Maya Deren: The Woman in Film Everyone Should Know

Summary

In this video, the speaker discusses their favorite filmmaker, Maya Deren, a prominent figure in avant-garde cinema during the 1940s and 50s. Deren believed in the unique experiential potential of film, criticizing the over-reliance on traditional storytelling that stifled cinematic innovation. The speaker praises Deren's work for pushing the boundaries of film language, particularly highlighting her film 'Atland,' which explores a non-linear, symbolic narrative. The video serves as an introduction to Deren's philosophy and encourages viewers to explore her films, available online for free.

Takeaways

• 🎬 The speaker often lies about their favorite movie and filmmaker due to the obscurity of their true choices.
• 🌟 The speaker's actual favorite filmmaker is Maya Deren, a prominent figure in avant-garde cinema during the 1940s and 50s.
• 💃 Maya Deren was a multi-talented artist, known for her work as a dancer, choreographer, poet, lecturer, writer, and photographer.
• 🏆 Deren was an independent artist who never worked in Hollywood and made films on a shoestring budget.
• 📜 She believed that film should create unique experiences and criticized the over-reliance on narrative patterns borrowed from literature.
• 🚀 Deren argued for a cinematic language that explores the medium's unique capabilities, beyond storytelling.
• 🎥 Her films, like 'At Land' and 'Meshes of the Afternoon', are known for their innovative use of editing and manipulation of time and space.
• 📽 'At Land' is the speaker's all-time favorite film, which explores identity and the self through a series of surreal encounters.
• 📚 The speaker recommends 'Essential Deren', a collection of her writings, for those interested in learning more about her work.
• 👍 The speaker encourages viewers to watch Deren's films, which are available online for free, to experience her unique cinematic vision.

Q & A

What are the two common questions the speaker gets asked about movies?

The two common questions are 'What's your favorite movie?' and 'Who's your favorite filmmaker?'

Why does the speaker often lie when answering the questions about movies?

The speaker lies because their real answers are obscure and they feel the other person will not understand or look up the references without context.

What is the purpose of the video the speaker is creating?

The purpose of the video is to provide a comprehensive response to the questions about the speaker's favorite filmmaker and movie, so they can refer people to it for better understanding.

Who is Maya Deren and what was her significance in cinema?

Maya Deren was a prominent filmmaker in the 1940s and 50s, known for her work in avant-garde cinema. She was also a dancer, choreographer, poet, lecturer, writer, and photographer. She was significant for her belief that film should create a unique experience and not rely on traditional storytelling.

What did Maya Deren believe was the primary function of film?

Maya Deren believed that the primary function of film was to create an experience that was unique to cinema, not just to record realities or imitate other art forms.

How does the speaker feel about the current state of popular cinema?

The speaker feels that the over-reliance on storytelling in popular cinema has shifted the focus away from the unique language and vocabulary of cinema, which is a detriment to the art form.

What is the title of Maya Deren's most famous film mentioned in the script?

The title of Maya Deren's most famous film mentioned is 'Meshes of the Afternoon'.

What is the title of the speaker's all-time favorite film by Maya Deren?

The speaker's all-time favorite film by Maya Deren is 'Atland'.

What does the film 'Atland' attempt to achieve according to the speaker?

The film 'Atland' attempts to eliminate literary dramatic lines and literal symbolic meanings to discover a purely cinematic coherence and integrity through dislocations of space and time.

What is the main message the speaker wants to convey about Maya Deren's work?

The main message is that Maya Deren's work reflects a pursuit of cinematic language and pushes the boundaries of the medium to express specific ideas and concepts, manipulating time and space in radical ways.

What book does the speaker recommend for those interested in learning more about Maya Deren?

The speaker recommends the book 'Essential Deren', a collection of her writings.

Outlines

00:00

🎬 The Artistic Vision of Maya Deren

The speaker begins by discussing the common questions asked about favorite movies and filmmakers, admitting to often providing safe, well-known answers to avoid confusion. They express a desire to share their true favorites through a video, highlighting the work of Maya Deren, a prominent figure in avant-garde cinema during the 1940s and 50s. Deren was a multi-talented artist who pursued an independent path, creating films that were inexpensive and focused on the unique experiences cinema could offer. She criticized the reliance on traditional narrative structures in film, advocating for a cinematic language that explores the medium's own structural modes and dimensions, separate from literature and other art forms.

05:01

🌊 The Impact of Storytelling on Cinema

The second paragraph delves into the impact of an over-reliance on storytelling in cinema, suggesting that it has detracted from the development of a unique cinematic language. The speaker admires Maya Deren's work for pushing the boundaries of film through editing techniques that manipulate time and space, creating a visual language beyond words. They single out 'Meshes of the Afternoon' and 'Atland' as particularly noteworthy examples of Deren's pursuit of a pure cinematic coherence. 'Atland', made in 1944, is described as a film that follows a woman's journey through a fluid universe, aiming to preserve personal identity amidst constant change. The speaker encourages viewers to explore Deren's work and recommends 'Essential Deren', a collection of her writings, for further insight.

Keywords

💡Filmmaker

A filmmaker is an individual involved in the craft of film making, including direction, production, and screenwriting. In the video, the speaker discusses their favorite filmmaker, Maya Deren, emphasizing her unique approach to cinema that diverged from traditional storytelling.

💡Cinephile

A cinephile is a person who has a deep interest in films and filmmaking. The term is used in the script to describe the audience that might be familiar with more obscure filmmakers and films, in contrast to the general public.

💡Avant-garde Cinema

Avant-garde Cinema refers to experimental filmmaking that pushes the boundaries of traditional narrative and form. Maya Deren, highlighted in the video, was a prominent figure in this movement, creating films that were not bound by conventional storytelling.

💡Independent Artist

An independent artist is one who creates outside of the mainstream commercial industry, often with greater creative freedom. Maya Deren is described as an independent artist who made films on a low budget and outside of Hollywood's influence.

💡Cinematic Idiom

Cinematic Idiom refers to the unique language and techniques specific to film as an art form. The video discusses how Maya Deren believed that film should develop its own idiom, separate from literature and other art forms.

💡Narrative Pattern

A narrative pattern is a structure or sequence of events that tell a story. The script criticizes the over-reliance on narrative patterns in film, suggesting it limits the exploration of film's unique capabilities.

💡Visual Logic

Visual logic is the way visual elements in a film are organized to convey meaning. The video script mentions that painting and music have their own logics, and film should similarly develop its visual logic independent of literary narrative.

💡Ritual in Transfigured Time

Ritual in Transfigured Time is a film by Maya Deren that exemplifies her experimental approach to filmmaking. The video uses this film to illustrate how Deren manipulated time and space in innovative ways.

💡Meshes of the Afternoon

Meshes of the Afternoon is one of Maya Deren's most famous films, often studied in film schools. The video mentions this film as a notable example of her work and her exploration of cinematic language.

💡Atland

Atland is Maya Deren's film from 1944 that the video describes as the speaker's all-time favorite. It is characterized by its abstract narrative and innovative use of cinematic techniques to create a fluid, dreamlike experience.

💡Cinematic Coherence

Cinematic coherence refers to the internal logic and consistency of a film's visual and auditory elements. The video discusses how Atland aims for a coherence that is unique to film, rather than relying on traditional dramatic structures.

Highlights

The speaker often lies about their favorite movie and filmmaker due to the obscurity of their true choices.

The speaker's favorite filmmaker is Maya Deren, a prominent figure in avant-garde cinema during the 1940s and 50s.

Maya Deren was a multi-talented artist involved in dance, choreography, poetry, lecturing, writing, and photography.

Deren was an independent artist who did not work in Hollywood and made films on a shoestring budget.

She believed that film's primary function was to create a unique cinematic experience, not just to tell stories.

Deren criticized the over-reliance on literary narrative in cinema, advocating for a more visual and auditory approach.

She argued that cinema should develop its own vocabulary and techniques, distinct from literature.

The speaker contrasts popular cinema's focus on storytelling with Deren's exploration of cinematic language.

Maya Deren's films are available online for free, challenging traditional narrative structures.

Her film 'Meshes of the Afternoon' is a notable example of her work and is often studied in film schools.

The speaker's favorite film by Deren is 'Atland', a 15-minute film from 1944 that explores identity and reality.

In 'Atland', Deren eliminates traditional narrative to discover a purely cinematic coherence.

The film creates a relativistic universe where the individual struggles to maintain identity amidst change.

The speaker admires how 'Atland' communicates through a visual language beyond words.

The video encourages viewers to explore Deren's work and a book of her writings called 'Essential Deren'.

The speaker hopes that more people will discover and appreciate Maya Deren's contributions to cinema.

Transcripts

[Music]

when you make movies there are two

questions that you always get asked

one is what's your favorite movie and

the other one is who's your favorite

filmmaker when i get asked these

questions i hate to say it but most of

the time i lie

i say something like star wars is my

favorite movie and my favorite filmmaker

is edgar wright i pick something save

something that's generally well known

and i do this because when i've given my

real answers

nobody really outside of filmmakers or

cinephiles knows

who or what i'm talking about and so

whoever i'm talking to will just kind of

smile and nod and say okay that's cool

i'll check it out later and because this

is kind of so obscure for most people um

i know they're never gonna look it up

and i know if they do they're gonna see

it with no context and they're going to

be like what's wrong with jordan so

rather than do that what i wanted to do

was make a video response to those two

questions that way if someone asked me

who my favorite filmmaker is or what's

my favorite movie

i can point them towards this video

where they can learn a little bit about

the filmmaker a little bit about

my tastes in movies and it's all in one

place in an easy to watch video so today

i'm talking about why my favorite

filmmaker is

[Music]

and why my favorite film is her movie

[Music]

so maya dieren was a filmmaker working

in the 1940s and 50s she was a prominent

filmmaker in avant garde cinema she was

also a dancer a choreographer a poet a

lecturer a writer a photographer among

many other things she was an independent

artist who never worked in hollywood and

made her films for incredibly cheap

[Music]

she believed that the primary function

of film was to create an experience that

was unique to cinema she saw that the

art form had been in a state of

stagnation because of the over-reliance

on other mediums and art forms she wrote

what has been responsible for the lack

of development of the cinematic idiom is

the emphatic literacy of our age so

accustomed are we to thinking in terms

of continuity logic of the literary

narrative that the narrative pattern has

come to completely dominate cinematic

expression in spite of the fact that it

is basically a visual form we overlook

the fact that painting for instance is

organized in visual logics or that music

is organized in tonal rhythm logics that

there are visual and auditory

experiences which have nothing to do

with a descriptive narrative so what she

is basically saying is that back in her

age movies had become film plays they

followed the rules of literature and

they didn't really take full advantage

of what movies could be she made the

comparison once that radio wasn't just a

loud voice and an airplane wasn't just a

faster car and in that same way the

motion picture shouldn't be thought of

as a faster painting or a more real play

if cinema is to take its place beside

the others as a full-fledged art form it

must cease to merely record realities

that owe nothing of their actual

existence to the film instrument instead

it must create a total experience so

much out of the very nature of the

instrument as to be inseparable from its

means it must relinquish the narrative

disciplines that it has borrowed from

literature and its timid imitation of

casual logic of narrative plots a form

which flowered as a celebration of the

earthbound step-by-step concept of time

space and relationship which was part of

the primitive materialism of the 19th

century instead it must develop the

vocabulary of filmic images and evolve

the syntax of filmic techniques which

relate those it must determine the

disciplines inherent in the medium and

discover its own structural modes

explore the new realms and dimensions

accessible to it and so enrich our

culture artistically as science is done

in its own province so think about how

we talk about movies think about the

movies that are being made by hollywood

popular cinema has become an art form

that is driven by storytelling first and

foremost and by storytelling in this

context i mean films which reflect a

traditional three-act structure with the

b story with setups with payoffs

inciting incidents all that kind of

stuff packaged neatly with a pretty

little bow on top meanwhile the artistry

of filmmaking is often neglected in

favor of preserving the formula of

traditional screenwriting think about

pixar one of the most successful film

studios out there and their motto story

is king

and by looking at the films they produce

in the critical reception and audience

reception it would appear that most

folks agree with this statement that

story is king in my opinion i agree with

maya dhiran completely it was true in

her age and i think it's true today that

this over reliance on story has shifted

our focus

from

cinema to storytelling and it's been a

detriment to the art form it seems these

days that a film is only as good as its

screenplay but films are way more than

just a script a script is just

literature that's not the movie itself

they have a unique language and

vocabulary that has yet to been fully

fleshed out and what i really really

love about maya deering is her work

reflects this pursuit of the cinematic

language she used editing techniques to

push the boundaries of the medium to

express very specific ideas and concepts

her movies manipulated time and space in

a really radical way her most noteworthy

example of this is her film ritual in

transfigure time and just all of her

movies just in general they're they're

awesome her films are all available to

see online for free check them out

the most famous one is meshes of the

afternoon i think most film school

students have probably seen that movie

at some point in their studies but i

wanted to highlight my favorite film of

hers and my all-time favorite film which

is her movie atland

atlan was made in 1944 it's about 15

minutes long and it follows a woman

played by maya dirian who washes up on a

beach and goes on a strange journey in

which she encounters different versions

of herself different people and

situations she's compared this film to

an inverted version of the odyssey and

in some old program notes for screens of

her films she wrote this about atland

the direction of this film is towards

the elimination of literary dramatic

lines and literal symbolic meanings in

order to discover instead a purely

cinematic coherence and integrity

through dislocations of space and time

it creates a relativistic universe in

which the individual alone is a

continuous identity if one may speak of

a theme it is an effort of the

individual to relate oneself as an

identity to a fluid apparently

incoherent universe the universe was

once conceived almost as a vast preserve

landscape for heroes plotted to provide

them with appropriate adventures the

rules were known and respected the

adversaries honorable the oracle's as

articulate and as precise as the

directives of a six-lane parkway

errors of weakness or vanity led with

measured momentum to the tragedy which

resolved everything today the rules are

ambiguous the adversary is concealed in

aliases the oracles broadcast a babble

of contradictions the adventure is no

longer reserved for heroes and

challengers the universe itself imposes

its challenges upon the meek in the

brave indiscriminately one does not so

much act upon such a universe as react

to its volatile variety struggling to

preserve in the midst of such relentless

metamorphosis the constancy of personal

identity

atlant is a film that's kind of hard to

describe

aside from the beautiful cinematography

and the editing it's hard to articulate

why i enjoy it so much and maybe that's

the point it's communicating in a visual

language that's beyond words the

language of cinema thank you for

watching everyone i hope you learned

something about my idea and i hope you

check out her work she's awesome

there's also this really great book

where i've gotten a lot of this

information from it's a collection of

her writings

called essential deering

this is all written by her her films are

out there check him out check out her

work she's awesome i would love it if

more people discovered her if you

enjoyed this video hit like and

subscribe it only takes a few seconds

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one day thanks for watching everyone and

i'll see you on the next one

[Music]

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