Synopses & Reviews
One of the first to plunge underwater with a camera to bring the subaquatic world to the screen, maverick scientific documentary filmmaker Jean Painlev& eacute; (1902-1989) captured the throes of a male seahorse giving birth, the geometric choreography of crystal formation, and the mating habits of hermaphrodite mollusks. In a lifetime spanning nearly the history of cinema itself, Painlev& eacute; made over 200 films, including < i=""> The Seahorse, Freshwater Assassins, The Vampire, <> and < i=""> The Love Life of the Octopus<> . His lyrical and instructive animal behavior films set to avant-garde scores were much admired by Surrealist contemporaries such as Antonin Artaud, Luis Bu& ntilde; uel, and Jean Vigo.< br=""> < br=""> < i=""> Science Is Fiction<> includes Marina McDougall's historically informative & quot; Hybrid Roots, & quot; Brigitte Berg's heavily illustrated biographical essay & quot; Contradictory Forces, & quot; art critic Ralph Rugoff's & quot; Fluid Mechanics, & quot; a Lib& eacute; ration interview with Painlev& eacute; , stills from Painlev& eacute; 's most celebrated films laid out in storyboard fashion, and a selection of Painlev& eacute; 's writings appearing for the first time in English. The latter include & quot; Neo-Zoological Drama, & quot; a playful romp on the behavior of Turbellaria, or flatworms; & quot; Mysteries and Miracles of Nature, & quot; an idiosyncratic catalog of unusual animal behavior; and & quot; Scientific Film, & quot; a discussion of science films that pays homage to Painlev& eacute; 's fellow pioneers. The book also includes French film critic Andr& eacute; Bazin's & quot; Science Film: Accidental Beauty, & quot; a review of the 1947 International Association of Science Film festival, organized by Painlev& eacute; .< br=""> < br=""> Copublished with Brico Press.
Review
Bellows and McDougall have recovered a valuable misplaced tool for thinking about our relation to the living world. The writings and films of Painlevé prove to be a sharp and precise tool indeed. Few thinkers about nature have demonstrated so clearly that science and poetry need not be in opposition. The MIT Press
Review
Jean Painlevé's science films rank as great cinematic art. The scope of his imagination, skill, and originality is breathtaking. Hopefully this study will make him as well-known in North America as he is in Europe. Mark Dion, visual artist and coeditor of < i=""> Concrete Jungle <>
Review
Thankfully, Bellows and McDougall have in this splendid book heroically rescued the extraordinary film and remarkable person of Jean Painlevé from the deep, murky waters of time. William Sloan, Circulating Film and Video Library, The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Synopsis
One of the first to plunge underwater with a camera to bring the subaquatic world to the screen, maverick scientific documentary filmmaker Jean Painlevé (1902-1989) captured the throes of a male seahorse giving birth, the geometric choreography of crystal formation, and the mating habits of hermaphrodite mollusks. In a lifetime spanning nearly the history of cinema itself, Painlevé made over 200 films, including
The Seahorse,
Freshwater Assassins,
The Vampire, and T
he Love Life of the Octopus. His lyrical and instructive animal behavior films set to avant-garde scores were much admired by Surrealist contemporaries such as Antonin Artaud, Luis Buñuel, and Jean Vigo.
Science Is Fiction includes Marina McDougall's historically informative "Hybrid Roots," Brigitte Berg's heavily illustrated biographical essay "Contradictory Forces," art critic Ralph Rugoff's "Fluid Mechanics," a Libération interview with Painlevé, stills from Painlevé's most celebrated films laid out in storyboard fashion, and a selection of Painlevé's writings appearing for the first time in English. The latter include "Neo-Zoological Drama," a playful romp on the behavior of Turbellaria, or flatworms; "Mysteries and Miracles of Nature," an idiosyncratic catalog of unusual animal behavior; and "Scientific Film," a discussion of science films that pays homage to Painlevé's fellow pioneers. The book also includes French film critic André Bazin's "Science Film: Accidental Beauty," a review of the 1947 International Association of Science Film festival, organized by Painlevé.
Copublished with Brico Press.
Synopsis
The first book on pioneering French filmmaker Jean Painleve, the father of science cinema.
One of the first to plunge underwater with a camera to bring the subaquatic world to the screen, maverick scientific documentary filmmaker Jean Painleve (1902-1989) captured the throes of a male seahorse giving birth, the geometric choreography of crystal formation, and the mating habits of hermaphrodite mollusks. In a lifetime spanning nearly the history of cinema itself, Painleve made over 200 films, including The Seahorse, Freshwater Assassins, The Vampire, and T he Love Life of the Octopus. His lyrical and instructive animal behavior films set to avant-garde scores were much admired by Surrealist contemporaries such as Antonin Artaud, Luis Bunuel, and Jean Vigo.
Science Is Fiction includes Marina McDougall's historically informative "Hybrid Roots," Brigitte Berg's heavily illustrated biographical essay "Contradictory Forces," art critic Ralph Rugoff's "Fluid Mechanics," a Liberation interview with Painleve, stills from Painleve's most celebrated films laid out in storyboard fashion, and a selection of Painleve's writings appearing for the first time in English. The latter include "Neo-Zoological Drama," a playful romp on the behavior of Turbellaria, or flatworms; "Mysteries and Miracles of Nature," an idiosyncratic catalog of unusual animal behavior; and "Scientific Film," a discussion of science films that pays homage to Painleve's fellow pioneers. The book also includes French film critic Andre Bazin's "Science Film: Accidental Beauty," a review of the 1947 International Association of Science Film festival, organized by Painleve.
Copublished with Brico Press.
Synopsis
Essays examining the work of maverick scientific documentary filmmaker Jean Painlevé.
Synopsis
One of the first to plunge underwater with a camera to bring the subaquatic world to the screen, maverick scientific documentary filmmaker Jean Painleve (1902-1989) captured the throes of a male seahorse giving birth, the geometric choreography of crystal formation, and the mating habits of hermaphrodite mollusks. In a lifetime spanning nearly the history of cinema itself, Painleve made over 200 films, including
About the Author
Andy Masaki Bellows, the publisher of Brico Press, works for City Lights Books, San Francisco.Marina McDougall, a curator, initiated the first United States retrospective of Jean Painlevé's films in 1991.Brigitte Berg is the director of Les Documents Cinématographiques in Paris, an independent archive founded by Jean Painlevé in 1930.