if i thought about cinema differently, i would produce long-form in exacting intervals, but the blending of time into a creative act is essence
from outside, its no activity & then, massive activity, compressed time
from inside, a single movement
new szn starts
(multiples)
What I’ve always found amazing about Amir Motlagh’s films is how he deals with connection in a disconnected world.....As Saam navigates his life and relationships, we as viewers are challenged to consider what is art, what is artifice, and what we think our world really is - Jamie Toth
I was sent this earlier and since it came recommended, i read it. Truth is, I don’t read attentively what people write about my work because good or bad, my creative pursuit wants to remain untethered to opinion, & its wave-like aftermaths.
But, when i get the impression that a connection was made, I get curious. And in this piece, that connection was made.
The Three Worlds piece by Jamie Toth can be read here or here.
still from Three Worlds
“Where Terrence Malick’s Knight of Cups walked, Three Worlds sprints. Where Orson Welles’ The Other Side of the Wind spoke, Three Worlds whistles.”
truth is that i don’t read or pay attention to these things because the instinct to create in freedom gets cloudy overtime as attention gets diverted. this energy is not a forever thing, & doubt waits in the shadows….i chose to keep my attention on the gate that opens without much resistance.
you can read the full review here
still from “Three Worlds” - 2018
eyelashes and ice cream
VHS SELF-IMMOLATION SIMULATOR
a single channel work exploring the collective narrative from flesh towards code, increasing carbon copy replication & how and where these attitudes originate & are given momentum.
music composed by Mirs (www.mirsmusic.com)
Welcome friends to a New Year (the first of two) and thank you for riding with me. I appreciate you & I wish you peace, creativity & clarity.
Today, I release two limited editions, signed, 12”x12” giclee art prints of “sat ori” & “LET ME GO” reproduced on museum-quality archival paper.
They are shipping worldwide with a certificate of authenticity in an edition of 44. Roughly 40 remain of each.
You are going to love having these two (or at least 1) somewhere in your space bestowing upon you goodwill, love & intrigue.
It’s been several years since I last released art prints, but I felt this is a good time to return to physical, tangible stuff. I have plans….with that said Click Here or on the bold, all-caps ADD TO CART below to transport you to the correct destination.
(only 7 left!)
A signed, limited edition 12”x12” giclee art print of “sat ori” reproduced on museum quality archival paper.
Edition of 44
Shipped with a Certificate of Authenticity
(please allow 2-4 weeks for delivery)
(only 3 left!)
A signed, limited edition 12”x12” giclee art print of “LET ME GO” reproduced on museum quality archival paper.
Edition of 44
Shipped with a Certificate of Authenticity
(please allow 2-4 weeks for delivery)
lets call it a mood, but, all is connected….
LET ME GO
2022
print edition 1/44
i’m happy to announce that my 2018 feature film THREE WORLDS is finally available worldwide on APPLE TV.
like much of my work, this is proudly not a film for everyone, nonetheless, everyone on earth should in fact buy it ;)
THREE WORLDS
2018
i remember when ye (kanye w) iterated on a finished piece of work. maybe it was the life of pablo, can’t recall exactly but the timeline was full of mr west being lauded as the first artist to treat work as iterative, instead of absolute, like software (SaaS).
this came mostly from the VC techo-sphere, a top down propaganda arm that related everything to “software eating the world”.
of course, this was not the first case of this. it might have been the most public version, because of the sheer reach & influence of Mr Ye, but artists have iterated on finished works since cave paintings.
it’s of course a very different thing when said item is all digital. it’s much more difficult after you shipped out a million CD’s/DVDs but we are living in a different era altogether, where we leave no trace but 1/0’s behind.
my version of this iteration process occurred in 2009. i had finally finished my first feature film, WHALE, and released the work on DVD. this was a painstaking ordeal and had taken several years to finally get to the point of release. i felt somewhat relieved.
but, nearly right after we started both selling and sending out screeners, I couldn’t get rid of an itch, in fact I couldn’t sleep. i felt i had given up on the edit too soon, and knew that something was missing but i couldn’t work out the problem & i didn’t have the energy to face it (also, the tech issues at the time, with my PowerPC G5 giving up and project files being corrupted was part of this defeat).
in this fog of insomnia, on one of those nights i was taking nyquil just to fall asleep,i had a dream, and this dream was a direct solution to the problem, sound and visual. so, i went back to the edit room and came back several months later. now, it felt truly finished and i could sleep soundly again.
the other thing that’s changed over the years has been the keyart of the film, with the most recent refresh done by artist/designer Ali Sabet for the HD-re-release that went live in 2019 . this HD version of the film also has one or two tiny changes (i had to fire up a PowerPC mac running final cut pro 5 and this was a whole nightmare and another story). so, this new streaming version is in fact the finished version of the film, a v2.44 version as it stands.
below is some of the art over the years, including the rare OG DVD design.
WHALE keyart redesign done with the help of artist/designer Ali Sabet for HD re-release - 2019
WHALE DVD coverart for current in circulation DVD’s - 2010
WHALE original DVD front cover design for released, but scrapped version of the film - 2009
WHALE original DVD back cover design for released, but scrapped version of the film - 2009
nice quick update -
finished a collaboration recently with the artist Sabet
piece is called FAR FROM ME and is available exclusively on KnownOrigin for the time being
FAR FROM ME
Sabet X amir motlagh
2022
Iran, a consistent sore spot, generational identity eraser, a never-ending quagmire leaving innocent lives lost, hopeless, lost and hopeless, again & again.
A place that realizes the definition of life’s not fair and certainly not politics.
May the innocent souls that have been sacrificed find peace, and may the land itself find peace.
