Travis Wilkerson

Last updated

Travis Wilkerson is an American independent film director, screenwriter, producer and performance artist. Named the "political conscience of 21st century American independent cinema," by Sight & Sound magazine, [1] Wilkerson is heavily influenced by the Third Cinema movement, and known for films that combine "maximalist aesthetics and radical politics." [1] This is owed, in part, to his meeting Cuban filmmaker Santiago Álvarez. Following the meeting, Wilkerson made the feature documentary Accelerated Under-Development about it. [2]

Contents

Films

Wilkerson's best known film, An Injury to One (2003), [3] was called a "political-cinema landmark" in the Los Angeles Times . [4] The film is an experimental documentary exploring the turn-of-century lynching of union organizer Frank Little, an I.W.W. union leader combating injustice against the Anaconda Copper Mining Company in Butte, Montana.

In 2007, Wilkerson presented the first performance art at the Sundance Film Festival: Soapbox Agitation #1: Proving Ground. The expanded cinema performance was described as "a scabrous assault on American imperialism inspired by the theoretical writings of Brecht and Lenin that featured Travis Wilkerson speechifying in between rockabilly protest songs as interpreted by "death folk" Los Angeles band Los Duggans," [5] and "one of the only Sundance products that wasn't for sale." [6]

His narrative-documentary hybrid, Machine Gun or Typewriter? (2015), premiered at the Locarno International Film Festival. [7] As translated from Il Manifesto , it is a "digression on the possible dissolution of life and love in a tragicomically apocalyptic Los Angeles, a delirium that ranges between the analog and the digital by very cleverly bypassing the image itself." [8]

The documentary Distinguished Flying Cross (2011) screened at the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival [9]

In January 2017, Wilkerson presented the premiere of a new "live" documentary in the New Frontier section of the Sundance Film Festival, Did You Wonder Who Fired the Gun? [10] The Village Voice wrote, ""It's hard not to experience Did You Wonder Who Fired the Gun? and not get shivers up your spine - from fear, from anger, and from the beauty of Wilkerson's filmmaking." [11] The same publication named it one of "The Ten Best Films at Sundance 2017." [12] Writing in Artforum , Amy Taubin wrote: "this performance strategy had a powerful effect on both him and the audience. The power has to do with it being a personal story, told in the first-person; in sharing it with an audience, Wilkerson doesn’t let anyone, including himself, off the hook. 'This isn’t a white savior story. This is a white nightmare story….' one of the strongest works in a chilling Sundance Film Festival." [13]

Other work

In addition to his longer works, Wilkerson has produced the short films National Archive V.1 (2001) and Pluto Declaration (2011). The former was screened at both the Toronto International Film Festival and the Musée du Louvre, [14] and the latter was included in the Sundance Film Festival [15] before sharing the prize for "Funniest Film" at the 50th Ann Arbor Film Festival. [16] He also contributed a segment to the omni-bus film Far From Afghanistan (2012). [17]

Wilkerson is the founding editor of the filmmaking journal Now! [18] In addition to his work as a practitioner, he also teaches filmmaking, practice, and criticism. He was a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Film at Vassar College. [19] He has previously taught at Pomona College, CalArts, and University of Colorado, Boulder. [20]

Honors and awards

Filmography

YearFimDirectorProducerWriter
1999Accelerated Under-development: In the Idiom of Santiago AlvarezYesYesYes
2002An Injury to OneYesYesYes
2005Who Killed Cock Robin?YesYesYes
2007Soapbox Agitation #1: Proving GroundYesYesYes
2011Distinguished Flying CrossYesYesYes
2012Far From AfghanistanYesYes
2013Los Angeles Red SquadYesYesYes
2015Machine Gun or Typewriter?YesYesYes
2017Did You Wonder Who Fired the Gun?YesYesYes
2024 Through the Graves the Wind Is Blowing YesYesYes

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Film festival</span> Dedicated event to screen films

A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors.

The Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival is a documentary film festival held biennially in Yamagata, Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lauren Greenfield</span> American photographer and filmmaker

Lauren Greenfield is an American artist, documentary photographer, and documentary filmmaker. She has published four photographic monographs, directed four documentary features, a documentary series, produced four traveling exhibitions, and published in magazines throughout the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2007 Sundance Film Festival</span> 2007 film festival edition

The 2007 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 18 until January 28, 2007, in Park City, Utah with screenings in Salt Lake City, Utah and Ogden, Utah. It was the 23-rd iteration of the Sundance Film Festival. The opening night film was Chicago 10; the closing night film was Life Support.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Sundance Film Festival</span> 2008 film festival edition

The 2008 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 17, 2008 to January 27 in Park City, Utah. It was the 24th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival. The opening night film was In Bruges and the closing night film was CSNY/Déjà Vu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Sundance Film Festival</span>

The 2009 Sundance Film Festival was held during January 15, 2009 until January 25 in Park City, Utah. It was the 25th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival.

The Big Durian is a 2003 Malaysian film by Amir Muhammad that combined documentary with fiction. It created history by being the first Malaysian film to screen at the Sundance Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 Sundance Film Festival</span>

The 27th annual Sundance Film Festival took place from January 20, 2011 until January 30, 2011 in Park City, Utah, with screenings in Salt Lake City, Utah, Ogden, Utah, and Sundance, Utah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Sundance Film Festival</span> Film festival held from January 17, 2013 until January 27, 2013

The 2013 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 17, 2013, until January 27, 2013, in Park City, Utah, United States, with screenings in Salt Lake City, Utah, Ogden, Utah, and Sundance, Utah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Sundance Film Festival</span>

The 2014 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 16, 2014 until January 26, 2014 in Park City, Utah, United States, with screenings in Salt Lake City, Ogden, and Sundance Resort in Utah. The festival opened with Whiplash directed by Damien Chazelle and closed with musical drama Rudderless directed by William H. Macy.

Motto Pictures is a documentary production company based in Brooklyn, New York specializing in producing and executive producing documentary features. Motto secures financing, builds distribution strategies, and creatively develops films, and has produced over 25 feature documentaries and won numerous awards.

<i>Sembene!</i> 2015 film

Sembene! is a 2015 documentary film focusing on the life of Senegalese filmmaker Ousmane Sembène, who is considered to be the father of African cinema. It is co-directed by Samba Gadjigo and Jason Silverman. The film's world premiere took place at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2015. It also played at the Cannes Film Festival and the Venice Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penny Lane (filmmaker)</span> American independent filmmaker (born 1978)

Penny Lane is an American independent filmmaker, known for her documentary films. Her humor and unconventional approach to the documentary form, including the use of archival Super 8 footage and YouTube videos, have earned her critical acclaim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Sundance Film Festival</span>

The 2017 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 to January 29, 2017. The first lineup of competition films was announced November 30, 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ja'Tovia Gary</span> American artist and filmmaker

Ja'Tovia Gary is an American artist and filmmaker based in Brooklyn, New York. Her work is held in the permanent collections at the Whitney Museum, Studio Museum of Harlem, and others. She is best known for her documentary film The Giverny Document (2019), which received awards including the Moving Ahead Award at the Locarno Film Festival, the Juror Award at the Ann Arbor Film Festival, Best Experimental Film at the Blackstar Film Festival, and the Douglas Edwards Experimental Film Award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.

<i>Hale County This Morning, This Evening</i> 2018 American film

Hale County This Morning, This Evening is a 2018 American documentary film about the lives of black people in Hale County, Alabama. It is directed by RaMell Ross and produced by RaMell Ross, Joslyn Barnes, Su Kim, and is Ross's first nonfiction feature. The documentary is the winner of 2018 Sundance Film Festival award for U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Creative Vision, 2018 Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Documentary Feature and the Cinema Eye Honors Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. After its theatrical run, it aired on the PBS series Independent Lens and eventually won a 2020 Peabody Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diane Paragas</span> American film and television director

Diane Paragas is a Filipino-American documentary and narrative film and commercial director. She is best known for writing, directing and producing the 2020 film Yellow Rose. Yellow Rose was Paragas' debut narrative feature. The film was selected as the Opening Night Film of the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Yellow Rose won Grand Jury Prizes at LAAPFF, Bentonville Film Festival, CAAMFEST37, and Urbanworld where it also took the Audience Award. The film also won the Audience Award at the Hawaii International Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rajee Samarasinghe</span> Director and filmmaker

Rajee Samarasinghe is a Sri Lankan filmmaker and visual artist. His work explores a wide array of topics including the Sri Lankan Civil War, his family, and the deconstruction of documentary and narrative film.

Samba Gadjigo, is a Senegalese filmmaker and writer. He is most notable as the director of critically acclaimed film Sembene!.

References

  1. 1 2 David, Soleil (2015-12-09). "Filmmaker Travis Wilkerson Featured in Sight & Sound Magazine". 24700: News from California Institute of the Arts. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
  2. ↑ Bateman, Conor (2016-05-24). "Machine Gun or Typewriter?". 4:3. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
  3. ↑ Wilkerson, Travis (2003-01-17), An Injury to One , retrieved 2016-10-31
  4. ↑ Lim, Dennis (2011-10-30). "A Second Look: 'An Injury to One'". Los Angeles Times. ISSN   0458-3035 . Retrieved 2016-10-31.
  5. ↑ Peranson, Mark (2009-09-04). "Spotlight | From Sundance to Berlin: More Films About Buildings and Fools - Cinema Scope". Cinema Scope. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  6. ↑ Nelson, Rob (2007-01-23). "Dissent for Sale". Village Voice. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  7. ↑ "Locarno Film Festival 2015: Recollection, Machine Gun or Typewriter?, Night Without Distance, & More | The House Next Door | Slant Magazine". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
  8. ↑ "il manifesto". ilmanifesto.info. 8 December 2015. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
  9. ↑ "YIDFF: 2011: International Competition". www.yidff.jp. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  10. ↑ Debruge, Peter (2016-12-01). "Sundance Film Festival Embraces Virtual Reality With 2017 New Frontier Program". Variety. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
  11. ↑ Ebiri, Bilge (2017-01-25). "Sundance: Haunted by 'Mudbound,' 'A Ghost Story' and 'Did You Wonder Who Fired the Gun?'". Village Voice. Retrieved 2017-01-26.
  12. ↑ Ebiri, Bilge (2017-01-31). "The 10 Best Films at Sundance 2017". Village Voice. Retrieved 2017-01-31.
  13. ↑ "artforum.com / film". artforum.com. Retrieved 2017-02-13.
  14. ↑ "Le remploi au cinéma | Musée du Louvre | Paris". www.louvre.fr. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  15. ↑ "2012 Sundance Film Festival Announces Short Film Program". www.sundance.org. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  16. ↑ "50th Ann Arbor Film Festival Awards". Experimental Cinema. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  17. ↑ "Far From Afghanistan | Film Society of Lincoln Center". Film Society of Lincoln Center. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  18. ↑ Wrate, Jonny (2017-08-12). "Travis Wilkerson on the search for art in activism". Kosovo 2.0. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
  19. ↑ "Travis A. Wilkerson - Film Department - Vassar College". film.vassar.edu. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
  20. ↑ "Travis Wilkerson, Visiting Fellow in Media Praxis | Media Studies". mediastudies.pomona.edu. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
  21. ↑ "Creative Capital - Investing in Artists who Shape the Future". creative-capital.org. Retrieved 2016-11-01.
  22. 1 2 3 ""Distinguished Flying Cross" - International Festival — Cinéma du Réel". www.cinemadureel.org. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.