- Anger cannot be compromised
Fin de Cinema was gearing up for the next edition of their screening/music series at Holocene, following their first successful installment, which paired Valerie and Her Week of Wonders with music by local bands like Nurses, Gulls, and the Slaves. Tomorrow’s show was to feature the films of postmodern filmmaker Kenneth Anger, with newly composed soundtracks by Purple Rhinestone Eagle, Eternal Tapestry, and PacNW grey metal band Wilderness (not to be confused with the Baltimore area band by the same name).
But it turns out Holocene received a cease and desist from Anger’s people. The filmmaker is concerned that the artistic integrity of his films will be compromised by altering their soundtracks (or in this case, replacing them altogether). Holocene is appealing to see if the event can carry on as intended, but that remains to be seen. Still, I have a feeling the event will be pretty special, since Gina Altamura of Holocene says, “It IS safe to say that the bands will still be playing their unique, Anger-inspired sets on Wednesday, which will be rad in itself—it’s just seeming highly likely that Anger’s films may not actually be screened.”
Purple Rhinestone Eagle, Eternal Tapestry, Wilderness, DJ Nate C; Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison, Wed March 3, 8:30 pm, FREE ($2 suggested donation for the bands)
Why is Kenneth Anger bothering with lawyers? He can just put a satanic curse on anyone who crosses his path.
Well, considering Anger picked his “pop” music accompaniments very carefully, yeah, I see his point. There’s something to be said about this sort of tampering (especially treating something Valerie… like its a silent film). Yeah, its not artless, and you could potential end up with a nice piece that does justice and celebrates the work. Or you could end up with Giorgio Moroder’s Metropolis.
It’s the problem with making art from “found” previous material: where does your piece begin and their’s end.
At the same time, Anger didn’t exactly have legal right to use music from his films, but that never stopped him. It’s a little narrow minded.
The best thing would have been to provide a screening of the films untouched either before or after the event, giving everyone to chance to experience the film the way Anger intended, and through the reinterpretation. I sincerely hope they can pull it off, though, but I also understand why Anger feels the way he does.