Made at Middlebury video essay camp (Scholarship in Sound and Image Workshop on Videographic Criticism) June 2022

Multi-screen exercise: this exercise asks makers to use a multi-screen process to construct a ‘response’ to one or more of the films (or exercises) from another member of the workshop. All audio and visuals must come from the maker’s chosen texts, peers’ exercises or the objects chosen by other workshop participants.

When else would we be asked to put such an eclectic group of films next to each other except Middlebury video essay camp?! Something that I wanted to look at in Desert Hearts is how it’s set in Reno Nevada complete with casino gambling, labour, context, and action. Inspired by the spin of slot machines, I managed to incorporate all of the video essay campers’ films into a ‘spinner’ that rotates through scenes from each film. Also, when in doubt, always end in a song and dance number! If you’re still reading this description, this multiscreen video essay exercise is also a game. You can ‘play’ the spinner by trying to land on a single frame by hitting pause on the Vimeo player, the image for which is your reward 😉

Thanks Colleen, Daniel, Desiree, Laura, Lucy, Nila, Vika, Jeff, Andrew, Pablo, Sadia, Joel, Allison, and Alison for introducing me to your work on and with these films 🙂