Sound Hunting
(Oto o karu)
JAPAN / 2013 / Japanese / Color / 8mm / 36 min
Director, Script, Photography, Editing, Sound: Murakami Kenji
Cast: Amatsu Yuki, Obitani Yuri, Murakami Daiki
Producer: Onishi Kenji
Supported by Suzuki Naoki, Kishinami Kiyofumi, Nakagawa Kyuya, Awazu Ken
Source: Murakami Kenji
Production and sale of Fujichrome RT200 sound film stock ended in 1999. The product had a magnetic strip on both sides, allowing audio to be simultaneously recorded from a microphone connected to the camera. It was the ultimate analog technology. Using only this stock, the director begins to shoot a film. As he develops his long outdated and expired RT200, unique visuals and sounds begin to emerge, creating images that are persuasive, yet full of despair.
[Director’s Statement] It was not my intention to highlight the dichotomy between analog and digital. Rather, this film is an action documentary that upholds the diversity of visual culture. It was not only the film stock that was past due and expired, but all of the equipment as well. Filming and development took place in a chaotic battle where everything was unexpected and unpredictable. That in and of itself was a valuable experience, and the emotions I felt during that time are burned into this emulsion.
Murakami Kenji
Born in 1970. Director of the films Tel-Club (1998) and Zomvideo (2011), as well as the television programs The Great Horror Family (2004), Tatsuya Mori’s “Documentary Tells a Lie” (2006), and NONFIX: The End of Film! The Future of Cinema is Transformed by Digital! (2012), in addition to the commercial spot AKB48—So What Was Maeda Atsuko After All? (2012).
Interview