In our text we read about Stan Brakhage an experimental filmmaker who just like Andy Warhol, was not afraid to challenge an audience with his radical filmmaking style. After moving to California and unsuccessfully attending the Californian School of Fine Arts, due to its film programs deconstruction, Brakhage went right ahead without any higher education and created his first film in 1952 called Interim at the age of 19. Without receiving any professional education, and failing to establish any important contacts following school Brakhage was on his own. Surprisingly this would prove not a worry for Brakhage in his life of professional filmmaking, as he would create over 300 movies in his lifetime.
By not attending the school of his choice it seemed Brakhage was able to bring his imagination to life and on film, as attending film school could have disrupted his cinematic vial of ignorance. It seems as well that in a way Brakhage’s failure to achieve a higher education would in the end contribute to his success. His raw and unprofessional look into a camera would give Brakhage room to experiment while being unafraid of the probability of failure. What Brakhage really gained was a lack of authority coming from educated piers and critics. The freedom to explore and do what one wants does not work for everyone, but it did for Brakhage. Throughout his years Brakhage would experiment with camera techniques and story narratives as well. One example is his film Wonder Ring (1955), were the closest thing to Brakhage’s protagonist is a train car riding around in a city, which is a metaphor for “the bare Logic of narrative itself”.
Stan Brakhage’s innovation and free expression is something that is hard to find today. Doing something you love with out becoming jealous of the rich and powerful, especially in the film business, is hard to do. The faith Stan Brakhage displayed in himself is something to truly marvel and adore.
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