This isn't What It Appears
CHOI Heehyun
- South Korea,US
- 2022
- 19min
- 12 +
- DCP
- color
WP
Synopsis
Among the many things hidden in the image is the camera. By reconstructing the perspective of Korean women's photographs taken by American soldiers stationed in Korea in the 1950s from different angles, the film attempts to reveal the camera as a medium with the power to subvert the hierarchy in images rather than an objective view.
Review
What we hear in This isn't What It Appears is an explanation of the relationship between the camera and reality. According to the explanation, it has been believed that the uniqueness of a photo lies not in the person who presses the shutter but in the shutter itself and that reality is recorded on film through the lens.
What we see in the film are frames that overlap in various ways. The old photo, the person who looks at the photo, the screen the person was photographed on, and the monitor containing the screen are continuously presented. At the intersection where what we hear and what we see meet, there is a picture taken by an anonymous cameraman during the war. Interestingly, on the back of the picture is written the phrase “This isn't What It Appears” to the effect that what is in the picture is fiction. Through the presentation and mixing of various materials, the film tells us that what is captured in the camera is ultimately a composition of reality.Director
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CHOI Heehyun
Based in Los Angeles and Seoul, CHOI creates experimental films. She is interested in dealing with image’s materiality and virtuality through investigations on film format. Her works were shown at several film festivals.