The Nat King Cole Post Office (2016)

In this personal experimental film mashup by Jack Cochran and Pam Falkenberg, the poet's trip to the Nat King Cole Post Office in LA unexpectedly morphs into an offer of salvation followed by bickering amongst some great philosophers and visits to Friedrich Nietzsche's and Nat King Cole's graves. This short video is a stand alone follow up in the same style as the longer compilation video, "The Cost of Living." Like "Cost," "The Nat King Cole Post Office" takes as its starting point a Polaroid still and a short poem written by Jack Cochran, but from there, found footage, special effects, and a collage of audio sources combine with live action footage in ways perhaps not possible before the ubiquity of the internet and the affordability of high quality HD video equipment. However, the working method of filmmakers, poets, and musicians such as Chris Marker, Sarah Polley, Terence Nance, Leonard Cohen, and Neko Case provide some touchstones and context for Pam and Jack’s working methods.

  • Pamela Falkenberg and Jack Cochran
    Director
    The Cost of Living, Prada Marfa, The Eternal Footman, The Bloom
  • Jack Cochran
    Writer
    Viento Nocturno, Paris, Babe's and Ricky's Inn, Tank Man
  • Pamela Falkenberg
    Producer
    Open Territory
  • Pamela Falkenberg
    Cinematography
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Experimental, Short
  • Runtime:
    1 minute 22 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    July 22, 2016
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Pamela Falkenberg and Jack Cochran

Jack's bio:
Jack Cochran is an independent filmmaker who has produced, directed, or shot a variety of experimental and personal projects. He also works as a Director of Photography, with extensive experience shooting commercials, independent features, and documentaries. He has a varied commercial client list which includes BMW, Ford, Nissan, Fujifilm, Iomega, Corum Watches, and Forte Hotels. His features and documentaries have been shown at the Sundance, Raindance, Teluride, Tribeca, Edinburgh, Chicago, Houston, and Taos film Festivals, winning several honors. His commercials and documentaries have won Silver Lions from Cannes, a BAFTA (British Academy Award), Peabody Awards, and Cable Aces. Jack was trained at the University of Iowa Creative Writers Workshop as well as the University of Iowa film studies program. Some of his notable credits include Director of Photography on Brian Griffin's Claustrofoamia, Cinematography for Antony Thomas’ Tank Man, Director/Cinematographer of vientonocturno, and Cinematographer of Ramin Niami’s feature film Paris.

Pam's bio:
Pam Falkenberg is an independent filmmaker who received her PhD from the University of Iowa and taught at Northern Illinois University, St.Mary's College, and the University of Notre Dame. She directed the largest student film society in the US while she was at the University of Iowa, and also ran film series for the Snite Museum of Art in South Bend, IN. Her experimental film with Dan Curry, Open Territory, received an individual filmmaker grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as grants from the Center for New Television and the Indiana Arts Council. OT was screened at numerous film festivals, including the AFI Video Festival, and was nominated for a regional Emmy. Her other films include museum installations, scholarly/academic hybrid works shown at film conferences, and a documentary commissioned by the Peace Institute at the University of Notre Dame.

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Director Statement

Jack Cochran and Pam Falkenberg are making personal films together again, this time under the name Outlier Moving Pictures. They hope their new films will be worthy of the name -- avoiding the usual patterns and approaching their subject matter from the margins (which sounds better than saying that as filmmakers they're oddballs and cranks). Pam and Jack met in graduate school and made films together when they were young. Jack went on to become a professional cinematographer working out of LA and London, while Pam stayed in the Midwest, where she was a college professor and independent filmmaker before dropping out to work in visual display. Their first film together is based on Jack's short poems. Next is a film about the North Dakota landscape and Teddy Roosevelt. Along with that, a series of shorts about photo opportunities and roadside attractions in Texas. Then, who knows?