Nouveaux territoires

So Oder Anders (AT 1995, 13 min)

A document of regeneration in the 15th District of Vienna. During the struggle for control over the old Meisel open-air market, where shopping was but one activity, fire breaks out twice, necessitating the demolition of the old buildings. no dialogues.

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The Order (UK 2001/2009, 10 min)

Video portraits of 100 riot police officers in Trafalgar Square during demonstrations on May Day 2001. Single sceen version of a multiple-monitor installation. no dialogues.

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Mapping CCTV (UK 2008, 3 min)

Two-part exercise to map CCTV cameras around Whitehall, London, within a zone covered by the SOCPA (Serious and Organized Crime Prevention Act). A map of the hundreds of cameras in the zone is made over two days of observation. The second part involves mapping the range of one of these cameras by intercepting its signal. As passers-by entered the marked area covered by camera, they are alerted to the camera's presence and given the map of CCTV cameras.

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The Orchestra of Anxiety (UK 2005, 5 min)

... is a collection of instruments that use materials and technologies from the security and surveillance industries. The central focus of the installation is a harp, traditionally regarded as a sacred or metaphysical instrument. However, unlike standard harps, this one is strung with razor wire, requiring the harpist to wear protective gloves while playing. Touching a string triggers multiple projections and sound sources in the gallery. no dialogues.

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In The Year of The Fire Dog (UK/TH 2005, 10 min)

(with Mukul Patel).

A New Year's feast is prepared according to a traditional Akha recipe appropriate for the year of the Fire Dog. Under the skillful guidance of chef Aju J, a dog is chosen, slaughtered, elaborately spiced, and sautéed in a wok. The Akha distinguish between dogs that are to be eaten, and others that are companions or working dogs. Dog-lovers of a different kind, who feel squeamish about eating their 'best friends', should look away. part of the programme Unreal Asia at International Short Film Festival Oberhausen 2009.

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Virtual Borders (AT/UK/TH 1999-2003, 91 min)

Internet / radio / documentary film project for, with, and about the Hani-Akha, a mountain people of the Mekong Quadrangle. The underlying story is that of the journey of a village headman, Abaw Buseu, from Thailand to a cultural gathering of the Akha people in China. He is accompanied by an Akha radio presenter and the film team. Using the Internet, they transmit discussions from the gathering back to a radio station in Thailand for broadcast to remote mountain villages.

Three million Akha and Hani people live across the borderlands of five nations: China, Lao PDR, Vietnam, Thailand, and Burma (Myanmar). They identify as one people (Hani-Akha) through a common 'tribal' history, rather than the modern world history that created the nation states they live in. Theirs is an oral culture; traditional knowledge is passed on through the generations by recitation from memory.

French subtitles.

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Movie Stars (TH 2004, 1 min)

Movie Stars was shot on a remote beach in Thailand, where the film crew trained hundreds of starfish to execute a formation dance reminiscent of Busby Berkeley's glamorous choreography for 1930s Hollywood movies. The film's brevity is a function of the creatures' limited short-term memory for movement. no dialogues.