Surfing the Black Yugoslav Black Wave Cinema
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Surfing the Black Yugoslav Black Wave Cinema... From “Early Works” (1969) by Želimir Žilnik “In the eyes of the despot, men are always debased. They drown before his eyes and on his behalf in the mire of common life from which, like toads, they always rise up again. Muta pecora, prona et ventri oboedientia. [“The herd is silent, docile and obeys its stomach.”] For our part, it is our task to drag the old world into the full light of day and to give positive shape to the new one.” (Letter from Marx to Arnold Ruge) Early Works Surfing the Black Index 5 Introduction Yugoslav Black Wave Essays Cinema and Its Trangressive 10 New Yugoslav Cinema — A Humanist Cinema? Not Really. Moments Essay by Gal Kirn 46 We Cannot Promise To Do More than Experiment! On Yugoslav Experimental Film and Cine Clubs in the 60s and Edited by 70s by Ana Janevski Gal Kirn, Dubravka Sekulic´ 78 The Raw Image by Pavle Levi 106 On Makavejev, On Ideology — The Concrete and the Abstract and Žiga Testen in the Readings of Dušan Makavejev’s Films by Sezgin Boynik 170 Shoot It Black! An Introduction to Želimir Žilnik Essay by Boris Buden 180 Marxism and Mud — Landscape, Urbanism and Socialist Space in the Black Wave by Owen Hatherley Zines 25 Surfing the Black Zine No. 1 — Inflation of Radical Phrases as Opposed to a Lack of Radical Action 27 Surfing the Black Zine No. 2 — Those Who Make Revolutions Half Way Only Dig Their Own Graves 121 Surfing the Black Zine No. 3 — Black Wave ABC 3 Prologue currently leafing through. We investigated the subject with a critical but also biased “The four of them, who make do and get by, do distance (as three of us were born in it in such a manner that it is obvious that they Yugoslavia), in an attempt to open up avoid any guidance or project that would enable their activities to take the shape of a concrete the discussion of the Black Wave from action or event. Regardlessly they keep insisting its (limited) post-Yugoslav context and on referring to a certain project. investigate its possible correlations and This is revealed by the fact that the interpretations. four of them, who make do and get by, are not novel and unknown to us but carry with them a familiar structure. A structure that nevertheless The Black Wave appears to be stuck onto them from the past and is attached to them in accordance with the “Recent developments (in Yugoslav film) real, while not bearing any guiding or motivating evolved into a movement difficult to overlook function for them. They have not yet abolished today. ‘New film’. Above all it stands for the the project, but it is already so superficial that it subordination of form to the psychological only appears to us as dead weight.” contents of human ethical and metaphysical drama today. ‘New film’ doesn’t intend to sparkle, but to torture. It doesn’t want to seduce, The above statement (quoted from a text but rather to burden our ethical, political and by Rudi Šeligo on Žilnik’s Early Works state conformism, by impertinently portraying written in 1969) is unspecific and general the fate of its heroes. enough to designate many ‘four of them’. However, ‘New film’ doesn’t use a slogan or pun, but the revelation of Originally referring to the four protagonists of psychological truths, which come as a Žilnik’s Early Works, it became – upon being consequence of ethical crises and the ideological discovered in a pile of photocopied articles wilderness of the contemporary world.” on the Black Wave – a sort of a motto for a series of activities Pietro Bianchi, Gal Kirn, Živojin Pavlović used those words to express Dubravka Sekulić and Žiga Testen undertook the political and aesthetic discontinuity when our disparate interests found common that characterized the new cinema movement ground in the topic of the Yugoslav Black that spread in Yugoslavia from the mid 60s Wave cinema. until the early 70s. This period, frequently A steady but constant worldwide referred to as the “golden age” of Yugoslav increase of interest in this relatively marginal, cinema, saw a true outburst of creativity in yet revealing, episode of Yugoslavian history cinema. contributed a feeling of urgency to our The decade witnessed a proliferation inquiry, but at the same time lacked a clear of films by talented young authors who, idea as to where it would eventually take us. working under the sign of individual Nevertheless, it seemed this could potentially expression and aesthetic experimentation, be the moment when ‘history’ offers a glimpse pushed and explored the limits of the of a possible rupture – of a not yet defined constraints of the socialist state and lead to a or articulated event – and as such stands on new path of visual expression. disposal for the present. Consequently, the aforementioned four Finding both inspiration and support initiated the project entitled Surfing the for their artistic inclinations among the Black, under the auspices of the Jan van abundant innovative tendencies of the recent Eyck Academie, that was structured as a international cinema (some of them the multi-disciplinary research attempting to Italian neorealism, some other the French cross over politics, philosophy, design, art, Nouvelle Vague, and some in Jonas Mekkas) architecture, and some speculative thinking but re-shaping them in an innovative and with the activities ranging from archival work, original way — interviews, seminars, screenings, a conference Aleksandar Petrović, and, is finally reaching a (temporary) Boštjan Hladnik, conclusion with the publication you are Živojin Pavlović, 5 Dušan Makavejev, The Book photographic work by Slovenian the specific historical resources that would Ante Babaja, photographer Peter Rauch specially for give an answer to some of the paradoxes and Vatroslav Mimica, The book consists of two integral parts; A this book. deadlocks of the current affairs. Kokan Rakonjac, collection of six theoretical essays and three Apart from a more concise and Krsto Papić, fanzines that zigzag between the essays, ‘Those Who Make revolutions Only Half complex understanding of the past, Matjaz Klopčić, consisting of loose thoughts, leftovers, Way Dig Their Own Graves’ is an interview emancipatory thought strives to stay always Bato Čengić, posters by various contributors, and an the editors of this book made with Želimir opened to the future, which goes beyond Želimir Žilnik (unconsciously) interview. Žilnik in the winter of 2010. Žilnik reflects the nationalistic mythologisation and blunt participated in something that would be on the film production of the 60s and 70s, affirmation of the existing state of affairs. called “novi jugoslovenski film” (New Part One evoking structural changes in socialist Instead of applying a simplified schema of Yugoslav Film). political economy, but also noting that the eternal struggle between dissident ART Connected mostly through their The six essays collected in this volume were film had a crucial role in Yugoslav society VS. totalitarian STATE, we attempted to do cinema club beginnings, that subsequently originally presented at the international of the time. justice to the specificity of Yugoslav black became regarded as a movement under a conference “Surfing the Black” held at the Finally, he comments on his current wave film experience, which pointed to some pejorative name “The Black Wave”, which Jan van Eyck Academie in Maastricht in film production in relation to the topics he central questions of the relation between was a result of an ideological campaign (June 28-29, 2010) and the series of seminars opened during “the black wave” period and revolutionary art and politics. launched against some of those filmmakers that preceded the conference. questions the continuities and ruptures. Finally, these films - beside being first by political-cultural apparatchiks. Later, the The conference was organised as to open some social and political topics - filmmakers appropriated this name. a workshop for intensive discussion and ‘Black Wave ABC’ is a glossary addressing showed not only that another way of seeing collaborative scrutiny of the Black Wave some of the key concepts and terms the world is possible, but also another way of The Yugoslavian Black Wave can be through each individual paper, which were related to the Black Wave but at the same making things together. considered a unique movement in the subsequently revised in the light of the time expanding the scope of attention to The history cannot be simply history of cinema, interesting both due to its discussions and screenings. Additionally, other topics ranging from daily politics nationalized, as we were taught in the post- political implication as a critical voice toward a number of other authors were invited and economic concepts (such as self- Yugoslav communities. bureaucratic Yugoslavian state socialism of to contribute texts in order to compose a management), flickering thoughts that could the 60s and its aesthetic form with a visual representative volume of contemporary open a new angle on these films and possibly freedom that is nowhere to be found even in scholarship in Yugoslav Black Wave cinema. chart a new research trajectory through the the context of European experimental cinema The authors of the essays returned to materials; contemporary notions (troll) that of that decade. different aesthetic and political moments could inspire new readings of the past, and Although it is nowadays almost half of this complex topic surrounding the film forgotten ideas of the past that could help us forgotten in the western part of Europe and production. in the future. the United States, from that “new cinema” Last, but not least, it is also in some something completely different emerged Part Two way an index of the contemporary artists that challenged not only the ideological whose work is informed and inspired by the and aesthetic apparatus of the then The other block of the book has been Black Wave.