12.00pm, Thu 23 May 2019 – 6.00pm, Sat 3 August 2019

Arts Catalyst
74-76 Cromer Street
London
WC1H 8DR

FURTHER INFORMATION

Free, no need to book

we-are-in-this together-but-we-are-not-one-and-the-same” — Rosi Braidotti

Towards the Planetary Commons is a new exhibition investigating agency and autonomy in the face of global ecological crises. Encompassing artist film, an evolving installation and a programme of talks and workshops, the programme reflects on different ways of living and how new knowledge can emerge from struggles against current ecopolitical challenges.

Part I
Showing Marwa Arsanios: Who’s Afraid of Ideology? Part I (2017) and Who’s Afraid of Ideology? Part 2(2019)
23 May – 6 July 2019 | Preview: Wednesday 22 May, 6.30pm 

Part II 
Showing Paloma Polo: The earth of the Revolution (2019) 
11 July – 3 August 2019 | Preview: Wednesday 10 July, 6.30pm 

Neoliberal policies imposed on communities of humans and non-humans reinforce strategies of land grabbing and monoculture, threatening the land and its biodiversity. Whilst corporations and governments alike remain removed from accountability for pollution, natural resource extraction and displacement of entire communities, across the world, in regions such as the Philippines and Kurdistan, people are collectively adopting new modes of decision-making and self-governance through approaches inspired by eco-feminism, class struggle and planetary commoning practices. 

In one room of the exhibition is a rotating programme of artist films by Lebanese artist Marwa Arsanios and Spanish artist Paloma Polo, all of which are presented for the first time in the UK. 

In Who’s Afraid of Ideology? Part I (2017) Arsanios addresses forms of self-governance and knowledge production that have emerged from the autonomous women’s movement in Rojava. Shot in the mountains of Kurdistan and through recorded testimony, the film tracks the practical work of the movement – how to use an axe, how to eat fish within its biological cycles of production, when to cut down a tree for survival and when to save it. It explores how individuals come to a conscious participation in the movement; how they become part of the guerrilla, highlighting group learning as essential to the movement itself. In the film, the soundtrack of testimonies, analyses, and critical histories from those within and in proximity to the movement are edited together in a single, solid density. In Who’s Afraid of Ideology? Part 2 (2019) Arsanios focuses on the ecofeminist groups that form part of the movement, honing in on the alliance between communities of women, nature and animals and problematising the care roles ‘naturally’ assigned to women. 

The second phase in the programme, will see artist Paloma Polo’s The earth of the Revolution (2019) premiered for the first time. Emerging from Polo’s research in the Philippines, cultivated over three years, and during which time the artist located herself at the heart of the ongoing democratic struggles in the region – a struggle in which marginalised countryside communities are actively fighting for democratic and progressive transformations, emancipation and the common good – this new work offers viewers a glimpse into the political practices that underlie the revolution. Segmented into scenes, the film closely follows the guerrilla as they go about their everyday tasks, from lessons and habitual meetings, reporting and assessments to personal conversations and confidences, moments of solitude and rest. Blurring the distinctions between documentary and artist film, The earth of the Revolution seeks to expand our understanding of how revolution manifests itself in a contemporary context, reflecting on some of the positive human elements and processes that might arise from such conflicts. 

Arts Catalyst’s second space will take the form of a ‘living room,’ an evolving installation showcasing case studies that emerge from the programme, presented within the framework of a modular environment designed by artist Lorenzo Sandoval. Works by collective practice They Are Here, artists-in-residence throughout 2019, will be presented alongside Sandoval’s installation. They Are Here draw from research over the past two years into Wardian Cases, a botanical container developed in the early 19th Century to transport plants across great distances. Prototypes for New Wardian Cases (2019) are material structures modelled on non-European architectural histories that function as a form of speculative design. In the context of the public programme, They Are Here will present a live-mix of their new audio-visual work, BRUNO, an enveloping, free-ranging meditation on the relationships between ecology, migration and the urban environment. 

Towards the Planetary Commons is part of Arts Catalyst’s Test Sites programme, an ongoing co-inquiry exploring the rapid transformations in human and non-human lives caused by environmental change. Featuring works by international artists, this next phase in the project opens up the programme to broader planetary perspectives. An accompanying programme of talks, conversations and workshops will be announced soon via Arts Catalyst’s website.

Image: Paloma Polo: Still from ‘The earth of the Revolution’ (2019), courtesy the artist

Reposted from the Arts Catalyst website: https://www.artscatalyst.org/towards-planetary-commons-reimagining-infrastructures-autonomy

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Fernando Paniagua, Andreu Meixide, and Ester Villacampa. Photos by Pere Albiac. “Opening night” by Rafa de los Arcos. CC BY 4.0.: More than 1500 people attended the last edition of BccN (Barcelona Creative Commons Film Festival), celebrated in this city from June 7th to 11th. In 2010, it was the first worldwide festival for films licensed under Creative Commons, and eight years later, it is much more than that. With digitalization, there comes a new distribution of power, the critical review of intermediaries, and the active role of citizenship both in the reception and the creation of content. Creative Commons licenses are a tool that helps us to deal with these motivating changes, in particular with intellectual property in the digital era. They are part of our political stance, in the intersection between free culture, common good and cinema, as we are constantly fostering new models of positive social relationship based on the logics of the Internet.

BccN has been hosted for all these years by MACBA (Contemporary Art Museum of Barcelona), but screenings are also set up in cinemas (like Zumzeig this year) or public spaces as determined by the community. BccN puts different topics on the table through films, performances, discussions and hybrid shows (such as live cinema or work in progress). This year, the programme conceived by Panorama 180, the non profit organisation behind the festival, drew an imaginary line from communities to Commons, under the slogan of “Sharing is caring” – communities that fight to preserve either their rights or their natural resources. Among international guests, OvO (a duo with Noriko Okaku and Akihide Monna), offered a workshop and a performance in the consideration of memory, and Marc Meillassoux, the young director of Nothing to Hide presented his work. The film deals with surveillance and the misleading argument of “I have nothing to hide”

On Saturday, we also released the digital platform CCWorld (Media Commons Network). CCWorld is a network of festivals from all over the world, which aims to share, extend and promote audiovisual works that follow openness and free culture criteria. CC World is a network of free adhesion and peer collaboration on a global scale for local action and transformation. Since 2012, Panorama 180 puts at disposal of any interested collective or person all the materials generated in the realization of its own festival (from films to press notices), with the only condition that they return to the community new materials and knowledge acquired. This is intended to guarantee the sustainability of a common resource, as well as its renewal.

As a result, there are more than 25 nodes holding fully self-managed festivals around the world which, at the same time, are part of a collaborative and decentralized governance network. Organizers of Bogotá CC & New Media Film Festival (running for three years now), Valladolid CC Film Festival (5 editions), La Conca de Barberà CC Film Festival and the one which will take place in Prague next year were invited to the meeting. Each of them have their own flavor, from small locations to big cultural events.

CCWorld, as each of its festivals, tries to put a spotlight on the benefits of free circulation of culture and technology, as well as their transformation and appropriation by small communities. We believe culture, as any other Common, should be treated as a right instead of something to speculate with, and digitalization opens the window to collaboration and community. This is the reason why we would like to invite local collectives to join the community in order to share their own festival.

The post CCWorld: Connecting Worldwide Creative Commons Film Festivals appeared first on P2P Foundation.

Everything is a coming of age short set in El Paso that tells the story of Sinai, a young woman faced with a life changing decision.

“Everything” is an interesting public domain film project. They are currently running a crowdfunding campaign, check it out here.

About

Established in 2016, Unkut is a nonprofit production company designing films in the public domain. Based in Austin, TX our goal is to help create a more sustainable future for independent cinema.

By moving to a nonprofit model, we hope to help create and contribute to a form of art, one that is based on openness and giving, transparency and hope. Our vision is to make cinema, like love, in all its forms, accessible to everyone, not only to viewers but creators alike.

Our films and all source material including fonts, screenplays, storyboards, music and props will be freely available to copy, distribute, display, perform, remix and sell. And by releasing our projects under a Creative Commons CC0 license, it’s our hope that we can, in some small way, help to contribute to the world’s cultural heritage that we all freely share in.

-Derek Kaler

https://unkut.org

Everything

Our first film, Everything, is a coming of age short set in El Paso. It follows the story of Sinai, a young woman faced with the decision of working at a motel or joining the Army after the death of her ailing father. Set during the backdrop of the recession in 2009 and torn between a life of uncertainty or ill will, Sinai must decide if circumstance or faith will determine her destiny.

CONTRIBUTE TO FINANCING THE FILM HERE

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Big things happen when humanity is at the core of business. A New Economy is a feature documentary that asks, “Can cooperation save the world?”

What if working together for the good of all was the most common business model? Watch, as several organizations strive towards building a more cooperative future. By putting humanity before the bottom line, they are finding their place in an economy previously dominated by profits and big business.

This film features interviews with members of Loomio and Sensorica, and other organizations including Sole Food Street Farms, The Red Victorian, London Brew Co-op, Thorncliffe Park, and the Borealis Quartet (performing at this opening event).

Monday, 17 October 2016 from 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM (PDT), Vancouver, BC.

See Eventbrite for more information. Presented by Credit Unions of BC

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