Abstract Murmurs... Experiments in Black
extracted murmurs: experiments in black is a film collaboration with dublab and pom*pom & filmsforhorses. This program presents silent extractions from the archive and Black memory accompanied by the improvisational cosmic jazz quartet Calycosa, highlighting experiments in temporality across form to generate new translations in celebration of Black experimental expression. Closing with a live radio DJ set by sadie ibrahim.
Please bring your own lawn chair / pillow / blanket / soft cozy things to sit on and get comfortable.
4:00 pm – Doors, Colloboh (DJ set)
5:00 pm – Screening, Calycosa (live score)
6:00 pm – Reception, sadie ibrahim (live radio DJ set)
8:00 pm – Close
Film Program (with live score by Calycosa):
el compromiso
dir. Helen Peña, 2023, 6 mins
As the Dominican state builds a border wall, Haitian & Dominican people gather amongst the sugarcane fields of Ayiti for the gaga of the Batey La Ceja – a celebration of the loa, the mysteries, and the spirits that have kept them alive across generations.
It’s a Condition
dir. Paige Taul, 2018, 3 mins
An answer to a proverbial question. An exploration of the concept of double consciousness and an attempt to render it visually.
EF
dir. Tony Merrit, 1979, 4 mins
A film that is open to interpretation of the viewer
Hemiplegic
dir. marlow magdalene, 2024, 2 mins
A dual-screen short juxtaposing Bad Brains footage with Black middle-class home movies from 1960s Pasadena, questioning whether the lives we live are chosen or inherited.
Confessional
dir. marlow magdalene, 2024, 7 mins
The quiet of the Grace Cathedral, desire becomes confession
Blue Longing
dir. Helen Peña, 2024, 4 mins
Two star-crossed queer lovers escape a burning world and maroon together into the abyss of the unknown
28.IV.81 (Bedouin Spark)
dir. Christopher Harris, 2009, 3 mins
A small child’s fantasy world in the dark. In aseries of close-ups, the nightlight is transformed into a meditative star-spangled sky. An improvisation, edited inside the camera & shot on a single reel. The stars swirl in silence.
Rumble
dir. marlow magdalene, 2024, 3 mins
Rumble remixes footage of bodybuilder Carla Dunlap at the 1988 24th Ms. Olympia, reveling in the architecture of her poses while navigating the weight of the room that watches.
