Date of Submission

Spring 2012

Academic Program

Film and Electronic Arts

Project Advisor 1

Kelly Reichardt

Project Advisor 2

Peter Hutton

Abstract/Artist's Statement

The successes and failures of this film can be attributed to A.) a subconscious desire to make the filmmaking process as difficult for me as possible, and B.) a sensibility and formal cinematic understanding resulting from recreational drug use, specifically LSD and Kratom.

The choice to shoot on film was one made out of fear. I am afraid that, within the next decade, filmmaking will be completely replaced by videomaking. I’m obsessed with the photomechanical processes involved in the exposure, development, cutting, and projection of celluloid strips. I want to make films until it becomes impossible to do so. Though the production of this movie was not my first foray into film, it was my first time shooting color and recording sync sound.

During the conception of my film I became increasingly frustrated with the other movies I was watching, either because they were doing things I didn’t like, or because they exhibited and unachievable level of formal precision. While writing Julian’s an Alien, the only moving images I viewed were the Scandanavian films screened on 35mm in Ottaway, and professional Starcraft II matches re-broadcast from Korea with Chinese or English commentary. I gravitated to these online streams because, as motion pictures, they were almost completely devoid of form (and therefore devoid of cinematic trickery) yet were filled with the most riveting content.

Julian’s an Alien was born out of an exhaustive list of cinematic techniques that I disliked at the time and knew I didn’t want to incorporate into my film. As a result, the film is an empty shell. It’s difficult to enter on any level, and though it goes for a ride, it doesn’t take the viewer along with it.

I like the movie but my one regret is that I didn’t have time to learn how to hot-splice. If I was able to find someone to teach me how to do this, I could have cut my negatives according to the video edit and got a projectable print made. Unfortunately, Julian’s an Alien will be screened via HD video projector. It will still look good but I’m kicking myself for not following filmmaking process to the very end.

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