Curated by AV-arkki, Y2K highlights charming short films from the turn of the millenium.
Language: Eng, Fin Duration: 57 min Age Limit: 16+
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Fri 7.3. -
18:00 -
Arthouse Cinema Niagara -
12,50
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FR66
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Curated by AV-arkki (The Centre for Finnish Media Art), Y2K brings the viewers back to the much anticipated – and feared – turn of the millennium.
Y2K stands for ‘Year 2 Kilo’, meaning the year 2000. The abbreviation originated from the concept of ‘the Y2K problem’, referring to the technological issues expected to result from the turning of the new millenium. These issues were thought to cause a world-wide network collapse and general mayhem; some were even preparing for the apocalypse.
The works included in the Y2K screening were all made around the turn of the millenium. Looking back, these films have encapsulated the time period in a fascinating way. A modern viewer will also catch glimpses of the first forms of the fashion to come.
The screening is kick-started by Salla Tykkä’s classic, Power, showcasing all the girl power of the 90’s without the apparent “girliness”. Dedicated to Tykkä’s father, the film shows a young woman boxing topless against a man. Helena Öst’s good-mood short People I know in their favourite clothes, people do just that: Reminiscent of a heart-warming prequel to current Outfit of the Day videos popular on social media, Öst’s work asks people to show off their best-loved outfits to the camera. In Erkka Nissinen’s Helsinki 2000, two youngsters speak in solemn tones in private residences and on the streets of Helsinki – all tinted by the strangeness typical of Nissinen’s work. In contrast, Petra Lindholm’s cheery Pop-God documents the process of an aspiring pop star trying to film their own music video with a video camera and a tripod. The screening is closed by Ilppo Pohjola’s powerful Routemaster, which accelerates towards the next millenium, overworking both engines and time itself, first kicking human beings out of the driver’s seat and then the car itself.
Avreno Heikka
AV-arkki
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Power
Director: Salla TykkäCountry: FinlandYear: 1999Genre: Experimental, FictionDuration: 4 minTwo persons are boxing, a topless young woman and a big man. The black and white image and the timeless space create a dreamlike atmosphere though the hard action and sounds refer to the painful reality. Power is a statement against the power relations in our society but it can be seen as a symbolic battle for life and survival.
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People I Know in Their Favourite Clothes
Director: Helena ÖstCountry: FinlandYear: 1999Genre: Experimental, DocumentaryDuration: 18 minI film people I know while they show me – and you – their favourite clothes.
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Helsinki 2000
Director: Erkka NissinenCountry: FinlandYear: 2000Genre: Experimental, FictionDuration: 13 minTwo young men having a conversation.
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Pop-God
Director: Petra LindholmCountry: FinlandYear: 2000Genre: Experimental, FictionDuration: 5 minA man wants to be a pop star. To become one he needs a music video. He decides to make the video on his own.
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Routemaster
Director: Ilppo PohjolaCountry: FinlandYear: 2000Genre: Experimental, FictionDuration: 17 minAge Limit:
Routemaster is a montage of rhythmically organised repetitions and involves an abstraction of motion that increases in frequency and scale. The basic framework of the film is provided by intercutting two counterposed sets of materials. On the one hand, it uses black-and-white, endlessly accelerating and rhythmically varying images of the inexorable forward motion of the racing cars. On the other hand, it uses colorfull, extreme slow-motion images of details of a chequered flag fluttering in the wind. The escalating speed, growing abstraction and mosaic-like repetition of images leads on to manipulated, yet realistic images of human bodies used in crash tests. In the end, all that is left is the black-and-white flash of speed, the gyrating pulse of the mosaic, the details of the human bodies and the intense soundtrack. Routemaster has some of the qualities of a live concert.
