Film
Five Video Essays to Watch in August
This month: Tetris competitions, “adulting” amusement parks, the pitfalls of activist art, and more.
Dan Schindel
Dan Schindel is a freelance writer and copy editor living in Brooklyn, and a former associate editor at Hyperallergic. His portfolio and links are here .
Interview
A Deeply Personal Investigation Into Canada’s Residential Schools
Co-directors Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie discuss the making of their documentary Sugarcane, told from the perspective of Indigenous survivors.
Film
When the US Left Afghanistan, This Filmmaker Entered
Director Ibrahim Nash’at spent a year watching the Taliban transition from insurgency back to governance.
Film
Verbatim Reenacts Life With a Twist
The film series showcases how different artists have used reenactments, preserving dialogue and audio but playing with every other element.
Film
You Can’t Finish This Brian Eno Doc in a Single Lifetime
An algorithm organizes a unique ordering of scenes for each screening, meaning there are millions of versions of the film.
Film
Shunga Might Just Convince You That Pornography Is Art
Director Junko Hirata delves deep into the history and influence of the pornographic art form without cheap tittering at its illicit imagery.
Film
There’s Something for Everyone at This Year’s Japan Cuts
One of the most underrated film festivals in New York, each year it presents an accessible and engaging collection of recent Japanese cinema.
Interview
Power Traces the History of Policing in the US
Following the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, filmmaker Yance Ford was struck by the question: “What, exactly, do the police exist to do?”
Film
Five Video Essays to Close Out May
Plus, a tool set to make your own video essays.
Film
A Japanese Reality Show’s Dark Legacy
Livestreaming, confessional monologues, and subjects’ willingness to let mass audiences surveil them all started here.
Film
Half a Century of American Culture Through the Lens of One Photographer
James Hamilton’s career conveniently mirrors the changing fortunes of journalism as an industry.
Film
Nigeria’s Youth Fight for a Better Future
Alain Kassanda’s Coconut Head Generation is a testament to how young people find themselves through each other no matter the place, times, or means.