Exquisite Corpse 8MM Film Experiment

The Subvex Film Company’s The Exquisite Corpse 8mm Film Experiment aims to “bridge the gap between legends of old and young guns of contemporary cinema.” 　　A collective of directors, filmmakers, cinematographers and audio-visual artists, Subvex advocates the use of new locations to screen films that don’t get distributed via the mainstream. Based in Paris, London, New York, this international group launched this direct-to-cinema program in order to develop new waves of film making from the ground up. First up for Exquisite Corpse is a collaboration between avant-garde masters Jonas Mekas (pictured), Nina Menkes and Bill Morrison with a group of emerging filmmakers. 　　That lovely name, coined by the Surrealists, comes from the game in which artists each add content to a collaborative project without any pre-determined context. The result: a collage of abstractions, and jarring juxtapositions. In the case of Exquisite Corpse’s first project, it’s a mix of short films shot by each of the participating filmmakers. Much like puckish Lars von Trier’s The Five Obstructions, the investors/producers/financiers on each project may also apply a “rule” or handicap on the filmmakers. 　　The project tis entirely non-for-profit. The resulting film will be screened in NYC and then streamed for free online.