by Gene Shirey
Experimental
films and videos often elude the uninitiated. One is unlikely to stumble upon these
unusual works in the course of daily life or at the flip of a TV dial.
Blockbuster Video doesn’t carry them, and the average multiplex cinema doesn’t
show them, either. But a new collective of Austin filmmakers and videographers
called in*situ is bringing the art form out of obscurity and into local bars,
coffeehouses, theatres, and other alternative venues.
The Austin group debuted last summer with a presentation of some rarely seen,
experimental films at the Carousel Lounge. Since then, they have popped up
with a variety of programs projected in a variety of venues.
At Quack’s Upstairs last month, the show starts late as in*situ members
struggle with their equipment. Technical difficulties plague the evening and,
in the lull between the films, some of the audience is lost. Most stay,
however, to watch the low-budget, but often surprisingly good work of local
video artists and filmmakers. The downtime is spent socializing and drinking
beer, with everyone quieting when the flashlights go off and the screen
flickers.
“Cinema is a social ritual,” says founder Jon Ausbrooks. Or, as filmmaker and
music video artist Heyd Fontenot says, “We all talk and throw food.”
Socializing seems to dominate their meetings as well as their public events. At
a recent meeting, the 20-odd members spend about an hour talking about karaoke
as an art form and eating quiche before getting down to business. Their plans
are sometimes definite, somewhat philosophical, and often vague. Ideas include
doing a screening in a parking garage, making a feature-length film, and
publishing a magazine with haiku movie reviews and an astrology column. The
group has thus far showcased local independent film around town, and pulled
experimental musicians out of the woodwork to perform.
Fontenot says that for him, in*situ functions as a peer group. He contrasts
the experience with a recent meeting of the local chapter of the Association of
Independent Video and Film, then compares it all to a gay bar. “These are
people [the AIVF] who do industrial and mainstream films, but it wasn’t like
there was a sense of cohesion. We got together because we all work in films,
but they aren’t interested in what I’m doing, and I don’t care about what
they’re doing,” he says. “It’s like, I’m gay and when you go to a bar you think
`Oh great, my brothers and sisters, finally I’m in the fold,’ and then you
realize that you don’t have anything in common with many of these people except
being gay. That’s like the film community.”
In some ways, in*situ’s
first few shows mimic the early days of the Austin Film Society (AFS), whichsponsored experimental nights at the Continental Club as well as Quack’s
Upstairs (in its former incarnation as Austin Media Arts). These days, the AFS
primarily exhibits feature-length films at the University of Texas and the
Dobie theatres. The AFS is more like “an institution,” Fontenot says, while
in*situ is “more like a salon.”
At in*situ’s show last month, former manager of the AFS Katie Cokinos hid in
the bathroom while her film, Red, played. It is a very personal piece,
she explains. During her own tenure with the AFS, Cokinos says little attention
was paid to work by independent Austin filmmakers. “I rarely showed local
stuff; I regret that,” she says. “I was so enamored with feature film.” But, at
the same time, she adds, there was not as much local film being produced as
there is now. “Everyone was working on someone else’s film, or was trying to
make a feature.”
Now, Cokinos hopes the AFS will take on “the old grandfather or grandmother”
relationship with in*situ. She’s taken on an advisory role with the group,
helping them out with things like grant-writing and organizational details.
Ausbrooks, however, good-naturedly calls in*situ a “bastard child with a
different lineage.” He traces its origins back seven years to a Nashville group
of the same name that Ausbrooks founded with current Seattle film animator Andy
Norman. Their focus was guerrilla cinema. The group projected films off
buildings and in parks, until the police inevitably showed up and closed them
down. “Problem was,” says Ausbrooks, “the cops started letting us do it half
the time.”
The group scaled back its activities after a near disaster. Armed with an old
drive-in movie projector and generator mounted on the back of a pick-up truck,
they targeted as their screen surface a full-scale replica of the Greek
Parthenon residing in a Nashville city park. A cone of light from the projector
cut through falling snow, casting images of waves washing up on the building
which turned to flames as if the structure were burning. People encircled the
building with boom boxes, playing a white-noise mix of sea waves and the sound
of Atlanta burning from Gone With the Wind.
A small crowd gathered to watch for about 20 minutes before the police
arrived. The pick-up truck took off on the planned escape route, down an alley.
In the ensuing chase, the cops missed a turn and smashed into a telephone pole.
While no one was hurt, the group decided it was best to lower their profile.
Watching a film in a bar is
very different than watching it in a movie theatre, Ausbrooks says. When thelights go down at a theatre, your surroundings disappear — your neighbor
disappears, and finally you disappear.
By contrast, you’re quite aware of your surroundings at the Carousel Lounge.
You’re aware of the beer in your hand, the barflies chatting with the waitress
in the back, the huge Pink Elephant peeking from behind the movie screen, and
the people walking in front of you because they’ve gotten bored with the 30th
atomic bomb explosion onscreen.
The group continues to challenge people’s expectations of how and where we
encounter film. Nomadic by nature, in*situ’s future plans are as expansive as
they are germinal. In addition to their public screenings of historic works and
local endeavors, plans for magazine and TV projects are also in the development
stage and will thereby increase the potential points of access for viewers.
Upcoming plans include a co-presentation with the Austin Film Society of a
Century of Cinema Celebration on December 28. The screening will consist of a
series of shorts by early film pioneers, Georges M�li�s and Louis
and Auguste Lumi�re. Immediately following the 7pm screening at the
Dobie Theatre is a party with live music at the Voodoo Lounge (308 E. Third
St.). Attendees are encouraged to dress up as their favorite cinematic figure.
(Admission is $5; $4 for AFS members; $3 for those in costume.) Other events on
the calendar include a Valentine’s Day screening called “50 Feet of Love,” a
screening of locally solicited Super-8 projects on the topic of love. Further
info can be obtained by calling 322-2063.
This article appears in December 22 • 1995 and December 22 • 1995 (Cover).