Experimenta
Eye of an "I" / 'Nung-gee mit'

Experimenta is a part of independent art collectives and communities finding conversations, impatience, dialogue and the shared need to build new spaces and contexts for the arts. After a two year hiatus, India's ground-breaking international festival for moving image art - Experimenta - now in its 6^th edition, returns to Bangalore from 17th Dec to 20th Dec 2009.

Today, Manipur's own Nungee mit / "Eye of an "I" ' - a film by Chaoba Thiyam, will be screened in the 'Dream On' session at 8:30 PM 18th Dec 2009. It's a 15 minute film that takes you to what a youth in the present Manipur goes through. I first saw the film during its making last year, and my experience was a kind of 'tu-chungba' (goosebumps). In the words of the filmmaker Chaoba Thiyam "Living in the worst of time, and hoping for the best. All we dream is nightmares. Hopelessness, angst and agony is the only reality that glares in the "Eye of an "I".

In today's Manipur of digital films, it's hard to see filmmakers like Chaoba Thiyam who makes unconventional films fighting against odds. People like them are the ones who think out-of-the-box. All praise and support for them.

If you are in Bangalore please drop by at the festival, the entry is FREE.

The venue is ::
Jaaga, 16/1, Rhenius Street,
Off Richmond Road, (Opp. the Hockey Association Stadium main gate),
Shanthinagar, Bangalore - 560027.

The festival started on 17/Dec/09, and the highlight of the day was "Metaphysics of sound' and 'Nebula Rising' by Hangjun Lee (South Korea). His film splits the screen into two, drawing the eye inevitably to the vertical line that separates left and right, as images scatter and splatter on either side. Most of them are abstract, rips, gashes, holes, burns and all manner of corroded degradations flying past at high speed, but from time to time recognisable images - cars, faces, clouds - appear. According to pattern of sound on the 20% blank of 16mm film strip (normally used as space for optical recording), Hangjun Lee edited whole image and made structure of film. Hence the margin is a where image is sound, and sound is image.

Due to lack of funding, the individuals, film-enthusiasts and friends put in money from their own pockets and made this festival possible. WOW!! Way to go Experimenta!!

There will be talks and presentations at the venue on different topics and days.

Click here for details and schedule of the festival.

Experimenta on 17 Dec 09. Picture courtesy: Shai Heredia, curator of Experimenta 2009.