The Possible Fog of Heaven

The animation, music, and optical printing of Kitsch in Synch was produced by Beckett and the students in two classes he was teaching at CalArts. Although a group project, it is clear that Beckett was the director. The playful, catchy soundtrack is used to create a cycle of building tension and release. The brightly colored shapes create approximate symmetrical formations and become more densely layered, with glimpses of iconographic objects and even live footage near the end. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive, in partnership with the iotaCenter, in 2007.

Filmed on 16mm film, this visual expression is rooted in its archival materials and backed up by the poem by Hans Magnus Enzensberger. It speaks of the forgotten people, their lives and their deeds. These two Archives have been found on the flea market in Zagreb. One is of a famous architect and the other one is of a famous composer. This film ponders on this occurrence, on the vanishing of and forgetfulness of humans.

Gan Escapism is an experimental short film by Ukrainian-born artist Anna Malina. The film was crafted using a Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) to create a unique and captivating visual experience that blends abstract illustrations and evading sounds to create a surreal and thought-provoking piece of art.

"We Go Past Future" is an experimental paper collage film by Anna Malina. The film reimagines a series of Soviet films from 1919 to 1953, blending them into a unique visual narrative.

An anthology of one-minute films created by 51 international filmmakers on the theme of the death of cinema. Intended as an ode to 35mm, the film was screened one time only on a purpose-built 20x12 meter public cinema screen in the Port of Tallinn, Estonia, on 22 December 2011. A special projector was constructed for the event which allowed the actual filmstrip to be burnt at the same time as the film was shown.

In 2057, a smart house remains standing in a world without humans after a nuclear war, along with the robots inside it. The robots continue their daily routines meaninglessly. While humanity has been destroyed by a power of its own making and greater than itself, this artificial order, in parallel, is also unable to withstand the greater force of nature for long.

Composed entirely of AI-generated visuals and providing an abstract representation of the evolution of AI video, processed entirely through a VCR.

This is a didactic film in disguise. A progression of brilliant geometric shapes bombard the screen to the insistent beat of drums. The filmmaker programmed a computer to coordinate a highly complex operation involving an electronic beam of light, colour filters and a camera. This animation film, without words, is designed to expose the power of the cinematic medium, and to illustrate the abstract nature of time.

Click for full movie details & trailers.

A surrealist short film by Ellie Thatcher, following acceptance of a changing world by a high-ranking noble.

Click for full movie details & trailers.

A vibrant animation by Patricia Marx. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2000.

Dissonant selves dancing around opposition and harmony.

Click for full movie details & trailers.

Pictures taken between France and Mexico running at 8 frames per second.

Abstract video art by John Sanborn and Dean Winkler. Dedicated to Ed Emshwiller.

An homage to the influential practice and philosophy of artist Nasreen Mohamedi. The film incorporates Mohamedi’s personal notes and her unique singular vision, drawing upon the aesthetics of the bare line, and its metaphysical journey eliminating physical borders/barriers.

A comfortable rhythm composed of light and shadow. Director Ogino-style absolute movie which freely manipulates geometric figures.

Two girls explore their relationship and what it means to be in the world and be vulnerable in this hand drawn graphite animation.

Dilution is an experimental short film that explores the transit between resistance and (di)ssolution, between holding and releasing and a path towards obsessive repetition. They are layers, exposed pores, matter that oscillates between remaining or disappearing. The sound is not a background, but a puncture: friction, tearing, water that drags what still persists. A sensorial testimony of what refuses to vanish completely.