Ex-Cinema

“Ex-Cinema offers lucid and mesmerizing readings of a broad spectrum of avant-garde films and videos, ranging from Derek Jarman’s Blue to Martin Arnold’s and Matthias Müller’s very different found footage works, from Maya Deren to structural film, and from Su Friedrich’s performative autobiographies to Diane Thater’s zoo videos. Lippit’s passion for addressing the philosophical implications of experimental film and video is as astounding as it is laudable.” —Roy Grundmann, author of Andy Warhol’s Blow Job



“In this collection of brilliant essays on avant-garde film and video, Akira Lippit manifests a precise intelligence and a critical acumen that stretch our understanding of cinema. Invoking the concept of ‘Ex-Cinema,’ he produces an intricate chain of questions that challenge conventional notions of interiority and exteriority, medium specificity, and narratives of the self. Lippit’s writing resonates with the affective impact of the works he discusses—from Derek Jarman’s Blue to Jacques Derrida’s work on blindness and the spectral. This is a dazzling tour through a series of provocative and groundbreaking works.” —Mary Ann Doane, author of The Emergence of Cinematic Time: Modernity, Contingency, the Archive