Beginning with Karen Johannesen’s Super-8mm film CHROMATIC and ending with Jack Smith’s YELLOW SEQUENCE, the films in this program describe gender through abstractions, flashes, gestures, and color motifs. Ultra-saturated flowers fade into perverse pastels, while monochromatic color pallets transfigure into crystal prisms.

This program derives from “INFRARED: In Celebration of the Compton’s Transgender District.”

Curated by Malic Amalya. Screening films by Karen Johannesen, The Wreck Family, Blake Williams, Mykki Blanco, Tina Takemoto, Mark Aguhar, Fox Whitney, Stom Sogo, Joey Carducci, Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore, and Jack Smith.

THE CINEMA OF GENDER TRANSGRESSION: TRANS FILM

April 25-May 1, organized by Joey Carducci & Madsen Minax

An extensive, ongoing series exploring the ways in which cinema has intersected with the experiences, struggles, and ideas of transgender, non-binary, and gender-nonconforming lives and communities. Organized with the participation of a variety of guest curators, the series showcases contemporary films and videos that explore concepts related to gender transgression as well as films that have had historical resonance within and beyond these communities.

Special support provided by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Support has also been provided by The Shelley Donald Rubin Foundation.

GOLD MOON, SHARP ARROW

by Malic Amalya & Max Garnet, 2012

Light Field Program 3 is curated by Samuel Breslin, with films by Lyra Hill, Stephanie Barber, Malic Amalya, Max Garnet, and George Kuchar.

Light Field is an international exhibition of recent and historical moving image art on celluloid, held in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is artist-run and collectively organized by Samuel Breslin, Emily Chao, Zachary Epcar, Trisha Low, tooth, and Syd Staiti.

SONG FOR RENT, AFTER JACK SMITH

by Malic Amalya, 2018

Light Field Program 2 is curated by Trisha Low, with films by Kioto Aoki, Malic Amalya, Greta Snider, Wenhua Shi, Sofia Canales, Nazli Dincel, Silvia das Fadas, Cauleen Smith, and Guillaume Vallee.

Light Field is an international exhibition of recent and historical moving image art on celluloid, held in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is artist-run and collectively organized by Samuel Breslin, Emily Chao, Zachary Epcar, Trisha Low, tooth, and Syd Staiti.

FlyHole

by Malic Amalya, 2017

After premiering at Outfest Los Angeles in 2018, Desire and Resistance is on tour. The films in this program place trans sexual expression and resistance in conversation with a non-linear idea of history, that is both real and fabricated, to address how limited evidence of a past shapes our understandings of the present.

Curated by Finn Paul. Films by Alisa Lebow, Jason Barker, Malic Amalya, Vika Kirchenbauer, Zackary Drucker, Alec Butler, Finn Paul, Andre Keichian, Vicente Ugartechea, Reina Gossett, and Sasha Wortzel.

FlyHole

by Malic Amalya, 2017

After premiering at Outfest Los Angeles in 2018, Desire and Resistance: Unearthing Trans Legacies is on tour. The films in this program place trans sexual expression and resistance in conversation with a non-linear idea of history, that is both real and fabricated, to address how limited evidence of a past shapes our understandings of the present.

Curated by Finn Paul. Films by Alisa Lebow, Jason Barker, Malic Amalya, Vika Kirchenbauer, Zackary Drucker, Alec Butler, Finn Paul, Andre Keichian, Vicente Ugartechea, Reina Gossett, and Sasha Wortzel.

FlyHole

by Malic Amalya, 2017

After premiering at Outfest Los Angeles in 2018, Desire and Resistance is on tour. The films in this program place trans sexual expression and resistance in conversation with a non-linear idea of history, that is both real and fabricated, to address how limited evidence of a past shapes our understandings of the present.

Curated by Finn Paul. Films by Alisa Lebow, Jason Barker, Malic Amalya, Vika Kirchenbauer, Zackary Drucker, Alec Butler, Finn Paul, Andre Keichian, Vicente Ugartechea, Reina Gossett, and Sasha Wortzel.

Infestation / Obliteration: An Insect Invasion Salon with Malic Amalya

Insects pollinate flowers, infest homes, destroy crops, aid in the decomposition of the dead, sting and bite our skin, and are thought to bring luck or hardship. We swat them away, catch them in jars, spray them with poison, farm them for their byproducts and nutritional properties, and transport them across the country for agricultural production. Some insects provoke fear or disgust, while others elicit adoration and wonder, most, however, go unnoticed.

This program focuses on the insect body as interpreted by artists, as well as the personal and cultural values projected onto insects (and then projected onto the screen). Canyon filmmakers include Charlotte Pryce, Takahiko Iimura, Robert Todd, Julie Murray, Anna Geyer, and Stan Brakage. Bay Area film and video maker, Malic Amalya, will screen his 35mm slide collage FlyHole (2017), about a fly who transitions into a man to cruise gay bars, and four video essays from his series, Detours & Fences (2012-2015).

Flies, gnats, moths, caterpillars, ladybugs, cicadas, ants, and bees all make appearances.

FlyHole

by Malic Amalya, 2017

After premiering at Outfest Los Angeles in 2018, Desire and Resistance: Unearthing Trans Legacies is on tour. The films in this program place trans sexual expression and resistance in conversation with a non-linear idea of history, that is both real and fabricated, to address how limited evidence of a past shapes our understandings of the present.

Curated by Finn Paul. Films by Alisa Lebow, Jason Barker, Malic Amalya, Vika Kirchenbauer, Zackary Drucker, Alec Butler, Finn Paul, Andre Keichian, Vicente Ugartechea, Reina Gossett, and Sasha Wortzel.

FlyHole

by Malic Amalya, 2017

After premiering at Outfest Los Angeles in 2018, Desire and Resistance: Unearthing Trans Legacies is on tour. The films in this program place trans sexual expression and resistance in conversation with a non-linear idea of history, that is both real and fabricated, to address how limited evidence of a past shapes our understandings of the present.

Curated by Finn Paul. Films by Alisa Lebow, Jason Barker, Malic Amalya, Vika Kirchenbauer, Zackary Drucker, Alec Butler, Finn Paul, Andre Keichian, Vicente Ugartechea, Reina Gossett, and Sasha Wortzel.

In Person: Filmmaker Jeff Preiss

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 AT: http://www.sfcinematheque.org/screenings/infrared-program-4/

INFRARED: IN CELEBRATION OF THE COMPTON TRANSGENDER DISTRICT

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.  

In person: Mica O’Herlihy

Slow/Sheltering/Shattering

Unpack moments of seismic shifts, tracing the intricacies of prolonged permutations, and making 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.

SCREENING: Full of Pride (2010) by The Wreck Family; Joan Jett Blakk Announces Her Candidacy for President (1992) by Bill Stamets; 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); MyMy by Anne Helme; Yellow Sequence (1963–1965) by Jack Smith and Quick Change #203 Escape #5 (2012) by Syniva Whitney.

FULL PROGRAM DETAILS AT: http://www.sfcinematheque.org/screenings/infrared-program-3

INFRARED: IN CELEBRATION OF THE COMPTON TRANSGENDER DISTRICT

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.  

DISLOCATION OF EXISTENCE

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: http://www.sfcinematheque.org/screenings/infrared-program-2. 

INFRARED: IN CELEBRATION OF THE COMPTON TRANSGENDER DISTRICT

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.  

Filmmaker Madsen Minax and performer/actor Eve Minax in person

Kairos Dirt and the Errant Vacuum (2017)

by Madsen Minax; digital video, color, sound 90 minutes

Through dreamscapes, television monitors, radio frequencies and orifices a queer middle school lunch lady, a non-binary student and an astrologer/life coach/phone sex operator discover a fantastic and carnal alternate dimension occupied by a genderless apparition.

FULL SCREENING DETAILS HERE: http://www.sfcinematheque.org/screenings/infrared-program-1

INFRARED: IN CELEBRATION OF THE COMPTON TRANSGENDER DISTRICT

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.