Opening Reception Held for Ryusuke Ito’s “Front Projection” at Kyoto International Film Festival!
2015年10月1日(木) Report
It’s been a year since the curtain closed on the popular Kyoto International Film Festival 2014. Just as last year’s theme of “Strange and Turbulent Love in Kyoto,” this year the film and art works represent a variety of ideas. Doubtless, this year again the festival will present some unmissable pieces and enthrall the audience.
Ahead of the October 15th start, Ryusuke Ito’s solo exhibition “Front Projection” opened on September 26. Ito creates his works using a variety of film-related techniques and tools, including the theme of video transmission, to produce his installations. This exhibition is a series using a medium of “Realistic Virtuality,” and features moulded objects such as a diorama (a 19th-century mobile theatre device) captured by CCD Camera.
The exhibition is held at the Anteroom bar inside the Anteroom hotel in Kyoto, where upon entering the lobby, guests are faced with a display called “Dinosaur Rules.” Dinosaur’s mouths are projected on to the wall, with their mouths opening and closing, and reflects the shape of objects in front of the walls. In addition, five other works are displayed, including the diorama, “Back Drops” and on the exterior, a piece titled “Unit Bus.”
Mr. Ito held a talkshow at the opening reception for the exhibition, which also featured appearances by Kenta Oka and Takeshi Nadaki. The event was held on the hotel’s lounge, which champagne ensuring a relaxed atmosphere. After thanking everyone for waiting, and announcing the guests, all three joined the stage to give a toast and begin the discussion.
Takeshu Nadagi is a hardcore movie fan and loves to talk about movies regardless of their genre. “How about this foreign character?” Kenta asked. “It’s a drama, with that pose of the leg!” he replied to laughter from the crowd. Mr. Ito then showed movies recorded of his father as a child and found common ground with Mr. Nagaki, when it came to the influence of their father’s on their love for film.
The three stood by the exhibit “Discover of Movies,” a fusion of art and film, before Mr. Nagaki spoke about another work titled “The Study of the Cat and Mouse,” and recalled being deeply moved by seeing the shooting methods used for “Star Wars.” It took Mr. Ito 2-3 months to make his works, and Mr. Oka praised Mr. Ito for his “beautiful choice of lighting and camera angles.”
The trio then discussed Mr. Nagaki’s own appearance in the movies, including in the Kyoto International Film Festival film “Mr. Max Man” where he played the master of a coffee shop. He told tales from behind the scenes, with the cast. “The day before the shoot we got a call from the manager, in the middle of the night, that things had changed.” He admitted his surprise at the script on the first day, and said “Yoshimoto is still great!”
The exhibition runs until October 18, and guests can feel the buzz of the festival before it even begins at the venue. To enjoy the artistic mood of the city during Autumn, be sure to drop by the Anteroom bar.
