“Cinema has been waiting for this moment for quite a while and suddenly it’s upon us. It’s kind of like a prophesy. We don’t even know how far this might go!” Karl Krogstad, Seattle native and maverick filmmaker, is expounding on the concept of his new show, “The American Avant Garde,” with characteristic verve and charisma. The show, to premiere on The Seattle Channel (cable 21) on May 27 at 7:30pm, aims to be “entertaining, fun and strangely experimental.” It will feature experimental film shorts, clips from feature length films and mini-documentaries on the filmmakers and will be, he says, “the hippest, strangest thing they’ve got.”
Krogstad, a painter and maker of over 60 films and videos, has been creating work for over 35 years and has developed connections worldwide that could prove to make his show one of the most exciting things to happen to alternative cinema in some time. “No other show in America is doing this. And why not? This should happen.” He is heading down to Portland for a film festival where he will interview his friend, director Gus Van Sant, for a segment on the show. Van Sant, he says, has also been pointing him in the direction of directors whose new work is “explosive” and will also be included in the show.
After offering a glass of “ridiculously inexpensive, but very good” white wine, Krogstad launches into a story of how the show eventually came to pass after ten years on an “infinite back burner.” His distinctly bohemian Capitol Hill studio is packed with a mish-mash of objects and collectibles. It has the feel of an overstuffed antique store that specializes in nothing in particular. It wasn’t until recent discussions with The Seattle Channel’s Gary Gibson that Krogstad’s idea of “The American Avant Garde” began to gel. A chance meeting in Paris last year sealed the deal.
Krogstad was sitting at the bar of the Hotel Bristol drinking what turned out to be a $25 martini. A mysterious man approached him and asked if he was Karl Krogstad. The man, Gibson, had just seen a documentary about him, and they went on to discuss ideas that eventually led to him becoming Krogstad’s fellow producer of “The American Avant Garde.”
Though it’s called “The American Avant Garde,” the show will include content from around the world, as Krogstad feels that right now there is “a worldwide peak in consciousness in cinema.” If Krogstad’s excitement is any indication, “The American Avant Garde” is poised to make a big impact, not just in Seattle, but throughout the country, and if he has his way, even the world. “I like the idea that it’s a big world,” he says. “Life is big. I’d like submissions from everywhere. This show will last forever.”
For more information and submission guidelines for the show, visit
theamericanavantgarde.com. Karl Krogstad’s work can be viewed and purchased at karlkrogstad.com.
|
