Specially Curated Sessions of Film Analysis and Film Appreciation
9th-10th November 2024_ONLINE
14:30 to 18:30 IST
with Deb Kamal Ganguly
COURSE OVERVIEW :
In the history of cinema, it is a rarity that the creators like Robert Bresson arrived and illuminated the possibility of cinematic creation as unique artistic and philosophical achievement on behalf of the frailty of human existence. The uncompromising tenor and methods of Bressonian universe got its first significant manifestation in Diary of a Country Priest (1951), a uniquely adapted film from the novel of the same name, written in 1936 by Georges Barnanos. Based on the highly subjectivized first-person mode of narration in the form of diary entries, the cold, unsympathetic and spiritually barren world of a French village, encountered by a young, frail and sickly priest, find its almost tactile presence felt on the screen through unwavering intensity and ‘attention’ by Bresson.
The film will be ‘read’ bit by bit to unravel the methodologies of intensification and cinematic rigour through certain well-tempered and finetuned choices employed by Bresson in terms of figuration, gesture, double articulation, look, silence, most of which would be possible to be collectively experienced. The identification of series of these cinematic entities would be followed by the referential and speculative discourse regarding the possible causes for those choices with respect to the specific context of the film, and also in relation to the larger worldview of Bresson involving ‘implosive martyrdom’, ‘spiritual anarchy’, and the possibility of ‘grace’ in an otherwise banal, selfish, materialistic and hierarchical world.
During the course it would be highlighted and explored that the ‘Bressonian methods’ (mostly referred to Notes on Cinematography, 1975, written by Bresson) are to be comprehended formally indistinguishable and closely associated with the related views of Robert Bresson on human condition and spiritual banality, but not without some possibilities at the end of the tunnel. In this regard Bresson’s ideas were inspired by the philosophy of Simone Weil, her ideas of ‘attention and empathy’, unselfconscious emptying of the self, an intended action towards worldly-bodily misery for the possibility of ‘grace’. The overlapping folds of Weil and Bresson would be proposed in the light to hint towards a unique philosophical solution to resolve the apparent divergence and contradiction between the ‘immanance’ and the ‘trascendence’, and a lonely but resolute and probably a necessary path towards spiritual quest beyond the networks of the religious institutions, and also beyond the ‘institutions of selfhood’.
PREREQUISITES : None
Participants are welcome who might be interested in:
i) understanding and reflecting upon the famous ‘Bressonian methods’ in cinematic articulation
ii) the multifaceted relationship between the formal choices and configuration of the elements of cinema and the worldview of a great auteur
iii) the efficacy of fiction cinema as a tool and site to explore and present non-ordinary tangents of human condition and spirituality
MODE OF TEACHING:
In the session, sequences from the film will be shown and discussed in depth. Also reading material will be shared during the course.
FACULTY PROFILE:
An alumnus from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), Kolkata, DebKamal Ganguly is an independent filmmaker, researcher and teacher of cinematic arts. He has taught for 08 years (2012-2020) and designed curriculum in Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, in the departments of Film Editing, Film Direction and Screen Studies; and as a guest faculty in National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad, Flame University, Pune, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Bhubaneswar. Ganguly’s works have been published under special curator-ship from Lowave, Paris; his video art featured in the exhibition ‘Indian Highway’ and showcased in galleries of various cities of Europe and Asia. His films done in the capacity of editor, script-writer and sound designer have been shown in competitive sections of various international festivals and received recognition, including ‘Tiger Award for Shorts’ in Rotterdam (IFFR 2007). Ganguly has presented papers in various international and national seminars and conferences on various themes related to cinema, Deleuze studies, visual art, interfaces of art practices, translation studies, collective memory, Bengal studies, Media studies, pedagogy of cinema, film editing as a discipline, immersive sound etc including CARA-CILECT conference in Witwatersrand University, Johannesburg (2018), CILECT conference in VGIK, Moscow (2019), Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater (2019). He is a participant of an international project for artistic research involving BRICS countries, being the coordinator for India (2018).
BASELINE CONTRIBUTION TO CONFIRM PARTICIPATION:
₹ 1200 – For Indian Participants
€ 25 – For International Participants
(We invite you to contribute over and above the baseline – voluntarily, if you wish)
CERTIFICATES:
Digital certificates of participation will be issued.
QUERIES:
For queries, if any, please write to: filminstitute@auroville.org.in
or call / message +91 9969879319 (whatsapp and telegram only)
Auroville Film Institute 