Agnes, Szelag (Poland)
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#Interview:10 questions
1. Tell me something about your life and the educational background
I work with sound and video. Usually the video is accompanied by sound. Sometimes the sound is accompanied by video. I try to stop making videos but I can’t get away from it. I consider myself much more of a composer than video artist but I think visually. I received a BS in Radio/TV/Film from Northwestern and my masters is Electronic Music and Recording Media from Mills College.
2. When, how and why started you filming?
I started filming when I was a child, as soon as I could get my hands on a video camera. I have always been into documenting and recording things, whether it’s sound or visual.
3. What kind of subjects have your films?
My films have always had people in them until recently. I don’t usually have a distinct narrative, but I do have a narrative non-fiction film planned that I hope to shoot in the next 5 years.
4. How do you develop your films, do you follow certain principles, styles etc?
I choose a day to shoot when I feel inspired or I have a certain image I want to capture, and then I work with the material and manipulate it. The most recent piece I shot , “Myrtle”, uses in-camera editing.
5. Tell me something about the technical equipment you use.
. I usually use a Panasonic DVX 100 and a lighting kit if I am shooting inside.
6. What are the chances of new media for the genre film/video in general and you personally?
Film and video for me is new media because I don’t work in conventional forms. I have also installed interactive video/sound projects and hope to do more of those in the future.
7. How do you finance your films?
I pay for the films myself. In the future I am hoping to get more into grant writing if I decide to shoot a bigger project.
8. Do you work individually as a video artist/film maker or do you work in a team?
if you have experience in both, what is the difference, what do you prefer?
I work alone if I can, but manage to wrangle people when the project requires more hands.
9. Who or what has a lasting influence on your film/video making?
Ingmar Bergman, Bill Viola are two people that have directly inspired some of my projects and have had a lasting influence. Otherwise, it’s actually hearing music that inspires most of my visual ideas.
10. What are your future plans or dreams as a film/video maker?
My future plans are to keep making experimental sound and video pieces whether they are accompanied by each other or not. I have recently become very interested in comedy and am currently trying to figure out how to incorporate that into my work. I have also been trying to write more so I foresee more use of language in my future work. Three things I want to do before I die: make something funny that reaches a lot of people, score an amazing film, and show a gorgeous piece at a major art museum.