Further recollections of the salon of '22
A Surrealist Film Manifesto, 1922.
We, the surrealist artists, gather in this momentous occasion to unveil our latest revelation, our boldest proclamation yet. We propose the creation of a clandestine film studio that shall operate for a hundred years, producing select copies of Hollywood films to be screened to an elite and anonymous organization every year on the first of April.
Our intention is to subvert the Hollywood machine, to create alternative versions of their banal, mass-produced films that will challenge the dominant ideology and disrupt the hegemonic discourse of capitalist America. We shall produce films that defy logic and reason, that delve into the depths of the subconscious, and that liberate the imagination from the shackles of conformity.
This clandestine film studio shall operate in secrecy, its location known only to a select few, its activities shielded from the prying eyes of the outside world. The films it produces shall be screened only to a chosen few, individuals who share our surrealist vision and who are willing to engage with the radical ideas we present.
The screening of these films shall be an event of utmost importance, a celebration of the avant-garde and a rejection of the mainstream. We shall gather in the darkened room, surrounded by the flickering light of the projector, and let the images wash over us like a tidal wave of madness and inspiration.
But this is not the end of our mission. After each screening, the prints shall be taken to the forest and destroyed, as if they never existed. This act of destruction is essential to the surrealist ethos, for it emphasizes the ephemeral nature of art and the impermanence of all things. It is a reminder that true art cannot be contained or commodified, but must be allowed to flourish and die in its own time.
So let us embark on this surrealist adventure, this journey into the unknown. Let us create a legacy that will challenge the status quo and inspire generations to come. Let us embrace the madness and the chaos, and let us never forget that the true spirit of surrealism lies in the unbridled imagination of the human mind.
1922 Surrealist Film Manifesto
(unsigned)
ChatGPT, 2023
Images: Posters for Surrealist Films