The screening program, Sunday Narratives, returns to the city, on Sunday, May 28, at midnight (24:00), with the screening of three short films by the German artist, Clemens von Wedemeyer, at Riviera, the open-air cinema in Exarchia neighbourhood. His films often encompass multiple storylines and viewpoints, adopting both cinematic and documentary conventions, screened in architectural installations. «But first, Clemens von Wedemeyer explores the cinema as a social scene and battleground that unfolds upon—but also behind, in front of, and around—the silver screen»*.

The film The Cast: Procession (2013) recalls an incident that took place in 1958 in Cinecittà Rome during the shooting of the movie Ben Hur, when thousands of extras tried to force the gates and enter the studios demanding work. A casting is taking place in preparation for shooting when the scene is interrupted by a demonstration outside and the production team calls for intervention by the police, which intervene violently.

The short film Beginning. Living Figures Dying (2013) depicts the relationship between humans and sculptures throughout cinema history. The video is made up of fragments of films that deal with the phases of the creation, adoration and destruction of humanoid sculptures in cinema. The found-footage film was collected during the research process for the exhibition The Cast: from early films by Méliès and Cocteau, to later ones by Fellini and Godard, every sequence has to be seen in relation to the other.

2051: After many years, a woman (played by dancer Stephanie Cumming) returns to Vienna to liquidate a bank account in which not only money, but also memories are stored. As the digital system prohibits access, she is asked to do a "Memory Check" in which she reacts to images of the past. As she is given access to the virtual safe, she uses the storage to open a link to the past. The film Esiod 2015 (2016) visually stunning surveillance dystopia — somewhere between post-apocalypse and virtual high-tech world.

The 3 screenings will be followed by a short talk between artist Clemens von Wedemeyer and his students at the Academy of Fine Arts Leipzig.

The curatorial team of Sunday Narratives, composed of Katerina Nikou, independent curator, artist Theo Prodromidis, and Christina Kalli, independent curator, aims is to present selected narratives about the social conditions that shape global reality, through the work of independent creators.

Clemens von Wedemeyer was born in 1974 in Göttingen, Germany. He lives and works in Berlin. Between 1996 and 1998 he studies photography and media at the Fachhochschule Bielefeld. In 1998 he transfers to the HGB Academy of Visual Arts Leipzig and graduates from Astrid Kleins' class in 2002, followed by a master in 2005. In the same year he receives the Kunstpreis der Böttcherstrasse in Bremen. In 2006 he wins the German competition at Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen as well as the Karl-Schmidt-Rottluff-Stipendium. Wedemeyer exhibits at the Moscow Biennial in 2005 and at the Berlin Biennial in 2006. In 2008 he participates in Skulptur Projekte Münster. Solo exhibitions include Kölnischer Kunstverein and MoMA PS1, New York, in 2006, the Barbican Art Centre London in 2009 and the Frankfurter Kunstverein in 2011. He participated in documenta 13 in 2012.

The Cast: Procession (2013)
Script: Clemens von Wedemeyer
Dramaturgy: Berardo Carboni
Scientific Research: Paolo Caffoni
Cinematography: Frank Meyer
Production Design: Gianpaolo Rifino
Costume and Make-up Design: Andrea Sorrentino
Sound Design: Thomas Wallmann
Production Manager: Ernek Reder
Producer: Ute Leonhardt
Executive Production: Panorama Film
Courtesy: Clemens Von Wedemeyer, Galerie Jocelyn Wolff, Παρίσι, KOW, Βερολίνο

The Beginning: Living Figures Dying (2013)
Editing: Clemens von Wedemeyer, Janina Herhoffer
Assistance: Dalibor Knapp
Sound Design: Thomas Wallmann, Neuton Berlin
Rumorista/Foley Artist: Peter Roigk

Esiod 2015 (2016)
Director: Clemens von Wedemeyer
Script: Clemens von Wedemeyer
Cast: Stephanie Cumming, Sven Dolinski
Camera: Frank Meyer
Editor: Janina Herhoffer
Sound: Herbert Verdino
Music: Birke J. Bertelsmeier, Rioji Ikeda
Sound design: Maximilian Liebich
Production Design: Renate Schmaderer
Costumes: Julia Cepp
Additional Credits: Masken Design - Kiky von Rebental, Scan & Kinect - Florian Rist, VFX Supervisor: Holger Hummel
Producers: Florian Brüning, Thomas Herberth
Production: Horse & Fruits Filmproduktion

Language: English