School of the Art Institute of Chicago

A depiction of the landscape, both metaphorically and realistically, of Panyi island. Some footage in the film was taken from the material shot for Mysterious Object at Noon

Open Season considers some of the founding heroes and myths of the American frontier, set within a contemporary landscape. The people we encounter persist in giving sense to their environment which often seems hostile to their concerns. At the boyhood home of Davy Crockett, we encounter his modern day advocate; across the street is a small businessman who sells "Davy Dogs" and tries to keep a failing business afloat. From here, we move across America meeting others who live on the edge of the American dream.

0116643225059 is an early experimental film by Weerasethakul made during his time at SAIC. The work is about a long-distance telephone conversation between the filmmaker and his beloved mother in Khon Kaen, Thailand. Weerasethakul superimposed a photograph of his mother in her youth alongside his own image and his apartment in Chicago. It renders a strong bond between the artist and his family.

The whole movie is a digital hand drawing animation short. It tells the stories of my father. After a dramatic turning point, life is still flat and peaceful, like a river running forward. However, the memories always come back.

George spends quality time with his friends Karen and Carla in this unconventional, glitchy, collaged holiday video. HOLIDAZE filters a gift exchange through a lightly ironic, kitschy palette: whizzing geometric irises, stock footage of angelic-looking kids opening presents, and MIDI versions of Christmas songs. Kuchar’s magic was his ability to see the cinematic potential in everything around him—here, he finds endearing humor in three friends trying to work a landline phone. It became a tradition for Kuchar to break out the camera during his friends’ holiday festivities, but HOLIDAZE is unique for its visual verve, with lo-fi effects reminiscent of an arcade game.