ART FILM: JAPANESE AVANT-GARDE (18)

17-18 JULY

CURZON SOHO

TICKETS £5/£4concession

Two programmes that give an insight into Japan’s cutting-edge cinema, presenting some of the most important historical figures such as Takahiko Iimura and Shuji Terayama as well as young artists like Tamano Shinichi, recently featured at the Rotterdam Film Festival.

SAT 17 JULY, 6PM: AMBIGUOUS BODIES

The films in this programme manipulate images of the body, working with notions of ambiguity, sexuality, madness and sometimes refer to the theatre of the absurd. They include original and subversive images, as can be seen in the work of Shuji Terayama (EMPEROR TOMATO KETCHUP), a legendary figure in the cultural history of Japan, who deals with the discredit of authority, the tyranny of the family, the torment of adolescence and memories of sexual experiences. Takahiko Iimura and Tamano Shinichi show, each in their own individual way, feelings of insanity while Takashi Ito revisits Marilyn Monroe’s iconic image.

LOVE

Dir: Takahiko Iimura.1962.12mins.16mm.

CHOFUKU-KI

Dir: Shuji Terayama. 1974. 15mins. 16mm.

APPARATUS “M”

Dir: Takashi Ito. 1996. 6mins. 16mm.

THE RULES OF DREAMS

Dir: Tsuji Naoyuki. 2001. 6mins. 16mm.

KOUSOKU BOZU

Dir: Tamano Shinichi. 2002. 11mins. Beta

SUN 18 JULY, 6PM: URBAN SPACES

These films develop formalist experimentations while using urban imagery. Iimura’s classic transforms a zen garden into an abstract painting. Kohei Ando’s LIKE A PASSING TRAIN 1 & 2 compiles every possible combination of a train passing by a house, turning the film into a metaphor of cinema. Jun Miyazaki’s very minimalist, fluid and beautiful shots show landscapes, from traditional gardens to suburban eras.

MA: SPACE/TIME IN THE GARDEN OF RYOAN-JI

Dir: Takahiko Iimura. 1989. 16mins. 16mm.

LIKE A PASSING TRAIN

Dir: Kohei Ando. 1978. 3mins. 16mm.

LIKE A PASSING TRAIN 2

Dir: Kohei Ando.1979. 7mins. 6mm.

FLOTTE

Dir: Yo Ota. 1993. 9mins. 16mm.

FRONTIER

Dir: Jun Miyazaki. 1999. 23mins. 16mm.

CURZON SOHO

99 SHAFTESBURY AVENUE

LONDON, W1

BOX OFFICE: 020 7734 2255

www.curzoncinemas.com