Roger Ebert did a Top Ten films of the decade... and rounded it out with another 10 (for a total of 20)... and he approached it not as the top ten of artistically and historically important film but rather the top 10 to affect him. So I decided to do a list of important artistic things to affect me this decade. And not ALL of this was created in this decade, but was made aware to me this decade. As you may notice, I was a late bloomer to many things of this world. The things that have made me who I am in this decade:
1. Sufjan Stevens - Perhaps it’s too obvious a choice. Maybe it makes me look like I’m trying too hard, but Sufjan’s music has meant an incredible amount to me on artistic and emotional levels. His albums are stellar, but his live shows are truly amazing. I’ve been fortunate to see him live three times. During a performance at NY’s Town Hall (with the amazing My Brightest Diamond opening), there came an incredible deafening squeal of feedback during what seemed to be freeform improvised noise from all 12 instruments on stage at the end of my favorite song, The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades is Out to Get Us. Everyone stopped playing, the feedback ended, and Sufjan was very professional and friendly in his apology. He did a quick count off and everyone jumped right back into the song/noise, proving every sound in this emotional build up of the song was intentional, written out, and well rehearsed. It just showed me that he has such a command on every aspect of his music, from the wonderful lyrics and melodies to the way the live shows (including costumes) are performed.
2. Emily Hubley - I was very familiar with her parents, Faith and John, as they were pioneers in the independent animation world, but this decade brought me Emily. Her short films take both visuals and story to a personal level that I never considered before. You can thank her for my personal narrative approach. In fact, I literally have thanked her as she was my thesis advisor in college. What I never told her was that the animations she provided for John Cameron Mitchell’s
Hedwig and the Angry Inch was a connecting point for my (then future) wife and I, as it was a favorite film for both of us. (For music buffs, note her sister Georgia is the drummer/singer of Yo La Tengo.)
3. Robert Bresson - I don’t even remember now what exactly sparked my initial interest in Bresson’s films. I think the MoMA’s The Hidden God: Film and Faith series is where I first heard about him. How could I read “...a donkey is baptized...” in the description of
Au hasard Balthazar and not want to see it? I drug the wife to that one... she was sweet enough to go. How many women will see B&W French films with non-professional actors just to encourage your interest? I admire much of Bresson’s process, but what intrigues me most is his focus on the spiritual and his attempt to avoid non-diegetic music in his films. His final film
L’argent is by far my favorite that I have seen of his. Amazing to see a film end so violently yet carry the spiritual emotion it does.
4.
Synecdoche, New York - I love all of Charlie Kaufman’s work, but this film caught me at the right time. The ‘meta’ in the film is mind-blowing, but doesn’t become too out of control. Just what is happening? I think Roger Ebert says it best when he says this isn’t a film about story but rather about identity, specifically the categories of our lives we create.
5. Roger Ebert - Ebert is a perfect example of how you can be an artist, think artistically, but not provide an artistic result in the end. NOT to say that Ebert’s writing isn’t artistic! He’s an amazing writer. I just mean to note that you’re not going to walk into a gallery or go to the cinema to aquire his work, but his thought process and critique is completely that of an artist.
6. Stan Brakhage - If you’ve seen my film
Self Portrait 1981-2009, (and you’re familiar with Brakhage), then you’re saying, “Duh.” But beyond his beautiful paintings on film stock, his writing about life and film are insightful. If you want to study a new way of seeing (or chuckle at a letter to a teacher about why it’s okay that his daughter doesn’t bathe regularly), read his essays.
7. My Wife - Selfish? Biased? Mayhaps. BUT honest. Her ability to write music surprised me. She tells stories about people with such vivid details while reaching an emotional state with her music, and it never fails to move me. I don’t know what inspired her to start creating music with the ukulele the way she has, but her voice is the greatest instrument she uses. Her interesting use of the uke pairs amazingly well with her voice. I’ve been fortunate enough to see her approaching this new creative outlet from the ground up and that’s been such an inspiring thing for me to watch. When she finishes her album (March?!?!) you will see why she was an important part of this list for me.
(For those who forget or didn't know, I choose not to post her name here as we try to keep this blog anonymous so our students don't find us online!)
8. Michael Chabon - How do I write about a writer? All I can say is that all of his work that I have read pulls me in. His worlds are so well thought out and believable and his characters fit so comfortably into them. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry... start with
Wonder Boys or
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay.
9. Tom Colicchio - Sometimes I regret not going into the culinary arts. Watching Bravo’s
Top Chef brings those pangs of regret while allowing me to live vicariously through amazing artists that show me I would not have succeeded in that world. Colicchio is clearly a driving force of inspiring these new artists and a wonderful chef himself. I’ve only had the pleasure of eating at ‘wichcraft. It’s amazing. Perhaps my unwillingness to shell out the bucks to eat at the other craft family eateries makes you think it odd that I would include him in my top 10, but it’s more than just his food that makes him important to me.
10. Alfred Hitchcock - How did I not know Hitchcock was a master of film until my mid-20’s?! His precise filmmaking process allows me to draw clear lines to Bresson’s process, but their end results could not be further from each other. Hitchcock just wanted to tell a good story, and maybe scare you (at least involve you) along the way. Every frame of his films are intentional and he’s successful because of this.
Honorable Mentions:
Jonathan Lethem
Beirut / Zack Condon
Tim Hawkinson
Brent Green
Wilco
