Amy Lynn Kazymerchyk

Amy Lynn Kazymerchyk is interested in the physical, tactile and collaborative aspects of experimental filmmaking. Her films and videos have screened at the Cineffable Lesbian Film Festival in Paris, The Boston Underground Film Festival, and the Women’s International Film Festival in Seoul to name just a few. Kazymerchyk’s film What Don’t you understand about “I’m leaving…again’?” will screen at Harvestworks on Wednesday, September 24th (7-9pm). The piece (pictured here) recently won the award for Best Cinematography at the 50/104 Festival in Saskatoon.

"I'm Leaving Again..." (still)

Kazymerchyk writes: What don’t you understand about “I’m leaving… again’?”is a non-linear rumination on catching oneself between the headlights of cowardice and conviction. The visual narrative, presented in two parallel images, captures the protagonist at a crossroad in the act of resolving either to run away- in the one frame, or run towards- in the other. Quiet gestures and fragmented reflections contrast and concord to illuminate the quelling of her psychic battle. Brash releases of humour, irony, allegory, and cynicism clash and tear up against a raw and cutting soundtrack composed by Canadian singer songwriter Rae Spoon, and pedal steel player Aaron Joyce. Between a rock and a hard place, [performer] Ila Kavanagh carves a refreshing edge to her dynamic evocations of hopelessness, resentment, shame, fear, hope, love, rage and desire. I’m Leaving… is a subtly confrontational wake up call for those who can never seem to stay, nor fully walk away.

Kazymerchyk began the process of making the film with a rough sketch of an idea-in this case the experience of running towards and away from a place, person, or experience at the same time. She then pulled the actors, musicians, and production assistants into the film’s development and facilitated a collaborative process. The location was chosen and then every scene was scripted on location the day of the shoot. To prepare for the shoot, Kavanagh made a mixed CD with one song for every emotion she and Kazymerchyk had brainstormed to invoke fleeing and returning. Before each shot Kavanagh’s would listen to a track on a discman and improvise an emotion-fear, jealousy, resentment, sorrow, joy, lust etc in front of the rolling camera. The entire film was shot on 15 minutes of Super 8 film, and almost every single shot appears in the final cut. The final scene in which Ila hands herself a balloon was constructed on the spot, after a last minute impulse to buy helium balloons on their way out of town to the shoot. Balloons figure prominently in Kavanagh’s own paintings and drawings, and are an important symbol in her own life. The finished film, edited and screened on digital video, is a balance of cinematic and digital movie making. Super 8 film offers Kazymerchykan opportunity to consciously and rigorously manipulate the aesthetics of the film grain, focal length, and sensitivity to light, while digital video allows her flexibility in post production sculpting, pacing, and framing.

Kazymerchyk is currently working on a personal essay in Super-8 film about Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Lower Mainland Gothic, and pre-Olympic destruction and development. As part of her curatorial endeavors, Amy recently inaugurated DIM, a monthly series of contemporary moving images and cinematic collaborations at the Pacific Cinematheque. She is also promoting and touring “Deep Lez Film Craft,” a retrospective of Allyson Mitchell and Christina Zeidler’s (Freeshow Seymour) film and video work; and celebrating the success of her second program for Vancouver’s Queer Film Festival, “How do you say Queer in French,” a survey of Radical Queer Francophone films and videos. Kazymerchykholds a Bachelor of Media Arts degree from Emily Carr University.