• Poetry
  • Poetry Film
  • Geopoetics
  • Videopoetry
  • Film Poetry
  • Intermedia
  • Screen Poetry
  • Ekphrastic Poetry Films
  • Family History
  • Ecopoetry Films
  • Translation
  • Performance and Subjectivity

REELpoetry, Houston April 1–7 live and online – many voices

It really feels that REELpoetry has come of age this year, both online – over a week – and in-person on the weekend, you have a full house of varied poetry filmmaking nurtured by now well-established director Fran Sanders and her inclusive programming. All films are accessible to the deaf and hard-of-hearing, with a rich provision of ASL performances from Douglas Ridloff + Deaf Slam, Heba Toulan and Sabina England.

This week-long event showcases 100+ screenings under 6 minutes from 20 different countries. Connect with international curators and presenters in real time online, and in-person on the weekend; watch world premieres from Houston creatives; experience ASL poetry and performances; join use for two fabulous after parties.

https://www.publicpoetry.net/programs/reelpoetry/reelpoetry2024/program/

This festival creates a unique fusion of personal and political activist filmmaking served up with party atmosphere hospitality. I have been involved for quite a few years, both as an exhibitor, juror and curator and seen it go from strength to strength. I was presenting there in 2020 just before COVID struck and Fran and the team treated us right royally, including memorable trips, enjoying Houston’s multicultural oases. So, if not just for the festival I do recommend getting over there if you can!

In an Ideal World I’d Not Be Murdered, Chaucer Cameron

I am really sad to miss the live events this year. Alongside the highly successful collaboration between Houston poets and filmmakers (in its second year) you can meet in person international curators such as Thomas Zandegiacomo del Bel presenting the best of ZEBRA  from Berlin, and Helen Dewbery (Poetry Film Live) presenting Chaucer Cameron’s memories of being a prostitute in London in I Didn’t Die that Day. Or, what about leading US activist poetry filmmakers Outlier Moving Pictures (Pamela Falkenberg and Jack Cochran) who have taken on the mammoth task of making poetry films from a selection of leading Texan activist poets in Changing the World One Poem at a Time (Texas edition). They are one of the finest examples of this genre today, and are soon to be in the UK in Bristol for their Cancer Alley installation with poetry by Lucy English (more on that soon). It is also very interesting to see included Norwegian curation: GEOPOETICON from Odveig Klyve & Bjørn Gulbrandsen featuring language, politics and geography.

Sabina England at the Deaf Muslim Expo, Chicago, 2022

Sufi Poetry in American Sign Language and Dancing

One of the most compelling, engaging and unique live events is by Sabina England, performing Nature, Water, Air, Fire, Earth, based on Sufi Poets and her own work.

She says: ‘I first came up with the concept of creating Sufi poetry in American Sign Language  when I was invited by the Deaf Muslim Expo 2022 in Chicago  to perform for them, and I had never seen anyone perform Sufi poetry for deaf people.

I will be performing four Sufi poems (Kabir, Mahsati Ganjavi, Jalaluddin Rumi, and one poem written by me, respectively). Each poem contains an element inspired by nature: moon/sun, fire, water, and Earth. Kabir’s poem praised the beauty of the moon and sun, which then led to his declaration for loving God (Allah). Mahsati was a Sufi mystic poetess from present-day Azerbaijan who wrote a poem in Persian about fire, comparing it to her burning love for God. Rumi wrote that drinking water didn’t abate his thirst, his desperate love for God. Lastly, my poem is inspired by the emerald forests of Earth. My poem is an ode to Earth, and I compare Earth to our mother, for she sustains us and provides us food from the soil. Mother Earth keeps the cycle of life going.

Although these Sufi poems are religious in nature and speak of the poets’ love for Allah and I am Muslim, I still want the poetry to be open for everyone, regardless of their religion or beliefs. These Sufi poems can be interpreted in so many ways – readers can view the poets’ divine love as love and respect for each other, for the universe, for humanity, and so on.

I will be incorporating some dancing with feather fans and American Sign Language. My dancing will show movements of nature – basking in the moonlight, the swaying movements of fire, the flowing of water, and walking through the forest. While signing the poetry in American Sign Language, I will take pauses and dance around, with some signing in my hands. I also project videos of nature onscreen to display the visual beauty of nature. My goal is to deeply inspire the audience and bring them some happiness, light and joy.’

This Was Meant to be For Nora, Moving Poems in the City, Vancouver.

Online

Events online have two time zone options for different parts of the world this year, which is a real bonus, something I advocated, as the one disadvantage is missing some of the screenings from the UK. I am particularly looking forward to seeing Moving Poems in the City – (April 3, 12–1 and 7–8) presented by Vancouver Poet Laureate Fiona Tinwei Lam and Alger Ji-Liang. This is a 12-strong curation of Vancouver poets and filmmakers who have based their films on sites around the city. I was fortunate enough to be invited as a key speaker and exhibitor at Tom Konyves’ Poets with a Video Camera exhibition in December 2022. Fiona was also part of that and also alongside myself, ran a poetry reading / video screening at The People’s Co-Op Bookstore which I took part in. A memorable occasion. With a serene face on what you have to remember is the Pacific Ocean, Vancouver is a beautiful yet fragile place. Perhaps one of the most desirable cities in the world, it has been pressured as usual with much development. But, walking around you are tantalised by its wealth of culture, and long historic tradition. This curation really feels like the right way to celebrate its hidden stories.

Contrasts, Moving Poems in the City, Vancouver.

On Thursday April 4th we have what I know from past experience, will be a really exciting presentation of ASL video curated by Douglas Ridloff who is also performing live. Also look out for what promises to be a very interesting ASL poetry panel discussion on Friday 1–2. The online section includes the finalists from the open submissions and REELpoetry steering committee member Ian Gibbins will be presenting a ‘Video Jukebox’ of new films by festival curators, presenters and judges. Twice daily Monday through Thursday you have the chance to meet artists from the festival  in the REELcafe chat rooms hosted by Fran Sanders. This includes my film Flight, a film from a series about my childhood (also a poetry book commission). It is one of those personal films that percolate up slowly, and nudged into being made by a comment from Helen Dewbery, and a continuing working relationship with the inspiring poet / poetry filmmaker Linda Cleary.

Ekphrasis – art-inspired Poetry Filmmaking

On Tuesday April 2nd, you will find my documentary film on the Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow book-film project published by Poem Film Editions, where five poetry filmmakers from the bilingual book and 17-film QR-linked screening (launched at FOTOGENIA festival in December 2023) discuss how a painting can inspire their poetry filmmaking. The artists are: Janet Lees, Pamela Falkenberg, Jack Cochran, Meriel Lland and myself. Not only do we discuss art inspiring art but also translation, both through language (English and Spanish) but also in relation to intermedia – the linked poetry book & film and the source painting. Many of the films were based on leading Mexican non-binary artist Ana Segovia’s painting Huapango Torero – which confronts bullfighting and animal cruelty in a sensitive and important way.

The Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow documentary screenings are: TUESDAY, APRIL 2nd: 12-1.00 CST / 5-6 p.m. GMT and 7-8 p.m. CST / 12-1 a.m. GMT. If you want to meet filmmakers from Frame to Frames, a group will definitely be available online at the Tuesday REELcafe meeting 2–3 GMT CST / 7-8 p.m.

With such a lot on offer there is something for everyone; and REELpoetry has become a recognised festival on the poetry film calendar.

Please Note: You can buy copies of Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow from Poem Film Editions at this very website SOON! Available through liberatedwords.com/store


The Poetics… &  Projections : The Journal for Movies and Mind; The Palgrave Handbook of Intermediality and the RSA.

I am delighted to say that The Poetics of Poetry Film is gaining a steady presence even three years after its initial publication. I can’t mention all the emails and endorsements of the book I have had, however here are a few  diverse examples. I am proud to say that some time ago it was accepted by the Royal Society of Arts library in London, where I am a Fellow. I feel very pleased that poetry film is now represented in such an institution; particularly as it is so suited to showcasing engagement with ethical and social principles via cultural practice.

The Palgrave Handbook of Intermediality

More recently, I am thrilled to have been quoted and cited from the book by leading scholar Dr Rebecca Kosick, Senior Lecturer in Comparative Poetry and Poetics at Bristol University, UK. The Poetics of Poetry Film is included in the video poetry section in her extensively researched, 30-page chapter (plus 4-page references) entitled ‘Late Twentieth-Century Intermedia Poetry in the Americas’. This, in turn makes up an important part of the mighty The Palgrave Handbook of Intermediality, by J. Bruhn et al. (eds.), December, 2023. NB: If you want to buy this weighty tome it will set you back around £500! From my own point of view this chapter brings up some of the work that I researched some time ago from a different angle, and reflects back on my interest in historic poetic forms, the use of rhythm, and the crossover between lyric and visual poetry which we also now find in poetry film.

Kosick provides an in-depth analysis of the how of diverse historic poetry(ies)) and their ancestral DNA as precursors for the intermedia world today. American poet, artist, publisher and co-founder of the Fluxus movement Dick Higgins first coined the term ‘intermedia’ in a 1965 essay. Later he completed ‘Some Poetry Intermedia’ (1976) – an expressive, pinky-purple spiral diagram, dynamically expressing his thinking (a form of visual manifesto) on the intersection of different poetic forms. In a winning intellectual move, Kosick takes Higgins’ categories in this diagram and draws attention to how the malleability of poetry at the end of the twentieth century paves the way for the intermedia revolution that followed.

Following Higgins, she includes sections on: Visual Poetry (including Concrete); Object Poetry; Sound Poetry; Video Poetry (which features TPOPF); Action Poetry; Postal Poetry and Concept Poetry. As I know from my own research across certain of these categories, the identifying and interweaving of poetry in all its forms is a rigorous yet compelling subject, made richer by the many literary lights from the past re-invigorating or brightening the journey. For instance, Samuel Taylor Coleridge is cited as using the term ‘intermedia’ as far back as 1812,  and examples of poets / poetry groups include a cross-section from the expected Brazil’s Noigandres group to the Cuban publishing collective Ediciones Vigía, Chilean poet/artist Cecilia Vicuña, Mexican artist Ulises Carrión, US poet N.H. Pritchard, and Brazilian artist Leonara de Barros.

In terms of video poetry in particular, she engages in some of the questions I have asked and extends them:

Such distinctions are evident when considering concrete poetry’s “appeal to

non-verbal communication” and its desire to break with a “merely temporalistic linear”

poetic structure (de Campos et al. 1965: 157, 156). Whereas early waves of

concrete poetry sought an immediacy of poetic perception akin to the way viewers

might take in a painting all at once, for video poetry, a linear experience of time on

the part of the viewer overlies even the most nonsequential or nonnarrative “content”

it might convey. In this way, video poetry returns the visual/spatial aspects of

concrete poetry to a tradition perhaps more temporally akin to literature or film

than to the visual or plastic arts. Yet this same fact can offer opportunities to the

intermedium of video poetry. As Tremlett explains, “what makes a poetry film so

unique is that the spatio-temporal visual surface or monstration, descending from the

graphic arts, is as powerful or more powerful than the sequential trajectory inherited

from the traditional dramatic film” (Tremlett 2021: 79). Thus, while a lengthened

temporality may seem to be restored from the perspective of visual poetry’s turn

toward video, from the perspective of film, poetry – particularly poetry related to the

visual arts – offers alternatives to the narrative sequentiality dominant in more

mainstream cinema.

Kosick breathes new life into the subject with diverse associations and lesser-known artists – bookending the 1950s and 60s (including Allan Kaprow and ‘Happenings’ or embodied Action Poetry) up to the digital era. I found her section on Action Poetry really edifying. In relation to this she particularly cites Mary Ellen Solt’s 1968 work PEOPLEMOVER in part generated by the anger against American policies in relation to Vietnam. Here poetry was expressed through such channels as: found language, multiple iterations, vocal performance readings, demonstrations and text on screen. I liked Kosick’s selection of the definition ‘poetry put into action, a kind of poetic action-research that intends to change social life in a poetic way’ (Tochon 2000: n.p.).

From the radical use of the mechanical typewriter, and the concept of the object poem (and the book itself as object), or sound poetry where sound beyond syntax creates composition, throughout this chapter Kosick continually asks us to conceive of how intermedia poetry came and continues to come into being, providing another vital stepping stone in this fascinating journey.

Projections: The Journal for Movies and Mind

Finally, I am thrilled to announce that an important, insightful and well-rounded review of the book has been included in a recent issue of Projections: The Journal for Movies and Mind, Volume 17, Issue 2, June 2023, pp: 101–105 (published in association with The Society for Cognitive Studies of the Moving Image: https://scsmi-online.org/). I felt I would share their remit for the journal which Recognizes cinema as an art form, and aims to integrate established traditions of analyzing media aesthetics with current research into perception, cognition, and emotion, according to frameworks supplied by philosophy of mind, phenomenology, psychology, and the cognitive-and neurosciences.’ I do feel that poetry film has much to offer across these categories, in its often highly subjective role as ‘visualised mindscape’ of the author-filmmaker.

I am delighted to say that this sterling overview is by Professor Rebecca A. Sheehan who is a leading academic in Cinema Studies in the Department of Cinema and Television Arts at California State University. Her important publication American Avant-Garde Cinema’s Philosophy of the In-Between (Oxford University Press, 2020) addresses the intersections between post-WWII American Avant-Garde cinema and the emerging field of Film-Philosophy. Her numerous essays in film theory include philosophies of embodiment and women’s experimental cinema – such profound and rich seams today. On behalf of everyone involved, I couldn’t feel more privileged that the book has found its way into her hands and merited her time and consideration. Thank you, Rebecca.

Here is an extract of the review:

‘Sarah Tremlett’s The Poetics of Poetry Film: Film Poetry, Videopoetry, Lyric Voice, Reflection offers a breathtaking range of glimpses at the historical flashpoints, formal anatomy, and major and minor contemporary makers and trends in what Tremlett alternately calls film poems and poetry film (and their sister, video poetry). […] The book is impressively comprehensive in its representation and acknowledgment of the wide diversity of formal experiments and elements that constitute the history and present of “poetry film,”. […] The Poetics of Poetry Film should serve as an important resource for scholars and filmmakers interested in contemporary aesthetic trends in this interdisciplinary field. It also offers an important archive of festivals and conferences on poetry film through its inclusion of interviews with festival organizers and writings by contemporary filmmakers working at the intersection of poetry and film.’

 Rebecca A. Sheehan, Projections: The Journal for Movies and Mind


LYRICAL VISION VI – a jewel of a New Zealand summer screening

LYRICAL VISIONS VI (Friday, January 26th) promises to be one of those ‘jewel’ events that glint tantalizingly across the water:  both creatively excellent with a finely honed curation, but also a really memorable and enjoyable  evening out with a mixture of films and live events. One example is poet and musician Ron Riddell performing a long poem accompanied by his guitar about life’s journey (troubadour for 2024), and concluding with poetry inspired songs by Caitlin Smith. This is one occasion that I know I will really regret missing, but having recently returned to the UK from Mexico City I will have to wait a while before for my next long trip overseas!

Lyrical Visions is an annual showcase of short films and animations inspired by visual or written poetry, screened every New Zealand summer (December, January) in Titirangi Theatre, Auckland. Curated by leading filmmakers Martin Sercombe and Robin Kewell, they say: ‘Lyrical Visions explores the creative force fields between creative writing and cinema, and mixes single screen work with multimedia performance. Each show combines the work of Auckland-based artist filmmakers, film students, poets and composers, alongside selected international projects.’

 

I am very familiar with Martin’s work, as his AI film Night is Paper (featured image) is included in the Poetry Book + Film  publication and screening Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow II published by Poem Film Editions, available here at Liberated Words. [The first screening of all the Frame to Frame films, and the announcement of the winning film (by British artist Meriel Land)  was at FOTOGENIA, Mexico City, December, 2023, with many films based on the festival painting Huapango Torero by Mexican artist Ana Segovia.] As an artist he has been making  films and photographic works since the 1980s alongside running Media Projects, a video production company. I will be featuring more on his extraordinary AI filmmaking later this year.

I am also fortunate that Martin selected two of my films for the curation – Bull (also part of the ekphrastic Frame to Frames screening and book project) based on Huapango Torero, with my daughter, the performance artist  XaiLA, performing as a mime artist. Interestingly, he also selected Mr Sky (with poem by Lucy English), an earlier work I am very fond of, which captures the times of a day from a fixed camera as stills, and then plays roulette with them like a slot machine, in parallel to the emotional turbulence of a couple’s relationship.

I am also pleased to see Noho Mai the prize-winning film that arose from a workshop, and embraces a connection with the land and our ancestors by Charles Olsen, Lilián Pallares, Peta-Maria Tunui, Waitahi Aniwaniwa, McGee, Shania Bailey-Edmonds and Jesse-Ana Harris.

Lyrical Visions VI Programme 2024

 Places by Shane Koyczan 6 mins 32 secs

A powerful indictment of our society’s indifference towards the homeless.

Mr Sky by Lucy English and Sarah Tremlett 4 mins 2018

From dawn to nightfall, the sky reflects a couple’s relationship.

Bull/Toro 5 mins Sarah Tremlett and XaiLA 2023

Darkly comic mime cabaret provides the stage for Bull / Toro, which considers that man and bull are very similar, and respond in the same way to aggravation. An ekphrastic poetry film based on the painting Huapango Torero by Mexican artist Ana Segovia in the Italian sonnet form. The film is included in the poetry book + films Frame to Frames: Your Eyes Follow II published by Poem Film Editions, available through liberatedwordspoetryfilms@gmail.com     www.liberatedwords.com.

Night is Paper 4 mins 28 secs Martin Sercombe and Thom Conroy 2022

Night is Paper is a cinepoetic collaboration with novelist Dr Thom Conroy (see feature image). The AI generated imagery and text based response eves-drops into a shadowy, indistinct world where nothing can be fully understood. The film is included in the poetry book + films Frame to Frames: Your Eyes Follow II published by Poem Film Editions, available through liberatedwordspoetryfilms@gmail.com.      www.liberatedwords.com.

House Plant Ellen Jones-Poole 2 mins 28 secs 2023

Actor David Liwei Shi sits cramped within a tiny living area of curated belongings and paraphernalia, whilst struggling with his inner demons. Winner of Best NZ Poetry Film at the Aotearoa Poetry Film Festival 2023.

Poetry and Music Live with Ron Riddell 20 mins

Ron will perform works from his latest book of poetry, The Wanderer, a long poem about the human journey, accompanied by his guitar.

Interval 10 mins

Hidden Life 4 mins 19 secs Chap Edmonson and Elina Petrova 2023

This cinepoem explores code-switching, cultural humility and the hidden complexities that lay behind simple stories of joy, trauma and wonder rooted in the perpetual summer of Houston. The poem was written by Ukranian poet Elina Petrova, who recently fled to the USA from the atrocities in her wintry native land.

Popa Pete’s Pot 4 mins 30 secs Diane Blomfield and Martin Sercombe 2023

The film poem is a homage to Diane Blomfield’s father and explores the rhythms and repetitions of his daily domestic life, using AI generated ink and watercolour illustrations.  It fondly recalls his evolving relationships with his three daughters as the years pass by.

 

Noho Mai 5 mins 33 secs McGee, Bailey, Edmonds, Harris, Pallares, Olsen, Tunui

Symbolized in the bird’s flight, a group of Māori, Pākehā and Colombian creatives explore life’s journey, the longing to return to the nest, and the life-giving connection with our ancestors. Winner Best Poetry Film, 8th Ó Bhéal International Poetry Film Competition, 2020.

Te Marae o Hine 11 mins 30 secs Martin Sercombe and Dr Mesmer’s Private Army 2022

Set in The Square, Palmerston North, the film explores its matrix of paths, trees, grass and architectural landmarks, as they are traversed from dawn to dusk by visitors. ‘In this beautiful film, the everyday encounters deep time through the multiplication of built and natural spaces: the fleeting moments memorialised in the almost mathematical precision of Sercombe’s newly imagined spaces …’ Dr Thom Conroy.

Live Performance by Caitlin Smith 20 mins

Caitlin will perform poetry inspired songs from her current repertoire.

For more on LYRICAL VISIONS and earlier editions please go to https://martinsercombe.com/lyrical-visions-2/

For more on Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow the publication, please email for special offer orders:

liberatedwordspoetryfilms@gmail.com

 


HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND NEW YEAR

 

Happy Holidays and New Year to all poetry filmmakers, artists, poets etc. out there. I look forward to catching up with you in the New Year.

In the meantime here is a card my daughter Georgie painted for me (she says she isn’t an artist …) to send you flights of imagination for 2024.

Sarah xx:)

 

 


In MEXICO CITY for Winner of FRAME TO FRAMES : YOUR EYES FOLLOW II & publication

Exhausted and inspired, I have just flown back from vibrant, warm and friendly Mexico City and FOTOGENIA festival 5 – an extraordinary collection of films from across the world, at seven locations, so ably co-ordinated and directed by Chris Patch / Mtro. Christian O. Pacheco-Cámara. The sites were: Centro Cultural Bella Epoch – Cine Lido; Centro Cultural Universitario – Sala Carlos  Monsivais; Terminal Coyoacan; Faro Cosmos – Baja Negra; Faro Aragon – Cine Corregidor; Barco Utopia – Auditorio Arrecife / Sala Doble Altura; Complejo Cultural Los Pinos – Sala de Cine Miguel Aleman

Complejo Cultural Los Pinos

 

I was there to see my own work onscreen (I Cannot be Human), but primarily to present the Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow ekphrastic poetry film prize at the beautiful Complejo Cultural Los Pinos (Calz. del Rey S/N, Bosque de Chapultepec, Mexico City). Until recently this was the official presidents’ residence, set in a vast public park amongst verdant greenery and pine trees, and it provided a fantastic backdrop to events.

 

Huapango Torero by Ana Segovia

Traditionally ekphrasis suggests poems written about paintings or sculptures, but here poetry films have been created as a response to artworks that have inspired the filmmaker. As part of the screening, I was able to interview leading Mexican artist Ana Segovia on the important painting Huapango Torero which provided inspiration for many of the filmmakers. I was so pleased that Ana could attend and watch all the films in person, and he also provided a translation of my words. It was  made more interesting in that Ana had also  copied the painting from another painting, but with the addition of a red rose. In this way the ekphrastic process continued: wave upon wave. Whilst Ana addresses all types of outmoded machismo through his figurative painting, it was unanimously felt that he had made a brave and significant artwork, in relation to the treatment of animals.

Ana and Sarah in discussion

 

Ana, Sarah and Chris

 

Ana and Frame to Frames filmmaker Carlos Ramirez Kobra in discussion

 

The Book of the Films

I was also able to present the bilingual book of Frame to Frames II, as a pre-publication special offer published by Poem Film Editions. FOR SPECIAL OFFER PRE-ORDERS of £5 (50% off £10 retail price) contact liberatedwordspoetryfilms@gmail.com

 It includes an introduction from myself, leading American ekphrastic poet Janée Baugher and other artists; the poems, stills from the films and a QR code link to the screening itself. So, you can read the poem and watch the films at the same time. It celebrates translation in all its forms!

The Prizewinner for Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow II

It was very exciting to also announce the winner for this year’s edition of the prize. The judges felt that all the films were extremely innovative and memorable both in the poetry and the filmmaking and it was difficult to reach a decision for a single prizewinner. To explain the process: the judges selected five artists from 16, and then met to discover if they had overlapping choices and discuss each film in more detail.

I am so happy to announce that the prize this year goes to British poetry filmmaker, writer, artist and nature photographer Meriel Lland for A Love Spell Cast in Petals based on the painting Huapango Torero by Ana Segovia. Meriel was very high on both the judges’ lists, so congratulations and thank you so much for your wonderful film!  I have to put my hand on my heart and say I am overjoyed that Meriel should be given the award. I also want to add that I abstained from influencing the process as I know her well.

Words and concept: Meriel Lland
Photography and camera: Michael Leach and Meriel Lland
Editing: David Lland and Meriel Lland
Animation: David Lland
Sound: David Lland
Translation: Camilo Bosso

Meriel’s synopsis:
‘A Love Spell Cast in Petals weaves together threads from many sources. Most importantly, Ana Segovia’s flower offering in her painting Huapango Torero – and the painting of the same name that inspired it – but also the 1950s’ Lola Beltrán song ‘Huapango Torero’ and the once banned 1936 children’s book The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf. The film-poem explores what happens when we dare to think differently and challenge the cruel stereotypes that misrepresent and trap a living being. It refuses the theatre of machismo to remake old understandings of bulls and of men. The painter is a peace-maker, she invites new dialogues and encourages forgiveness and an end to violence. She is a sorceress casting a spell of hope.’

In brief, the judges said that A Love Spell Cast in Petals was complex, innovative and thought-provoking and that the sound elements were delicious and mesmerising with surprising figurative language. They loved the craft of the visual aspects – the paint, the bull figurine, the animated drawings and it was for them a clear winner.

JUDGES’ COMMENTS

 ‘In ekphrastic poetry films, I look for the choreography of the elements – movement, sound, image, word to create an interpretation of the original work of art. I look for these to create a new work that is built upon the spirit of the first. In her piece, “A Love Spell Cast in Petals,” Meriel has mastered this choreography. The pace, the cadence, the impact of words flowing seamlessly into and out of the play of imagery. Together, they ebb and wash over us, the viewer, drawing us in until we too are subsumed within this dance of understanding, of vision, of what has been and what will/could come. We too see, we too are seen, in this mesmerizing film poem.’

Mary McDonald, media artist, digital storyteller and poetry filmmaker

‘Brava to Meriel Lland for her complex, innovative, and thought-provoking art-influenced film-poem. The text itself, which I’d call narrative-lyrical, had a clear point-of-view, delicious sound elements (e.g. consonance, assonance, alliteration), and surprising figurative language. I particularly loved the visual varieties, such as the closeups of paint issuing off a paintbrush, human hands whittling a bull figurine, drawings in animation, and landscape photography. For me, this film—political without being heavy-handed and creative in its craft-driven relationship among image, text, and sound—was the clear winner.’

Janée J. Baugher, ekphrastic poet and multimedia artist

Meriel – a Thank You note

Today’s news is heart-stopping – wow!  To have been made a finalist in Frame to Frames was a delight.  The makers on the shortlist are all people I admire for their vision, subtlety, authenticity and invention.  That A Love Spell Cast in Petals has found a place here is such an honour.  Huge thanks to my team at smallestdogintheworld studio – especially to David Lland, Michael Leach, Peter and Margaret.

For me, one of the delights of ekphrastic work is the dialogue it makes possible between minds, times, places and ideas.  Thank you to Ana Segovia for opening this conversation, for her brave, optimistic and daring painting.  And for making me think, wonder and hope.

Thank you to Sarah Tremlett and the judging team at Liberated Words for this opportunity.  And to Fotogenia for offering such a vital and vibrant celebration of voices that are all too often unheard.   Together we can create spaces to challenge cruelty, break with unacceptable traditions and work towards more compassionate understandings. Thank you.

I See You, and You See Me

carving a bull through swirling red ‘blood’ (or paint) and rose petals

 

As an artist, filmmaker and lover of all creatures, I am absolutely thrilled that Meriel has been awarded the prize. She is a fine advocate for the natural world and an empathic relationship with  birds and animals. I cannot think of a better person to win the Frame to Frames prize in this particular year. She has written and provided photography for 18 books all concerning nature and its importance to our wellbeing, and fully deserves to be ‘seen’ as a leading activist for animal rights through poetry film.

I also would personally like to extend my thanks to Dr Chris Patch / Mtro. Christian O. Pacheco-Cámara. Without his support and encouragement this event would not have been possible. I have watched the progress of FOTOGENIA since the very start, and in 2021 Chris interviewed me on The Poetics of Poetry Film. I am honoured to be able to be part of this festival, and share creative projects together. Thank you. Sarah

XaiLA the performer in Bull / Torero (by myself – Sarah Tremlett)

 

and in the ‘real’ world – early morning mother and daughter …

 


New imprint – Poem Film Editions & Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow bilingual book

I am very proud to announce the launch of Poem Film Editions, an imprint that will celebrate the link between word and image, poetry + film and of course, poetry film.

The first publication will be the bilingual (English and Spanish) book of the Frame to Frames : Your Eyes Follow ekphrastic poetry film screening. It is over 100 pages, full colour, and the  introduction includes a contribution from the author of The Ekphrastic Writer: Creating Art-Influenced Poetry, Fiction and Nonfiction (McFarland, 2020) – American ekphrastic poet and cross-media artist Janee Baugher. The contents comprise poems, film synopses and a QR link to the films.

I am also thrilled to be attending FOTOGENIA this year in Mexico City, and already packing! The book and the imprint will be announced there, alongside the prizewinner, at the Frame to Frames: Your Eyes Follow screening on the 2nd December, at the Complejo Cultural Los Pinos (Calz. del Rey S/N, Bosque de Chapultepec I Secc, Miguel Hidalgo, 11580 Ciudad de México, CDMX). Please come along!! With many thanks to judges Janee Baugher and Mary McDonald. Congratulations to

Patricia Killelea, US: Tova Beck Friedman, US: Alejandro Thornton, AR: Colm Scully, IR; Janet Lees, UK (Lois P Jonesand Elena K Byrne, US); Martin Sercombe, (Thom Conroy) NZ; Pamela Falkenberg & Jack Cochran, US; Csilla Toldy, HU, IR; Finn Harvor, CA; Javier Robledo, AR; Beate Gordes, DE; lan Gibbins, (Judy Morris); Carlos Ramirez Kobra, MX; Penny Florence, UK; Meriel Lland, UK; Ana Pantic, RS; Sarah Tremlett, UK.

The publication will be available to buy from Liberated Words in January 2024 at £10.00 plus post and packing.  We are currently taking  pre-orders via liberatedwordspoetryfilms@gmail.com.

We have a special pre-publication offer – a 50% Discount at £5.00 

 I also would like to introduce writer and filmmaker Csilla Toldy as a director of Poem Film alongside myself. I have admired her poetry films and writing for some time and indeed you can find her work in the book/screening. She sends a few words:

‘I am delighted and honoured to be invited to be a director of Poem Films Editions. I wish good sailing to this new publishing endeavour of hybrid books, linking text to film poems. Good Luck!’ Csilla


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