In 1872, in an era when photography was still slow and static, Eadweard Muybridge successfully photographed a horse galloping at full speed. Aspects of time and space were made visible, unfolding a new world for the arts and science, as well as the entertainment industry. Thirteen years and hundreds of obsessive motion studies later, Muybridge had become a father, a murderer and a widower.
Who was Eadweard Muybridge? What drove him? How did it feel to make such fundamental discoveries? When Muybridge died, he left no personal letters or diaries. To understand the man who stopped time, filmmaker Chris Teerink will become Muybridge, redoing his experiments with 3D technology. He visits archives, museums, and (altered) landscapes that the pioneer photographed. By doing so, Teerink tries to fathom Muybridge’s intriguing, but also dark personality, and his groundbreaking – at times weird – experiments.
Muybridge’s work will be explored through different platforms. The viewer can follow Teerink via an app for mobile devices in the form of a filmmaker’s diary. As of 2017, the feature documentary, along with an exhibition, will be showcased at different theatres, festivals and museums.
Who was Eadweard Muybridge? What drove him? How did it feel to make such fundamental discoveries? Until December 2015, the viewer can follow filmmaker Chris Teerink in this application in the form of a diary. In order to understand Muybridge, Teerink visits archives, museums and former scenes, trying to fathom the intriguing, at times dark personality and the ground-breaking experiments that he carried out. Every fortnight Teerink will post a new story, providing an insight into the world of this fascinating 19th century pioneer, as well as a glimpse into the filmmaker’s own thoughts and praxis.
Filmmaker Chris Teerink becomes Eadweard Muybridge in order to understand the life of the pioneer. By reconstructing Muybridges Animal Locomotion experiments with 3D technology, Teerink is able to show reality as it has never been seen before. Showing not only the results of these reconstructions, but also revealing how they were made, Teerink allows the viewer to be a witness to a similar process, and to experience the same tension and excitement as Muybridge did.