In response to an increasingly technological world, there has been an explosion in the number of “handmade” films - those created by working directly with the material of the film. This compilation showcases recent works that use a range of handmade and artisanal techniques, including photograms, hand-processing, cameraless animation and collage.
 
“Well-crafted and entertaining, this collection is an excellent presentation of short abstract films. Repeated imagery, animation, home movies, playful use of color, photograms, dance, and different light effects provide both fanciful and introspective moments of sheer film appreciation. These films would be a great asset to any film studies or filmmaking class or collection, useful for researchers looking for diversity in non-digital examples of experimental filmmaking styles. An excellent study guide accompanies the DVD. Highly Recommended.”
—Debra Mandel, Educational Media Reviews Online
 
1) Two Eastern Hair Lines by Steven Woloshen (2004 / 35mm / 4 min.)
Using bleaching and painting techniques on found footage, “Two Eastern Hair Lines” explores communication, conflict and isolation.
 
2) Post Mark Lick by Sonia Bridge (2002 / 35mm / 3.5 min.)
A love-song to the pre-digital age of postal correspondence and photogram animation.
 
3) The View Never Changes by John Price (1996 / 16mm / 6 min.)
Seething grain and swirling textures of  B&W processed in a pail.  Film as memory ... an elaborate reconstruction perpetually shifting through the course of time.
 
4) 1:1 by Richard Reeves (2001 / 35mm / 2.5 min.)
A cameraless animation about the 1:1 relationship between sound & picture.
 
5) The Light in Our Lizard Bellies by Sarah Abbott (1999 / 16mm / 8 min.)
A hand-processed dance piece featuring dancer Susanna Hood which reflects the intensities that discombobulate us as we go through change.
 
6) Light Magic by Izabella Pruska-Oldenhof (2001 / 16mm / 3 min.)
A lovely film which uses one of the earliest photographic processes: the photogram. This technique combines science and art to record the process of transformation.
 
7) Girl from Moush by Gariné Torossian (1993 / Super 8 + 16mm / 6 min.)
A poetic montage of the artist’s journey through her subconscious Armenia.
 
8) Minus by Christopher Chong (1999 / 16mm / 3 min.)
“Minus” is a hand-processed, uncut, singular stream of movements.  To take away: either to leave remnants of light or to leave remnants of rhythms.
 
9) Handtinting by Joyce Wieland (1967 / 16mm / 5.5 min.)
“‘Handtinting’ is full of small movements and actions, gestures begun and never completed... A beautifully realized type of chamber-music film whose sum-total feeling is ritualistic.” - Robert Cowan, Take One
 
10) Buffalo Lifts by Christina Battle (2004 / 16mm / 3 min.)
Awash in sumptuous colour, a herd of buffalo desperately try to hold on as they struggle to cross the film frame.
 
11) Across by Cara Morton (1997 / 16mm / 3 min.)
"’Across’ is about the sometimes difficult journey from one psychic space to another. From a place in the abusive past, to a place called survival." - Liz Czach
 
12) Two Pictures by Carl Brown and Rose Lowder (1999 / 16mm / 12 min.)
Tactile and textured, luscious and luminescent, “Two Pictures” is a singular statement embodying a powerful dichotomy.