‘My film talk is called The Absolute Truth of the Happiness Acid‘,’ said Lye. This acid was not LSD but the nucleic acid of DNA and his ‘absolute truth’ was in ‘the gene-pattern which contains the one and only natural truth of our being.
This is beautiful, and you dont really appreciate it until you've tried to do this yourself! :)
Lucky for me My teacher at college (high school for you usa guys i think) set up a workshop doing experimental film,including this film strip stuff, and is simply amazing :) so sad its rarely used anymore :(
Sorry to post here: the video or the page from "Swinging the Lambeth Walk" is causing errors in Safari and Google Chrome in Mac OSX: Cracks on loudspeakers, no sound afterwards, "page error" messages, etc- Please check that.
I'm trying to forward the links to friends, since I'm a fan from Len Lye's work... but those "page errors" are nothing to be forwarded.
I too made some films like this back in the late 70s. I was inspired not only by Len Lye, but also Norman McLaren and Harry Smith. It was a very time-consuming process.
Years ago we tried to make a film like this in summer camp! The counselor gave us kids a bunch of markers and had us draw directly onto a reel of clear movie film! We did, but the markers were not permanent and when we spooled the film back onto the reel the colors all smeared together into a mush. But we had fun doing it.
I think that what is fantastic about these types of videos is the amount of effort that goes into making them works of art! Seeing the colors and lines go right in time and rhythm with the music is really something to me. *Kind of reminds me of the sound-box from the first Fantasia.*
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
that is a complete brain wash... watched it on film studies class and im going to be talking about it on my exam.. no offence to those who like this, but thats just crazy, nothign to it but lines!!
Chatterbox...sorry but you really need to go out and make some films of your own and when I say films I mean mimic Lyes style , play with light and wonder in its magnificence..If you are contemplating ,seriously being a film maker rather than writing innane theory, I would learn to revel in Lyes wizardry before you critique it from your 2009 context
it was a subject i took in college (high school in the usa) for 2 yrs, this was a yr ago, and honeslty now i do appreciate ly's work. i think ill leave the film making to those who know their stuf and ill just focus on my psychology at what im good at! lol x
nice whan... yeah theres a lot of aspects of psychology in lyes work . I think thats what i love about it the most. it seems so simple but when you get down to the semiotic sstructure and ideological basis it gets extremely interesting, In my subjective I think lye was attempting to mirror the molecular world in hios films. Take tusalava for example. Its all about the way amibas devide and mutate. he was a pioneer and a next level one at that
when i did this at my advanced level (second yr of college) we were given an extract from this piece and were told that, this piece of lys work was done of him experimenting with colours and music ( we were studying experimental films as one of our modules), and that there was no deeper meaning within this video., however i guess everyone has their own interpretation of this, depending on how his work influences people
@chatterbox123hi omg, im doing a topic on this, (shame not a course!:( though we can do this for coursework) and im not too great, love it though, but sticking wit psychology too :L lmao
I had to do this too, as part of my experimental cinema section, ill admit it was differnt but i really enjoyed the change, at least you have a lot of other films to contrast it too as its so unique.
yeah i know what u mean. but sometimes when u are given something new to learn, u dont always tend to favour it immidiate, well that has been the case for me anyway, guess im unable to speak for others! :)
I saw his films for the first time over the weekend (at the Govett-Brewster Gallery in New Plymouth) and i was basically sitting in an empty theatre, mouth open, thinking oh my god the entire time. lol :)
One of the best films by one of the most important and influential animators of the 20th century. Check out his SWINGING THE LAMBETH WALK for another fine one on youtube. I wish I could get this on DVD though!
Amazingly, many of his best works are now available on inexpensive PAL DVDs from the UK on the BFI label. Search out "GPO Film Unit" and you will find compilations with many of them, in beautiful transfers.
Thanks so much for posting this video. i couldnt get hold of it anywhere, so tried youtube on the offchance. for such an awesome piece of animation i can even handle the poor quality!
‘My film talk is called The Absolute Truth of the Happiness Acid‘,’ said Lye. This acid was not LSD but the nucleic acid of DNA and his ‘absolute truth’ was in ‘the gene-pattern which contains the one and only natural truth of our being.
harlequinpictures 3 months ago
This is beautiful, and you dont really appreciate it until you've tried to do this yourself! :)
Lucky for me My teacher at college (high school for you usa guys i think) set up a workshop doing experimental film,including this film strip stuff, and is simply amazing :) so sad its rarely used anymore :(
RageModeGo 4 months ago
this is not moving picture, it is moving painting
TheSilentAstronaut 9 months ago
what technique is he using Cell animation, stop frame?
TheChunkBoi 11 months ago
@TheChunkBoi Paint on film.
cloejk 11 months ago
@cloejk k thanks
TheChunkBoi 11 months ago
Pure New Zealand ingenuity! Wholesome too!
npatiw 1 year ago
Sorry to post here: the video or the page from "Swinging the Lambeth Walk" is causing errors in Safari and Google Chrome in Mac OSX: Cracks on loudspeakers, no sound afterwards, "page error" messages, etc- Please check that.
I'm trying to forward the links to friends, since I'm a fan from Len Lye's work... but those "page errors" are nothing to be forwarded.
Best wishes
wagedu 1 year ago
What is the name of that song?!
madhatter2k 1 year ago
I've uploaded a MUCHbetter quality copy of this... search BartConway's videos
BartConway 1 year ago
I too made some films like this back in the late 70s. I was inspired not only by Len Lye, but also Norman McLaren and Harry Smith. It was a very time-consuming process.
Synthetrix 2 years ago
@Synthetrix good on you for giv ing it a go. :)
TheTopTrump 1 year ago
Years ago we tried to make a film like this in summer camp! The counselor gave us kids a bunch of markers and had us draw directly onto a reel of clear movie film! We did, but the markers were not permanent and when we spooled the film back onto the reel the colors all smeared together into a mush. But we had fun doing it.
robertwmartens 2 years ago
@robertwmartens i bet it still looked beautiful :)
RageModeGo 4 months ago
I think that what is fantastic about these types of videos is the amount of effort that goes into making them works of art! Seeing the colors and lines go right in time and rhythm with the music is really something to me. *Kind of reminds me of the sound-box from the first Fantasia.*
brian4t7 3 years ago
That's simply waht a think cinema should really look like, lye was amazing
ZyklonZombie6 3 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
that is a complete brain wash... watched it on film studies class and im going to be talking about it on my exam.. no offence to those who like this, but thats just crazy, nothign to it but lines!!
chatterbox123hi 3 years ago
A cratched up blank film would be nothing but lines. This is mastering composition, colors, rhythm and motion directly on film!
aldiakaroofus 3 years ago
you've obviously never smoked weed
ChocolateExplosion 3 years ago
Chatterbox...sorry but you really need to go out and make some films of your own and when I say films I mean mimic Lyes style , play with light and wonder in its magnificence..If you are contemplating ,seriously being a film maker rather than writing innane theory, I would learn to revel in Lyes wizardry before you critique it from your 2009 context
Redstar309Z 3 years ago 8
it was a subject i took in college (high school in the usa) for 2 yrs, this was a yr ago, and honeslty now i do appreciate ly's work. i think ill leave the film making to those who know their stuf and ill just focus on my psychology at what im good at! lol x
chatterbox123hi 3 years ago
nice whan... yeah theres a lot of aspects of psychology in lyes work . I think thats what i love about it the most. it seems so simple but when you get down to the semiotic sstructure and ideological basis it gets extremely interesting, In my subjective I think lye was attempting to mirror the molecular world in hios films. Take tusalava for example. Its all about the way amibas devide and mutate. he was a pioneer and a next level one at that
Redstar309Z 3 years ago
when i did this at my advanced level (second yr of college) we were given an extract from this piece and were told that, this piece of lys work was done of him experimenting with colours and music ( we were studying experimental films as one of our modules), and that there was no deeper meaning within this video., however i guess everyone has their own interpretation of this, depending on how his work influences people
chatterbox123hi 3 years ago
@chatterbox123hi omg, im doing a topic on this, (shame not a course!:( though we can do this for coursework) and im not too great, love it though, but sticking wit psychology too :L lmao
RageModeGo 4 months ago
I had to do this too, as part of my experimental cinema section, ill admit it was differnt but i really enjoyed the change, at least you have a lot of other films to contrast it too as its so unique.
8comicbooknerd9 3 years ago
yeah i know what u mean. but sometimes when u are given something new to learn, u dont always tend to favour it immidiate, well that has been the case for me anyway, guess im unable to speak for others! :)
chatterbox123hi 3 years ago
I saw his films for the first time over the weekend (at the Govett-Brewster Gallery in New Plymouth) and i was basically sitting in an empty theatre, mouth open, thinking oh my god the entire time. lol :)
backupnameplease 4 years ago
My favorite abstract animation film of all time!
aldiakaroofus 4 years ago
seeing this at the Tate Modern recently absolutely blew me away
ChocolateExplosion 4 years ago 2
My favorite part of this is that it's an advert for the royal mail
rizo299 4 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Amen to that!!!
saw this cunt in film studies sitting next to me old mugga!!!
but yeah great films, its not ART!!!!!
twatws 4 years ago
One of the best films by one of the most important and influential animators of the 20th century. Check out his SWINGING THE LAMBETH WALK for another fine one on youtube. I wish I could get this on DVD though!
woodears 5 years ago 5
@woodears
Amazingly, many of his best works are now available on inexpensive PAL DVDs from the UK on the BFI label. Search out "GPO Film Unit" and you will find compilations with many of them, in beautiful transfers.
BartConway 1 year ago
Thanks so much for posting this video. i couldnt get hold of it anywhere, so tried youtube on the offchance. for such an awesome piece of animation i can even handle the poor quality!
w0bbit 5 years ago
yea, fuck a camera
thedeadsealion 5 years ago
who needs a camera to make film anyway. top class.ka pai.
heraldstreet 5 years ago