Materialist Film

Materialist Film is a book that introduces readers to the avant-garde and experimental aspects of film, both in the creation and viewing of it. It consists of 37 short chapters that explore various concepts related to experimental film, using specific examples from the works of artists such as Andy Warhol, Malcolm LeGrice, and Jean-Luc Goddard. The author, Peter Gidal, draws on political and aesthetic writings and includes some of his own previously published essays to delve into these abstract concepts. The book was originally published in 1989.

A polemical introduction to the avant-garde and experimental in film (including making and viewing), Materialist Film is a highly original, thought-provoking book. Thirty-seven short chapters work through a series of concepts which will enable the reader to deal imaginatively with the contradictory issues produced by experimental film. Each concept is explored in conjunction with specific films by Andy Warhol, Malcolm LeGrice, Lis Rhodes, Jean-Luc Goddard, Rose Lowder, Kurt Kren, and others. Peter Gidal draws on important politico-aesthetic writings, and uses some of his own previously published essays from Undercut, Screen, October, and Millennium Film Journal to undertake this concrete process of working through abstract concepts. Originally published in 1989.