Artistes Burlesques
Artistes Burlesques is a film made by John Bickerton in February 2018.
His work creating Artistes Burlesques began upon seeing a screening of the 1936 experimental film Rose Hobart by Joseph Cornell. To make that film, Cornell cut and re-edited the 1931 film East of Borneo starring the silent film actress Rose Hobart. Cornell basically used only her scenes to make his film. Rose Hobart has gone on to become one of America’s most famous surrealist short films. John applied this aesthetic to various found sources to create a unique experience.
Joseph Cornell’s 1936 film “Rose Hobart” used footage from the 1931 film “East of Borneo”
Artistes Burlesques uses the song Cortège from the 1999 album Shadow Boxes on Leo Lab Records as its soundtrack.
Official Blurb: Pianist/Composer John Bickerton created the film Artistes Burlesques as an homage to the surrealist films of the American artist Joseph Cornell. Artistes Burlesques combines found footage, public domain footage, and stock footage to create an otherworldly, dreamlike theater featuring a montage of circus performers, exotic dancers, and ballerinas.
The American artist Joseph Cornell, famous for his assemblage techniques, shadowboxes, and 2D collage was also a groundbreaking filmmaker. He began creating films in the 1930s and continued until the late 1960s. Films like Cornell’s Rose Hobart and Centuries of June, the latter made with a young Stan Brakhage, are now considered classics of 20th-century experimental filmmaking.
Film Festival Screenings
Artistes Burlesques was an official selection and had multiple screenings at the Trenton Film Festival from March 28-31, 2019. The film features my song “Cortege” from the album “Shadow Boxes” featuring Rashid Bakr, drums, Matthew Heyner, bass, John Bickerton, piano.
Artistes Burlesques was an official selection at the 2019 Psychedelic and Transpersonal Film and Music Festival. The film screened at The Spectacle Theater (cool venue) in Williamsburg, Brooklyn on May 12th, 2019.
The Psychedelic and Transpersonal Film and Music Festival is an exploration of altered states of consciousness achieved thru meditation, magic, shamanism, psychedelics, film, music, art, virtual reality and other mediums.
I’m very happy and grateful to the Berlin Short Film Festival 2019 for selecting Artist Burlesques as Best Experimental Short FIlm. The film was screened on Sunday, July 14th, 2019 at the Babylon Cinema, Berlin. – John Bickerton Update July 15, 2019
June 4, 2019: Artistes Burlesques has been chosen as an official selection at the Berlin Short Film Festival. The film will screen at 10 PM on July 14, 2019, at the Babylon Cinema in Berlin, Germany.
Now celebrating its sixth year, the annual Berlin Short Film Festival aims to be one of Europe’s leading film festivals for international film-makers. It is a unique platform for new talent and a celebration of cinematic creativity and innovation.
Artistes Burlesques was an official selection at the Great Lakes Film Festival. It was screened on October 16, 2019, in the Experimental Film Category.
The Great Lakes Shorts Film Festival is an innovative portal for all filmmakers and movie buffs to come together and celebrate the possibilities that technology will continue to allow as the digital film industry grows.