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Ariana

Marine Hugonnier
2003 France 18 minutes French
© Marine Hugonnier - Max Wigram Gallery

Ariana tells the story of a film crew that sets out to visit the Pandjshêr Valley in Northern Afghanistan. Described in classic Persian poetry as a ‘paradise garden’, the impenetrable nature of the valley and its lush, fertile landscape have set it apart from the rest of the country and encouraged a history of independence and resistance. The film considers how the specificities of a landscape help to determine its history. As the crew is unable to film the valley from a vantage point in the surrounding Hindu Kush mountains, the film becomes the story of a failed project that prompts a process of reflection about the ‘panorama’ as a form of strategic overview, as a cinematic camera move, and its origins as a pre-cinematic mass entertainment.

Production :
Max Wigram Gallery; Chisenhale Gallery; National Touring Programme of Arts Council
Editing :
Ida Bregninge
Sound :
Aurélien Bras
Photography :
Tom Townend

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