The Video Essay Podcast

Liz Green is a scholar, sound professional, and video essayist. On today's show, she and Will discuss her essay, "Do it for Van Gogh: Detecting and Perverting the Audience Position in David Lynch's Blue Velvet." They also discuss Tracy Cox-Stanton's recently released video essay, "Gesture in A Woman Under the Influence." Music via: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Mela/Mela_two/MELA_-_Mela_Two_-_05_Brain_Power

Will is joined by his fellow co-editors of the 2019 Sight & Sound magazine poll of the best video essays of the year, Grace Lee (What's So Great About That?) and Ariel Avissar. They discuss what it was like editing the poll, what changed about the poll this year, how they'd like to see the poll evolve in the future, and how they made their own selections. The second half of the show features commentary from nine contributors to this year's poll: Chloé Galibert-Laîné, Scout Tafoya, Jason Mittell, Philip Brubaker, Andrea Moran (on behalf of FILMADRID), Shannon Strucci, Ian Garwood, Oswald Iten, and Johannes Binotto. Music via: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Mela/Mela_two/MELA_-_Mela_Two_-_05_Brain_Power

Filmmaker and critic Charlie Shackleton joins the show to discuss his background, philosophy when it comes to making videographic work, and his most recent essay, "Criticism in the Age of TikTok." In a first for the show, Charlie and Will also discuss a performance piece by Zia Anger, My First Film. Music via: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Mela/Mela_two/MELA_-_Mela_Two_-_05_Brain_Power

Scholar Johannes Binotto joins the show to discuss his video essays on John Ford's Stagecoach and François Truffaut. He and Will also discuss Hartmut Bitomsky’s 1991 essay film, Das Kino und der Wind und die Photographie (The Cinema and the Wind and Photography). Music via: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Mela/Mela_two/MELA_-_Mela_Two_-_05_Brain_Power

Chloé Galibert-Laîné, one of the leaders in the video essay genre of "desktop documentary" comes on the show to discuss her film, "Watching The Pain of Others." Chloé and Will also discuss Ross Sutherland's 2015 film, "Stand By for Tape Back-Up." Music via: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Mela/Mela_two/MELA_-_Mela_Two_-_05_Brain_Power

Jen Proctor is a video essayist, filmmaker, media artist, and professor at the University of Michigan - Dearborn. On this week's show we discuss the difference between those terms, what a video essay is, and a whole lot more. Jen and Will discuss her found footage film, Nothing a Little Soap and Water Can't Fix, and Martin Arnold's 1988 found footage film, Pièce Touchée. Music via: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Mela/Mela_two/MELA_-_Mela_Two_-_05_Brain_Power

We are back! Will DiGravio sits down with Adrian Martin, who discusses his video essays made in collaboration with Cristina Álvarez López. The two discuss their essay, "Only Free Gestures," and Rafael Guilhem's "Traspasos." Learn more at thevideoessay.com. Music via: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Mela/Mela_two/MELA_-_Mela_Two_-_05_Brain_Power

Grace Lee, an operator of a popular video essay channel on YouTube, discusses how her fine art background influences her video essays, the experience of having one's video essay go viral, and the art of pleasing the YouTube algorithm. They also delve into her essay about birds in horror films and the process behind creating a video essay. The chapter concludes with a discussion on using Patreon for income and how video essays deconstruct digital culture.

Will DiGravio sits down with Philip Brubaker, formerly one of the principal video essayists at Fandor. Philip is also an experimental filmmaker with a background in documentary filmmaking and an alumnus of Werner Herzog’s Rogue Film School. His video essays have screened at numerous film festivals and his work has appeared regularly in Sight and Sound’s annual list of the best video essays. The two talk about Philip’s introduction to video essays, the rise and fall of Fandor, why Philip does not consider himself a critic, and his latest work, Abandoned Movie, an essay film. The also discuss Victoria Oliver Farner’s video essay, “Peripheral Attention.” Music via Free Music Archive: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Me...

Catherine Grant, a leading video essay maker, discusses her philosophy and latest works with host Will DiGravio. They explore the eight-year journey of creating 'The Haunting of the Headless Woman', compare scenes from different films, and delve into the use of text on screen and the importance of sound in video essays. They also touch on videographic criticism, music in video essays, and introduce the next guest, Philip Brubaker.