Spectres of the Spectrum

Last updated
Spectres of the Spectrum
Spectres of the Spectrum cover.jpg
Directed by Craig Baldwin
Written byCraig Baldwin
Produced byCraig Baldwin
Cinematography Bill Daniel
Edited byBill Daniel
Production
company
Other City Productions
Release date
  • October 5, 1999 (1999-10-05)(VIFF)
Running time
94 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Spectres of the Spectrum is a 1999 science fiction collage film by American filmmaker Craig Baldwin. The story follows a father and daughter living in post-apocalyptic wasteland as they fight against corporate control of the electromagnetic spectrum. The film mixes found footage with live-action scenes. [1]

Contents

Plot

In the year 2007, a telepathic woman Boo Boo and her father Yogi live in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. The New Electromagnetic Order rules the world, opposed by the TV Tesla resistance movement. Boo Boo, able to withstand the radioactive atmosphere, must go back in time 50 years and trace TV broadcasts of Science in Action to find an encoded secret from her grandmother. Meanwhile, Yogi scans the history of the electromagnetic conflict. After decoding the secret message, Boo Boo flies into the Sun to unleash a chain reaction that weaponizes the Sun's energy.

Cast

Production

Director Craig Baldwin with his collection of films in 2015 Craig Baldwin 5.jpg
Director Craig Baldwin with his collection of films in 2015

Baldwin worked on Spectres of the Spectrum over three years. The film primarily draws from archival material that Baldwin kept in the basement of his studio space in San Francisco. [3] His collection included hundreds of educational Science in Action episodes, discarded by the Exploratorium. Baldwin was motivated to use these because the show regularly had military figures as guest stars, which he thought perfectly captured "the reality of science being coopted by the military". [4]

Additional live-action scenes were shot on 16 mm film. Caroline Koebel's scenes did not have sync sound, and voiceover was added instead. [5]

Release

Spectres of the Spectrum premiered October 5, 1999 at the Vancouver International Film Festival. [1] It was selected to screen at the 1999 New York Film Festival, [6] the 2000 Whitney Biennial, [7] and the 2000 London Film Festival. [8] When the Church of Scientology found out about a mention of L. Ron Hubbard's time working as an intelligence agent, they sent Baldwin a letter documenting their account of Hubbard's life. [9]

Critical reception

A. O. Scott wrote that the Spectres of the Spectrum was "exhausting and ultimately bewildering…[but] not without a certain visual and conceptual brilliance, or, thankfully, a sense of humor." [10] Jonathan Romney of The Guardian called it "radical pop art, and head-spinningly entertaining storytelling, if you manage to keep up with it." [8] In his review for Variety magazine, Ken Eisner described it as a "concentrated lightning bolt of fascinating weirdness" but noted that it was relatively inaccessible for mainstream audiences and could become "a coveted item among youthful cognoscenti." [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Mad Max 2</i> 1981 Australian post-apocalyptic action film

Mad Max 2 is a 1981 Australian post-apocalyptic dystopian action film directed by George Miller, who co-wrote it with Terry Hayes and Brian Hannant. It is the second installment in the Mad Max franchise. The film stars Mel Gibson reprising his role as "Mad Max" Rockatansky and follows a hardened man who helps a community of settlers to defend themselves against a roving band of marauders. Filming took place in locations around Broken Hill, in the Outback of New South Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Del Close</span> American actor, writer, and teacher (1934–1999)

Del Close was an American actor, writer, and teacher who coached many of the best-known comedians and comic actors of the late twentieth century. In addition to an acting career in television and film, he was one of the influences on modern improvisational theater. Close was co-founder of the ImprovOlympic (iO).

<i>Last Night</i> (1998 film) 1998 Canadian film

Last Night is a 1998 Canadian apocalyptic black comedy-drama film directed by Don McKellar and starring McKellar, Sandra Oh and Callum Keith Rennie. It was produced as part of the French film project 2000, Seen By.... McKellar wrote the screenplay about how ordinary people would react to an unstated imminent global catastrophic event. Set in Toronto, Ontario, the film was made and released when many were concerned about the Year 2000 problem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig Baldwin</span> American experimental filmmaker

Craig Baldwin is an American experimental filmmaker. He uses found footage from the fringes of popular consciousness as well as images from the mass media to undermine and transform the traditional documentary, infusing it with the energy of high-speed montage and a provocative commentary that targets subjects from intellectual property rights to rampant consumerism.

<i>Phantasm IV: Oblivion</i> 1998 American film

Phantasm IV: Oblivion is a 1998 American science fantasy horror film. The film was written, produced and directed by Don Coscarelli and starring A. Michael Baldwin, Reggie Bannister and Angus Scrimm. It is the third sequel in the Phantasm series and is followed by Phantasm: Ravager.

David Lovgren is a Canadian actor. He had a recurring role in the espionage series Intelligence.

Norwood J. Cheek, Jr., aka Norwood Cheek, is an American director, producer, and editor of film and television. He is known for his music videos and his work with Super 8 film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boo-Boo Bear</span> American animated television and film character

Boo-Boo Bear is a Hanna-Barbera cartoon character on The Yogi Bear Show. Boo-Boo is a shorter anthropomorphic bear who wears a blue bowtie. Boo-Boo is Yogi Bear's constant companion, and often acts as his conscience. He tries to keep Yogi from doing things he should not do, and also to keep Yogi from getting into trouble with Ranger Smith – often saying, "Mr. Ranger isn't gonna like this, Yogi." It is not readily apparent whether Boo-Boo is a juvenile bear with a precocious intellect, or simply an adult bear who is short of stature.

Yogi the Easter Bear is an American animated television special starring Yogi Bear, produced by Hanna-Barbera and animated by Filipino animation studio Fil-Cartoons. It was broadcast in syndication on April 3, 1994. This is one of Don Messick's last voice-over roles; he suffered a debilitating stroke in 1996 and died in 1997. It would also be the last official Yogi Bear media for 16 years until the release of the live-action Yogi Bear film.

Holly Dale is a Canadian filmmaker and television director. Over the course of her career, Dale has worked in the Canadian film and television industry as a director, producer, writer, and editor. Although she has completed solo projects, the majority of Dale's work has been in collaboration with her former classmate, Janis Cole. The Thin Line (1977), P4W: Prison for Women (1981), and Hookers on Davie (1984) are some of their most recognized projects. Dale's work has been featured in festivals around the world including North America, Europe, and Australia. She has also received award nominations and wins, including a Gemini Award in 1982 for the Best Theatrical Documentary for P4W: Prison for Women.

<i>Yogi Bear</i> (film) 2010 film by Eric Brevig

Yogi Bear is a 2010 American live-action/animated comedy film directed by Eric Brevig and written by Brad Copeland, Joshua Sternin and Jennifer Ventimilia. Based on the Hanna-Barbera animated television series The Yogi Bear Show, the film stars Anna Faris, Tom Cavanagh, T.J. Miller, Nate Corddry and Andrew Daly, alongside the voices of Dan Aykroyd and Justin Timberlake. The film centers on Ranger Smith as he teams up with his girlfriend Rachel Johnson, Yogi Bear, and Boo-Boo Bear to stop their home, Jellystone Park, from being logged. Production on the film took place in New Zealand in October 2008.

<i>Mad Max</i> Australian media franchise

Mad Max is an Australian media franchise created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy. It centers on a series of post-apocalyptic and dystopian action films. The franchise began in 1979 with Mad Max, and was followed by three sequels: Mad Max 2, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015); Miller directed or co-directed all four films. A spin-off, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, was released in 2024 and was also directed by Miller. Mel Gibson originally portrayed the series' title character, Max Rockatansky, in the first three films, while Tom Hardy and Jacob Tomuri portrayed the character in the later two films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yogi Bear</span> American animated television and film character

Yogi Bear is an anthropomorphic animal character who has appeared in numerous comic books, animated television shows, and films. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in The Huckleberry Hound Show.

The Mad Max series of films, which debuted in 1979, has had a significant impact on modern popular culture. Mad Max references are deeply embedded in popular culture; references to its dystopian, apocalyptic, and post-apocalyptic themes and bizarre landscape and desolate wasteland imagery have inspired some artists to emulate the look and feel of some aspect of the series in their work.

<i>Mock Up on Mu</i> 2008 American film

Mock Up on Mu is a 2008 science fiction collage film directed by American experimental filmmaker Craig Baldwin. The film is a fictionalized continuation of the stories of L. Ron Hubbard, Jack Parsons, and Marjorie Cameron. Baldwin assembled it mostly from found footage but began introducing more original live-action footage than in earlier projects.

<i>Spectre</i> (2015 film) James Bond film

Spectre is a 2015 spy film and the twenty-fourth in the James Bond series produced by Eon Productions. Directed by Sam Mendes and written by John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, and Jez Butterworth from a story conceived by Logan, Purvis, and Wade, it stars Daniel Craig as Bond, alongside Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Dave Bautista, Monica Bellucci, and Ralph Fiennes. It was distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing. In the film, Bond battles Spectre, an international crime organisation led by Franz Oberhauser (Waltz).

<i>Hyperfutura</i> 2012 film

Hyperfutura is a 2012 science fiction film from American filmmaker James O'Brien, starring Eric Kopatz, Karen Corona, Gregory Kiem, Scott Donovan, Celine Brigitte, Alysse Cobb, Lionel Heredia, Gary Kohn, Edward Romero and William Moore. It draws elements from the mashup video movement, Ed Wood, time travel and transhumanism, and pays homage to such counterculture works as The Church of the SubGenius and the fictional experimental filmmaker James Orin Incandenza from the David Foster Wallace novel Infinite Jest. Utilizing both stock footage and a live action narrative, it takes the viewer on a psychedelic voyage into the subconscious of a hybrid robot human sent back in time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wasteland Weekend</span> Annual festival held in Edwards, California, US

Wasteland Weekend is an annual festival held in Edwards, California. The event is listed as a full immersion event, with all participants required to adhere to the set theme. It has been held annually in September since 2010, except for 2020, when the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, the 10th-anniversary edition of Wasteland Weekend was held from September 25 to September 29.

<i>OzLand</i> 2014 American film

OzLand is a 2014 American science fantasy drama independent film starring Zack Ratkovich and Glenn Payne. It was written and directed by Michael Williams in his feature directorial debut.

References

  1. 1 2 "Spectres of the Spectrum". Vancouver International Film Festival. 1999. Archived from the original on April 21, 2000. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 "Spectres Of The Spectrum – Cast". TV Guide . Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  3. O'Reilly, Finbarr (February 11, 2000). "BooBoo and Yogi fight the power: Experimental film explores theme of media concentration". National Post . p. B6.
  4. Knipfel, Jim (June 29, 2017). "Chomsky Does Not Make Movies: an Interview with Filmmaker Craig Baldwin". The Believer . Retrieved October 13, 2018.
  5. 1 2 Eisner, Ken (November 29, 1999). "Spectres of the Spectrum". Variety . Vol. 377, no. 3. p. 58.
  6. Holden, Stephen (October 9, 1999). "Marching in the Vanguard". The New York Times . Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  7. "'Spectres' screens experimental filmmaker's work". The Ithaca Journal . February 3, 2000. p. C8.
  8. 1 2 Romney, Jonathan (November 14, 2000). "Spectres of the Spectrum". The Guardian . p. 25. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  9. Carley, Christopher (2008). "Talk About a Combustible Mix: An Interview with Craig Baldwin". Cineaste . Vol. 34, no. 1. p. 23.
  10. Scott, A. O. (March 17, 2000). "Yogi and Boo Boo, Yes, But Not One Picnic Basket". The New York Times . p. E29. Retrieved October 11, 2018.