Proposal

Filmmaking is a subjective art. The person behind the camera holds the power to assert his or her point of view. Although it takes a large number of people to make a movie, the audience experiences a seamless narrative that hides this collaborative effort. I am interested in breaking down this subjective model. I intend to shoot a documentary with multiple points of view that makes the audience aware of the collaborative nature of filmmaking, which I think, inherently creates a dialogue between different languages or groups because it is about the moving image as a means of communication in order to bring the audience an experience.

As a filmmaker, I am interested in perceptions of different cultures within defined spaces. For this project, I will go to Peru to engage in collaborative filmmaking with children, in a work that asks the question "What is a Peruvian?" I am interested in observing their experiences with the cultures of Lima and facilitating an exploration of their cultural understanding through the creation of a narrative, which allows them to create character, story, and plot. Addressing this question in film will allow me to explore and focus on actions, interactions, and personalities rather than focusing on personal assumptions in relation to the subject, as in the still image. When do the personal assumptions begin to play a part in the way we shape other people in a narrative?

Currently, my video and film work plays with the perception of the self through acting, physical change in costume, and sound, particularly in terms of accents and dialects. For example, the dubbing of a voice that is a stereotypical “black man's” voice on a white man's body allows me to merge, make a relation to, and blur original character types. I create experimental narratives that tell a story in which the viewer is aware of the artifice and there is no suspension of disbelief. Even if this suspension is made apparent, I am interested in the line of acting versus mocking and how that develops a new narrative between the audience and filmmaker. I want to make the audience conscious of multiple points of view in order to place emphasis on the subjectivity of interpretation. Filmmaking can facilitate this through technique.
Presently, I am experimenting with a concept called “graffiti film." It is based on three ideas. The first is the physical manipulation of film, in which I paint, draw or scratch on film. I do these manipulations on clear filmstrips, leaving me free to produce my own image; on a filmstrip with a pre-existing image, I would give more consideration to manipulation. The second is the touring concept, which involves the ability of film to become an extension and experience of the artist. It is called graffiti film because it uses light as an experience of time and permanence. I want it to travel like “tags” on a freight train without the permanent damage of actual spray-painting. The film acts like graffiti without damaging any physical property: hence, it has the potential to be projected on any building, sidewalk, platform, etc.
I am interested in bringing this type of work to Lima because there are a variety of cultures in this dense city. This defined space, because of proximity issues, allows for trends in a culture to easily become stereotypes. I live in New York City and have experienced how space becomes an issue and can become associated with specific social groups. Despite colonization, a significant indigenous population remains in Lima, alongside many other cultures. I am curious to know if these cultures are separate or mixed, in this defined space? Is there a new image of a mixed culture? I want to know if there is a trend of mixing that can be traced in contemporary culture in Lima.
I will start the collaboration of film at the Colegio America Institution, where I have secured an affiliation with Guillermo Yoshikawa. I will work with children on this project because I feel social variables arise when one attempts to define human complexity, complexity ranging from race to gender. Although children can see this difference, I think they have a sense of sincerity when engaging with other people. They are able to observe ones actions and presence without assuming certain presets about the other person. This collaboration will shift in process according to age group. For example, I would expect a seven year old to understand this question in a more physical way. I will invite the children to draw and perform, which allows them to act like people that they have observed. This leads to interplay of personal connection and markers of identity. As I start working with older groups, I want to create a screenplay with them, which will help me observe when trends and complexities of the “self” start to influence choices in character and action. I feel that, although they may not be able to articulate it, children have a sense of how different shots can portray different emotional states.
I hope to work with the children to create narratives which visualize how experience predicts interactions with different cultures. I will be able to use this philosophy in my future narratives and to develop richer, more complex characters and actions. I will show the finished project as a collection of “vignettes." I would like to “tour” it around different cities in Peru and the U.S. I intend the project to always be screened outdoors in very public spaces, so that anyone is able to experience it. I want to reinforce the concept of film as an extension of myself, as an artist, and of the artists who collaborate with me throughout the film making process. Through my experience in Lima I hope to create a meaningful dialogue about nation and identity centered in the medium of the moving image.