This blog will discuss a wide range of topics related to film in Madison, Wisconsin in general, and my film related activities in particular. Blog posts will be in the following categories.
Program Notes
Starting with Rooftop Cinema in August, 2023, you will find my program notes for upcoming screenings at Mills Folly Microcinema at Arts + Literature Laboratory, MMoCA Cinema at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, and Duck Soup Cinema at the Overture Center.
Film Programming
General news about film programs I’m working on including schedule announcements and local media coverage.
Film Analysis
Longer form essays on recent films or topics in film culture and studies. Some of these entries will be accompanied by video essays.
Film Reviews
Much shorter entries with immediate responses to new theatrical releases or previews of UW-Cinematheque and Wisconsin Film Festival screenings. I’ll edit these to be closer in length to what you now find in local film reviews, or shorter.
Filmmaking Journals
Ongoing entries, and sometimes just brainstorming, that will track my progress in making new experimental films and video essays.
Reading Journals
I will survey recent film studies literature, on experimental filmmaking and history in particular, and respond to current issues in the field. (I need to catch up on some interesting recent books.) I will also take some of the archival material in the Documents section as a starting point to discuss local film culture history.
Commentary
Anything that I want to write that doesn’t fit into the categories above will go here, including responses to concerts, art exhibits (some of these will be work related, at Arts + Literature Laboratory), and Madison’s arts community and infrastructure.
Photo: Heidi Johnson