RATA BAILARINA is an artist duo formed by Raquel Touset (image) and Juan Fernández-Savater (sound) where they freely create pieces they enjoy making, even if they don’t fit into the internet or artsy circuits. This year, RATA BAILARINA is exploring the possibilities of Super 8 in an ongoing project made up of various films, all centered around the magical dimension we are surrounded by in life and the just-as-magical mystery of death, but different between each other, going from humor to solemnity.
Luz en invierno is the very first film in this series, which initiated the approach used in the rest: experimenting with techniques Super 8 cameras allow to, such as frame-by-frame or jump cuts. But the most challenging thing was being aware of the value of time, spiritually and monetarily. With 15 meters—just three minutes of footage—the story had to be almost entirely in-camera edited and each shot was filmed only once. This film also shaped the importance of the character in the following films, who had to be someone we both deeply know and with no experience as an actor, so that we could create that genuine feeling.
These are frames from the second (left) and the third (right) episode of this series, Juan Gaviota and Alvaruster, respectively.
Why don’t I show you both films? you might wonder.
Well, uploading a visual piece to the internet is like throwing it into an endless forest from the air. And if someone is lucky to see it before it disappears into the treetops, probably this person will forget it when the next flying image comes along. The problem is deeper than the metaphor.
We wanted to share our work, but in a way that meant something. So we decided to broadcast our 2-4 minute films live on YouTube. There are just three opportunities to watch online each film, on three consecutive Sundays at 10 p.m. After that, it’s gone. Unavailable.
This experiment has been very positive, since we are sure the people who attended the screening made a real effort to be there on time. They paid attention. Some of them were annoyed, even almost angry, about our approach—because they always missed the chance to see the films and didn’t understand why we chose this method. And that is positive too. Someday, they will understand.
If you are interested in catching the upcoming episodes, stay tuned on our Instagram account.
Raquel Touset 