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Jazz Cosmopolitanism In Accra Series

Tue, 9 Oct 2018 15:11:00 GMT

Jazz Cosmopolitanism In Accra Series
Buy Now: $1,280.00

Five one-hour video collaborative documentaries (two with additional shorts) reveal Accra's resonances with jazz histories, styles, and performance practices ranging from New Orleans to bebop and the avant-garde, featuring famed percussionist Guy Warren/Ghanaba, multi-instrumentalist, afrifone inventor, and sound sculptor Nii Noi Nortey, percussionist and guitarist Nii Otoo Annan, the horn honking La Drivers Union Por Por Group, and master puppeteer J.C. Abbey.

The Jazz Cosmopolitanism in Accra films series, alone or joined by the companion book and CD series of the same title, convey a sense of diasporic intimacy and musical cosmopolitanism in Ghana.

Films in the Jazz Cosmopolitanism in Accra series:

Hallelujah! (60 min, 2009)

Accra Trane Station: The Music and Art of Nii Noi Nortey (60 min, 2009)

Includes the short film From Accra to Santa Fe (18 min, 2009)

A Por Por Funeral for Ashirifie (60 min, 2009)

The Story of Por-Por (60 min, 2013)

Includes the short film M.V. Labadi (20 min, 2013)

J.C. Abbey, Ghana's Puppeteer (55 min, 2016)

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J.C. Abbey

Tue, 9 Oct 2018 15:11:00 GMT

J.C. Abbey
Buy Now: $320.00

This film documents an exceptional fifty-year artistic career, from Accra's streets to Ghana's villages to international TV. In fifteen delightful puppet shows, Mr. Abbey is joined by musicians Nii Noi Nortey and NiiOtoo Annan and filmmakers Nii Yemo Nunu and Steven Feld to chronicle Ghana's music since independence in 1957.

The marionettes perform ethnic songs, dances and stories, but equally the sounds of highlife, Afrojazz, Afro-rock, reggae, and contemporary hiplife. The innovative soundtrack includes historical documents from radio, TV and broadcast, and LP, as well as new compositions commissioned and performed to playback.

This fifth feature in the Jazz Cosmopolitanism in Accra series mixes styles of historical documentary and contemporary music video. In a review of the film in Visual Ethnography, Rina Sherman quotes ethnomusicologist and filmmaker Steven Feld:

"By doing what these guys have done, which is to give us an alternate history of music in Ghana, they're asking, 'Who tells the story of a nation's music? Is it just the elites and the universities or is it the artists in the streets who have lived these 50, 60 years of history since independence? ...this world of traditions ... is what it means to be a contemporary Ghanaian."

Through the pleasures of performance it reveals the cosmopolitan politics that intertwine ethnic, traditional, national, and global musical styles in Ghana today.

[J.C. Abbey]..."documents the extraordinary art and craft of Joseph C. Abbey... Abbey's remarkable work has remained largely unknown to the wider world and it is thanks to filmmakers Nii Yemo Nunu and feld, and their colleague Nii Noi Nortey, the multi-instrumentalist and administrator of the Anyaa Arts Library outside Accra, that we can now get an impression of Abbey's puppetry treasures."
—Markus Coester and Christine Matzke, University of Bayreuth (Germany)

Films in the Jazz Cosmopolitanism in Accra series:

Hallelujah! (60 min, 2009)

Accra Trane Station: The Music and Art of Nii Noi Nortey (60 min, 2009)

Includes the short film From Accra to Santa Fe (18 min, 2009)

A Por Por Funeral for Ashirifie (60 min, 2009)

The Story of Por-Por (60 min, 2013)

Includes the short film M.V. Labadi (20 min, 2013)

J.C. Abbey, Ghana's Puppeteer (55 min, 2016)

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Juana's Journey

Tue, 9 Oct 2018 15:11:00 GMT

Juana's Journey
Buy Now: $295.00

For years, Juana, who is 18 years old, was a drug addict who lived in a street gang in Mexico City. Her little 3-year old daughter suffers most under Juana's depressions, which repeatedly caused Juana to stay away from home for weeks at a time. In these periods she was occasionally found totally stoned by her father, with whom she has a difficult relationship. Not only was she beaten by him in her youth, but now he also thrashes her daughter. Juana loves her child with heart and soul, but for a long time she was unable to take care of her. Juana has found some hope at the NACE organization (Niños Anónimos Con Esperanza) Through Juana's testimony, the documentary weaves the director's concern: the relationship between mother and daughter in a hostile environment, with frustration and poverty, where there are no apparent solutions.

Of the approximately 13,000 children currently living on the streets of Mexico City, at least 20% are girls. Averaging 9 years old when they leave home, the majority of these young girls claim poverty, domestic violence, and sexual abuse as the main reasons for leaving. Not surprisingly, most seek refuge in street gangs. Their sexual life starts early. Unfortunately, owing to their complete lack of any type of orientation on the subject, their first pregnancy usually occurs between the ages of 12 and 14. Being children themselves, these juvenile mothers simply don't have a clear set of alternatives for raising and educating a child of their own. Juana's story is one shared by many of these girls-the dilemma of being a mother living on today's mean streets.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS
3rd Annual Short Film Festival, Mexico City
VIII International Documentary Encounter, Portugal
19th International New Latin American Film Festival, Cuba
4th International Independent Film Festival, Barcelona
XIII Mexican Film Festival, Guadalajara
13th International Documentary Film Festival, Munich
VII 'Message to Man' International Film Festival, St. Petersburg
IDFA International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam
Latin American Studies Association, selection September 2001

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The Jero Tapakan series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

The Jero Tapakan series
Buy Now: $795.00

Jero Tapakan, a spirit medium in a small, central Balinese village, consults with a group of clients in her shrinehouse. An introduction precedes the main seance, providing a visual impression of a seance and background information on the medium and her profession. The clients wish to contact the spirit of their dead son to discover the cause of his death and his wishes for his cremation ceremony. Jero is possessed several times in the course of the seance: first by a protective houseyard deity who demands propitiary offerings that had previously been overlooked; then by the spirit of the petitioner's deceased father, who requests further offerings to ease his path to the other world; and finally by the spirit of the son. In an emotional scene the son's spirit reveals the cause of his premature death (sorcery) and instructions for his forthcoming cremation. Between each possession the medium converses with her clients, clarifying vague points in the often ambiguous trance speech.

Films in the Jero Tapakan series:

A Balinese Trance Seance

Jero on Jero: A Balinese Trance Seance Observed
The Medium is the Masseuse: A Balinese Massage w/Jero Tapakan
Releasing the Spirits: A Village Cremation in Bali

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The Joy of Youth

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:13:00 GMT

The Joy of Youth
Buy Now: $320.00

Among the Senufo people of northern Côte d'Ivoire, the balafon (xylophone with calabash resonators) is an emblematic musical instrument.

The music of the balafon is a source of joy while the young men are doing collective work in the fields, at age-group ceremonies, for the poro initiatory society, for the catholic mass and during young people's dance evenings. Musicians and non-musicians, young and old, talk about the different occasions for which this instrument is an indispensable presence marking the rhythms of life for this agricultural people. Traditional balafon music is far from dying out, and its extraordinary vitality and importance are evident in the activities of the younger generations.

This DVD includes the extra feature:
Friendly Hoeing Competition (9 min)

Films in the Masters of the Balafon series

Friend, Well Come! (with 21 minutes of extras)

Funeral Festivities (with 24 minutes of extras)

The Joy of Youth (with 9 minutes of extras)

The Wood and the Calabash

About the Masters of the Balafon series

Balafon is the name given in French-speaking West Africa to a xylophone with calabash resonators. This instrument is emblematic of the Senufo people of the Côte d'Ivoire (the former Ivory Coast). The balafon is played under differing circumstances and in combination with different groups of instruments. Not for nothing do the peoples of the Côte d'Ivoire call the northern part of their country "the land of the balafon."

Filmed in long sequences to preserve the integrity of the music and speech of the musicians, this series of four documentaries introduces the audience to the fascinating world of a living musical tradition. Each documentary can be viewed independently, as a whole, or in sections indicated by chapter titles. The complete series lasts nearly 4 ½ hours (including extras), providing a full account of a sophisticated African musical tradition.

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A Joking Relationship

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:12:00 GMT

A Joking Relationship
Buy Now: $545.00

This film depicts a moment of flirtation between N!ai, the young wife of /Gunda, and her great-uncle /Ti!kay. The two share a "joking relationship," a Ju/'hoan kin relationship which provides opportunities for casual intimacy, emotional release, and support. Part of the !Kung Series.

This film is available as part of the !Kung ShortFilms set. This collection combines fourteen of Marshall's short !Kung films onto two remastered/re-authored DVDs, complete with a full-color booklet containing photos, writings, and additional information about the series.

DiscOne:
A Curing Ceremony (bw) (9:00)
Group of Women (6:00)
A Joking Relationship (13:00)
N/um Tchai: The Ceremonial Dance of the !Kung Bushmen (bw)(20:00)
N!owa T'ama: The Melon Tossing Game (15:00)
The Lion Game (5:00)
An Argument About a Marriage (18:00)
Men Bathing (14:00)

DiscTwo:
Playing with Scorpions (5:00)
A Rite of Passage (15:00)
Debe's Tantrum (9:00)
The Wasp Nest (13:00)
The Meat Fight (14:00)
Baobab Play (8:00)

Orthography Note
The group of people depicted in these films are the Ju/'hoansi, speakers of the Ju/'hoan language. Ju/'hoan is part of the !Kung language group; the term !Kung was previously used by the Marshall family and others to refer to Ju/'hoansi. Although the term is outdated, it has been retained here for the sake of consistency with John Marshall's previously published work. The films and their related printed materials also employ antiquated spellings of names and places. For current Ju/'hoan orthography, please see the Ju/'hoan - English Dictionary, compiled by Patrick Dickens and the Ju/'hoan Peoples Literacy Committee.

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J.B. Jackson and the American Landscape

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:12:00 GMT

J.B. Jackson and the American Landscape
Buy Now: $340.00

J.B. Jackson and The American Landscape, a comprehensive compilation DVD, highlights the pioneering work and lively personality of John Brinckerhoff (J.B.) Jackson, considered by many to be the father of landscape studies in the United States. It includes two significant documentaries:

Figure in a Landscape: A Conversation with J.B. Jackson

45 min, 1988, Produced by Claire Marino and Janet Mendelsohn

Figure in a Landscape explores the origin of Jackson's ideas and animates them with a rich visual vocabulary. Through Jackson's eyes, familiar features of the landscape, such as the front lawn, the shopping mall, and the trailer park, are brought to life. The film presents his radical ideas that inspired a generation of architects, landscape architects and historians.

J.B. Jackson and The Love of Everyday Places
58 min, 1989, Produced by Bob Calo

Filmmaker Bob Calo goes on the road with Jackson as he explores key places in the Southwest from Chaco Canyon to Denver. The style of the film is inspired by Jackson's own approach: informal, anecdotal, and accessible. It offers a look into the mind and working methods of a truly unique interpreter of American life.

BONUS FEATURES

A portfolio of Jackson's drawings, watercolors and teaching slides
Interviews with scholars and artists who discuss the impact of Jackson's ideas and his continued relevance today

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Jaguar

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:12:00 GMT

Jaguar
Buy Now: $320.00

The richness of Yanomamö mythology is again revealed in this film (compare Moonblood and both Myths of Naro), as is the remarkable skill of another Yanomamö storyteller.

The myth in this case is that of Jaguar, a prominent figure throughout South American Indian mythology. Long ago, Curare Woman tasted bitter, so Jaguar did not eat her. Curare Woman hid her pregnant daughter in the roof above Jaguar's hammock, and sent Jaguar far away to hunt while her daughter was fed by birds whom she protected. One day the daughter pissed all over Jaguar. He smelled the urine and smashed the daughter to the ground, killing her. Curare Woman took the daughter's twin fetuses and hid them in a bark container, where they became hekura spirits. When they grew to be men and became Raware', they sought revenge. Through cunning and with an arrow obtained from the sky's edge, they succeeded in killing Jaguar.

Daramasiwa, who tells the myth, remains hunkering on the ground in one spot, yet through his dramatic body movements and versatile voice he conveys a sense of tremendous distance traveled, and of the qualities of the different characters.

This film, together with the films of the Naro and the Moonblood myths, suggests reflections on the nature of performance and communication in Yanomamö culture. At the same time the films remind the viewer of the complexity of the intellectual system in this culture, and might nicely complement a reading of Claude Levi-Strauss' Mythologiques.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS

American Film Festival Finalist

Films in the Yanomamö series:

Arrow Game *†

The Ax Fight †

Bride Service

Children's Magical Death *†

Climbing the Peach Palm *†

A Father Washes His Children *†

The Feast

Firewood *

Jaguar, a Yanomamö Twin Cycle Myth

Magical Death †

A Man and His Wife Make a Hammock *†

A Man Called Bee: Studying the Yanomamö †

Moonblood: A Yanomamö Creation Myth †

Myth of Naro, as told by Dedeheiwä

Myth of Naro, as told by Kaobawä

New Tribes Mission

Ocamo is My Town

Tapir Distribution *

Tug-of-War, Yanomamö *

Weeding the Garden *†

Yanomamö: A Multidisciplinary Study

Yanomamö of the Orinoco

* included on the Yanomamö Shorts compilation
† included in the Yanomamö Films: Remastered, Vol. 1 set

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Jakub

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:12:00 GMT

Jakub
Buy Now: $320.00

Jakub, by the Czech filmmaker Jana Sevikova, presents an extensive ethnographical-sociological study of the life of the Ruthenians, filmed in the Maramuresh mountains in the north of Romania and in the former Sudetenland in Western Bohemia. The film was made over a period of five years during the time of both totalitarian regimes and was completed in 1992 after the revolution.

Jakub Popovich is the primary character, whose story provides the link between 1947, when the film begins, and the present. Scientists at the Ethnographic-Folklore Institute, a part of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague acted as collaborators in the making of this film. The film has received international attention from filmmakers for its unique structure and cinematic quality, as well from educators and research scientists for its content.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS

Nyon Festival of Documentary Film, 1992

Berlin Film Festival, 1993

Minneapolis Film Festival, 1993

Montage '93 Rochester NY

Toronto Film Festival, 1993

Olympia Film Festival, 1993

Award for Excellence, Society for Visual Anthropology, 1994

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Jathilan

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:12:00 GMT

Jathilan
Buy Now: $295.00

Practiced in Java for centuries, Jathilan is a folk dance that uses the power of music and dance to channel powerful and sometimes terrifying forces. Led by a spiritual guide and a whip-bearing ringleader, a group of dancers ride woven horses in rhythmic unison until they are entered by spirits. Once possessed they engage in a range of self-mortification behaviors until safely emerging from their altered state, left with no memory of the event and no lingering ill effects.

The film combines footage of a number of Jathilan performances with interviews with dancers, spiritual leaders, anthropologists, and enthusiasts. This extraordinary practice becomes more than just spectacle as Jathilan is contextualized within broader processes of Indonesian historical, political and social change and the viewer is provided a window into the subjective experiences of those who participate. Multiple interpretations of Jathilan's significance ultimately emerge, from an empirical proof of spiritual presence, to a strategy of community building, to a resistant expression of folk identity.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS

Sunscreen Film Festival, St. Petersburg, Florida, 2013

SVA Ethnographic Film Festival 2012, USA, 2012

Pärnu International Documentary and Anthropology Film Festival, Estonia, 2012

Days of Ethnographic Cinema, Russia, 2012

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