INFRARED:
In Celebration of the Compton Transgender District
Presented October 9–November 6 in association with CounterPulse
Series curated by Malic Amalya
all programs at CounterPulse
80 Turk Street (Taylor) in SF
Press inquiries please contact sfc@sfcinematheque.org
Pictured above: Happy Birthday Marsha (2017) by Tourmaline Gossett & Sasha Wortzel
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In 2017, the City of San Francisco indicated intention to designate a portion of its Tenderloin neighborhood (a portion which includes CounterPulse and the office of San Francisco Cinematheque Cinematheque) as the “Compton's Transgender, Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual District” in reference to a 1966 protest action held at Compton’s Cafeteria, located at the intersection of Turk and Taylor Streets in San Francisco. This pre-Stonewall action is recognized as a significant milestone in queer and transgender political activism. In celebration of this designation—the first legally recognized municipal transgender district in the world—San Francisco Cinematheque is proud to present INFRARED, four nights of experimental films by and about transgender, nonbinary and gender nonconforming artists curated by transgender filmmaker Malic Amalya.
From the 1969 Stonewall Riots to Standing Rock; from the 1992 presidential election to post-apocalyptic communes: these programs showcase trans experiences perspectives, and legacies. These films survey light refractions and the art of hair flipping, craft orifices and sites of injections into portals of transcendence, and extol anti-police riots and community uprisings. INFRARED begins with Madsen Minax’s experimental narrative, Kairos Dirt and the Errant Vacuum. Amid the post-industrial decay of the American South, a middle school lunch lady, an androgynous student, and an astrologer-life coach-phone sex operator discover a fantastic and carnal alternate dimension occupied by a transworldly apparition. Program 2: Dislocation of Existence is a collection of short films that contemplate the weight of being and disintegration of knowing. Program 3: Slow/Sheltering/Shattering features short films that unpack moments of seismic shifts, unveil the intricacies of prolong permutations, and make demands for immediate social restructuring. INFRARED concludes with Jeff Preiss’ experimental documentary, STOP, filmed over the course of sixteen years. In the tradition of home movies, STOP begins in his child’s early years and concludes in his child’s teenage years--in this case, coinciding with his child proclaiming gender self-determination. (Malic Amalya)
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INFRARED program 1
Tuesday, October 9 at 8pm
Madsen Minax’ Kairos Dirt & the Errant Vacuum
In person: Director Madsen Minax and performer Eve Minax
Advance tickets available here.
Join our Facebook event.
Because middle school student, TJ Fortune, neither fits within the framework of their age or gender, they are both bullied and revered at school. TJ recoils into an abandoned warehouse where he builds a massive sculptural shrine from discarded objects and trash. Meanwhile, TJ’s lunch lady and confidant, Rosie Cutler, makes initial contact with a transworldly being. Amid the post-industrial decay of the American south, Rosie and TJ seek out a spiritual medium/phone sex operator to help transport them to the apparition. Television monitors, radio frequencies, and orifices become portals to access this alternate, carnal dimension. (Malic Amalya)
SCREENING: Kairos Dirt & the Errant Vacuum (2017) by Madsen Minax
Full program details here.
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INFRARED program 2
Tuesday, October 16 at 8pm
Dislocation of Existence
Advance tickets available here.
Join our Facebook event.
A circular poem. A detective film. A performance of endurance. Hair flips. Hormone injection. Bodies adjoining bodies. Bodies being left behind. Messages from post-apocalyptic times. Dispatches from Standing Rock. The films in this program shift between embodiment and disassociation. They offer ephemeral glimpses into what’s possible and pulverizing flashes of what’s been stolen. Interlacing the physical with the ethereal, affects rapidly alter between despondency and euphoria. (Malic Amalya)
SCREENING: Stones and Water Weight (2017) by Mykki Blanco; The Butterfly Effect (2012) by Sofia Moreno; At Least You Know You Exist (2011) by Zackary Drucker; 3 Films for Untitled (1995) by Stom Sogo; Things We Both Know (Not Our Real Names) (2012) by Finn Paul & Roy Perez; Dislocation Blues (2017) by Sky Hopinka; A Little Bit of Exxxstacy (2011) by Mark Aguhar; The Dragon is the Frame (2014) by Mary Helena Clark.
Full program details here.
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INFRARED program 3
Tuesday, October 30 at 8pm
Slow/Sheltering/Shattering
In person: Filmmaker Mica O’Herlihy
Advance tickets available here.
Join our Facebook event.
The films in Slow/Sheltering/Shattering unpack moments of seismic shifts, trace the intricacies of prolonged permutations, and make demands for immediate social restructuring. Dance and doubling become explorations of self-fluctuation. Pearls and bricks become tools for anti-police riots, military abolition, and handing the Centers for Disease Control over to ACT UP. (Malic Amalya)
SCREENING: Full of Pride (2010) by The Wreck Family; Joan Jett Blakk Announces Her Candidacy for President (1992) by Bill Stamets; MyMy (2014) by Anne Helme; All That Sheltering Emptiness (2010) by Joey Carducci & Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore; Love Under Will of the Hags of Long Tooth (2015) by Mica O’Herlihy; White Fur (2015) by Nikki Silver & Neve Be; The Personal Things (2016) by Tourmaline Gossett; Happy Birthday, Marsha (2017) by Tourmaline Gossett & Sasha Wortzel; Beige Slow Change (2012) and Quick Change #203 Escape #5 (2012) by Syniva Whitney.
Full program details here.
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INFRARED program 4
Tuesday, November 6 at 8pm
Jeff Preiss’ STOP
In Person: Filmmaker Jeff Preiss
Advance tickets available here.
Join our Facebook event.
SCREENING: STOP (1995–2012) by Jeff Preiss
In the tradition of home movies, Jeff Preiss’ experimental documentary, STOP, begins in his child’s early years and concludes in his child’s teenage years. In brief, rhythmic flashes, subjects repeat in cycles while others form isolated episodes. The development of an art gallery entangles with family celebrations. Quotidian violence—including a white man in a Native American costume—intertwine with transportation and television programs. London and New York City are captured as they mourn the loss of Princess Diana and react in shock to the September 11th attacks. Silence and atmospheric sounds alter, while light leaks and jump cuts pulse throughout the film. Over the course of seventeen years, the growth of Priess’ child is the only reliable marker of time. The film chronicles not only the aging process but also the development of a sense of self as it differentiates from parental expectations. Preiss’s camera does not distance, judge or sensationalize but provides a platform for the child to proclaim his gender identity. (Malic Amalya)
Full program details here.
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COUNTERPULSE ACCESSIBILITY INFO:
— CounterPulse is a fully ADA accessible space. Our main theater seating is on the ground level. To access the bathrooms and basement gallery, as well as the mezzanine gallery, the elevator must be used.
— Wheelchair seating or other accommodations can be requested at ticket purchase checkout, or by calling 415-626-2060.
— CounterPulse is closest to the Powell Street Bart & Muni Station. When the elevators are operational, there is fully level access from Powell Street Bart Station to CounterPulse. The distance is .1 miles.
— Request interpretive services two weeks in advance for other shows by emailing info@counterpulse.org or calling 415-626-2060, ask for Justin
Special support for INFRARED is provided by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
