Maya Deren was an experimental film maker in the 1940's and 50's. Maya produced surreal short films which created an experience she combined her passions; voodoo, dance, subjective psychology in a range of surreal black and white films with unusual camera angles, slow motion, jump- cutting and circular narratives. I have been watching a lot of Maya's work particularly due to the fact I want to make something similar.
When I watched Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) I felt almost as if i was being hypnotized and could not take my eyes of the screen, I loved the use of psychologically symbolic images; The rose, the grim reaper type character with a mirror for a face, a door unlocked, a knife in a loaf of bread and a phone off the hook. I love that the symbols give a meaning which isn't obvious.
The film is so creative and shot in a way which reflects that. The use of shadows and the circular narrative of a woman walking down a road repeats a number of times. The short is making connections between places and emotions but in a way which is unique to any other form. The film was actually quite terrifying, moreso than any of the modern horror films made today. I think it is exploring the unknown and portraying it in a fantastic way.I am really influenced by this style of film making and I am sure that this is the style I will be creating when making my own film.
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