by Red Cell
Anthology Film Archives in NYC is hosting a very rare look at the unedited footage of Maya Deren’s Divine Horsemen film. All proceeds go to the Haiti Relief and Development Fund. For more specs, check their press release below.
Presented as part of I GET LOST, a Danspace Project Platform
A little more than a decade ago, artist Ralph Lemon was inspired by DIVINE HORSEMEN, a film containing extraordinary footage of Haitian Vodoun practitioners being possessed (or ‘mounted’ – hence the film’s title) by deities (Loa) during sacred music/dance rituals. The footage was shot by filmmaker Maya Deren, one of the most influential independent filmmakers to emerge during the 1940s and 50s. It was only after Deren’s untimely death that her husband, Teiji Ito, edited the film by inaccurately joining certain music to dances/rituals. The authenticity of the film for Deren experts, Vodoun practitioners, and anthropologists has long been questioned. For Lemon, a major artistic research project ensued. In conjunction with Lemon’s platform, entitled I GET LOST, at Danspace Project (danspaceproject.org), we will present a 33-minute video excerpt from Deren’s unedited footage. This will be followed by a discussion with Lemon and other speakers to-be-announced.
In light of the current emergency in Haiti, all proceeds from this show will be donated to the American Red Cross’s HAITI RELIEF AND DEVELOPMENT FUND.
LINK TO ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES
Thank you for posting this. I love Maya Deren’s work, and she so often seems to have been forgotten.