Closure of Catharsis
Encyclopedia
Closure of Catharsis is a British-Irish Experimental film
directed by Rouzbeh Rashidi
that tells the visual story of a man who sits on a park bench talking to the camera, trying to weave together a thought that won't cohere while commenting on passers-by, his 'guests'... Mysterious images intervene, overturning the serenity of the park-bench monologue.
The improvisation took place over two hours without any break, and Rashidi did not attempt to direct or shape James' performance in the traditional sense; in fact, Rashidi was not even present for much of the improvisation, instead, he would deliberately wander off for 20 or 30 minutes at a time, allowing James to simply respond to his immediate situation in the park; a couple of unleashed dangerous dogs, a squirrel darting across a branch, a jogger cruising by, some school girls giggling at the camera, all became grist to the improvisational mill. Rashidi's only interjections were as an occasional mysterious off-camera "other", stimulating James by giving him random objects found in the park, such as an old pendant or an empty bottle of vodka. Aside from this however, Rashidi left James to his own devices in front of camera, the only boundary being the frame within which James had been placed, and sometimes not even the frame, as when he stepped outside of it.
Rouzbeh Rashidi was inspired by Remodernist film
manifesto in order to make Closure of Catharsis.
Experimental film
Experimental film or experimental cinema is a type of cinema. Experimental film is an artistic practice relieving both of visual arts and cinema. Its origins can be found in European avant-garde movements of the twenties. Experimental cinema has built its history through the texts of theoreticians...
directed by Rouzbeh Rashidi
Rouzbeh Rashidi
Rouzbeh Rashidi is an Iranian avant-garde filmmaker associated with the Remodernist film movement....
that tells the visual story of a man who sits on a park bench talking to the camera, trying to weave together a thought that won't cohere while commenting on passers-by, his 'guests'... Mysterious images intervene, overturning the serenity of the park-bench monologue.
Production
Rouzbeh Rashidi made this film with a low budget and total cast and crew of four people including the actors. Intentionally working without a script or any kind of written pre-planning, Rouzbeh Rashidi constructed Closure Of Catharsis around an improvised monologue by actor James Devereaux, which took place on a park bench in Hackney's London Fields. Rashidi did not arrange any kind of rehearsal and gave only the briefest of instructions to the actor; "you're struggling to remember something, something from the past which you have repressed because of its traumatic effect upon you, and the memory can be true or false, or a mixture of both".The improvisation took place over two hours without any break, and Rashidi did not attempt to direct or shape James' performance in the traditional sense; in fact, Rashidi was not even present for much of the improvisation, instead, he would deliberately wander off for 20 or 30 minutes at a time, allowing James to simply respond to his immediate situation in the park; a couple of unleashed dangerous dogs, a squirrel darting across a branch, a jogger cruising by, some school girls giggling at the camera, all became grist to the improvisational mill. Rashidi's only interjections were as an occasional mysterious off-camera "other", stimulating James by giving him random objects found in the park, such as an old pendant or an empty bottle of vodka. Aside from this however, Rashidi left James to his own devices in front of camera, the only boundary being the frame within which James had been placed, and sometimes not even the frame, as when he stepped outside of it.
Rouzbeh Rashidi was inspired by Remodernist film
Remodernist Film
Remodernist film developed in the United States and the United Kingdom in the early 21st century with ideas related to those of the international art movement Stuckism and its manifesto, Remodernism...
manifesto in order to make Closure of Catharsis.
Further reading
- Review of the film Closure of Catharsis (2011) By Véronique Martin
- Review of the film Closure of Catharsis (2011) By Jit Phokaew
- Review of the film Closure of Catharsis (2011) By NUTS4R2
- Review of the film Closure of Catharsis (2011) By Jesse Richards
External links
- Closure of Catharsis on Mubi (website)