Film of the Week :: Rapunzel’s Flight, by Gustavo Arteaga (2008)
Rapunzel’s Flight, by Gustavo Arteaga (2008)
Gustavo Arteaga seems to have the kind of unique voice that must both excite and terrify film schools. “Your work is great, but we have no idea how you’ll get a job when you leave”, I can imagine them saying to him at Newport School of Art.
Hailing originally from Mexico, Arteaga has clearly found a beauty in the Welsh countryside that matches his storytelling ambitions.
Rapunzel’s Flight, this week’s Film of the Week, is a totally hypnotic 6 minuter, combining stop-motion, live action and stills photography with all sorts of ocular trickery and distorted perspectives. The result is a world that – I have to say – I’d be pretty up for experiencing, if only for a little while perhaps… in a dream?
It reminds me a lot of Madame Tutli-Putli, the 17 minute stop-motion film that we profiled on this website last year, about a woman taking a mysterious train journey with all her wordly possessions. It’s such a wonderful combination of the real and the surreal, and there are some shots that are so incredibly beautiful – or simply impressive – that I wish they’d continue for minutes, not seconds. The whole thing is such a confident piece of short filmmaking that Arteaga feels like a master in the making.
I see that he’s still making films in the Welsh countryside. If ever you’re in London Gustavo, please bring something to Kino.
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Kino #29 at Vibe Live :: 19th June
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Nick Barrett