Paul Sharits - T,O,U,C,H,I,N,G (1968)

Paul Sharits-T,O,U,C,H,I,N,G (1968)

After doing some research into the experimental-structural film movement in the United States (in the 1960's), this ten minute short film was a recommendation for me. Although this short experimental film has an entirely different vibe to it-in comparison to Geoffrey Jones' Locomotion- the structure certainly appealed to me. Sharits' use of one word, "destroy" is a structure in itself as it is repeated in a robotic, monotonous male voice. As well as this being said, the sound of a drum or tapping (similar to that of a heartbeat) is played underneath it, changing its tempo throughout. In my opinion, the sound on its own is disturbing to begin with, however, after a minute of listening to it it becomes meaningless. When put with the images though, the repetition of the soundscape remains powerful.

The image consists mainly of a medium close up of a man facing the camera. It flickers constantly between him just standing there with his eyes closed, to him about to cut his tongue off, to an unknown person holding a mask over his face - is this to resuscitate him or to smother him? I ask questions like this because of the disturbing sound of "destroy" being said over and over. The mix of these images and the sound increasing in tempo are an uncomfortable watch as it is but Paul Sharits takes it further via post-production using red as a primary colour, which I link to the cutting off of the tongue. Along with red, blank screens of orange, purple, white and yellow are shown in between the sequence of images, providing the viewer with a small "break" before the continuation of the decline of this man's sanity or perhaps even his last moments alive. This short film is not a particular favourite of mine but what I do like and appreciate is the simplicity of his sound, his use of repeated images and the discomfort it evokes in the audience.

Towards the end, the flickering effects on the image of the man begin to form square shapes in the centre of the screen to add to the madness. From start to finish, it seems as though there is no end to it either; it is eternal. Although in the centre of the short film the sound cuts out and is replaced with a buzzing, which I found even more uncomfortable to listen to and watch. Images flicker across the screen, and we can only catch a glimpse. The more I play it, the more I see a woman lying down and perhaps an organ being removed. It may not be these images, but for me, it is certainly disturbing.

Even though our short experimental piece will not look or sound anything like this, it is still one of my influences because it played a major part in the structural experimental movement and shows that repeating the same images and sound can work without the audience becoming bored. If anything, if the piece were much shorter, I don't believe it would have disturbed me quite as much. For our piece, we want to use the repetition of the camera movement; just three simple zoom-outs, showing the vast expanse of the city, sea and forest, but also portraying a sense of loneliness in such a large place. We will also be using our own flicker effect with the cross cuts to the hand emulating the shape of a bird, "looking for solitude" and T,O,U,C,H,I,N,G influenced me in that sense because it shoes a different way of doing a flicker effect to keep it interesting, for example, changing the colour.