SD 103: SNAKES & LADDERS

2019, 30 mins, HD/Mini-DV, colour
A Motion Picture Exploration By Daniel Fawcett & Clara Pais
With Laura Mulvey, Amy Cutler, Peter Treherne, Kai Fiáin, Sara Budd

The latest instalment in Daniel & Clara’s ongoing Studio Diary Series, which so far consists of 103 experimental short films exploring the possibilities of moving image as an art form, SNAKES & LADDERS is an experimental video essay responding to the films and writing of Laura Mulvey and Peter Wollen.

Initially inspired by a visit to an exhibition at the Peltz Gallery which gathered together archive materials relating to Mulvey/Wollen’s work, this film focuses on the relationship between theory and practice and how theory informs the strategies and structures of their films. A particular focus on the relationship between camera, subject, spoken word, text and dialogue is explored. Favouring formal experimentation over conventional essay and documentary formats, Daniel & Clara employ many of the ideas and filmmaking techniques of Mulvey/Wollen but reconfigured through the lens of their own practice.

Screenings & Exhibitions

2019   Microcinema Artist’s Moving Image, Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge, UK
2019   Kino Klub Split, Croatia
2019   Last Thursday Film Club, The Printworks, Hastings, UK
2019   Exploding Appendix Avant-Garde Research Group, Brighton, UK
2019   Birkbeck Cinema, London, UK