Studio 8 Film Festival

A juried open-call-instigated program of shorts by SFAI alumni, preceded by films by the jurors and a special program of Gunvor Nelson films: the seldom screened collage/animation Field Study #2 and her ever-mesmerizing Moons Pool. One ticket for all programs.

Marian Wallace: Program moderator/announcer
V. Vale: Guest presenter for “Keeping the Torch Lit” award from Christopher Coppola

Program 1 – Noon Films by the open-call Jurors/curators

It Takes Time To See
(1999, USA)
Director: Deborah Fort
Synopsis: An experimental documentary that explores, and pays tribute to, Yvonne Rainer’s pivotal post-modern dance piece, Trio-A. The formal elements of the film reference Rainer’s filmic oeuvre. It was originally produced for the New York Dance on Camera Festival, and premiered at Lincoln center as part of that event.
Runtime: 12:30

APART/ A PART
(2024, USA)
Director: Toney Merritt
Synopsis: “The title itself contains a Buddhist-like koan. Fascinating how breaking ‘apart’ the word brings us into coherence as ‘a part’ of nature. A linguistic mystery visualized, eyes wide open. This must be the footage from the Amazon(?) you mentioned some months ago that you recalibrated to provide a POV experience of merging with the rowboat paddling through the jungle grasses, bringing us into kinship with the riverway. I loved seeing the wildlife cam footage of the bear and the mountain lion…your stewardship of the land merging with the travel footage. And the fire sequence resembled a flaming flower!” —Kathleen Sweeney – Eco-Artivist
Runtime: 6:36

Lightly
(1979, USA)
Director: Christopher Coppola
Synopsis: Equal Art Synthesis experiment. Basic concept: start with a theme, each artist and art form interprets the theme, then we perform together. Three participating artists: Crispin Glover, actor, Craig Klyver, painter, and myself, a composer-filmmaker. The film was made in-camera, unedited. If it had been edited, it would no longer be an Equal Art Synthesis project. Both the music and the painting were created before the filming, based on the theme. They had no influence on the acting/performance art or the filming. All arts presented equally, mixed together like a strange light icing on a mysterious cake. 
Runtime: 2:00

Program 2 – 12:30 Two by Gunvor Nelson

Field Study #2
(1988, SWEDEN)
“A collage film with sequences of live action with animation using cut-outs, found footage and pouring sands. A dark delicacy lingers. Superimpositions of dark pourings are perceived through the film. Suddenly a bright colour runs across the picture and delicate drawings flutter past. Grunts from animals are heard.” —Film Forum
Runtime: 8:00

Moons Pool
(1973, SWEDEN)
“Gunvor Nelson’s oceanic lyric dissolves dualities of male and female, emotion and form, inside and outside, image and reflection. In the midst of a characteristically dense soundtrack, we hear the words: ‘Today, I see you see me in my body,’ a cause for celebration in this literally immersive film. Utterly and pleasurably disorienting, MOONS POOL follows the siren’s song of exploration and elation.” – Max Goldberg
Runtime: 15:00

Program 3 – 1:10 Selected films from the open call

The program is comprised of films submitted by SFAI alumni and former faculty and staff to an open call for the Studio 8 Film Festival. Over seven hours of submissions were viewed by jury of three filmmakers. The films in the final show were selected from a pool of amazing work to create a coherent program that best represents the SFAI ethos and exhibits inspiration from this year’s two honored SFAI faculty members: Gunvor Nelson and Lawrence Jordan. Jurors: Deborah Fort, Toney Merritt, Christopher Coppola.

Order of films in screening subject to change.

The program:

Moving
(2012, USA)
Director: Patricia Kavanaugh
Synopsis: Short experimental animated film using Super 8mm and After Effects. A search for ‘home’ ending with the realization that it has been right in front of you all along.
Runtime: 4:22

Giroscopio
(2021, USA/PUERTO RICO)
Directors: John Muse and Brendamaris Rodriguez
Synopsis: A short experimental film created during pandemic lockdown by two artists in Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico, exploring disorientation and wonder.
Runtime: 8:00

Cinegram
(2017, USA)
Director: Laura Kiernan
Synopsis: A cinegram made from found 16mm footage, stitched together in a filmmaking class exercise.
Runtime: 0:35

Autumnal Diptych
(1990, USA)
Director: Rock Ross
Synopsis: Light and motion meet seasonal beauty in this depiction of natural change, using experimental effects and a stirring soundtrack.
Runtime: 5:30

Super-Imposed
(2024, USA)
Directors: Ouater Sand and Lucia Coppola
Synopsis: A collaboration between image and poem, exploring qualities of movement and light at the intersection of dreams and reality.
Runtime: 2:39

Lullaby to My Father
(2019, USA)
Director: Michael LaRocco
Synopsis: Fragments of a father’s military service come together to explore absence and memory in this personal experimental film.
Runtime: 5:20

ONE
(2020, USA)
Director: Lynn Marie Kirby and James Kirby Rogers
Synopsis: A mother-son collaboration blending dance and film, shot on an abandoned pier during the summer pandemic months in San Francisco.
Runtime: 9:59

Poet in Orbit
(1980, USA)
Director: Joel Singer
Synopsis: A dazzling portrait of poet and filmmaker James Broughton, featuring original music by composer Lou Harrison.
Runtime: 2:00

Invitation to…
(1980, USA)
Director: Karen Barbour
Synopsis: Cut-out paper animation depicting moments of socializing, overthinking, and discomfort in everyday gatherings.
Runtime: 2:58

Linescio
(2020, USA)
Director: Denise Hawrysio
Synopsis: A microscopic journey through sound and image, expanding awareness of the natural world in hallucinatory ways.
Runtime: 8:00

Eyefull Portraits
(2025, USA)
Director: Dominic Angerame
Synopsis: Brief impressionistic portraits of friends and acquaintances in San Francisco, layered with NASA imagery and haunting sound design.
Runtime: 3:30

Hell No!
(2017, USA)
Director: Dave Krzysik and Sally Richardson
Synopsis: Stop motion animation of paintings and collages conveying a subliminal message of ‘Artists against Fascism!’
Runtime: 0:31

Flux
(2003, USA)
Director: Denah Johnston
Synopsis: Exploring the spaces between memory, perception, and dreams, this film finds meaning beyond speech and traditional narrative.
Runtime: 6:09

Brown Eyed Girl
(1980, USA)
Director: Dean Snider
Synopsis: Van Morrison’s song unravels while reflecting on past relationships in this experimental film.
Runtime: 3:35

Man in the Moon
(USA)
Directors: Rora Blue and Max Stone
Synopsis: A poetic collaboration reflecting on the experiences of two transgender men at different stages in their transition, blending text and visuals.
Runtime: 0:36

cat’s cradle
(2010, USA)
Director: Raymond Rea
Synopsis: An experimental animation combining original 16mm footage with a modern digital edit, a love song to failed attempts.
Runtime: 3:36

The Window
(2024, SOUTH KOREA)
Director: Minyong Jang
Synopsis: A quiet reflection on light and perspective, capturing fleeting moments through the glass between inside and out.
Runtime: 5:00

2:30 Recognition of Filmmakers in the house
“Keep the Torch Lit” AWARD from Christopher Coppola