design+
film+sound+
insight+
me+you.

ethno+graphic+
design
design for people

ethnographic+
documentary
film+

some joy, some pain, (excerpt)
Super 8mm and Digital
Video, 2008, 00:03:34

This is an exerpt from some joy,
some pain, a hybrid documentary/
performance on the blues, experi-
enced through the life of Lady E,
a 64 year old blues singer from
Richmond, Virginia.

For more information on the project,
visit the film's website.

a small light, Digital
Video, 2004, 00:30:15

a small light is a ethnographic film
by anthropologist, Julia Yezbick. I
assisted her with the research, filming
and audio recording in Nepal during
the summer of 2004.

A Hindu sadhu narrates a small light,
in which a Catholic nun cares for a
group of elderly living out their remaining days at the auspicious site of Pashupathinath temple.

A look at old age, death and dying in
a Hindu temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, this documentary is a unique experi-
mental hybrid of observational cinema and metaphorical narrative.

To view the film please visit www.juliayezbick.com.

Tanzels, Flash Animation, 2001, 00:00:58,32

Tanzles was an experiment syncing
sound and animation. Music by German electronic überstars, Mouse on Mars.

Garamond, Digital
Video, 2005, 00:02:26

This experimental animation was
made in a graduate workshop in
grahic design at Virginia Common-
wealth University.

These type studies were an attempt
to liberate type from its structure,
meaning, form and dimensionality.
By removing the typeface's imposed structure, meaning and form, and
applying dimensionality, the type
becomes a completely new object,
communicating an entirely new
language.

Garamond, the source typeface used
for the first of the two films was
designed by Claude Garamond (1490-
1561). The original source audio,
"Rachell's Weepinge," was written by
Christopher Tye during the early 16th century, has also been recontextualized to take on a completely new form.

Univers, Digital Video,
2005, 00:01:14

Univers, the source typeface in the
second film (see above), was designed
in 1954 by Adrian Frutiger. The source audio is derived from "Music For Piano # 2," written by John Cage in 1953—which too has been extruded
and recontextualized to take on a
completely new form.

This animation was created for the documentary, Ex Voto, by filmmaker Diego Rivera-Kohn. Additionally, Matt Klimas and I (collectively as Noun)
contributed to sound design for the film.

You can view the trailer here.

This lyrical doc explores with sensitivity and breathtaking imagery the lives of three Mexicans who live, like many, on the edge of hope. The lives of a boxer, a fisherman and an ailing old woman are intertwined. Each prays to God to deliver him or her a specific miracle. Meanwhile, they struggle to survive. Ex-voto For 3 Souls is a film about the unbelievable human capacity to resist, adapt and create.

-Shannon Abel

Only to See,, Digital
Video, 2005, 00:04:39

On August 22nd, 2005 in Richmond,
Virginia, a city I had just moved to
begin graduate studies in graphic
design, I was taken by the DEA,
accused of drug trafficking in Phila-
delphia, a city I had never set foot in.
I was not read my rights nor given a
phone call. My identity had been stolen.

This is a mediation on my first
(and thankfully, only) night in jail.

1/18, Super8 film, 2006, 00:04:43

The filmmakers' life is compressed
frame by frame into 4 minutes and
35 seconds. Compiling home video
and photography, 1/18 was shot on
Super 8mm film, one frame at time
at 18fps and then hand processed.
The audio was pulled from home
video and audio recordings.

e(x), Part 2, Digital video,
2003, 00:10:19;29

A non-narrative social commentary, in three parts, the film is structured on the equation e^(x). e(x) [e to the x] was my first foray into extended experimental film, created as a senior thesis at Michigan State University. In addition to the cinematography, I composed the soundtrack with help from many talented musicians. Check out the entire project here.

Poïesis VII, Hand-painted/
Scratched 8mm film, 2007,
00:01:14

The Poïesis project began in a grad-
uate workshop at VCU. Poïesis VII
is the final film in a collection of 7 films paired with audio collages and printed material. You can view the entire project here. Each film/audio
piece/book in Poïesis was a study of
one of the seven chosen modes of
perception, and an attempt to break
with it's influence. This particular film is a study of tactililty. Handpainted/ scratched 8mm film was slowed to .0125fps.

Not Killing For Life
Hand-painted 16mm film,
2005, 00:02:14

Experimenting with handpainted
16mm film.

A quote from the great Stan Brakhage :

Hypnagogic vision is what you see through your eyes closed -- at first a field of grainy, shifting, multi-colored sands that gradually assume various shapes. It's optic feedback: the ner-vous system projects what you have previously experienced -- your visual memories -- into the optic nerve endings. It's also called closed-eye vision. Moving visual thinking, on the other hand, occurs deeper in the synapsing of the brain. It's a streaming of shapes that are not nameable -- a vast visual 'song of the cells expressing their internal life.

From the interview, Brakhage at Sixty

The Work of Michael
Snow, Digital Video, 2005,
00:09:53

An overview of the work of seminal
20th Century Canadian artist (film-
maker, musician, visual artist,
composer, writer, sculptor), Michael
Snow. Produced as a visual aid for a
lecture in a course on experimental
film at VCU.

McDmail, Digital Video,
2002, 00:03:17

McDmail was created as a video
portion of an installation on the
impact of McDonalds as a product of
globalization and cultural imperialism.

Selected Works 00/07,
Digital Video, 2007,
00:00:14

A dvd intro for a compilation of film maker and anthropologist, Julia Yezbick.

Floyd is a publication showcasing the
work of Virginia Commonwealth
University’s graduate design program. I compiled and authored the DVD supplement, designing the title intro, menus and navigation. Click here to see additional images from Floyd.

Jomas DVD intro,
Digital Video, 2005,
00:00:29

The Journal of Motion and Sound (jomas) is a collection of experimental films, animation, music, sound installation and new media. I compiled, produced, designed and authored the 2 DVD + CD collection.

Communication,
Digital Video, 2002,
00:00:24

This piece was created as an intro to aweb-based portfolio, the graphics were based on a typeface I developed for the title.