Video Poetry

The still above is from my first foray into "video poetry" which is a form that can be dated back to the 70s, but still suffers from the same thing as all poetry: no clear definition.

For me, "video poetry" is about melding the function of a poem with the quality of a video (and potentially sound) in a way that enhances both experiences. What makes these two mediums complement each other so well, in my opinion, is their reliance on limitations. Poetry forms create limitations that authors can either embrace or push against, either way, if done properly the poem succeeds as a result of the restraints created around the piece. Meanwhile, in film, limitations push creativity for the filmmaker. If you don't have a dolly to hold your camera, maybe find a different angle that tells a story or use the handheld quality to your advantage.

By combining these two mediums and effectively combining limitations and breaking them, I feel that video poetry has the potential to evoke an emotional response better than alternative forms of either medium.

In my own path with the medium, I've found that visually presenting the words of a poetry while also presenting a visual can be difficult. There are different strategies to use: white screen with text adjacent to the film, text with black stroke over the video, or overlaying the text directly onto the video. The latter is the strongest for me, offering the video integration to the poem while allowing the text to retain its simplistic, functional quality.

However, this form isn't without difficulties. By directly overfacing the text to the video, it can become difficult to read. To sidestep this issue, I've tried to be greatly intentional with my textual placement both physically and temporally. For videos such as Names / Faces it works.

However, I've also played with the removal of text altogether to focus wholly on sounds and performance. Beyond speaking the poems, sound design is a part of the medium I'm growing more sensitive to. If a video doesn't have sound, that means something and if the video does have sound, then it better not distract. As a result, I've had to create some ambient soundscapes to compliment the poetry while not distracting from the words such as in the poem below Through the Panes.

While I don't think the medium is best for all my poetry, it's something I want to explore further and I hope to grow in. If you want to read/watch/listen to any of the poems I've mentioned here then please click the link beneath the picture or go to my YouTube channel linked here.

Thank you for reading!