MDA1700 Communicating in Film Adam Amini M00347480 Final Summative Essay An analysis of the characteristics of the American Post-War

Avant-Garde Film Movement, with specific reference to Derens Meshes of the Afternoon and Brakhages The Way to Shadow Garden. In the early 20th Century, the term Avant-Garde was widely adopted to designate art and literature that challenged institutionalised cultural norms. 01 It was through the 1920s and 1930s that Avant-Garde Cinema gained prominence in Europe. There was no major movement in America until towards the end of World War Two. A surge of refugee artists fleeing the right wing governments brought their modernism to America, where it flourished in all the visual and performing arts. Increased availability of 16mm film equipment after the war, led to more independent American filmmakers being able to make experimental films on lower budgets. 02 There now, was a true Avant-Garde movement in American Art; 03 these factors pushed the emergence of experimental cinema in post-war America. The two films I will be using to support my analysis are Maya Derens Meshes of the Afternoon, i and Stan Brakhages The Way to Shadow Garden. ii Both are early examples of well-known American Avant-Garde films, embodying many of the themes, qualities and stylistic elements associated with the movement. The first notable thematic characteristic present in both films, is the fact that they are seen as Psychodramas, meaning that the main interest or theme of the piece are the psychological elements of the main character or protagonist, (also, many of the features of the movement are typical of the Trance-Film, a psychodrama subgenre). Taking this into account, we are led to interpret the films as insight into the psychology of protagonists (portrayed by Maya Deren in Meshes, and Walter Newcomb in Shadow Garden), and thinking of Avant-Garde cinema as a piece of art, and therefore expression, an insight into the psychology of Deren and Brakhage. In each film the stylistics and characteristics present are used to signify the psychological insight. Many elements of the Trance-Film are also typical of the American Avant-Garde movement. Both films have dream-like qualities. This is both a characteristic of the Trans-Film and the American Avant-Garde. In Meshes this is mostly displayed by the cyclical narrative structure, 04 and the imagery and camerawork. After entering her house and falling asleep, Deren has a dream in which she repeatedly pursues a cloaked figure, re-entering her house several times. These events themselves are reminiscent of what people experience in dreams (i.e. the figure pursued but never caught). There is another moment in the film when Deren is walking on a staircase, and the camera begins thrashing around, and it looks like she is struggling to move, replicating the uneasy movement felt in dreams, furthering the dream-like atmosphere.

The repetition and slow, forced movements also give the film a very frustrated feel, which when coupled with the domestic mise-en-scene and the fact that the film was made with her then husband (who stars as the cloaked figure), adds a deeper element when regarding the film as psychological insight into the filmmaker. The frustrated feeling given with the movements and camerawork on the staircase and the repetition, go with the domestic setting to imply that psychologically, the protagonist is trapped their domestic life; signified by the camerawork and narrative repetition. Using these stylistic and camera techniques to portray deep psychological feelings (in this case of frustration and entrapment within everyday life), is typical of the American Avant-Garde Movement. In Shadow Garden, the surreal qualities of the dubbed over sounds, and the way in which they dont quite match what would be heard were there realistic, diegetic sound (e.g. they use sounds similar to what we would hear, but not the same as what wed experience,) make the film seem more surreal, adding to the dream-like characteristic. Another dream-like moment is when the protagonist screams, yet he is silent and all which can be heard is a non-distinct background sound. The idea and imagery of a silent scream is often associated with dreams and nightmares, and, similar to the repetition and movement in Meshes, implies frustration, adding a psychological insight into the character. Another feature of the American Avant-Garde cinema present in both films is the use of subjective camera. Both films feature point-of view shots, whether it is Maya Deren pursuing the cloaked figure and looking around her house in Meshes or the various shots in Shadow Garden which are from the protagonists viewpoint, one example being the handheld shot in which he looks around the house (the domestic mise-en-scene implying dissatisfaction with an aspect of the mans life), as objects move (i.e. the lampshade spinning) which also adds to the dreamlike quality of the film. The fact that it is from the protagonists point-of-view also supports the film as a psychological insight, as we are seeing things from the characters (possibly the directors) viewpoint. Another characteristic in Shadow Garden is the idea of an Erotic Quest. The idea of sexual frustration is implied when there is a figure asleep in the bed but the bed is actually empty. The sheets are then ruffled, as if a sexual encounter had occurred. This implies the characters frustration is sexual. Before going to the bed, he dances around the room, removing his work clothes and in a manner, removing the norms of the 1950s society, implying that he doesnt fit in. The idea of him dancing (a generally feminine act) coupled with him removing the clothes which signify the norms and the bed being empty (him being unable to fulfil his sexual desires) can also be interpreted as a question into the mans sexuality; he is not normal by societys standards, so undergoes an erotic quest to find himself, only to realise he isnt comfortable or accepted so doesnt find relief (shown by the empty bed,) leading to his frustration and the films final scenes. The erotic quest in The Way to Shadow Garden culminates in a climactic scene of self-realisation. In this case, the frustration builds to the point that the character gouges at his eyes, blinding himself. This adds depth the psychological

side of the film, as the self-blinding youth carries parallels to the story of Oedipus, which in itself carries heavy psychological implications. After his blinding, the protagonist leaves his house (his confinement within himself?) and then after more subjective camera shots, this time using negative film stock, the film ends with the character, in negative, looking into the camera. The fact that he has eyes, yet the film is now in negative, shows that some sort of self-realisation, even possibly acceptance of his sexuality (if the film is viewed in this specific light), has occurred as he can see, but just differently; Sight is restored but transfigured 05 While most of the sexual themes explored in The Way to Shadow Garden are very masculine themes, another characteristic of the film movement is the idea that the films often privilege the female experience. This is more present in Deren and Hammids Meshes of the Afternoon. The female protagonist, added to the domestic setting both would be more relatable to females then men. This adds an almost feminist depth to the film, as within the context of 1940s American society, there was a lot more female oppression than is seen today, so it is likely that a woman such could have been frustrated living a life within the ideals of society, hence the repetitiveness and evident psychological frustration. Throughout the film the idea of Deren reflecting upon herself is often signified, whether it be the fact that the cloaked figure has a mirror for a face, or the scenes in which she encounters different versions of herself, (i.e. around the table,) implying that the film delves into the different parts of her psyche. Unlike Shadow Garden the erotic quest is less pronounces in this film. While Maya Deren herself says that there is no erotic or Freudian interpretation of this film, due to the ideas of marriage, a boring domestic life, and even the presence of her husband within the film, it is often analysed in this manner. The final scene of Meshes shows her husband returning home to find Deren in the armchair in which she fell asleep, having committed suicide with the broken shards of mirror featured in the film. This, when coupled with the idea of frustration in everyday life, gives quite a grim psychological insight, as it implied that when reflecting upon herself, or looking deeper into her own mind and life, the character doesnt want to carry on living the way she is and thus ends her life. The surreal image of the shard of mirror falling into the ocean could also be seen implication of the character having evolved, or rebirthed after the suicide, as within the imagery of the film, the mirror was used as a signifier of self-reflection, so the idea of it being free in the ocean implies that after the self-reflection and departure from her current frustrating, domestic life, a part of the character (possibly even a part of her psyche,) is now free. Overall, I have found that the main characteristics of the post-war American Avant-Garde film movement are the thematic elements, such as the deep psychological insight giving hint to areas of the characters lives (such as frustration within a domestic life, the norms of society, or possibly sexual frustration,) and the main stylistic elements such as subjective camera making the film from a protagonists viewpoint, and the dream-like atmosphere shown by the imagery, sounds, camera angles/movement and even narrative decisions. Other

characteristics include the idea of self-reflection; the film giving a glimpse into the psyche and thoughts of the filmmaker or characters, and the erotic quest, or selfexploration (not necessarily sexual,) which leads to the characters main moment of realisation and climactic scene. Both films also have very poignant resolutions, whether it be the transformation of the character or how the world is seen in Brakhages film, or Derens possible suicide and departure from her frustrating, domestic life. Filmography: i. ii. Meshes of the Afternoon, Maya Deren and Alexander Hammid, USA, 1943 The Way to Shadow Garden, Stan Brakhage, USA, 1953

Bibliography: 1. Pam Cook, The Cinema Book Third Edition, British Film Institute/Palgrave Macmillan, 2007, p.89 2. Pam Cook, The Cinema Book Third Edition, British Film Institute/Palgrave Macmillan, 2007, p.91 3. Diana Crane, The Transformation of Avant-Garde: The New York Art World, 1940-1985, The University of Chicago Press, 1987, p.01 4. A.L. Rees, A History of Experimental Film and Video Second Edition, British Film Institute/Palgrave Macmillan, 2011, p.62 5. A.L. Rees, A History of Experimental Film and Video Second Edition, British Film Institute/Palgrave Macmillan, 2011, p.73