Denver is a national — even international — leader in the area of technology-driven art, and that is primarily because it is home to the Digerati Experimental Media Festival, which will celebrate it 10th anniversary with two weeks of multi-venue events starting Sept. 9.
The fest, produced by the non-profit Denver Digerati, has morphed and expanded over the past decade. It started out as a modest, two-day affair, featuring a handful of brief, animated works (watched by a handful of curious spectators) that were projected on the giant, outdoor LED screens at the Colorado Convention Center.
The latest edition, themed “Obscura,” shows how it has developed over time. The fest is spread over numerous sites, including the Denver Art Museum and the Sie FilmCenter. The lineup includes programs of short works, a full-length feature, and a slate of live performances with a global roster of artists.
True to its core, the fest will continue to present on the LED screens downtown, expanding to various locations, which include the exterior of the Daniels & Fisher Tower, and showing newly commissioned pieces.
Much of the fare is free and easily accessible — at least logistically. From a cultural or intellectual point of view, some people may find it challenging to approach. To counter that, we asked curator and creator Sharifa Lafon, who serves as Digerati’s executive director, to answer a few questions.
Q. I want to talk about this year’s festival, but first letap help folks get their heads wrapped around Denver Digerati and its mission. Can you break down a definition of “experimental media” for us?
A. We call it “experimental media” because we want to stay intentionally broad, and because audiences take formal definitions seriously. I’d say itap art that pushes technology in unexpected directions through experimentation. That might mean animation, video, experimental cinema, projection, sound or even somatic practices.
Q. I love the festival’s tagline: “If you’re curious, come. If you’re unsure, come anyway.” But, really, who tends to like this work? Film fans? Theater fans? People with tech backgrounds? Who is more likely to show up, someone who likes the films of Luis Buñuel or someone who appreciates video games?
A. Our audience is definitely a curious crowd made up of artists, academics and people who love arthouse films or who loiter in the video installation rooms at museums.
The films require active watching, meaning you have to let go of being told what to think and come up with the answers on your own. They often resonate on a personal level because they present perspectives that are perhaps weird but wonderful.
Q. Give us one example of experimental work that will add a bit of understanding.
A. I’ll mention one from this year’s program, so that people can come see it. Itap a film called “Aferrado” by Esteban Azuela. Itap a portrait of masculinity, memory and the ways in which violence is woven into culture, that was created with low-cost digital tools like 3D scanning, photogrammetry and open-source software.
Films like this illustrate how experimental techniques can turn imperfections into part of the story, while subverting the high-cost gloss of mainstream filmmaking.
Q. I’m thinking itap not fair to ask for just one, since the work comes in so many shapes, sizes and formats — and some of the terminology is challenging.
A. To give a sense of range, this year we’re opening with a documentary film, “Void in Resonance” by Jerónimo Reyes-Retana, at the Denver Art Museum, which is important both in terms of visibility and content.
In contrast, we’re screening a playful shorts program that foregrounds animation as an art form. I think this gets to the heart of the variability of the work we show and the ability to pair institutions and formats.
Q. This year’s fest has three loose categories: short digital works, a feature, and a live performance night. How did you choose the short pieces? Also, how long can a short be?
Q. Our shorts span from 90 seconds to about 30 minutes. Out of more than 2,400 submissions, I watched everything as the lead programmer with support from a curatorial team that included Asher Hoffman, Nima Bahrehmand, Jensina Endresen and Hasti Soltani, and together we narrowed it down to 42 films.
This year’s program is much tighter than in past years, which allows each film to stand out. We organize them into programs where themes often arise organically through submissions, with the goal of striking a balance between what excites us, the inclusion of student projects, and what will connect with our local audience.
Q. Tell us about the feature.
A. “Eastern Anthems” is a filmic correspondence, a kind of cinematic letter exchange, made during the Brood X cicada emergence, weaving together friendship, failure and reflections on the natural world — with brunch.
Itap a slow, poetic film that stays with you after watching. We’re especially excited that filmmaker Jean-Jacques Martinod will be present for a Q&A, along with a screening of one of his shorts.
Q. And the night of performances?
A. Our performance night at the Digital Armory offers a sampling of what we mean by experimental media, through combining it all in a single immersive space.
The room is lit only by projection, and people often camp out casually to watch. The atmosphere is more club-like than an art gallery, but make no mistake that we are showcasing artists with a highly intellectual approach to their work.
The event is popular because of its inclusivity, cross-disciplinarity, and the entry point that comes from being outside an institutionalized space.
Q. I don’t want to leave out the screenings of commissioned works on the Daniels & Fisher Tower and the nine large, downtown LED screens.
A. This year’s commissions range from the colorful, pattern-based visuals of Mexico City collective TUTU, to local glitch artist Perfect Loop, who will transform the LEDs.
The large-scale animations on the Daniels & Fisher Tower play with humor, scale and light. What I love most is that anyone walking downtown can encounter them by chance.
Q. Give us some advice on taking in those outdoor screenings? Do we need to organize that, or can we just wander around?
A. Maps for a self-guided walking tour will be available on our website, and the clips will be running throughout September. That way you can wander downtown, catch the works at your own pace, and take in the energy of the newly reopened 16th Street and local businesses.
Q. On your website, you talk about how most of the curated fare for this festival shares “a kind of resistance,” that it feels timely.
A. When I say these works share a kind of resistance, I mean both aesthetically and culturally. They challenge the polish and clarity of mainstream media, but also the dominance of traditional art forms that tend to receive the primary platform in Denver. For us, resistance is a steady commitment to supporting artists who work through methods aligned with our mission.
Q. Part of the festival’s goal is to help audiences better understand experimental media. How are you doing that this year?
A. We’ve added a documentary screening that features interviews and performances with Elle Hong and Phillip David Stearns, two local artists currently in residency at Redline. These short films were made to give people an introduction to the array of experimental art by connecting back to personal stories. Itap one way we hope to demystify the field.
IF YOU GO
The Digerati Experimental Media Festival is Sept. 9-21 at the Denver Art Museum and other locations. Go to denverdigerati.org for tickets and more information.
