Artist and filmmaker Manuela de Laborde captures the experiences of a group of artists in Las Pozas, the legendary surreal garden created by Edward James in Xilitla, Mexico. In her abstract style, she works using varying textures of 16mm film while the artists sculpt material and give shape to their works or create different types of food. Graininess, unpredictable words, colors and the adjustment of an artistic work in nature are what make up this collectively immersive sensory experience. (MMF)
-IFFR - Bright Future - 2020
-BLACK CANVAS FFC CDMX - 2020
-ANTOFACINE - 2020
-35° Festival Internacional de Cine de Mar del Plata - 2020
Manuela de Laborde is an artist and filmmaker from Mexico City. Laborde’s practice, by abstracting concepts from their concrete properties, looks to create [virtual] spaces and [regenerate] the image. Inspired by simplicity of expression, economy of detail, location of exhibition, her practice is a meditation on physical presence. To the eye, her work carries aesthetic claims and pleasure; yet in its presentation is performative and in its purpose, conceptual.
In 2012 she exhibited her solo show, Maquettes, in Generator Projects, Dundee; in 2013 screened, Sun, at London MexFest with the live score of Camila Fuchs; her short films Viveros, The exponential Nature of Images and Le Visible et L’Invisible where shown at Antimatter FF, Jihlava IDFF and Milwaukee UFF; and this year her thesis film, As Without So Within, was screened at Toronto International Film Festival, Winnipeg WNDX (Best International Short), 25fps Festival in Zagreb (Grand Prix), FICM of Morelia and International Film Festival Rotterdam, New Directors MoMA + FSLC and VideoBrasil among others. Manuela is currently one of the ‘resident’ filmmakers for Oberhausen Film Festival - Conditional Cinema for which she is finishing her film, Ficciones. During October this year Manuela attended the artist residency at LIFT (Liason of Independent Filmmakers in Toronto).