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On Seeing: Perception in Performance and Film

When: —
Venue: Birkbeck 43 Gordon Square

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Cutting-edge new performance and film works investigating how and what we see.

Join us for an afternoon of cutting-edge performance and film works created by artists investigating how and what we see. Witness the world afresh through your encounter with three short new works – Danai Miliaraki’s Unsee, Orla Smith’s Papercut, and Keeran Anwar Blessie’s A Fox in the Night.

The event begins in G10, and then moves to the Cinema. Followed by a short Q&A with the artists.

Unsee is a one actor performance adaptable for different exhibitions. Performing amongst exhibits, the actor becomes a mediator between them and the audience.  Gradually, she turns into an art embodiment herself. A voice. A cry to take her out of the sterile walls. To change her. To unsee her. Unsee was developed in the context of the Venice Biennale Fellowships Programme 2022, and presented in April 2023 at U10 Art Space Exhibition, Belgrade.

Conceived and directed by Danai Miliaraki

Papercut is an documentary-fiction hybrid film that delves into the filmmaker’s memories of a lost friendship. It starts with an old letter rediscovered, and turns into a meta-textual journey down memory lane, exploring friendship, filmmaking, and what it takes to move on from a relationship.

Orla Smith is a filmmaker based in London who is interested in character and relationship-based dramas, as well as experimenting with nonfiction and fiction. She has made two short films, Checking In and Papercut. Papercut premiered at the Drunken Film Fest Bradford in 2022.

A Fox In The Night is a south London story in which opposites attract, appearances deceive and bravery reaps rewards. Excited for a night out on the town, flamboyant and confident Lewis is suddenly cautious and uncomfortable when a friend asks him to pick up a little something from his dealer, Daniel. On arrival, Lewis is confronted with an unexpected invitation, and an unexpected connection. With an Uber on the way and daily life creeping back in, Lewis walks away with a different perception of the world around him, leaving Daniel with an invitation of his own.

BAFTA Longlisted 2023
Critics Circle Film Award, ‘Best British/Irish Short Film’ 2023
BIFA Nominated 2022

Writer, actor and director Keeran Anwar Blessie (he/him) graduated from Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in 2018. He worked as an actor for stage and screen. Excited by the possibility to tell stories with a fresh perspective led him to filmmaking as a screenwriter and director. His debut short film, A Fox in the Night, premiered at the BFI Flare Film Festival 2022, and at OUTFEST 2022. It is produced by RAW Inventive, whose Creative Director is Benjamin Jacob Smith.

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