Description
Newsreels were one of the most powerful tools of Soviet propaganda. They also make up a significant part of the state film archives. In the newsreels, the recent past presents itself as a monolith of silent images, passing in an endless procession, firmly stitched together by the narrator’s voice and a soundtrack that subtly plays on the viewer’s feelings. It is exactly this original sonic component that Karaman suggests we detach ourselves from by watching a few episodes of newsreel footage without the familiar soundtrack.
This film contains excerpts from newsreels provided by Net Film.
About the director: Born in 1986 in Leningrad, Dina Karaman is a video-artist, film director, architect and scenographer. She works with found footage, using official newsreels as well as home videos shot in the 1990s and 2000s in her films and installations. She has also participated in the Moscow International Experimental Film Festival (twice), the film programme of the 5th Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art, the Media Forum at the Moscow International Film Festival (twice), and the video art programme of the Zerkalo Tarkovsky Film Festival, among others.