Diminishing: The Dark and the Light
Diminishing: The Dark and the Light is an experimental film by videoart filmmaker Martin Lombok that explores the concept of diminishing, a randomly discovered relaxation technique that consists of standing still for a few minutes in the middle of another ordinary activity. The film consists of two static shots of a kitchen counter, where a man places dishes in a dishwasher and then tears a tea bag into pieces. The film creates a sense of confusion and discomfort in the viewers, as they are confronted with a reality that is both familiar and alien. The film challenges the viewers to question what they see and what they don’t see, and what it means. The film is not a message, but a medium, a film that is not a representation, but a presentation of reality.
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Martin LombokDirector
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Project Title (Original Language):Aftagning: Mørket og lyset
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Project Type:Experimental, Short, Other
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Genres:Experimental film, Video art, Avant-garde film, Art film, Minimalist film, fiction, horror, mystery
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Runtime:10 minutes 7 seconds
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Completion Date:July 19, 2023
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Production Budget:100 USD
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Country of Origin:Denmark
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Country of Filming:Czech Republic
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Language:No Dialogue
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Shooting Format:Digital 4K 30fps
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
Martin Lombok is an experimental filmmaker born in 1969 in the Czech Republic. He lives alternately in the Czech Republic and Denmark. He works with video art and other technologies to express his personal vision of the world. His films are minimalist and realistic, often using static shots and ambient sounds to create a sense of confusion and discomfort in the viewers. He is influenced by the works of Friedrich Nietzsche, Karl Popper, Alan Watts, and other existentialist thinkers. He is interested in exploring concepts such as reality, perception, knowledge, violence, and virtuality.
My film Diminishing: The Dark and the Light is a continuation of my exploration of the concept of diminishing, a randomly discovered relaxation technique that consists of standing still for a few minutes in the middle of another ordinary activity. In this film, I wanted to experiment with the contrast between the dark and the light, both literally and metaphorically. I wanted to create a film that would make the viewers question their own perception and reality, as they are faced with a reality that is both familiar and alien.
I used two static shots of a kitchen counter, where a man places dishes in a dishwasher and then tears a tea bag into pieces. The first shot is completely dark, as the camera is inside the dishwasher. The second shot is brightly lit, as the camera looks down at the counter. I used contact sound and ambient noises to create a contrast between the silence and the noise, the stillness and the movement, the visible and the invisible. I wanted to show the viewers something that exists, but that they would never see without me. I wanted to make them wonder what is hidden inside or behind the objects, what is the meaning of these actions, what is the purpose of this film.
My film is not a message, but a medium, a film that is not a representation, but a presentation of reality. My film is not a story, but an experiment, a film that is not an expression, but an impression of reality.