The Godfather of Independent Film

Jonas Mekas films Warhol, John & Yoko, The Velvet Underground

BY: PROVOKR Staff

Jonas Mekas, born in Lithuania in 1922, invented the diary form of avant-garde film and was a vigilant protector of true independent filmmaking. He opposed,”the insincerity, the pose and the business way of life that seeps through Hollywood films.” We worship him for that. Jonas Mekas founded the Anthology film Archives in 1970 to celebrate the work of true independent filmmakers and showcase their work to a broader audience. He died this year at age 96.

He was a poet armed with a 16 mm Bolex camera. His work is often possessed by a trademark nervous staccato rhythm. We have chosen 4 excerpts from his work to sample. The film Walden was shot over 4 years from his everyday life. For the film Lost Lost Lost, we have a 7-minute excerpt from a 178 minute film. In this film, he discovers the New York City. Uptown Party Uptown Party is Mekas’ coverage through his Bolex as he attends and shoots a Warhol party that introduces The Velvet Underground for their first appearance. An excerpt from John & Yoko in Bed is the fourth film we selected.

Jonas Mekas said, “Since 1950 I have been keeping a film diary. I have been walking around with my Bolex and reacting to the immediate reality: situations, friends, New York, seasons of the year.” His work, even today, stands up boldly to the world’s commercialism. He focuses on what is really going on at a particular moment. You can feel Edie Sedgwick just dance by or the warmth of John & Yoko’s bed as their son jumps in. His 16 mm shoots of friends, a party or the first snow of winter are all treated with a gentle poetic observation combined with a jumpy reactive witnessing.

Spend a few minutes with Jonas Mekas’s work and escape from the false reality we are bombarded with today and trade for a cinematic Waldenesque experience.