time Length 1,2,3,4
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 12 min
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    Models: A-4: Timed 1,2,3
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    Models: A-4: Timed 1,2,3
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 7.5 min
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    Models: B-1: Counting, 100 Or X's

    Models: B-1: Counting, 100 Or X's
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, 11.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Models: B-3: To See the Frame, Not to See the Frame

    Models: B-3: To See the Frame, Not to See the Frame
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, 11.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    Models: B-2: A Line 1, 2, 3

    Models: B-2: A Line 1, 2, 3
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, 9.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    1 To 60 Seconds
    Experimental

    1 To 60 Seconds
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 30.5 min
    Rental format: 16mm
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    + & - (Plus and Minus)

    + & - (Plus and Minus)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 26 min
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    Parallel

    Parallel
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm
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    On Time In Film/DVD
    Experimental

    On Time In Film/DVD
    Takahiko Iimura

    black and white, sound, 33 min
    Rental format: DVD NTSC
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    24 Frames Per Second (Revised)
    Experimental

    24 Frames Per Second (Revised)
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 12 min
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    24 Frames Per Second
    Experimental

    24 Frames Per Second
    Takahiko Iimura

    16mm, black and white, sound, 10.5 min
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