In deze kortfilmklassieker bestudeert Jan Švankmajer de verschillende aspecten van ‘dialoog’ op een ludieke en verrassend pessimistische manier.
Michiel Philippaerts
Michiel Philippaerts nam deel aan de poll “Greatest” Short Films of All Time 2025, een unieke publieksbevraging als collectieve liefdesbrief aan de kunst van de korte film. yanco en Kurzfilm Festival Hamburg, in samenwerking met Talking Shorts, nodigden filmmakers, curatoren, distributeurs, critici en academici wereldwijd uit om tien audiovisuele werken van minder dan zestig minuten te nomineren die zij persoonlijk beschouwen als de “beste” aller tijden. Dit was de inzending van Michiel Philippaerts:
This list was assembled quickly and intuitively. I’m very aware of its Western bias and male skew, though I’m also a little proud to have exercised some self-control by not including any Buñuel - tempting as it was. I could easily have added three, especially Las Hurdes.
— Michiel Philippaerts| Movie | Original Title | Director | Country | Year | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Jetée | Chris Marker | Frankrijk | 1962 | 28’ | ||
On the fragility of memory and fleeting time. Which is exactly what cinema is made of. |
||||||
| Scorpio Rising | Kenneth Anger | Verenigde Staten | 1964 | 27’ | ||
I first discovered this film at eighteen, drawn by its strange mix of occultism and eroticism. Though already half a century old, it still felt dangerous—perhaps even more so after I delved into Anger’s life following that first viewing. |
||||||
| Anticipation of the Night | Stan Brakhage | Verenigde Staten | 1958 | 42’ | ||
I’ve seen this film at least eight times, yet each rewatch feels like a first discovery. I imagine Brakhage experienced the world in the same way—always new, always overwhelming. The fairground sequence, with children rushing past, is nothing short of transcendent. No one captures the world’s mysteries quite like Brakhage. |
||||||
| Talking Heads Gadające głowy | Krzysztof Kieślowski | Polen | 1980 | 15’ | ||
Early on, this film instilled in me the belief that the best short films are often the “simplest.” While that remains true, more layers seem to reveal themselves with age. |
||||||
| Building of the Braves L'Immeuble des braves | Bojina Panayotova | Frankrijk | 2019 | 22’ | ||
A comedy, thriller, and tragedy unfold before our eyes in real time, seen through the humanist lens of a documentarian who happened to be in the 'right' place at the 'right' time. |
||||||
| Blue ตะวันดับ | Apichatpong Weerasethakul | Frankrijk | 2018 | 12’ | ||
What to say? Joe is truly one of the greatest. On rewatch, I was reminded of David Lynch, and moved to realize that the specters of both filmmakers will forever haunt cinema. |
||||||
| White Night Nuit blanche | Jean-Claude Rousseau | Frankrijk | 2011 | 2’ | ||
A lamp, a horse, piano music. I’m very fond of the idea that small scribbles - short poems, if you will - can be great art; whatever that means. I discovered this little gem only a year ago but have watched it several times since. There’s something liberating about seeing a director simply play around. |
||||||
| Meshes of the Afternoon | Alexander Hammid , Maya Deren | Verenigde Staten | 1946 | 14’ | ||
Caught in its eternal, labyrinthine loop. It would be criminal not to include it. |
||||||
| Glas Glass | Bert Haanstra | Nederland | 1958 | 10’ | ||
Like jazz, Glass outshines—and offers an antidote to—mechanical precision. Long live humankind. |
||||||
| Mast-del مست دل | Maryam Tafakory | Iran, Verenigd Koninkrijk | 2023 | 17’ | ||
Secret histories reveal themselves through Tafakory’s appropriation of Iranian national cinema. The first time I watched ghosts of love emerge from within the very images meant to suppress them, I was left speechless. |
||||||
