Prelude

A staccato of light flashes breaks through the darkness of the night. For a brief moment, the past becomes visible. (production note)

Ode to Demolition. Resounding thunder accompanies the sparks of exploding fireworks. Faint points of light grow into glittering fountains and cascades and illuminate what initially resembles a completely foggy night sky.

These images turn out to be different interior spaces, flashed in phases by the ignition, sites that have long since given up their original functionality. In the explosion they are combined into a dwelling of spectacle. Boxes lie on top of each other like overturned tombstones and the walls are peeling – a legacy that invites a ceremonial continuation of the erosion and at the same time reverses this process. The prelude here is what is usually presented as the final climax of a pompous ceremonial act: pyropomp! We are led to the reversal, which includes the black and white sixty-year-old 16mm footage of where this invigoraing bang takes place. Director Eginhartz Kanter layers the destruction: damage to the building, damage to the film material, bombastic damage audio of a fictionalized past, the preservation of the moment in decay.

If it’s already broken, then why not add a little more? (Melanie Letschnig)

Translation: John Wojtowicz

Orig. Title
Prelude
Year
2022
Countries
Austria, Germany
Duration
3 min 21 sec
Director
Eginhartz Kanter
Category
Experimental
Orig. Language
No Dialogue
Downloads
Prelude_01 (Image)
Prelude_02 (Image)
Prelude_03 (Image)
Credits
Director
Eginhartz Kanter
Cinematography
Eginhartz Kanter
Sound
Stefan Tiefengraber
Editing
Eginhartz Kanter
Recording
Eginhartz Kanter
Available Formats
DCP 2K flat (Distribution Copy)
Aspect Ratio
4:3
Sound Format
7.1 surround
Frame Rate
24 fps
Color Format
b/w
Festivals (Selection)
2022
Linz - Crossing Europe Film Festival
2023
San Francisco Crossroads Film Festival
Kassel Dokumentarfilm & Videofestival
Hamburg - Internationales Kurzfilmfestival
Wien - VIS Vienna Shorts
Osnabrück - EMAF - European Media Art Festival
2024
Bratislava - Febiofest
Dresden - Filmfest
Sodankylä - Midnight Sun Film Festival
Taipei - ba̍k-nih-á film festival