Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private Hungary

The paper discusses the haunting narratives of amateur home movies in Péter Forgács’s multipart project Private Hungary (1988-2002), reading found-footage documentaries as a spectral repetition of a past era. It suggests that the tool-character of ‘revenant’ narratives may provide a new interpretat...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Kamil Lipiński
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Milano University Press 2016-10-01
Series:Cinéma & Cie
Online Access:https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/cinemaetcie/article/view/16452
_version_ 1797305573168906240
author Kamil Lipiński
author_facet Kamil Lipiński
author_sort Kamil Lipiński
collection DOAJ
description The paper discusses the haunting narratives of amateur home movies in Péter Forgács’s multipart project Private Hungary (1988-2002), reading found-footage documentaries as a spectral repetition of a past era. It suggests that the tool-character of ‘revenant’ narratives may provide a new interpretative dimension forthe archival collection of Central European micro-narratives, presenting photographs, freeze-frames and colour filters as an innovative form of reiteration. The project’s found footage films employ re-personalize film form, re-writing forgotten archival stories over a backdrop of the grand récits (and national upheavals) of the Holocaust and ‘goulash’ communism. In particular, I read two Jewish stories, Dusi & Jenő (1989) and Free Fall (1996), in terms of their intermingling historical narratives, which ‘doubly occupied’ time, and formed the plurality ofrevenant visions. This ‘aesthetics of ruins’, which is presented as an effect of the coalescence of time, attempts to pose new questions and redefine our understanding of the visual heritage of past generations.
first_indexed 2024-03-08T00:27:53Z
format Article
id doaj.art-8b3f364bdcda4d7c9f4f44403c8d5123
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 2036-461X
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-08T00:27:53Z
publishDate 2016-10-01
publisher Milano University Press
record_format Article
series Cinéma & Cie
spelling doaj.art-8b3f364bdcda4d7c9f4f44403c8d51232024-02-15T15:28:24ZengMilano University PressCinéma & Cie2036-461X2016-10-011626-27Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private HungaryKamil Lipiński0Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań The paper discusses the haunting narratives of amateur home movies in Péter Forgács’s multipart project Private Hungary (1988-2002), reading found-footage documentaries as a spectral repetition of a past era. It suggests that the tool-character of ‘revenant’ narratives may provide a new interpretative dimension forthe archival collection of Central European micro-narratives, presenting photographs, freeze-frames and colour filters as an innovative form of reiteration. The project’s found footage films employ re-personalize film form, re-writing forgotten archival stories over a backdrop of the grand récits (and national upheavals) of the Holocaust and ‘goulash’ communism. In particular, I read two Jewish stories, Dusi & Jenő (1989) and Free Fall (1996), in terms of their intermingling historical narratives, which ‘doubly occupied’ time, and formed the plurality ofrevenant visions. This ‘aesthetics of ruins’, which is presented as an effect of the coalescence of time, attempts to pose new questions and redefine our understanding of the visual heritage of past generations. https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/cinemaetcie/article/view/16452
spellingShingle Kamil Lipiński
Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private Hungary
Cinéma & Cie
title Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private Hungary
title_full Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private Hungary
title_fullStr Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private Hungary
title_full_unstemmed Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private Hungary
title_short Archival Hauntings in the Revenant Narratives from Home in Péter Forgács’s Private Hungary
title_sort archival hauntings in the revenant narratives from home in peter forgacs s private hungary
url https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/cinemaetcie/article/view/16452
work_keys_str_mv AT kamillipinski archivalhauntingsintherevenantnarrativesfromhomeinpeterforgacssprivatehungary