Austrian cinema has had a major impact throughout the world for most of the past century, thanks to directors like Fritz Lang, Joseph von Sternberg, Billy Wilder, and Otto Preminger, all of whom emigrated to the US and found great renown in Hollywood. And in more recent years a new generation of gifted narrative filmmakers has emerged, including Michael Haneke, Ulrich Seidl, Barbara Albert, and Jessica Hausner. Despite all this notice, however, one of the most extraordinary facets of Austrian cinema has gone relatively unnoticed: its rich tradition of avant-garde moving-image works, which has represented one of the key artistic forms in Austrian culture for more than fifty years.

Sixpack Film was established in 1990 to promote the distribution and dissemination of non-commercial Austrian films. Founded by Martin Arnold, Brigitta Burger-Utzer, Alexander Horwath, Lisl Ponger and Peter Tscherkassky. Their passionate support for truly independent filmmakers of all stripes sits at the core of what has fuelled the Viennese company and contributed to its continued existence.

Put together especially for screenings at the Cube and Close-Up in London, we’re delighted to present two programmes from the Sixpack archive curated by Gerald Weber. Gerald will be here to introduce the programmes and will be joined in discussion by academic and curator Kim Knowles.

Noise and Colour

Synaesthetic experience - the interaction of image and sound, of optical and acoustic stimuli - was one of the determining ideas of the early film avant-garde. This continues to be a focal point of artistic practice. This program brings together films from various decades of Austrian film art. Playing with colour and form is inherent in all of them, as is the tension between noise and silence.

Screening in this program:

kingkong – Michael Grill 9 min (digital)

El Ritual de Color – Luz Olivares Capelle –  3 min (digital DCP - silent)

paris – Billy Roisz / 2017 – 5 min digital, DCP)

Blue Movie II – Marc Adrian – 12 min (16mm, sil)

falcon – Karø Goldt – 3 min (digital)

Moon Blink – Rainer Kohlberger – 10 min (digital, DCP)

accelerated lines~- Manuel Knapp – 6 min (digital)

17/68 Grün/Rot – Kurt Kren – 2 min (16mm, silent)

Night Sweat – Siegfried Fruhauf – 9 min (35mm)

kalah – Dorá Maurer – 10 min (16mm or digital)

o68 – lia – 5 min (digital)

20160815 – Tina Frank – 3 min (digital, DCP)

71 min