- From 200,000 Phantoms
Tomorrow at 7:30 PM Chicago Filmmakers will present a program of short works by French experimental filmmaker Jean-Gabriel Périot at Columbia University’s Hokin Hall (623 South Wabash Avenue) with the director in attendance. Active for about 15 years, Périot specializes in repurposing archival footage and still images from contemporary news reports into what may be termed “cine-mosaics.” The density of his work can be overwhelming—in every short of his I’ve seen, I’ve quickly lost count of just how many images Périot had assembled. At the same time, his work displays an ingratiating musical sensibility; Périot often cuts his work to the tempo of a piece of music, locking the viewer into a groove before making his point. (If you want a preview of his work, you can watch two shorts from tomorrow’s program, 200,000 Phantoms [2007] and Undo [2005], on YouTube.)
