ENCOUNTERS WITH LANDSCAPE (3X) (2012)
HD vídeo, 16:9, cor, som stereo, 29 min., Portugal
Production: Lamaland
Support: Corredor Associação Cultural, Galeria Zé dos Bois
Distribution: Collectif Jeune Cinema, Kinoscope
DVD Release: FNAC/ Indie Lisboa Short Films DVD, Portugal; Angular Films DVD, Spain; Shellac Sud DVD, EXTRA, Terra nullius: Confessions d'un mercenaire, France
Encounters with Landscape (3X) was shot in São Miguel, the largest Island of the Azores and is divided into a prologue and three acts. It embraces a three-act structure to wage a war of mythical proportions, culminating in a reaffirmation of the inferiority of humans with respect to nature.
The project was developed under the frame of an artist residency by Corredor Associação Cultural, a training and production structure of Cinema and Performing Arts, São Miguel (2011).
Lamaland
Collectif Jeune Cinema
Corredor Associação Cultural
The first of these exercises is next to a river. We see Lamas in a tree on the riverbank, climbing along its branches. This static shot, dominated by the sound of the water, portrays the insignificance of the artist in relation to her surroundings. Without exactly knowing whether to go forwards or backwards, she finds herself awaiting an inevitable outcome: her defeat. The second encounter is with a lofty hill. Lamas is a microscopic dot, rendered visible by the intense red colour of her coat that contrasts with the dark shades of the earth. Now the objective is to hurl herself into the gorge; although, she seems to be ensnared in doubt. When and at exactly which point? As the minutes pass, night falls, the camera loses focus, and the object leaves the frame. The sound of the filmmaker's convulsive breathing is amplified. Control over the situation proves to be impossible and once again the forces of nature prevail. By virtue of its extremity, her predicament finally becomes laughable. Lamas verges on self-parody during her distressed monologue: "Salomé, you wanted to have an experience in the mountain and now you're screwed. "The third and final segment is the only one in which we see the young filmmaker from a close distance. She is inside a cave, observing the gases it emits. In the end there is no challenge, only the act of surrendering to the intangible impulses of nature, an emotion not unlike transcendence, as ultimately her experiences are the source of a valuable lesson.
Javier Estrada, Encounters with Landscape 3X
The first of these exercises is next to a river. We see Lamas in a tree on the riverbank, climbing along its branches. This static shot, dominated by the sound of the water, portrays the insignificance of the artist in relation to her surroundings. Without exactly knowing whether to go forwards or backwards, she finds herself awaiting an inevitable outcome: her defeat. The second encounter is with a lofty hill. Lamas is a microscopic dot, rendered visible by the intense red colour of her coat that contrasts with the dark shades of the earth. Now the objective is to hurl herself into the gorge; although, she seems to be ensnared in doubt. When and at exactly which point? As the minutes pass, night falls, the camera loses focus, and the object leaves the frame. The sound of the filmmaker's convulsive breathing is amplified. Control over the situation proves to be impossible and once again the forces of nature prevail. By virtue of its extremity, her predicament finally becomes laughable. Lamas verges on self-parody during her distressed monologue: "Salomé, you wanted to have an experience in the mountain and now you're screwed. "The third and final segment is the only one in which we see the young filmmaker from a close distance. She is inside a cave, observing the gases it emits. In the end there is no challenge, only the act of surrendering to the intangible impulses of nature, an emotion not unlike transcendence, as ultimately her experiences are the source of a valuable lesson.
Javier Estrada, Encounters with Landscape 3X
Javier Estrada, Encounters with Landscape 3X