Takahiko Iimura is considered one of the most influential and important experimental filmmakers of our time. In an era of the explosion of Underground Film in the States, Iimura, almost alone in Tokyo, began making experimental film just reading the newsTakahiko Iimura is considered one of the most influential and important
experimental filmmakers of our time. In an era of the explosion of
Underground Film in the States, Iimura, almost alone in Tokyo, began
making experimental film just reading the news from abroad without
actually seeing them. His work explores wide range of experiments from
poetic cinema with Dadaist and Surrealist influence and Absurdist
filmic play in the 1960's through more formal and conceptual
investigations in the 1970's and the later. He is also a widely
established international artist, having numerous exhibitions including
installation and performance in Japan, the USA, and Europe. One of his
early films, "Onan", which is the starter of this collection, was
awarded Special Prize at the legendary Brussels International
Experimental Film Festival, l964. This compilation assembles mainly his
early stage of the 1960s except “AIUEONN Six Features”(1993).

Films Included:

Onan (1963, 7min.) Winner of Special Prize at legendary Brussels
International Experimental Film Festival, 1964. A surreal short tale of
a young guy bears a big egg after masturbation...

White Calligraphy (1967, 11min) is a film featuring calligraphy
scratched directly on black film one character in every frame taken
from the famous story of Kojiki, written in 8th Century. When
projected, it is too fast to read, but seen as an abstract line
animation film. It is an almost like autonomous writing of surrealist,
lines rapidly explode like firework

AIUEONN Six Features (1993, 7min.) plays on computerized funny faces
with Japanese vowels which don't synchronize with the voice except the
first time. Repeated delay between the voice and the mouth may
actualize the theory of “Differance” with “a” by Jacques Derrida
combining “difference” and “delay.”

Face (1968-69, 17min.) is featuring Warhol's super stars, Mario
Montez, and underground comic star of the Kuchar brothers', Donna
Kerness, in their sexual process on faces in acting mixed with the
”real”one in close-ups questions the difference between what is "real"
and what is "fake" in film. Continuous laughing voice over the images
makes one wonder as an absurd play.

Filmmakers (1969, 28min.) documents in a very personal manner the
portraits of the most active experimental filmmakers in the mid 1960's:
Stan Brakhage, Stan Vanderbeek, Jack Smith, Jonas Mekas, Andy Warhol,
and Takahiko Iimura. It is a rare historical document of the "Golden
Age" of underground film. The film also characterizes the shooting
method to each filmmaker as partially uses their style of filming in
their parts. The sound counteracts the shooting style as Iimura himself
records the voice in words what he sees in the picture objectifying the
voice over the image.
Further Information:

Takahiko Iimura
has been a pioneer artist of Japanese experimental film and video,
working in film since l960 and with video since 1970. He is also a
widely established international artist, having numerous exhibitions in
Japan, the USA, and in Europe. One of his early films, "Onan", was
awarded Special Prize at the legendary Brussels International
Experimental Festival, l964. Recently he has been involved in using the
computer, publishing multimedia CD-ROMs/DVDs combining film, video,
graphics, text, and animation.