Thursday, January 26, 2006

Outskirts: Richard Bone Weighs In

I just finished viewing "The Outskirts of Infinity" and it's truly a haunting work. The feelings that constantly swept over me while watching it were of being trapped in a twilight state between existence and non existence. It wasn't until I saw on the closing credits where Sundog is listed as "the man between two worlds" that I realized how clearly you conveyed this feeling. It's surreal of course but it's more than that. As if I were glimpsing the dream that shadows have when they sleep!

Two images especially haunted me. First the ballerina dancing as the scene crossfades onto an old piano and secondly, the closing shot where Sundog descends to...where? Back to a waking state, perhaps?

I loved it and Barry's music (A Produce) is perfection, chilling. Your work continues to evolve and become more sophisticated, if that's the right word. Perhaps your cinematic vision is becoming more clearly defined would be more accurate. In any cause, I was captivated and genuinely unsettled by the piece.
Especially considering that last night I had experienced a most disturbing nightmare. "Outskirts" brought those emotions back to the surface!

Can't wait to see what you do next....Just hope I'm part of it.

Regards, Richard Bone
www.richardbone.com

Thursday, January 12, 2006

Outskirts of Infinity Completed

My latest film: "The Outskirts of Infinity" was completed the first week of January 2006.

Running over 20 minutes in length, there was plenty of time to incorporate repeating themes and develop a structure with regards to symbolism on the human condition. The ghost town, the bats, and the caretaker are all 'elements' woven into a story (yes, there is a story here). This is not a film where I wanted to promote a specific message. Instead, this film allows me to learn more about the psycho-dynamics of the viewer, based on their perceptions and feelings derived from the viewing. This is a good picture where several viewings over time will reveal more and more complexity. The depth of which, is how far the viewer wants to go.

There are several parallels (motifs) with images from "Man Trap" (discovered after 'Outskirts' was completed).

The visual-sonic architecture of 'Outskirts' was totally unconscious. As with all my films, I shot scenes that moved me artistically; weaved them into the music-score for the maximum psycho-dynamic effects; then combined components to create psycho-active flow of information and ideas. Isn't wasn't until I burned the DVD and watched the whole film from beginning-to-end, did I discover that the film was exactly what I wanted to accomplish. This chain of events was really similiar in the production of "Strange Attractor" (nothing what I expected, but exactly what I wanted). Maybe that could be said about all my films. What's freaking-me-out is that it is a process beyond my control. It is a challenge not to interfere with this unconscious creative construction - because it means I must trust a process that can't be readily observed. I guess what keeps me from interfering consciously, is that I'm never sure where I'm going with a project. It is easier for me to get out of the way and let it take on a life of its own.

The current release is v2.0. However, I still have some 'tweaks' to the aesthetic of the film and corrections to the credits. However, the structure of the film is complete and I am very satisfied with it.

Barton Santello
Arivaca, AZ