Apparatus

by Theresa Hak Kyung Cha

Essays on Cinema by Roland Barthes, Dziga Vertov, Jean-Louis Baudry, Maya Deren, Gregory Woods, Danièle Huillet & Jean-Marie Straub, Thierry Kuntzel, Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Marc Vernet, Christian Metz and Bertrand Augst.

This book is conceived as a collection of Autonomous Works on the apparatus of cinema. The intention is to identify the individual components and complete film apparatus, the interdependent operations comprising the "film, the author of the film, the spectator."

The selection of works was made to approach the subject from theoretical directions synchronously with work of filmmakers who address and incorporate the apparatus—the function of film, the film's author, the effects produced on the viewer while viewing film—as an integral part of their work, and to turn backwards and call upon the machinery that creates the impression of reality whose function, inherent in its very medium, is to conceal from its spectator the relationship of the viewer/subject to the work being viewed.

Genres: Film

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

About the author

Most famous for her experimental memoir/novel, Dictee, Theresa Hak Kyung Cha is a Korean American writer, filmmaker and performance artist. She was born in Pusan, Korea, during the Korean War, but relocated with her parents to San Francisco, California. The interdisciplinary nature of Dictee, which combines narrative, poetry, movie stills, family photos and an array of other genres and forms, and written in various languages, reflects her own varied education. She attended the University of California at Berkeley, where she earned both an M.F.A. and M.A. (in Comparative Literature). She later relocated to Paris, France, where she studied film and brushed elbows with a number of well-known French filmmakers.

Her life was cut tragically short when, in 1982, just a few days after the publication of Dictee, she was raped and murdered by a stranger in New York City. Dictee received little critical attention until the 1990s, when it was republished by Third Woman Press, but it is now regarded as a classic work of autobiography and a powerful commentary upon American hybridity.

Reviews

[Randy Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book because I was deep into the mystery of Theresa Hak Kyung Park’s art. This book was edited and not written by her. I read it diligently. I didn’t understand much of it.

Now after seeing the exhibit of her work at the Berkeley Art Museum, which includes photos of her performance art, her films and other pieces, I understand how this book fits into her overall vision. ‘Apparatus’ focuses on the machinery of the film experience; how the camera, the film stock, the screen and the spectator interrelate. The content of a film is merely scratching its surface. So much of her work is about process, the presentation, the technology not for its own sake but because it offers multiple entrances into the artists’ vision.

I don’t think Cha’s editorial role was just to bring together content relating to the subject of film technology. I believe she used this project to better understand and integrate her own vision. She wanted to open up the artistic experience to as many perspectives and touch points as possible. She broke apart words on multiple monitors, displayed multiple meanings of a words in multiple languages, utilized live performance layered on film presentations. Her gaze was clear and focused in these efforts and she invited the spectator to bring their own meaning to what she split apart.

[Minh-Ha · Rating 5 out of 5]

an out-of-print book that is worth looking for! great articles by film scholars and filmmakers like Roland Barthes, Dziga Vertov, and Maya Deren. Also -- Cha has a piece called "Commentaire" that is lovely.