The road ended at the beach and other legends: Parsing The Escarpment School
Saturday November 6, 19h, free admission
100 Arthur Street, Winnipeg, R3B 1H3 Manitoba, Canada

Curated and introduced by Brett Kashmere

* Panel discussion to follow with Brett Kashmere, Rick Hancox, Janine Marchesseault and Phil Hoffman

“The Road Ended at the Beach and Other Legends represents the first critical survey of Canada’s mythic and amorphous “Escarpment School,” a loosely knit band of Ontario-based filmmakers that came together in the late-70s at Sheridan College, under the tutelage of Rick Hancox and Jeffrey Paull.

Its assumed “members” include Hancox, Carl Brown, Philip Hoffman, Mike Hoolboom, Richard Kerr, Gary Popovich and Steve Sanguedolce, while Janis Cole, Holly Dale, Marion McMahon, and Mike Cartmell are occasionally linked to the group. A number of other accomplished filmmakers and cultural producers, such as Lorne Marin, Lorraine Segato (of The Parachute Club), and Alan Zweig overlapped with and intersected this circle, through acts of collaboration, social interactions, inspiration, and friendship. The American filmmaker and scholar George Semsel, Hancox’s first teacher and mentor, also deserves mention, as many of the concerns expressed in the films of the “Escarpment School” can be located in Semsel’s own cinematic work.

Paradoxically, what is most noteworthy about the “Escarpment School” today, whether seen as a legitimate art-historical movement or as a PR strategy concocted from within, is its absence from the annals of Canadian cinema, despite the influence and accolades of the aforementioned individuals. Did the “Escarpment School” ever exist, and if so, what did it look like, what might it look like now (with the hindsight of historical perspective), and how do we evaluate its legacy? This four-part series seeks to celebrate the “Escarpment School” as a unique confluence in Canadian film history and to simultaneously expand the frame, by offering an inclusive, inter-generational interpretation of its membership.

Grand Detour Presents Heavy Meta: Highlights from the Summer Screening Series
Tuesday October 26, Doors 19:30h £5
The Horse Hospital
Colonnade, Bloomsbury, London WC1N 1JD, UK

Grand Detour focuses on curating exhibitions and presentations from both established and up-and-coming artists.  Additionally we act as a venue for touring shows and individuals wishing to premiere new films, videos, installations, and performances.  The Heavy Meta tour showcases a 60-70 minute presentation of film and video highlights featuring highlights from our popular Summer Screening series. The program (which will also travel throughout the United States this Winter) features short experimental works by Vanessa Renwick, Jon Behrens, Karl Lind, Julie Perini, Carl Diehl, Ben Popp, and others.  Grand Detour founding member Dustin Zemel will use the tour to network with similar arts organizations and microcinemas in Glasgow, London and Berlin, discussing the future and pertinence of creative digital media exchanges in the realm of experimental film and video art.

As much as Grand Detour is passionate about making connections in Portland, we are equally invested in bringing together the international media arts community.  Its our goal to make it that much easier for artists and organizations to find each other and seek out new audiences for screenings and discourse.