Description
Book SynopsisJustin Remes demonstrates how omissions of expected elements can spur viewers to interpret and understand the nature of film in new ways. Through a careful analysis of a broad array of avant-garde works, Absence in Cinema reveals that films must be understood not only in terms of what they show but also what they withhold.
Trade ReviewAn enchanting, endearing feature of this detailed and serious study of four films by Walter Ruttmann, Stan Brakhage, Naomi Uman and Martin Arnold is that it advances through a series of anecdotes, conversations, diversions, cross-references and speculations, capturing the spirit of the avant-garde in critical writing, a feat at once difficult and joyful. -- Brinda Bose * Telegraph India *
Absence in Cinema is a dazzling, meticulously detailed, even revolutionary work. Remes's style is so assured with such a light and knowing touch that the reader is propelled through the book from first page to last. -- Wheeler Winston Dixon, author of
Synthetic Cinema: The 21st Century Movie MachineThis theoretically sophisticated book about a set of exemplary avant-garde films during which there is either “nothing” to see or “nothing” to hear, or both, is a remarkably fun read. Justin Remes is a magician who makes Nothing in cinema Something! -- Scott MacDonald, editor of
Avant-Doc: Intersections of Documentary and Avant-Garde CinemaAbsence in Cinema is about mysterious gaps and thwarted expectations. Starting from the idea that “every absence is a presence in disguise”, Justin Remes combines aesthetic analysis with psychology, neuroscience and Buddhist philosophy to construct a powerful theory of erasure in experimental film culture. Taking in invisible art, soundless music and wordless poetry,
Absence in Cinema is as incisive and radical as its subject matter. -- Holly Rogers, author of
Sounding the Gallery: Video and the Rise of Art MusicAn important, vital contribution to film studies that will appeal to all scholars, students, and (especially) teachers of cinema...Highly recommended. * Choice *
A witty, richly detailed book... a delight to read. * Journal of Cinema and Media Studies *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Introduction: Voids
1. Walter Ruttman and the Blind Film
2. Stan Brakhage and the Birth of Silence
3. Naomi Uman and the Peekaboo Principle
4. Martin Arnold’s Disappearing Act
Conclusion: Nothing Is Important
Filmography
Notes
Index
