Maya Deren "Meshes of the Afternoon" (1943)

[LuckyDan]

Maya Deren (1917-1961) was a Ukrainian-born American experimental filmmaker in the 1940s and 50s. Her work is immediately noticeable and memorable, as is she. Here is, I think, her first work, a collaboration with her then-husband Alexander Hammid (1907-2004) Meshes of the Afternoon, shot at their Hollywood home in 1943.  The film was originally conceived as a silent movie, but Deren's third husband, Teiji Itō, added a Japanese-flavored score in the late 50s. The score you will hear in the video was added in 2011 by Seaming To, a British experimental composer.

 

And here is a short introduction to Deren and her philosophy on filmmaking by essayist and filmmaker, Laura Ivins.