Coalfields (excerpt) by Bill Brand

Coalfields by Bill Brand
1984, 16mm, DVD NTSC, color, 38.5 min
West Virginia industrial landscapes are collaged through a series of mattes that transform the photographed scenes into a kinetic field of shapes and spaces. While the technique and the emotional tone are reminiscent of the earlier are more purely personal CHUCK'S WILL'S WIDOW (1982), the new film extends the already complex visual idiom by inlaying social, sexual, and personal and political subjects. Woven into the fabric of the film is the story of Fred Carter, a retired coal miner and black lung activist who was framed by the Federal Government into order to undercut the black lung movement and to stop his bid for president of the UMWA. His story is told through fragments of documentary interviews and by a poet whose narrative is a counter theme in the film. The thematic elements and formal approaches sit in precarious balance. COALFIELDS has an original poetic text by Kimiko Hahn and sound composition by Earl Howard.

Rental: $80.00 DVD sale: 80.00
16mm Rental: $80.00
DVD NTSC Sale: $80.00

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• experimental
• media