This week we discuss the art cinema as an institution. Numerous trends including dada-related production, surrealism, cinema pur as well as experimental narrative are revealed.  Experimental film differs from traditional narratives in its exploration of an alternative form of cinematic convention. One film discussed in class is Emak Bakia by Man Ray. Man Ray disregards the traditional and common literary notions and avoids the use of actors as well as verbal explanations. He considers images and lights to be an alternative to words.

Emak Bakia is a film that is influenced by art cinema in total and several trends have seen examples within. It combines ideas of not only Dadaists, surrealists, cubists and futurists. Dada film redefines parts and wholes, creating illusion as a concept and it manipulates technical reproduction. This is seen in Emak Bakia as Man Ray concentrates on technical potential of filmmaking, for example special effects, cinematic distortion, slow motion, the inclusion of poetry within shots as well as use of blurry shots. In the movie, it compares star fish to the main character as something very beautiful. Moreover, cinema pur is defined as the way for filmmakers to express themselves with films again and who it as an art form. While in Emak Bakia, Man Ray utilizes live action shots, tilting cameras and dream like distortion to bring this effect. Furthermore, the experimental narrative challenges traditional conventions and explores non-narrative forms. In Emak Bakia, Man Ray utilizes dream like sequence without apparent logic.

When I first view the film, I cannot comprehend the logic behind and this is what Man Ray tries to present to the viewers. Man Ray utilizes unconventional narrative that relies primarily on images rather than words. In Emak Bakia we see few lines or words, as Man Ray uses images and lights to convey information. Man Ray believes that Emak Bakia ‘does not lack a more or less logical sequence of ideas, rather as cogent and ordered work of art.’ Another example of unconventional narrative is that Man Ray draws poetic analogies between moving lights, water and shining objects.

The readings draw upon relationship between cinema as well as personal memory and dreams. Emak Bakia is based on model of the dream which is rooted in Man Ray’s memory which operates at the level called ‘memory cycle model’. Man Ray believes that Emak Bakia does not follow conventional narrative story telling and it has its own optical sequence. If it is judged from a standard commercial film, it is not story teller as it is based on dreams, memory images, repetition of lights, transformation of visual ideas which all contradict with the traditional methods of storytelling.