Video, 7min 18sec
Exhibited in Isola Cinema festival 2015 as a video installation
3600 is the name of the device that was used to record the video. Its unique construction allows the GoPro 3+ camera to be mounted and then moved and spun around by wind unpredictably along the X- and Y-axis. It is made of wood, with a 4 m long aluminium axis installed on bearings and vertical paper sails. Another bearing is used to tie the device under treetops with a rope.
The title Fallen Trees denotes the main subject of the experimental documentary film: the trees that were damaged by sleet in January 2014, one of the worst natural disasters ever to hit Slovenia.
The entire video was shot at different locations on Golovec near Ljubljana. The sound comes from recordings of generators that were providing energy to the homes cut off because of sleet. It gives the video a touch of dynamics. The sound was further adapted to the movement of the camera in post-production. Filming with a GoPro camera installed on a tree and driven by wind is a twist to classic film direction which is always influenced by a human perspective and has a sharp focus. The camera works independently and thus seems closer to "natural" objectiveness of expression, which is one of the main values of documentary film. The dynamic perspective renders the fallen trees even more deformed, the human perspective of space and time is diminishing, and texture and materiality of the image are more important than their content and meaning. A completely figurative image suddenly shows an abstract value that is closer to action painting.
