Filmbitch Says Farewell..

by Daniel Merkle

False Beginnings
        One Sunday morning, I got into a cab. The driver asked if I was beginning my night or ending it. I told him I had been helping a friend (I didn't tell him we were shooting a film) after which we had relaxed by watching TV. He began to describe his love for television; the time he spends watching it is the only time he truly "vegetates." Abruptly, he changed the subject to movies. Did I know that Tom Hanks and Paul Newman were in town? He spoke slowly and wistfully as he described how much of his youth was spent in a movie theater. He is amazed that he can watch a videotape at home and "like that" be eight years old again, sitting in the theater. He spouted off film titles and the names of stars he loved, gesturing out the front window as if we could watch them in front of us. He turned around almost completely (while still driving) and said, "It's not just the movies, it's that they are part of my history." In the obscene red light of a Jewel/Osco, he began to list movie stars and favorite films anew, neither finishing a sentiment nor offering another memory ...
        As a senior in high school, Filmbitch went to the movies alone for the first time. Driving to the ancient multiplex, I was frightened. I had never gone to the movies by myself and I didn't know what I would make of this film, The Piano. I entered the rust-colored, summer-armpit-scented movie theater of most of my youth ... Mary Cappello, superstar professor of my first college English class, Women in Literature: The Gothic, told us that when Holly Hunter's finger got cut off, she stood up in the theater and screamed, "Fuck this misogyny!" I was scandalized and amazed in so many ways ... About two or so years later, I went to the movies alone for the second time. I sat in the back of the theater, mindlessly enjoying a fairly inconsequential and mildly entertaining film. Suddenly, I felt angry. I realized, This film is racist. So, at a crucial scene, I screamed indignantly, "Fuck this, this is so ridiculous!" A minute later, the credits rolled, and everyone else clapped. I left the theater quickly, blushing ...

Higher Learning
        You go to the store to buy an outfit. You try a few on. You find one that you really, really want, that to some extent you need. The clerk at the store says, "Yes, we'll let you buy that one." You are elated. You wear the outfit. It shrinks, turns shit-colored, and gives you a rash. You return to the store. The clerk tells you that you have no power, you're stuck with what you they allowed you to buy - you just didn't realize the implications at the time. The manager comes over. S/he acts helpless, says to you, "One day you might be in my position, and you'll understand there is nothing we can do." You call corporate. They explain, "This is how the world works. It's no better at any other store." Your jaw drops. You are laughed at. You should have known better than to think that you wouldn't have to fight, organize, or make "formal" complaints. After all, the outfit only cost $40,000.

Plugging
        The Graduate Exhibition at G2 lasts for about two weeks. The Time Arts events are a one shot deal. So, Filmbitch is compelled to lure people to the screenings. Some benefits of a screening are: chairs to sit in, snacks afterward, and darkness that allows you to ignore the annoying people you might not be able to avoid in a brightly lit gallery. The other reasons to attend are: On Friday, May 4, at 7p.m., that feisty maven of hand-painting and optical printing Maia Carpenter will present Sans Titre and The Shape of the Gaze. Gentle workaholic Klaus Eisenlohr offers Slow Space - The Interviews. The Media Center's saving grace and Irish Jig-loving Brandon Doherty will screen one of two films, The Presence of Absence or The Shortest Distance. We'll also be treated to films by the dashing Tetsuya Hiroshima, the irrepressibly joyful Jason Schallack, and a video by the sweet-but-sassy Saori Hoshi.
        Sunday, May 6, at 7p.m., brings us another film by Brandon Doherty as well as Destination by the rough-and-ready Kandle "Lady D" Fraser. Sexy mama Gui Prasartkul is gonna shine with Somewhere: Portraits of the "Other." That alluring jump-down girl, Amanda Christie, will premiere Learning to Drown. We'll also see an intense and beautiful film by Rebecca Reynolds entitled Palindrome, and a video by the downright cool Eduardo Pradilla. And another film to be screened called ... I Like it Fine, by some Daniel Merkle character. On Monday, May 7, at 7p.m., Andres "How are you" Duque will provide an awesome sample of his work. The final screening event, Sunday, May 13, at 1p.m., will have a film by CW "standby please" Park and a video by the always illustrious Laurie Jo Reynolds, among others.
        Of course, the exhibition at G2 will also be filled with various exciting treats. I know I'm gonna look for photography by Ronnie Wright and Stephanie Powell. I wanna see what happens when writers branch out, like Nwenna Gates and SAIC's most seductive voice, Sheryl Ridenour, whose installation is called I Can Watch You Breathe. The good times will keep rolling with a rock-out, multimedia installation by Laura Nova called On the Spot. Tobaron Waxman, performance artist and one of my fave instructors (my cousin Rockwhore took her voice class last Fall), will undoubtedly have a groovin' piece.
        Oh my, all of that hot plugging almost made Filmbitch forget that this is my last column. Well, thanks for everything, it's so beautiful here, the kids are in the car, call you later, hope we make it, don't ever let anyone change you, ever.
Love, Filmbitch ...