Posts from — September 2011

It’s been awhile since I felt like an Accidental VIP. Summer has been pretty casual, but now September is here, and I always feel a new beginning in September. Once upon a time it was because I was an academic and September, of course, marked the beginning of a new school year. Now, however, my lofty ideals have brought me to a new annual tradition: the Toronto International Film Festival. I am moving past the Uma Thurman party this year and checking out some of the films and exhibitions that make this festival wonderful.

Earlier this week I was fortunate enough to have been invited to a private viewing of Road Movie, a film installation from directors Elle Flanders and Tamira Sawatzky. The exhibition examined the segregated road systems in the West Bank, incorporating stop motion photography and personal narratives from the very people who use these roads to create a visually arresting and thought-provoking work.

With three double-sided screens set up in sequence to call to mind the road blocks and checkpoints along the road systems of the West Bank, the installation is a physical manifestation of two nations on opposite sides of the wall, trying to make sense of what separates them.

I spent about an hour viewing the films and listening to the audio pieces, and to be honest, I was left a bit speechless afterward. I wished I had given myself a day or so to digest what I was seeing before interviewing the directors. Nonetheless, and with no small thanks to Elle Flanders and Tamira Sawatzky, consummate professionals who were able to answer the questions I didn’t think to ask myself, I managed to get their take on the exhibit and its relevance to the queer community. You can listen to that interview here.

Road Movie is showing at O’Born Contemporary, in the studio space on the 5th floor of 51 Wolseley Street, until September 18th. There will be a reception with the directors in presence on Saturday, September 10th, from 6 to 9 PM. Check it out—it’s incredible.