Comments on: Elemental Ghosts and Human Mysteries: An Interview with Walter Ungerer

By: wolfgang & annette

wolfgang & annette — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 14:14:00 +0000

We think that the interview reflects Walter´s work very precisely and would like to add just one remark. Walter likes to film things
that, basically, cannot be filmed because nothing happens, nothing at least, that has any obvious significance. It is a tree or
a road or a car passing by. That´s it. Watching these things we are somehow forced to expect something to happen. But astonishingly enough, we do not feel disappointed, but begin to imagine what MIGHT happen. Someone hides behind the tree, the car is about to crash and so on. Doing this we find out that reality is not just what is or happens, but includes all those things that might be or might happen. That´s what we can also learn from Walter´s work. Art is the opposite of positivism.

By: Steve Goluchowski

Steve Goluchowski — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 19:51:00 +0000

I look for something new from Walter Ungerer every few months. Normally I end up at his darkHorseFilms website because it is at the top of the google search but this time I looked down the results page a little. Whoa, what did I find but an excellent article by someone named Cullen Gallagher! Cullen, this was an excellent read and I look forward to more from you on other topics.

By: Harold Garde

Harold Garde — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 14:24:00 +0000

I am so grateful that this interview was sent to me. The range of the work and the intelligent dedication to his craft are recognized. All very impressive. My admiration grows.
Harold Garde

By: Alexander Hripak

Alexander Hripak — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 05:15:00 +0000

Good interview, the interviewer really knows your work. I’ve followed Walter’s works for a while and have seen them all. It was nice to see some of them summarized here. My favorite would have to be Down The Road.
Thanks for this article!

By: Alexandra Karam

Alexandra Karam — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 13:29:00 +0000

I watch Walter’s films as if I were watching dreams, and because I trust dreams fully — you can’t suspect dreams of dishonesty! — I allow myself to be totally absorbed by them, and so reading this wonderful article, in which both questions and responses describe so articulately the stages of creation and give us so much of Walter’s thought that goes into the making of his films, has been like crossing to the other side of the invisible curtain between the finished work and the process that brings it to life. And the mysteriousness of his films remains intact despite his openness and willingness to discuss them, and to tell us about his interior journey of creation.

By: E. Caristo

E. Caristo — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 14:31:00 +0000

Very interesting article about an iconic independent experimental American filmmaker, who has for years been much ignored or forgotten by the media, possibly because he straddles the line between independent and experimental, narrative and non-narrative. Appreciation should be given to Gallagher for raising the awareness of Ungerer’s work to the public. I know his earlier longer films have been featured at MoMA, New York, but his recent films seem only to be available at film festivals around the country or by DVD purchase, this gleaned from Ungerer’s own Dark Horse Films website. Kudos to Gallagher for his overview of Ungerer’s prolific career.

By: Diannajrust

Diannajrust — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 15:18:00 +0000

This interview with Walter was wonderful to read. I think Cullen did a terrific job at extracting some of the enigma behind Walter and his work. As his partner now for several years, I think I have seen every one of his films and never cease to be amazed at how prolific he is, while everything he does is always filled with the heart and soul of who he is. Thanks to Cullen some of that is shown here, and I know many people have enjoyed reading the interview.

By: Walter Ungerer

Walter Ungerer — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 22:12:00 +0000

Several years ago Jim sent me short QuickTime clips of what happens under a microscope in the laboratory where he works. I saw organic blobs of changing colors and shapes constantly moving about in liquid space; reminiscent of my own OOBIELAND film animation drawings. When I saw the QT clips, they fascinated me. It was akin to viewing space through a telescope, or discovering the world of fractals. I felt privileged, a secret revealed. So I look forward to receiving more video clips from Jim.

By: Jim MacAllister

Jim MacAllister — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 20:06:00 +0000

Walter was my film teacher and friend when I attended Goddard College in the early 1970s. We got reacquainted years later while he was making Down the Road in which I appear briefly. One of my videos done for my Goddard senior study was a documentary on Walter’s films with an interview as narration. His work is always engaging, illusive, poignant and playful. He has a wonderful graphic sense when it comes to filling the frame and he loves to test or tease the viewer. In my own work over the years, I occasionally found myself shooting a scene to have it be reminiscent of something Walter had done (I guess that is homage). Now I work with microvideography of tiny organisms and phenomena. They often are reminiscent of Walter’s early, drawing on film work such as the Oobieland series. He sent me an email asking me to check out this interview, perhaps it was to prod me to send him the views of the microcosmos I have promised him.