Diorama #01

The short experimental film Diorama #01" (2015) utilises mobile photography, archival images, and After Effects to prompt a series of questions concerning the nature of contemporary media practices. Images have always established connections with memory, time, and place for a viewer. Louis Daguerre's diorama, developed in 1822 just prior to the advent of photography, displayed a painted representation of an image (usually a landscape), which utilised changing light and transparency of the painted surface. Audiences were captivated with the slowly transformed canvas for periods of around 15 minutes, during which time they marvelled at the changing light conditions that illuminated the front and back of the translucent canvas. Responding to the work of Henri Bergson in relation to philosophies of duration and, in particular, the concept of time as a medium for both manipulation and erasure in post-production, Diorama #01 combines image-making practices with 2D animation to produce a work that forces the viewer to confront notions of reality, memory, time, and place. The film was selected through a double peer-review process for MINA, which showcased mobile filmmaking projects from around the world in Melbourne (RMIT University: 19 Nov 2015; & Fed Square: 20 Nov 2015) and Wellington (Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision, Te Anakura Whitiāhua: Wed 9, Thurs 10 & Fri 11 Dec 2015).