upcoming
A two-day workshop, led by Elian Mikkola and offered through Queer City Cinema, on ecological processing and queer analogue image-making.
When: April 29 - 30, 2pm - 7pm (both days)
Where: Polar Film Lab (Kysten), Tromsø
We have a limited number of spaces and sign-up works on a first-come, first-served basis.
If you have any questions email: polarfilmlab@gmail.com
We ask for a limited fee of 300kr to cover some of the costs of materials, but if you are unwaged/low-waged get in touch as we have some free spaces. We aim to make Polar Film Lab as accessible as possible, for as broad a group as possible, and aim to offer as much free or on a ‘Pay what you can’ framework as possible - if you receive project funding or have an income, we ask that you help us keep doing what we are doing by paying a small fee.
In recent decades, experimental filmmakers have explored eco-conscious approaches to analog filmmaking. Experimental filmmakers are leading the way by using eco-friendly recipes that combine ingredients such as plants, berries, wine, or vegetables with vitamin C and washing soda. Additionally, the act of physically manipulating analog found footage has been a long-standing tradition of experimental filmmaking, albeit dominated by white, heterosexual cis-male filmmakers.
As a part of this workshop, participants will be encouraged to take this tradition into their own hands - allowing QTBIPOC and LGBTQIA2 bodies to interrupt/disrupt existing images and narratives on the celluloid and take ownership and reconstruct a new narrative, all within an eco-processing framework. This iteration of the workshop series will focus on DIY methods for rephotographing existing footage onto 16mm film and on creative in-camera manipulations.
Workshop structure:
DAY 1: 16 mm In-Camera editing and Re-photography
Intro to different methods and techniques for hybrid re-photography using a computer screen/digital projector and the Bolex.
DAY 2: Eco-Developing 16mm film
Hand-processing with lomo tank and/or buckets & eco-chemistry.
Ultimately, the goals of the workshop are to bring awareness and access to local filmmaking communities about analog filmmaking in a safe and environmentally conscious manner and to reconstruct, through manipulation of found footage, QTBIPOC and LGBTQIA2 narratives.
Elian Mikkola is a Finnish Moving Image Artist (of Karelian descent), currently based between Montréal (Tiohtià:ke) and Treaty 4, Saskatchewan, Canada. Mikkola is interested in the enigmatic areas between movement and light. Their work constantly transitions between different mediums, exploring themes such as trans futurism, counter-archiving, and spatial dependencies. Mikkola’s current interest lies in cross-disciplinary listening and collaboration. They have attended several artist residencies internationally and, over the past decade, showcased their performance and moving-image work at festivals including International Film Festival Rotterdam, Oberhausen, Queer City Cinema and the BFI London Film Festival. Mikkola has conducted extensive research on eco-processed film since 2017. They have taught ecoprocessing by facilitating workshops with arts and community organizations and academic settings in Canada and Europe.