Ross McElwee : … my real life has fallen into the crack between myself and my film (…)
Cineaste : Does refracting experience through a camera lens politicize moments that might have been relatively apolitical otherwise?
Ross McElwee : I think it does. Going back to Godard, who said every edit is a political statement… I think every camera movement is a political statement. You opt to zoom in because you’re after something. You’ve got to be aware of the political implications of every camera movement, every edit, every decision to shoot as opposed to not shoot when it’s real life that you’re filming. I was aware of it in Sherman’s March (1985), especially when I filmed material having to do with nuclear weapons proliferation, which is, of course, an overtly political issue. When the Personal Becomes Political: An Interview With Ross McElwee (1993)
I believe that opening a space for Personal Cinema is needed. It allows audiences to watch soulful films that hold a meaning – for them and for the filmmakers. The works in Personal Cinema from China programme offer an urgent and often raw insight into issues of personal struggle, social justice, family and belonging, which exist in China, but are also universal themes. Selected from hundreds of indie fiction and non-fiction made in China over the past two decades, this is a form of personal curation and effort to build a community of viewers, curators and filmmakers.
First Person Film starts with a first season, Personal Cinema from China. This shows eight films from the 17 Oct. to 19 Dec. Three screenings at the ICA and seven films streaming on Curate-it, an arthouse exhibition space online. With films streaming for two weeks online, my wish is to ensure a broad, and inclusive participation. I am hoping that people outside London will have a chance to see these films too. Online curation and cinema are not mutually exclusive. They can be integrated to build communities and foster cinephilia online and offline. The launch at the ICA with just three screenings is a start – just enough to link cinema and the online and to connect people. It is also an invitation from me, the organiser, to those who have been in this space longer than myself. It is about them, and their interest in personal cinema, Chinese Indies and films from East Asia more generally. I am hoping that through joint efforts, we can increase the visibility and access to Chinese Indie films across the UK. So, more people can enjoy them and possibly come to see personal cinema as a medium and a space for reflection and active engagement.
Arguably, a small film season is only a nudge to stir us in the right direction. It is more important that Personal Cinema From China is built with awareness of the existing initiatives in this area and when possible in consorcium. Personally, I believe that through collaboration, we could establish an ecosystem for personal cinema, enabling the circulation of dierctors’ works and a better access to resources and events.
COLLABORATION
Over the past decades, many indie film festivals and curatorial projects have been promoting Chinese Indies, female directors and personal films. We hope to know them and reach out to build collaboration. For instance, Caochangdi Workstation[3] with its two projects, the Folk Memory[4] and Mother Online Festival[5], is an initiative with a focus on indie documentaries. It is now known to western media outlets and within film circles. Founded by filmmaker Wu Wenguang, director of Bumming in Beijing, the Folk memory project has enabled aspiring Chinese filmmakers, amateurs and artists, to learn about documentary filmmaking and first-person production skills. Although this is not about curation, this project has helped to create dozens personal, self-portrait, diary and community-village films – Most of which have now a place to call home at the ‘Chinese Independent Film Archives’ (CIFA) located in Newcastle University. CIFA is another example that we cite here which brings together film curation, preservation and archiving. This project was established in 2023 with the help of UK Arts and Humanities Research Council and led by Sabrina Qiong Yu, a professor of film and Chinese studies at Newcastle University. CIFA, a key partner of First-person film project, is the world’s largest publicly accessible archive of independent Chinese cinema. It is home to over 800 independent films and their associated material culture, and around 170 oral history video interviews with a wide range of stakeholders. Finally, CathayPlay.com is another player growing in popularity. With a focus on Chinese diaspora around the world, this private Singapore-based streaming platform aims to build a larger spectrum for Chinese indie films and highlight the diverse voices within it.