Experimental Projects

Six Boulders | 2024 | 3:03

The ambiance of six vacant artificial climbing rocks located in Bozeman Montana. Taking strong inspiration from James Benning’s Ten Skies, this film examines six fake climbing boulders and their lack of frequent usage. Contrasting the ever-present mountain skyline of Bozeman with these artificial replications, the film considers questions of infrastructure, outdoor recreation, and the artificial separation between natural and build landscapes.

This project was the first I ever used 16mm film. While I had shot super 8mm before, it was on a fully automatic camera, which differed substantially from the far more complicated mechanisms of a Bolex H-16. Yet, having used fully mechanical still photography cameras, the Bolex reminded me substantially of my Rolleicord and I felt extremely comfortable with it, once I learned the basic mechanisms. A professor of mine in undergrad once described digital cameras as computers, contrasting them to the timeless mechanics of film photography, and that mindset has stuck with me ever since. I loved using the Bolex and intend to shoot more on 16mm in the future.

Progress Parade | 2024 | 2:59

Exploring the American ideals of progress and freedom through the historic Prelenger Archive. This film recontextualizes many of the blatantly pro-capitalist and patriotic films of the early Cold-War era, seeking to showcase the dangers of rampant nationalism and the underlying assumption that American ideals are inherently good for the both the nation and the world.

I was somewhat apprehensive about this project. I feel most comfortable when behind the camera and creating something visually that can later be turned into something more. To relinquish control of what is filmed is not something I would have said I found enjoyable. Somewhat unfortunately, the act of creating has, in my mind, always been tied to the making of new images. Thus I was surprised when I sat down with a drive full of footage from the Prelenger Archive and quickly began to string out sequences where I felt like I was saying something. I would love to continue to work on this project, but for now I am happy with the state where it’s at.

Ermine | 2024 | 2:12

A portrait of a dead Short-Tailed Weasel, also known as an Ermine. I accidentally killed this Ermine with a trap while attempting to catch a particularly troublesome pack rat. After the rat was killed in a trap, the ermine came in, ate the rat’s body, then got caught in another set trap. It was not an easy sight to discover and I still feel a fair bit of responsibility for the result. Despite the commonness of Ermines, it is still unpleasant to kill an animal with no good rationale behind it, even if it was accidental. Yet I don’t feel the same for the rat, who I am also responsible for killing. This film attempts to touch on these ideas and extend our feelings of kinship with our non-human neighbors.

I created this film over a very short period of time. I filmed for approximately 30 minutes before the light dropped to a level that rendered any potential footage far more grainy than that collected at the start of filming. In hindsight, this may have been an interesting idea, to have the light slowly diminish and drop into grainy darkness. But this was one of those instances where I stopped filming not when I had enough footage, but when I just felt ready to be done. I could feel myself loosing the drive to continue filming and just allowed that to happen.

Blackmore Creek: A short piece on the blackmore creek confluence where it meets the Hyalite reservoir just outside of Bozeman.