The Philosophy of Horror – Péter Lichter and Bori Máté (2020)
The Philosophy of Horror is a seven-part abstract adaptation of Noël Carroll’s influential film theoretical book of the same title (published in 1990), which is a close examination of the horror genre. Our film uses hand-painted and decayed 35 mm film strips of the classic slasher movie A Nightmare on Elm Street (Wes Craven, 1984) and its sequel A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985).
The Philosophy of Horror: A Symphony of Film Theory is an immersive meditation on genre theory, which aims to demonstrate the eternal beauty of Art Philosophy and Pop Culture’s interconnectedness. We wish to prove that film theory is a magical, uncanny space, where the viewer can step in – or more precisely – dive in. The tactile images of the decaying film body and the collapsing body of the characters themselves draw the observers into the process of perception in such a visceral way that the boundaries of Self and Other, human and non-human, body and nature fade away. Through this journey, the viewers become part of the creation of a new kind of coexistence where minerals, insects, liquids, and bodies grow into one horrifying symphony.
The Philosophy of Horror builds on our previous experiments with physical deconstruction, continuing the hybrid approach of combining analogue and digital media. Film strips were cut into small pieces, sorted, and subjected to various deconstructive processes, including burying underground (to induce rotting), etching with bleach and hydrochloric acid, and composting with fruits and vegetables. These methods produced unpredictable, organic patterns on the film, which are impossible to replicate revealing explosive bursts of colour, faded and mottled textures, biologically generated webs, and what we might call “bacterial aesthetics.” This was followed by a “fine art phase,” in which the excavated and cleaned film fragments were treated with paint, ink, and acrylics, with additional layers applied using glue. In the third stage, the completed frames were digitised one by one: each was photographed through a duplicator lens and then edited using digital software. This workflow functioned as an ongoing, evolving process. During editing and post-production, new painted strips were continually created, while composer Márton Ádám Horváth responded in real time to the emerging visuals and incomplete sequences with his music. The result was a visual symphony – layered, dynamic, and unified into a coherent whole.
About the makers
Péter Lichter is a Hungarian experimental filmmaker and writer. He studied film history and film theory at ELTE University, Budapest. Péter has been making found footage films and experimental features since 2002. His films have been screened at festivals and venues such as: Berlin Critics’ Week; International Film Festival Rotterdam; Tribeca Film Festival (New York); Jihlava International Documentary Film Festival; Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival; Torino Film Festival; goEast (Wiesbaden); Cottbus Film Festival; Ann Arbor Film Festival; EXiS (Seoul); CROSSROADS (San Francisco); VideoEX (Zurich); Festival of (In)appropriation; Antimatter (Victoria, Canada); La Cinémathèque Française (Paris); and The Kitchen (New York).
Bori Máté is a doctoral student at the Department of Media theory. She studied film history and film theory at the Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest. Her current research focuses on contemporary experimental/ documentaries that address the questions of ecological trauma. In her work she employs new materialist, phenomenological and eco-philosophical approaches, as well as, decolonial thinking. Máté has been publishing articles at such journals as the Quarterly Review of Film and Video and the Millennium Film Journal. As an experimental filmmaker, her works have been screened at festivals like the Berlin Critics’ Week, the International Film Festival Rotterdam or the Jihlava IDFF. In May 2022 Máté also curated the program Eco Cinema (screening and lecture)—a collaboration between the joint university program Lectures for Future and the Department of Media theory.
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