Skip to main content

Experimental Video: The Past is Never Dead


The Past is Never Dead

 The idea of the video is inspired by the game series called Rusty Lake. 

Logo of the game series

When I read "march backwards into the future" by McLuhan, Rusty Lake was the first thing I thought of. It uses a surrealistic and symbolic narration to depict the relationship between the past, present, future and the inescapable fate.


“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” ― William Faulkner


I used this quote from Rusty Lake in the video, originally from the novel Requiem for a Nun by William Faulkner. As we move ever forward into the future, we cannot predict the future, but can only see the past. When the past becomes a memory, becomes a fact, it also becomes a destiny; and when we face the future - in fact, we face the past - we still cannot escape the shackles of fate. Water, trees, and tarot cards symbolize destiny, and although the tarot can tell fortunes, the predictions are still the reflection of the past.


The scenes in the video, except for the eyes, are all played backwards, literally "march backwards". And the ticking sound in the background indicates the passage of time. At the end of the video, the scene of making the call is played backwards, but the audio is played forward. So, when the phone is hung up, "I" (or whoever you think it is) picks up the phone at the same time. In this moment, everything is happening again in the past, as the caller says: "Let's make some memories."



Comments

  1. Bella Lorane (she/her)January 17, 2023 at 9:48 AM

    WOW! This is my first film art class and working with this material. All I've got to say is this is AMAZING and I would love to learn from you. Its dark, yet captivating. The constant ticking leaves me on edge and wanting more. Beautifully done! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Roger GwallJanuary 17, 2023 at 12:04 PM

    It might scare the shit outta me but I'd still wear a diaper to see "The Past is Never Dead Pt. 2"
    Great stuff!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nayla BrunnbauerJanuary 17, 2023 at 7:07 PM

    May I just say, the tone of that film was gripping! I love it!!! The melodic ticking and the shots playing in reverse compliment each other in a such a fantastic and eerie way. I also loved reading you explanation of why you did what you did in the film. If this is the tone of Rusty Lake, then I really want to go play it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Rongyan SongJanuary 17, 2023 at 9:35 PM

    I really love your film. That looks soooooo cool! I think it's really wise to connect the game Rusty Lake with McLuhan's book. And your explanation about the film makes me want to try the game.

    ReplyDelete
  5. gaveJanuary 17, 2023 at 10:04 PM

    Really neat film, the editing rhythms pair really nicely with the content (clock ticking, etc.). The eyes look great, especially that initial track into them, and editing gives a lot of purpose to that gaze. I love the ambient windy/white noise, it adds a nice subtle brooding backdrop.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Allatonceness Project: 夜路 Walking into the Night

夜路 Walking into the Night MV In tribal societies we are told that it is a familiar reaction, when some hideous event occurs, for some people to say, "How horrible it must be to feel like that," instead of blaming somebody for having done something horrible. This feeling is an aspect of the new mass culture we are moving into — a world of total involvement in which everybody is so profoundly involved with everybody else and in which nobody can really imagine what private guilt can be anymore. - McLuhan, p. 61      Walking into the Night is a song Roger and I thought it should be a traditional Jazz depicting a woman walking on the street at night. The feeling of fear being followed or being gazed is something that women still cannot get rid of in nowadays. There is a kind of freedom that women can hardly enjoy.      However, with writing out the lyrics, I realized that this feeling can be generalized to everyone. We are all under the controls of something els...
Post a Comment
Read more

Soundscape: Different Shapes of Water

Different Shapes of Water What is your impression of water? When I say "WATER", what would you imagine? A glass of water? A river/lake? Taking a shower?       When I think of "SOUND", I was thinking about water. Water is such a common element on this planet that we need it every single day, and it easily changes its shapes. Also, it can create "MUSIC" that so naturally comforts our sensations and minds.  "The highest purpose is to have no purpose at all. This puts one in accord with nature, in her manner of operation." - John Cage Water is so common to see ans to hear that we might have barely considered it as "sound", not even possible as "music" (or we call it "ambient"). This soundscape is nothing more than my daily interactions with water in different shapes and seeks "joy and revolution" as John Cage believes. 
2 comments
Read more