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Must watch 10 experimental/ Avant-garde Short Films

  • emneogi
  • Aug 1, 2022
  • 3 min read

Updated: Aug 25, 2022

10 experimental/ Avant-garde short films you probably should know about if you are an aspiring filmmaker


Credit: www.vogue.com


Experimental or Avant Garde films have always been the showcase of the filmmakers which is often outside of the traditional filmmaking where the artist portrays their artistic credibility. So if one is trying to learn about the aesthetics, concept development, and cinematography of the films, experimental films play the most crucial role. Imagine them as a vision board of an artists.


1. Saute ma ville by Chantal Akerman (1968)


I can never, ever stop talking about Chantal Ackerman. She was one of the groundbreaking Feminist Filmmaker.


"Saute ma ville" follows the story of one woman in her desolate repression, where she distances herself from everything and locks herself away in her apartment.




2. A Girl, She Is 100% by Naoto Yamakawa (1983)

Adapted from Haruki Murakami's short story “On Seeing the 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning”. This film conquers the core of the story full in a very artistic and experimental way. A man encounters several occasions where he meets a woman who he thinks is the perfect fit for him, but he drowns in the dilemma if he should approach her or not.



3. Meshes of the Afternoon by Maya Deren and Alexandr Hackenschmied


This film is a sentimental yet spontaneous narration of a series of shots that takes place one afternoon. This is one of the most pioneering American experimental films.



4. Un Chien Andalou by Luis Buñuel (1929)


It is a surreal piece of art portraying death, horror, the flow of time, violence, and the abstractness of the human mind.



5. A Movie by Bruce Conner (1958)


A collage film consisting of found footage, softcore erotica, ephermal movie clips, and newsreel, all arranged in Dialectical Montage style.


(Link to watch: https://vimeo.com/155594408)


6. The Seashell and the Clergyman by Germaine Dulac (1928)


Popularly known to be the first surrealist film in history. It is a very disputable and complicated piece that revolves around a priest who hallucinates about a soldier's wife.

Fun fact: British Board of Film Classification banned the movie by stating, “If there is a meaning, it is doubtless objectionable”



7. Mothlight by Stan Brakhage (1963)


Mothlight is a silent Collage Film that merges elements from the real world around him like moth wings, flower petals, and blades of grass. It was recognized widely as a new technique of film. Later he also said in interview that the concept came from his own life and sadness. Fun fact: No camera was used in the making of this film.




8. La Jetée by Chris Marker (1962)


It is a Sci-fi/Romance genre cinema incorporating the prediction and aftermath of World War III. It follows a man who travels to the future and gets a glimpse of mankind's destiny. A must watch!



9. Meat Love by Jan Švankmajer (1989)


An animated film about a heartbreaking love story between two meaty characters. A brilliant work of manipulation of intimate objects.



10. Hotel Chevalier by Wes Anderson (2007)


Two distant lovers, longing for each other. When they meet again at the suit of Hotel Chevalier in Paris, the past flashes in front of them and they start to reminiscence what they had. Beautiful colour palette. I mean... It's Wes Anderson after all.


Thank for reading!!!!!

 
 
 

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