Annecy, Audiences, Art and Sandwiches
I've never been a big fan of cinema audiences. Within those darkened,
shadowed walls you can't help but see and hear a world that is a little
bit fascistic. You either laugh or cry or applaud almost entirely in unison
with the other seated souls. Emotions are suppressed so as not to disturb the
others. It's entirely inappropriate to mock a film or laugh when others
cry, or boo while the rest applaud. I just hate it. You can never truly be who
you are. Emotions are tailored to the tune of your fellow audience members.
It makes sense really and explains a lot of this society which carries the belief
that, 'Rules say there is nothing more.' We live in a repressed era.
The genuine or authentic are replaced by the mechanical or virtual. We cannot
even laugh (on our own) at television. 'Canned' guffaws do that for
us.
For this reason I always like two types of movie theatres. The first is kids'
films. This is a wonderful experience. All these crazy little voices shouting
an endless parade of grunts, guffaws and basic primary reactions unmediated
and unconcerned with those around them. The second is the Annecy Animation Festival.
It's great. They boo. They applaud sarcastically. They whistle...throw
beach balls around...and it's complimented by crazy closing ceremonies,
generally poor film selection and, surprisingly, a general lack of 'taste.'
Contrary to the notion that the French have good taste, the audiences in Annecy
seem devoid of any. They want bunny rabbits, ducks, farts and gag films. They
loathe anything 'ambitious' or 'arty.' It's quite surprising
given Annecy's roots, but reveals how far Annecy has strayed from those
days of 'promoting the art of animation.' In particular I remember
in Annecy '99 how the audience was merciless in watching Austrian artist,
Barbel
Neubauer [2]'s abstract film, Firehouse [3].
They whistled and applauded throughout her film and then she had to stand on
stage after it. It was a terrible experience and she was deeply hurt by it.
Fortunately, the jury consisted of more open-minded people and Barbel received
a prize in the end. Justice.
Festivals are the last haven for stimulating animation, but even within these
walls this is becoming a threat. Christ, in Ottawa, I keep hearing the same
ol' complaints: "How can you choose The
Night of the Carrots [4] over great animation like Famous
Fred [5]?" What I loathe more than anything is that this mindset forces
me to defend what is often an elitist group. When I became festival director
I was eager to fight the apparent snob mentality of associations like ASIFA.
For me, as long as a work stimulated me mentally, that was all I needed. I don't
need to say this is ART and this is SHIT. But lately, I've found myself
succumbing to the very elitism I loathe.
But hey, I may not agree with their taste, but I absolutely love this lovely
crowd and wish other festival audiences would rise from the dead and respond.
Animation festival theatres have become like the popular theatre of Brecht's
time. He once said it was a world where the audience checked their head in at
the door. The difference here is that the material being shown is usually high
quality, provocative, challenging and innovative, but what we find is a case
of over-polite, repressed audiences...and Christ, I don't know what
life is like within commercial studio walls, but the independent crowd can be
extremely conservative. It's part of this desperate attempt to project
animation as a bourgeois art form. To applaud quietly and politely (like a golf
clap wherein three fingers gently tap the palm of the other hand) and to cry
over Father and Daughter [6]
is really about defining a notion of high art. To boo, heckle or applaud sarcastically
is to reflect primitive, primate qualities attributed to low brow culture (eg.
sports fans).
And yes animation is defined as entertainment and it needs to be more accepted
as a stimulated form of expression. However these 'proper' artists
(you know who they are) merely reinforce the very social injustice and inequalities
they often critique. As another Frenchman said, by creating a high and low in
art, you are merely reinforcing social or class differences. And this is often
the problem (I've been guilty of it at times too). Too often we divide
animation into a polarization of art vs. industry. Disney vs. McLaren, etc.
We frown upon those commercial 'twits' who are 'unrefined'
and lack sophistication, while we golf clap a Frédéric
Back [7], Raoul Servais [8]
or Yuri
Norstein [9] film. Yet, this very attitude only further distances 'artistic'
animation from the general audience. No one wants to be told WHAT is proper.
The high brow enthusiasts have created a colony where we are told that to enter
this realm you must understand proper etiquette or the 'delicate sensibilities'
of a Renoir. Yeah...well, whatever. I'm gonna go and clean the shit
off my shoes and make a sandwich...and ya know what? I'm not going to
properly slice the sandwich into four pieces. Just gonna eat the whole friggin'
thing. This colony of supposed sophisticates is a creation of those in power.
It makes them feel better about themselves. It makes them special. It fills
a bland materialist existence. Funny, but the irony of my bitching is that I
had to go to University to learn that HIGH and LOW distinctions are silly.
We need to move beyond the extremes of art vs. industry. Yes, there are commercial
craftsfolk who blindly reject anything with content, but there are also those
so-called sophisticated folks who are just as blind in their assumptions. For
example, Father and Daughter, The
Old Man and The Sea [10] and The Mighty River are considered beautiful,
DELICATE, sophisticated works...in general...by the 'experts'...but
shit Father and Daughter is a hollow effort. Yes, it's a beautifully
designed film, but its story is sappy and emotional and really bares more resemblance
to let's say Geri's
Game [11] than more provocative pieces like The Hat or Flying
Nansen [12]. Hell, I've seen episodes of The
Simpsons [13] and South
Park [14] that are more mentally stimulating and provide as scintillating
a social critique as any Priit Parn film. It's like Charles Chaplin and
Buster Keaton. Chaplin wanted to be a serious artist. Keaton wanted to make
people laugh. In the end, Keaton made more profound works.
Okay...rambling a bit...what's my point? 1. Annecy screenings are
the best because you can be an individual. 2. Annecy audiences, however, can
be very unsophisticated. 3. The word, ART and all the other slang associated
with it (i.e. sophisticated) needs to be re-defined. 4. I do not cut my sandwiches.
Hottie Animator o' da Month
Well...he's not an animator, but Dr.
Toon [15] is a hottie. This man can write. Read it. Love it. Eat it.
This month's Animation Pimp is sponsored by the Royal Canadian Mounted
Police and Quebec police: "Nothing says police state like tear gas,
pepper spray and designated protest areas."
Next Month: A Proposal for the Death of Art.
Chris Robinson is a writer, festival director, programmer, junky and has
been called the John Woo of diplomacy. His hobbies include horseback riding,
pudpulling, canoeing and goat thumping.
Links:
[1] http://www.awn.com/imagepicker/image/258
[2] http://www.awn.com/mag/issue4.03/4.03pages/neubauermoritz.php3
[3] http://www.awn.com/mag/issue4.09/4.09pages/4.09festival.php3
[4] http://www.awn.com/mag/issue5.11/5.11pages/5.11animpimp.php3
[5] http://www.awn.com/oscars98/famousfred.html
[6] http://www.awn.com/oscars/animfather.php3
[7] http://www.awn.com/gallery/back/index.html
[8] http://www.awn.com/gallery/servais/index.phtml
[9] http://www2.awn.com/awnstore/products.php3?pcat=Artwork&item_no=IJ1017
[10] http://www.awn.com/oscars00/oldman.php3
[11] http://www.awn.com/oscars98/gerisgame.html
[12] http://www.awn.com/mag/issue6.01/6.01pages/indysurvey.php3
[13] http://www.awn.com/mag/issue2.7/2.7pages/2.7jacksonsimpsons.html
[14] http://www.awn.com/mag/issue3.1/3.1pages/3.1shreibercult.html
[15] http://www.awn.com/mag/issue6.01/6.01pages/goodmantoontown.php3