Symposium 2016

2016 BRAKHAGE CENTER SYMPOSIUM:听 A TRIBUTE TO GEORGE KUCHAR

MARCH 4, 5, & 6 听

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George Kuchar is one of the great artists in the history of the moving image鈥e are amazed by the craft, the perfect cues, the skillful edits, the startling images and visual rhymes, the flawless pacing and ingenious continuity, often achieved spontaneously, in camera. His images can be both insanely bizarre and rapturously beautiful, with a hallucinatory otherness seldom achieved by even the most visionary artists in film history鈥ew can match his eccentric imagination, his phenomenal wit, his peculiar way with language, and his ability to construct complex multidimensional narratives鈥he work is transgressive and subversive鈥攖ransgressive sexually (he鈥檚 among the pioneers of queer and camp cinema) and in its scatological breach of decorum; subversive in its听 zero-budget triumph over commodity cinema, the triumph of听 amateur over professional.
----Gene Youngblood

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Michael Kuchar

Director, cinematographer and visual artist, Michael Kuchar is an underground film legend whose work--singly and in collaboration with twin brother George Kuchar--has inspired filmmakers from听Jack Smith to John Waters. He currently teaches in the film department at the San Francisco Art Institute.

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Donna Kerness

Actor, painter, dancer, Donna Kerness听has appeared in films by Robert Cowan, Jack Smith,听Michael Zuckerman,听and, most notably,听by George and Michael Kuchar which include Born of the Wind (1961), Lust for Ecstasy (1963), and Hold Me While I鈥檓 Naked (1966).

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Andrew Lampert

Andrew Lampert has created an extensive body of films, videos, photographs and performances, and his work has been shown at The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Getty Museum, and The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. He was archivist and later curator of Collections at the Anthology Film Archives from 2003-2015. He has edited The George Kuchar Reader.

Nancy Andrews

Nancy Andrews works in hybrid filmic forms, combining storytelling, documentary, animation, sound and puppetry. She studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and received a Master of Fine Arts in 1995. She teaches video making, animation, time-based arts and film studies at the College of the Atlantic.

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Denah Johnston

Denah Johnston is a teacher, writer, award-winning filmmaker and curator who has worked as programmer and prescreener for the San Francisco LGBT Film Festival and the San Francisco International Film Festival. She studied with George Kuchar and听is currently Cinema Studies Professor at the City College of San Francisco.

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Highlights of the Symposium:听

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As with past years, the Brakhage Center Symposium brought听together a dynamic group of filmmakers, scholars and other听interested parties to provide invaluable presentations and real-time discussion about the work of this year's featured film听artist, George Kuchar. I saw work I'd never seen mixed in with听pieces I feel I know pretty well; I heard recollections/analyses听that illuminated Kuchar in new ways, along with perspectives听that resonated with a combination of comfortable nostalgia,听irrepressible mirth, awe inspired by Kuchar's creative integrity听and depth, and an immense sense of loss due to his passing.

Jonathon Gluckstern, Film Studies Lecturer, Attendee

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The Brakhage Symposium is a wonderful opportunity to bring in an听audience from around the country and foster a lively gathering听of filmmakers, critics and avant-garde cinema enthusiasts. The听opportunity to commune with featured filmmakers for a weekend is听rare and is a valuable opportunity for students, faculty and听local attendees.

Kelly Sears, Film Studies Professor, Attendee

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I thoroughly enjoyed my day at this year's Brakhage Symposium,听particularly the program curated and hosted by George Kuchar's听star actress, Donna Kerness. Mike Kuchar's frequent听participation from the audience was truly revelatory and moving听to me, and the day was summed up by an excellent panel of all听the guests hosted by Kuchar expert Andy Lampert. A well balanced听day between the personal and the historical/academic. For those听of us who knew and cared for George, this year's symposium听provided a touchstone for a wonderful artist and his work. I听could hear Stan roaring with laughter...

Philip S. Solomon, Film Studies Professor, Attendee

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Every year the Brakhage Center Symposium melds rigorous听intellectual, academic, and artistic components with an openness听that welcomes everyone from filmmakers to curious community听members, and the 2016 tribute to George Kuchar did not听disappoint. The late George Kuchar's brother and fellow听filmmaker, Michael; the star of many of the films shown, Donna听Kerness; filmmaker Nancy Andrews; archivist Andrew Lampert; and听professor, filmmaker, and Kuchar student and filmmaker Denah听Johnston provided an engaging, entertaining, and uniquely听educational experience. They defined George Kuchar as an听artist, teacher, and human being through personal stories and听placed him in a cultural context by detailing his influence on听their own work and on the experimental and commercial film听worlds in general. The symposium presented a valuable听opportunity for students to engage personally with people in听Kuchar's world and sphere of influence. The humor that pervades听Kuchar's work made the weekend a pure joy.

Lisa Spaulding, attendee

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I have be a devoted attendee of the Brakhage Symposium since I听moved to 麻豆官网 in 2008. I look forward to it every year. The听Kuchar event was certainly one of the most memorable. I was听impressed with how well it was organized. It was wonderful to听see Mike Kuchar again and to meet the glamourous Donna Kerness.

Carmen Vigil, Attendee

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It was a pleasure to honor George Kuchar at the most recent听Brakhage Symposium. Having his brother Mike present along with听filmmakers Nancy Andrews, Andrew Lampert, Denah Johnston, and听the actress, Donna Kerness. The screening and talks were听informative, well planned, and very important for my students听who attended multiple events during the 2 1/2 day Symposium. The听work of George Kuchar and his importance in the American Avant听Garde was highlighted and celebrated.听This was one of the most important film events of the year on听campus.

Don Yannacito, Film 2000 Instructor, Attendee

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