Minimalen presents, in cooperation with Midtnorsk Filmsenter, Cynthia Felando and Intellect Journals:

At this symposium we will launch the journal's issue #14.1, focusing on the short films of the auteur Charles Burnett. The symposium will be led by the editor, Cynthia Felando. In total, four of Burnett's short films will be screened in their entirety at the beginning of the session.

The starting point for the discussion is the article 'Several Friends and The Horse: The positioning of Black working-class men in the short films of Charles Burnett' in issue 14.1, but the two more recent short films When It Rains and Quiet as Kept will also be covered.

Cynthia Felando: – Charles Burnett is one of the most significant, exciting, and influential filmmakers in American film history. Perhaps the best known of the UCLA film school graduates associated with the groundbreaking 1970s ‘L.A. Rebellion’ film movement, Burnett’s singular poetic urban realism resists tired old Hollywood-style distortions and stereotypes in favor of exquisitely realized films that feature the authentic everyday lives of ordinary people. Burnett’s short films convey his extraordinary talent for using a familiar but nevertheless challenging short form convention, in which a carefully chosen fragment of time or ‘slice of life’ reveals a great deal more about a character, relationship, or event than one might expect.

There will be ample room for members of the audience to play an active role in the discussion. This will be a genuine vitamin injection for anyone who wants to understand what makes a short film tick, and a competence boost for filmmakers at all levels.

Short Film Studies is a peer-reviewed journal published by Intellect, designed to encourage research by new and established scholars and critics that reflects both the historical importance and the increasing prominence and diversity of short films in today’s media landscape. Each issue features carefully curated short films, sometimes spanning the career of a renowned filmmaker whose work includes several shorts.

CYNTHIA FELANDO (USA) is the editor of Short Film Studies. She is a film researcher and lecturer at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and author of Discovering Short Films: The History and Style of Live-Action Fiction Shorts.

Mer info | More info: www.intellectbooks.com/short-film-studies

Cinemateket - Thursday 18:00 | 6pm (Total: 100 min.)

CHARLES BURNETT RETROSPECTIVE (Total: 53 min.)
Cine | TOR - THUR 18:00 (The films are screened as part of the Symposium)
Nova 4 | LØR - SAT 14:00 (Only screening of the films)

FOUR SHORTS BY CHARLES BURNETT

Charles Burnett (b. 1944) is a master of poetic-realist filmmaking, and a seminal figure in American cinema. He has a unique ability to create vivid community portraits, explore domestic life, and employ African-American humor to alleviate oppression with humanity. Independent throughout his 50 year long career, he has worked outside commercial Hollywood, consistently demonstrating that Black lives matter.

Landmark feature films include Killer of Sheep (1977), a foundation of Black neorealism; My Brother’s Wedding (1983/2007), a tragicomic portrait of alienation; and To Sleep with Anger (1990), a family drama infused with folklore.

Burnett’s short films are often overlooked, and reveal another side of his artistry. Made with minimal resources, these works allowed him to experiment and refine his personal style. Emerging from his time at UCLA in the 1960s and ’70s, Burnett was a key figure in the 'LA Rebellion,' a group of Black filmmakers who rejected the Blaxploitation trends of the time. Instead, Burnett focused on the ongoing struggles of the working class, portraying survival rather than triumph.

The four short films in this programme are key to highlighting Burnett’s talents and thematic concerns. Several Friends (1969) provides an intimate glimpse into the daily lives of working-class African Americans in Los Angeles. The Horse (1973) won first prize at Oberhausen for its powerful exploration of race and exploitation. When It Rains (1995) received critical acclaim for its depiction of community solidarity. Quiet as Kept (2007) employs a blend of humor and tragedy to depict resilience in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, following a displaced family grappling with loss and systemic neglect. Together, these films showcase Charles Burnett’s enduring legacy as a master of independent, socially conscious filmmaking.

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