Icarus Films
- Grand Wazoo
- Joined: Thu Jun 21, 2007 2:23 pm
Re: Icarus Films
50% off all box sets with the code DOCS.
I've only seen one Geyrhalter film (Abendland) but found it fascinating, so I'm tempted to go for his set.
I've only seen one Geyrhalter film (Abendland) but found it fascinating, so I'm tempted to go for his set.
- gcgiles1dollarbin
- Joined: Sun Sep 19, 2010 3:38 am
Re: Icarus Films
I didn't care for Our Daily Bread, which is included in a BD edition, although I concede the frequently symmetrical imagery is beautifully shot. But I really enjoyed 7915 KM, following the lives of people who live along the Dakar rally route--sadly, not included in this set. I have heard great things about Homo Sapiens, which I haven't seen yet--perhaps a work inspired by Alan Weisman's The World Without Us?--but I think this set is probably well worth the plunge. He has tremendous ease with massively fraught subjects, probably owing to his light rhetorical touch, trusting interviewees and environments to speak for themselves, etc.--in that respect, he reminds me of the dearly departed Michael Glawogger, the latter's provocative titles that would seem to suggest otherwise notwithstanding. There need to be more filmmakers who limit themselves rhetorically by simply witnessing the effects of globalization. As much as I love a good screed when it aligns with my politics and sensibilities, there is no better viewer impact than when exceeding care is taken with a visually rich disclosure of a previously overlooked world altered by externalities. All "documentary" as such is disingenuous, but if I had to choose, this would be my preferred methodology/aesthetic for films that deal in these grave matters.
EDIT: I think my lack of enthusiasm for Our Daily Bread owes as much to my exhaustive viewing of films dealing with food justice; my wife and I contribute articles on the subject, and we have watched just about all there is to see when it comes to global systems of food production. This work definitely falls on the superior side of this genre's spectrum; there's a lot of garbage out there on the subject.
EDIT: I think my lack of enthusiasm for Our Daily Bread owes as much to my exhaustive viewing of films dealing with food justice; my wife and I contribute articles on the subject, and we have watched just about all there is to see when it comes to global systems of food production. This work definitely falls on the superior side of this genre's spectrum; there's a lot of garbage out there on the subject.
- knives
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm
Re: Icarus Films
I'm starting off their copy of The Owl's Legacy and it's a real fascinating bird. Each episode is about 27 minutes long and dedicated to a different aspect of ancient Greece such as the symposium or the Olympics. Largely so far this has been more of an excuse to go into Marker's favorite topics with him showing little interest in Greece. The Olympics episode for example connects with that only insofar as it heavily quotes Riefenstahl and instead becomes a musing on the nature of fascism. Sometimes this method can get a little too philosophical in a Lacanian sort of way. When Marker and his subject line up well though such as with democracy the series really flies though.
- zedz
- Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:24 pm
Re: Icarus Films
That idiosyncratic, syncretic approach pays dividends the further you get into the series, and it's revealed as less about ancient Greece than it is about Ancient Greece as a (perhaps arbitrary?) lens through which to consider the much wider world. The 'music' episode is basically a long interview with Iannis Xenakis. (And I think it's that episode that loses its subtitles about five minutes from the end - one of them does, anyway!) Another episode gets angry about the history of post-war Greece, and there's a fascinating exploration of gender and sexuality in the 'Misogyny' episode.
- knives
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm
Re: Icarus Films
The angry episode is probably Nostalgia or Amnesia? The former ends on a fifteen minute bout against the Greeks refusal to accept their Anatolian cousins. The later is about the Z incident.
At least so far I wouldn't say it's about the wider world. Instead it seems to be about the world that has molded France with a focus on Europe, though the US has had a cameo, which is perfectly acceptable since the whole premise is quite narrow and it couldn't make sense to bring up Senegal or China. Greece then isn't so arbitrary as a way to excuse Marker's narrow focus.
At least so far I wouldn't say it's about the wider world. Instead it seems to be about the world that has molded France with a focus on Europe, though the US has had a cameo, which is perfectly acceptable since the whole premise is quite narrow and it couldn't make sense to bring up Senegal or China. Greece then isn't so arbitrary as a way to excuse Marker's narrow focus.
- zedz
- Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:24 pm
Re: Icarus Films
I don't know if you've got all the way through the series yet, but we do make our way across Asia to Japan, via the Scythians, at one point. (Spoiler?)knives wrote: ↑Mon Jan 28, 2019 7:24 pmThe angry episode is probably Nostalgia or Amnesia? The former ends on a fifteen minute bout against the Greeks refusal to accept their Anatolian cousins. The later is about the Z incident.
At least so far I wouldn't say it's about the wider world. Instead it seems to be about the world that has molded France with a focus on Europe, though the US has had a cameo, which is perfectly acceptable since the whole premise is quite narrow and it couldn't make sense to bring up Senegal or China. Greece then isn't so arbitrary as a way to excuse Marker's narrow focus.
Though by the 'wider world' I was more talking about accessing Marker's own established areas of interest, which aren't necessarily aligned with Ancient Greece, than in a literally geographic sense.
- knives
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm
Re: Icarus Films
I'm only through the first seven episodes. I agree with your second paragraph though. This really is a collection of Marker's pet topics. I'm surprised that he hasn't brought up Chile yet. I was even thinking this is his most cinephillic work even more than works about filmmakers. His use of many films including some I am surprised he knew about like McLaren out Godards Godard in a subtle fashion.
- Aunt Peg
- Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2012 5:30 am
Re: Icarus Films
Chris Marker's The Owl's Legacy (1990) a 13 episode TV series was released on DVD only by Icarus Films last November. Never heard of it myself: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07HG ... 0DER&psc=1
- criterionsnob
- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:23 am
- Location: Canada
Re: Icarus Films
Just a note that Chris Marker's The Owl's Legacy is also available on Blu-ray, if you order direct from Icarus. I only see the DVD available at other online retailers. My Blu-ray just arrived, and it has an 'All Region' symbol on the back for those who are curious.
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- Joined: Mon Nov 30, 2015 9:46 pm
- Location: Columbus, OH
Re: Icarus Films
Fantastic that Icarus is finally getting more and more into blu-ray. What is the encoding? I assume this was shot at 25fps.
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: Icarus Films
I'm assuming this is a BD-R?
- criterionsnob
- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:23 am
- Location: Canada
Re: Icarus Films
There are some visible burn rings on the bottom, so I guess that mean it's a BD-R? I'm at work, but will check out the encode tonight.
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: Icarus Films
If it’s purple or any other color but silver/dull gold, it’s burned. I think I know what you mean by “burn rings”— you can see where the data is stored on the underside of the disc? If so, it’s def a BD-R
- criterionsnob
- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:23 am
- Location: Canada
Re: Icarus Films
It looks dull gold to me. Not sure how to embed these, but I uploaded a few pictures.
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: Icarus Films
Now I don’t know what to think— I’ve never seen a gold BD-R, but I’ve also never seen a pressed Blu-ray with visible data. The case has the Blu-ray logo, which is technically not allowed to be used with BD-Rs, but plenty of labels ignore that, so not necessarily evidence one way or the other!
- soundchaser
- Leave Her to Beaver
- Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2016 12:32 am
Re: Icarus Films
That looks like a BD-R to me - I used some for a project a year or so ago and they were gold at the bottom.
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- Joined: Mon Nov 30, 2015 9:46 pm
- Location: Columbus, OH
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: Icarus Films
criterionsnob, please let us know in 2219 if you got the full two hundred years out of the disc as promised
- criterionsnob
- Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:23 am
- Location: Canada
Re: Icarus Films
The BD(-R?) image looks okay, but is nothing special. The subtitles look horribly pixelated and are non-removable.
- swo17
- Bloodthirsty Butcher
- Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 10:25 am
- Location: SLC, UT
Re: Icarus Films
It is that episode, but I just got the Blu-ray and the subtitles were fixed!
- Gregory
- Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:07 pm
Re: Icarus Films
Today Icarus sent out some info about a new and growing subscription video on demand channel:
Last September it was with a sense of pride that Icarus Films was able to celebrate our 40th anniversary. And it was gratifying to receive the acknowledgements and compliments for our work. But even then the writing was on the wall—the old ways of doing things are no longer going to be enough to keep us going.
In the past we tried to keep up with “the pace of change,” for example by launching our own home video line, and creating (with Bullfrog Films) a streaming service for universities, Docuseek.
However the sale of DVDs has continued to fall off dramatically. And the digital landscape changes radically. For instance: Netflix largely stopped buying smaller, independent films and documentaries; specialized SVOD services like Fandor and Filmstruck have closed; and mega-media companies continue to consolidate and announce plans for expansion. In the face of all this I’ve come to believe that if we are to survive—and here I mean more than just Icarus Films—we have to build a new, more or less parallel and viable market. An alternative media ecosystem, if you will. So last year I had conversations with other distributors similar to Icarus Films—Distrib Films, Grasshopper Film, First Run Features, KimStim, and Women Make Movies, and with our partners in Docuseek, Bullfrog Films.
We all agreed that what was most needed now is a new, independent, SVOD service. A home for foreign language, art-house, social issue, and documentary films. Precisely the films that are harder and harder to distribute, to find, and to watch.
A viable alternative platform must be built (and survive!) for a viable alternative media ecosystem to exist. ... I believe that if Icarus Films is to survive until even just our 45th birthday, OVID.tv will have to be a success. ... OVID.tv currently has nearly 550 titles available, with many more added all the time—29 films will be added just this month.
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- Joined: Wed May 01, 2013 1:27 pm
Re: Icarus Films
I'm surprised they didnt post this last spring when Ovid debuted. I wonder if it's not doing well. It has a great selection but unfortunately almost all of it is on Kanopy so I had to pass on it.
- whaleallright
- Joined: Sun Sep 25, 2005 12:56 am
Re: Icarus Films
It's an open question whether Kanopy's business model is sustainable, though. Many and perhaps most universities and public libraries (Kanopy's major targets) have switched to a model where they will purchase licenses for films only upon request, typically from an instructor using it for pedagogical purposes, rather than making the entire site's offerings available for streaming to students. This is because the service was eating up most of many libraries' media budgets, and in some cases threatening their entire budgets altogether. So I do wonder how long Kanopy will last, itself.
It's hard for me to imagine many folks ponying up for more than one or two subscription-based "alternative content" streaming sites, even if the monthly costs are still less than purchasing two or three Blu-Rays.
It's hard for me to imagine many folks ponying up for more than one or two subscription-based "alternative content" streaming sites, even if the monthly costs are still less than purchasing two or three Blu-Rays.
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- Joined: Wed May 01, 2013 1:27 pm
Re: Icarus Films
You realize that institutions only pay for the films on Kanopy that are watched. Its literally the model you are saying that libraries are switching to and why Kanopy has become popular with universities and libraries.whaleallright wrote: ↑Fri Sep 13, 2019 4:18 pmIt's an open question whether Kanopy's business model is sustainable, though. Many and perhaps most universities and public libraries (Kanopy's major targets) have switched to a model where they will purchase licenses for films only upon request, typically from an instructor using it for pedagogical purposes, rather than making the entire site's offerings available for streaming to students. This is because the service was eating up most of many libraries' media budgets, and in some cases threatening their entire budgets altogether. So I do wonder how long Kanopy will last, itself.
It's hard for me to imagine many folks ponying up for more than one or two subscription-based "alternative content" streaming sites, even if the monthly costs are still less than purchasing two or three Blu-Rays.
- Matt
- Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 12:58 pm
Re: Icarus Films
I think you misunderstand, Glowingwabbit. WIth Kanopy at academic libraries, you can choose to license films title by title and provide access only to those films (which is what wahleallright is referring to), or you may open up the whole collection to users and allow them to watch anything (which is what you are referring to). In the latter model, when a film has been viewed (a "view" to Kanopy being any playback of 30 seconds or more) four times, the library pays $150 to license it for the next 365 days. If you think those licenses don't add up very quickly and very expensively, you're out of your mind. My institution, which has under 2000 students and uses the open Kanopy model, spent $3,300 on Kanopy in August alone. We have no classes in August. Even at that rate, Kanopy would cost nearly $40,000 a year. A more typical month when classes are in session costs about $5,000-$5,500.