Collective Memory
A series of 5 short films made in collaboration by Iris Mathieson and Zoë Granger.
Sing Praises
Based in childhood memory, with a light and comforting feel there is a strong sense of nostalgia. It’s as if the viewer is watching back a tape or video recording of their childhoods - particularly for both Zoe and Iris as this is just what their parents did as they both grew up. The imagery that the viewer sees appears to be the sorts of things a child might happen to notice or pay attention to: bubbles forming, bright coloured flowers, fireworks and being by the sea. Again, the sounds are layered, requiring the viewer to perhaps close their eyes to fully take in and pick apart each individual noise. The viewer is initially greeted with the voice of a young child with muffled background noises as sunlight flickers over sunflowers. A door closes, a distinctive voice with an American accent filters through along with other muffled talking. The singing seeps through as a child’s crying starts and then abruptly stops: it’s like trying to listen to a radio whilst a cacophony of other noises resonate. ‘Sing Praises’ appears to be from the perspective of a child, the colours, the loud quality of the noises and the blurred, shaky nature of the filming all could have been done by a young child. The viewer is once again left with imagery of birds, some of which fly away signifying the end.
Banister bell and heartbeats
Has an eerie, spooky quality to the finished edit. You are aware of a distant, but very clear heartbeat in the background which has the effect of making the viewer conscious of their own heartbeat. Zoe said it reminded her of the clocktower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Vertigo’. The sunlight through the trees in the opening first few seconds suddenly doesn’t seem so peaceful and warming, but instead the feeling of trapped and uncomfortable starts to take hold. Every piece of imagery, particularly that of the dried leaf fluttering, the crow, and the deer suddenly seems to be on edge as if acutely aware that something bad is going to happen - particularly for the deer, as if it is being watched and hunted. The close up of the spider, which is already a creature associated with horror movies, fears and nightmares for many, now appears particularly ominous with the tolling of a bell like sound in the background, seeming to perhaps signify that time is running out. The shadow of the flags flutter one final time and then lie still.
Bells and water
The opening shot of sunlight on water along with the sound of a ringing bell brings to mind a seaside town, picturesque and peaceful on a summer evening. Contrasted with a close up of salmon, the pattern and lines in the flesh of the fish mirroring that of the peaks and troughs of the waves. Disjointed, shaky imagery of a lighthouse before returning to the salmon once again. And finally a bird swims away, out of shot. The viewer is left looking at a black screen whilst the noise of a motorbike sounds mixed with an unfamiliar whooshing noise.
The Silver Swan
This film appears to be a mixture of both panic and peace. An elderly man slowly makes his way down a grassy hill, whilst the imagery flits between him and other nature based scenes. The soundtrack is rich and layered, the viewer needs to listen carefully to fully pick apart the individual sounds: singing, a child speaking, again a motorbike perhaps, birdsong? It’s a strange mix between natural and unnatural - how much of what we are seeing and hearing has been manipulated? The combination of the macabre subject of the song with the imagery of a fast swimming duckling, makes it appear all the more frantic. Iris was reminded of Mark Wallinger’s video work ‘Threshold to the Kingdom’ when creating this film. There is something melancholic about seeing the lone cow and the lone man walking away into the unknown distance, away from the viewer. The singing finishes as the man walks out of sight. The viewer is left with a sense of sadness.
Firecracker films
This is probably by far the most chaotic and sensorily intense of all the films, the imagery can be overwhelming in colour, speed and along with the sounds that are loud and layered. Particularly when wearing headphones to listen it feels like an all encompassing environment, perhaps like being on a busy street surrounded by lots of people all jostling to get somewhere, with traffic and the sounds of different voices all speaking at different speeds. Even the imagery of snow, which is often considered a peaceful sight, suddenly feels clawing as it comes down thick and fast towards the camera lens. As the fairground ride turns, so does a lemon being juiced whilst the sound of a fast approaching motorbike revs and rushes past (this is particularly acute whilst listening with headphones). ‘Firecracker films’ is loud, fast paced and disorientating - the close up shot of a mouth, not being able to understand what is being said is somewhat disarming for the viewer. The shadow on a tiled floor fades away into nothing as the film ends and the soundtrack stops - suddenly, and abruptly there is silence.