Description

Book Synopsis

Set to generate and influence discussions in the field for years to come, this is an encyclopaedic work on the ever-evolving genre of poetry film. It will set the benchmark for all subsequent works on the subject, being the first book of its kind.

Poetry films are a genre of short film, usually combining the three main elements: the poem as verbal message; the moving film image and diegetic sounds; and additional non-diegetic sounds or music, which create a soundscape. This book examines the formal characteristics of the poetic in poetry film, film poetry and video poetry, particularly in relation to lyric voice and time.

Provides an introduction to the emergence and history of poetry film in a global context, defining and debating terms both philosophically and materially. Examines the formal characteristics of the poetic in poetry film, particularly in relation to lyric voice and time. Includes interviews, analysis and a rigorous and thorough investigation of the poetry film from its origins to the present. This is a very important, groundbreaking work on film poetry. The ideas discussed here are of great importance, and the diversity and breadth of the volume is especially impressive and very useful. This book brings together in one place crucial ideas and information for practitioners, students and academics, and is clearly and accessibly written.

Including over 40 contributors and showcasing the work of an international array of practitioners, this will be an industry bible for anyone interested in poetry, digital media, filmmaking, art and creative writing, as well as poetry filmmakers. It explores working practices, processes of collaboration and the mechanisms which make these possible. It also reveals the network of festivals disseminating and theorizing poetry film and presents a compelling bibliography.

This is the most incisive and complete analysis of filmic poetry to date. It is poised to become a major text in the field.

Essential reading for academics teaching poetry filmmaking, moving image, film, media and media poetry, writing and art. Undergraduate and postgraduate students in those fields. Great potential for textbook adoption.

Also relevant to poets, filmmakers, visual artists, graphic artists and theorists, filmmakers, screenwriters, art historians, philosophers, cultural commentators, arts journalists.



Trade Review

'Sarah Tremlett’s The Poetics of Poetry Film is a unique and extraordinary contribution to this vibrant field of expression. Her landmark volume elegantly articulates the conceptual foundations, language, grammar, and vocabulary of poetry film and its cognate forms; delivers a concise and incisive history of the genre, and introduces students, practitioners and scholars to the field’s contemporary pioneers, methods of making, and varied narrative forms. Laden with rich and provocative illustration and example, The Poetics of Poetry Film functions as Bible, Guide to the Perplexed, and indispensable reference, fluidly integrating interviews with and notes by forty contributors into a coherent and beautifully structured progression. This book—a wonder in its variety, complexity, and ambition—is a superb read.'

-- Marc Zegans, poet, poetry film and immersive theatre artist

'The sentence on the cover says it all for me. Hard to believe it’s been more than 50 years since Sympathies of War, my first videopoem. I’m thankful that a book like this, the first of its kind, of its sheer scope, finally exists and humbled that I had a part to play in the flowering of a new genre of poetry. No one better than the indefatigable doyenne of videopoems, my good friend Sarah Tremlett to make it come true.'

-- Tom Konyves, videopoet and theorist

'This is an encyclopaedic, groundbreaking manuscript on an area of film production that definitely needs more attention, and stands to be the book to surpass for quite some time; the author knows her territory intimately ... It is the most incisive and complete analysis of filmic poetry to date; it’s very diverse, includes women, minorities and transgender filmmakers, and Tremlett's descriptions of the films, and the intent of the filmmaker poets, and is both accessible and clearly written. This is a sharp, up to the minute manuscript on the bleeding edge of film criticism. ... A book exploding with dazzling, evocative images and trenchant analysis.'

-- Gwendolyn Audrey Foster, Willa Cather Professor of English & Film Studies, University of Nebraska–Lincoln

'This is a gem of a book. It brings together in one place crucial ideas and information for practitioner and academic. I wish very much that it had been available when I found my way into videopoetry ... Considering the scope of the subject matter, what has been achieved here in terms of clarifying and anatomizing is remarkable.'

-- Dr Meriel Lland, writer, photographer and film-artist

‘I loved reading this book. The Poetics of Poetry Film is an amazing resource for scholars and everyone interested in contemporary poetry.’

-- Dr Rebecca Kosick, Senior Lecturer in Translation and co-director of the Bristol Poetry Institute in the School of Modern Languages, University of Bristol

'An exhaustive study of Video Poetry by the remarkable Sarah Tremlett and over 40 contributors! I was fortunate enough to have read with Sarah at the Bury Text Festival and found her work to be amazing. She also appears in an issue of Ekleksographia edited by Judith Skillman. I recognize some names among the pioneers of the movement, including the Polypoet Enzo Minarelli. Congrats on this fantastic book! This is really wonderful!'

-- Jesse Glass, American poet, artist, folklorist and Professor of American Literature at Meikai University, Japan.

'Sarah Tremlett’s The Poetics of Poetry Film: Film Poetry, Videopoetry, Lyric Voice, Reflection offers a breathtaking range of glimpses at the historical flashpoints, formal anatomy, and major and minor contemporary makers and trends in what Tremlett alternately calls film poems and poetry film (and their sister, video poetry). [...] The book is impressively comprehensive in its representation and acknowledgment of the wide diversity of formal experiments and elements that constitute the history and present of “poetry film,”. [...] The Poetics of Poetry Film should serve as an important resource for scholars and filmmakers interested in contemporary aesthetic trends in this interdisciplinary field. It also offers an important archive of festivals and conferences on poetry film through its inclusion of interviews with festival organizers and writings by contemporary filmmakers working at the intersection of poetry and film.'

-- Rebecca A. Sheehan, Projections: The Journal for Movies and Mind

Table of Contents

Illustrations

Foreword

Valerie LeBlanc

Preface xix

Introduction: Poetry, Song, Philosophy – The Combined Lyric Aesthetic

PART ONE: FORM AND STRUCTURE

1. Terminology across Time

2. Realization and Structure

3. Voice and Narrative

4. Time and Mind

5. Constructing Dynamic Spatio- Temporality

6. Tonality, Light and Colour

7. Sound Design

8. Poet on Screen: Persona and Subjectivity

PART TWO: ARTISTS’ VOICES

9. Contemporary Pioneers

George Aguilar

Enzo Minarelli

Enzo Minarelli

Tom Konyves

Javier Robledo

Peter Todd

Valerie LeBlanc and Daniel H. Dugas

Stuart Pound and Rosemary Norman

Rosemary Norman

Stuart Pound

Heather Haley

Thomas Zandegiacomo del Bel

Zata Banks

Gabrielė Labanauskaitė

Dave Bonta

Alastair Cook

Marc Neys

10. Making

Chaucer Cameron

Marie Craven

Lucy English

Ian Gibbins

Jane Glennie

Suzie Hanna

Kate Jessop

Adeena Karasick

Martha McCollough

Matt Mullins

Adele Myers

Charles Olsen

Caleb Parkin and Helmie Stil

Helmie Stil

Caleb Parkin

Maciej Piatek

Dave Richardson

Othniel Smith

Howard Vause

Susanne Wiegner

11. Poetry Film and Videopoetry in Portugal and Spain: Alive and Thriving

Charles Olsen

Alexandre Braga

Manuel Vilarinho

Eduardo Yagüe

Tarha Erena

Alejandro Céspedes

Celia Parra

Jordan T. Caylor

Belén Gache

Santiago Parres

Lola López- Cózar

Agustín Fernández Mallo

David Argüelles Redondo

Ángel Guinda and Sándor M. Salas

12. Experimental Poetry in Argentina from the 1960s to the 1990s: Political Voice and Prefiguring the Turn to Digital Literature and Video Poetry

Marisol Bellusci

13. Liberated Words: Developing a Poetry Film Festival and Workshops

Butterflies Haven Workshop

Helen Moore

Howard Vause

PART THREE: SELECTED NARRATIVE FORMS

14. Collections

John D. Scott

15. Text- on- Screen

16. Video Haiku and Video Haiga

Katia Viscogliosi and Francis Magnenot

Judy Kendall

17. A Documentary Approach to Poetry Film

18. Dance and Movement

Helen Mort

19. The Ecopoetry Film

Meriel Lland

Janet Lees

Janet Lees

Helen Moore and Howard Vause

Helen Moore

Overview

Examples of Leading Poetry Film Festivals

References

Artists and Authors Index

The Poetics of Poetry Film: Film Poetry,

    Product form

    £38.00

    Includes FREE delivery

    RRP £40.00 – you save £2.00 (5%)

    Order before 4pm today for delivery by Thu 18 Jun 2026.

    A Paperback / softback by Sarah Tremlett

    1 in stock

      Trusted by thousands of customers. See 2,385+ Customer Reviews

      View other formats and editions of The Poetics of Poetry Film: Film Poetry, by Sarah Tremlett

      Publisher: Intellect Books
      Publication Date: 01/06/2021
      ISBN13: 9781789382686, 978-1789382686
      ISBN10: 1789382688

      Description

      Book Synopsis

      Set to generate and influence discussions in the field for years to come, this is an encyclopaedic work on the ever-evolving genre of poetry film. It will set the benchmark for all subsequent works on the subject, being the first book of its kind.

      Poetry films are a genre of short film, usually combining the three main elements: the poem as verbal message; the moving film image and diegetic sounds; and additional non-diegetic sounds or music, which create a soundscape. This book examines the formal characteristics of the poetic in poetry film, film poetry and video poetry, particularly in relation to lyric voice and time.

      Provides an introduction to the emergence and history of poetry film in a global context, defining and debating terms both philosophically and materially. Examines the formal characteristics of the poetic in poetry film, particularly in relation to lyric voice and time. Includes interviews, analysis and a rigorous and thorough investigation of the poetry film from its origins to the present. This is a very important, groundbreaking work on film poetry. The ideas discussed here are of great importance, and the diversity and breadth of the volume is especially impressive and very useful. This book brings together in one place crucial ideas and information for practitioners, students and academics, and is clearly and accessibly written.

      Including over 40 contributors and showcasing the work of an international array of practitioners, this will be an industry bible for anyone interested in poetry, digital media, filmmaking, art and creative writing, as well as poetry filmmakers. It explores working practices, processes of collaboration and the mechanisms which make these possible. It also reveals the network of festivals disseminating and theorizing poetry film and presents a compelling bibliography.

      This is the most incisive and complete analysis of filmic poetry to date. It is poised to become a major text in the field.

      Essential reading for academics teaching poetry filmmaking, moving image, film, media and media poetry, writing and art. Undergraduate and postgraduate students in those fields. Great potential for textbook adoption.

      Also relevant to poets, filmmakers, visual artists, graphic artists and theorists, filmmakers, screenwriters, art historians, philosophers, cultural commentators, arts journalists.



      Trade Review

      'Sarah Tremlett’s The Poetics of Poetry Film is a unique and extraordinary contribution to this vibrant field of expression. Her landmark volume elegantly articulates the conceptual foundations, language, grammar, and vocabulary of poetry film and its cognate forms; delivers a concise and incisive history of the genre, and introduces students, practitioners and scholars to the field’s contemporary pioneers, methods of making, and varied narrative forms. Laden with rich and provocative illustration and example, The Poetics of Poetry Film functions as Bible, Guide to the Perplexed, and indispensable reference, fluidly integrating interviews with and notes by forty contributors into a coherent and beautifully structured progression. This book—a wonder in its variety, complexity, and ambition—is a superb read.'

      -- Marc Zegans, poet, poetry film and immersive theatre artist

      'The sentence on the cover says it all for me. Hard to believe it’s been more than 50 years since Sympathies of War, my first videopoem. I’m thankful that a book like this, the first of its kind, of its sheer scope, finally exists and humbled that I had a part to play in the flowering of a new genre of poetry. No one better than the indefatigable doyenne of videopoems, my good friend Sarah Tremlett to make it come true.'

      -- Tom Konyves, videopoet and theorist

      'This is an encyclopaedic, groundbreaking manuscript on an area of film production that definitely needs more attention, and stands to be the book to surpass for quite some time; the author knows her territory intimately ... It is the most incisive and complete analysis of filmic poetry to date; it’s very diverse, includes women, minorities and transgender filmmakers, and Tremlett's descriptions of the films, and the intent of the filmmaker poets, and is both accessible and clearly written. This is a sharp, up to the minute manuscript on the bleeding edge of film criticism. ... A book exploding with dazzling, evocative images and trenchant analysis.'

      -- Gwendolyn Audrey Foster, Willa Cather Professor of English & Film Studies, University of Nebraska–Lincoln

      'This is a gem of a book. It brings together in one place crucial ideas and information for practitioner and academic. I wish very much that it had been available when I found my way into videopoetry ... Considering the scope of the subject matter, what has been achieved here in terms of clarifying and anatomizing is remarkable.'

      -- Dr Meriel Lland, writer, photographer and film-artist

      ‘I loved reading this book. The Poetics of Poetry Film is an amazing resource for scholars and everyone interested in contemporary poetry.’

      -- Dr Rebecca Kosick, Senior Lecturer in Translation and co-director of the Bristol Poetry Institute in the School of Modern Languages, University of Bristol

      'An exhaustive study of Video Poetry by the remarkable Sarah Tremlett and over 40 contributors! I was fortunate enough to have read with Sarah at the Bury Text Festival and found her work to be amazing. She also appears in an issue of Ekleksographia edited by Judith Skillman. I recognize some names among the pioneers of the movement, including the Polypoet Enzo Minarelli. Congrats on this fantastic book! This is really wonderful!'

      -- Jesse Glass, American poet, artist, folklorist and Professor of American Literature at Meikai University, Japan.

      'Sarah Tremlett’s The Poetics of Poetry Film: Film Poetry, Videopoetry, Lyric Voice, Reflection offers a breathtaking range of glimpses at the historical flashpoints, formal anatomy, and major and minor contemporary makers and trends in what Tremlett alternately calls film poems and poetry film (and their sister, video poetry). [...] The book is impressively comprehensive in its representation and acknowledgment of the wide diversity of formal experiments and elements that constitute the history and present of “poetry film,”. [...] The Poetics of Poetry Film should serve as an important resource for scholars and filmmakers interested in contemporary aesthetic trends in this interdisciplinary field. It also offers an important archive of festivals and conferences on poetry film through its inclusion of interviews with festival organizers and writings by contemporary filmmakers working at the intersection of poetry and film.'

      -- Rebecca A. Sheehan, Projections: The Journal for Movies and Mind

      Table of Contents

      Illustrations

      Foreword

      Valerie LeBlanc

      Preface xix

      Introduction: Poetry, Song, Philosophy – The Combined Lyric Aesthetic

      PART ONE: FORM AND STRUCTURE

      1. Terminology across Time

      2. Realization and Structure

      3. Voice and Narrative

      4. Time and Mind

      5. Constructing Dynamic Spatio- Temporality

      6. Tonality, Light and Colour

      7. Sound Design

      8. Poet on Screen: Persona and Subjectivity

      PART TWO: ARTISTS’ VOICES

      9. Contemporary Pioneers

      George Aguilar

      Enzo Minarelli

      Enzo Minarelli

      Tom Konyves

      Javier Robledo

      Peter Todd

      Valerie LeBlanc and Daniel H. Dugas

      Stuart Pound and Rosemary Norman

      Rosemary Norman

      Stuart Pound

      Heather Haley

      Thomas Zandegiacomo del Bel

      Zata Banks

      Gabrielė Labanauskaitė

      Dave Bonta

      Alastair Cook

      Marc Neys

      10. Making

      Chaucer Cameron

      Marie Craven

      Lucy English

      Ian Gibbins

      Jane Glennie

      Suzie Hanna

      Kate Jessop

      Adeena Karasick

      Martha McCollough

      Matt Mullins

      Adele Myers

      Charles Olsen

      Caleb Parkin and Helmie Stil

      Helmie Stil

      Caleb Parkin

      Maciej Piatek

      Dave Richardson

      Othniel Smith

      Howard Vause

      Susanne Wiegner

      11. Poetry Film and Videopoetry in Portugal and Spain: Alive and Thriving

      Charles Olsen

      Alexandre Braga

      Manuel Vilarinho

      Eduardo Yagüe

      Tarha Erena

      Alejandro Céspedes

      Celia Parra

      Jordan T. Caylor

      Belén Gache

      Santiago Parres

      Lola López- Cózar

      Agustín Fernández Mallo

      David Argüelles Redondo

      Ángel Guinda and Sándor M. Salas

      12. Experimental Poetry in Argentina from the 1960s to the 1990s: Political Voice and Prefiguring the Turn to Digital Literature and Video Poetry

      Marisol Bellusci

      13. Liberated Words: Developing a Poetry Film Festival and Workshops

      Butterflies Haven Workshop

      Helen Moore

      Howard Vause

      PART THREE: SELECTED NARRATIVE FORMS

      14. Collections

      John D. Scott

      15. Text- on- Screen

      16. Video Haiku and Video Haiga

      Katia Viscogliosi and Francis Magnenot

      Judy Kendall

      17. A Documentary Approach to Poetry Film

      18. Dance and Movement

      Helen Mort

      19. The Ecopoetry Film

      Meriel Lland

      Janet Lees

      Janet Lees

      Helen Moore and Howard Vause

      Helen Moore

      Overview

      Examples of Leading Poetry Film Festivals

      References

      Artists and Authors Index

      Recently viewed products

      © 2026 Book Curl

        • American Express
        • Apple Pay
        • Diners Club
        • Discover
        • Google Pay
        • Maestro
        • Mastercard
        • PayPal
        • Shop Pay
        • Union Pay
        • Visa

        Login

        Forgot your password?

        Don't have an account yet?
        Create account