Echolalia Filming Locations

Echolalia, is an experimental black and white 16mm film suggested by a Rilke poem ("Sonnets to Orpheus II, 14"). It consists of a series of composed tableaux that are animated by special flickering effects and superimpositions achieved through the manipulation of the camera's optics. In the still, oppressive heat of an August afternoon, a woman slips in and out of a dream. Soundlessly, a trio of female phantoms descend from the air, gather in her garden, and then enter her house. Are these phantoms benign or malevolent? Are they real or unreal? The ambiguity of the phantoms and their actions force the spectator to draw their own conclusions. The film is also presented in a variety of multi-media formats. One has the film projection flanked by video projection. The triptych set-up of a film screen flanked by two video monitors thematically underscores Echolalia's central image of three ghostly women. However, to produce a further unsettling effect on the viewer, the film is projected slightly out of synch with the video images, creating a "visual echo." More recently, Echolalia has been projected with positive video images being superimposed over identical negative film images. Film scholar, critic and filmmaker Laura Mulvey has entitled this process the "ghosting effect."