Christopher Richmond
The Milky Way, 2014-15
16mm color film, sound transferred to HD video
55:00 (loop)
In The Milky Way, a humanoid giant encounters a variety of characters living on the margins of society. It has a round, placid face with deep-set eyes that appear to indicate intelligence. It is made of concrete that has solidified and hardened over time, but it is also clearly a special effect. It is a special effect that is only partly convincing because it is animatronics and uses mechanical technology as opposed to a kind of seamless CGI type of effect. It is an analog effect that reflects back on both the apparatus of the camera and on celluloid film’s concrete and elusive qualities. It is an analog inside the analog. A silent figure that represents a series of figures that have appeared throughout cinematic history but generally stand for the absence of language. It is a symbol of silence. There is a good deal of talking around it but it remains quiet and all seeing. The characters are drawn to it and confide their personal feelings. They ramble resentments. They ask questions. They declaim cut-ups and quote comics, movies, and philosophers, however, it does nothing but look back at them. It never challenges their impassioned soliloquies or questions their search for meaning. Traveling by car through a myriad of landscapes, from the natural habitats of the forest and desert, to the inner city of Los Angeles, The Milky Way’s off-kilter characters are brought together under circumstances that are in and of themselves a bit unusual. Something is amiss in this world. Travel seems to happen, but without a destination; it is like some sort of primeval wandering in the Western canon.
Credits:
Directed and Conceived by Christopher Richmond
Starring (in order of appearance): Bill Doyle, Debby Richmond, David Muenzer, Augusto Aguilera, Santos Vásquez, Melissa Paladino, John Linton, David Simon
Cinematography: Boa Simon
Editors: Christopher Richmond, Eric Sheehan
Costume Design: Candace Lewis
Costume: Chelsea Pickens
Assistant Director: Elizabeth Burbach
Assistant Camera: Jenny Hou
Additional Crew: Colin Trenbeath, Daniel Schade, Robert Raad, Emett Casey
FotoKem Colorist: Brian Kahovec
HD Colorist: Boa Simon
Original Music: Elisa Harkins
Sound Design: Marvin Astorga, Christopher Richmond, Eric Sheehan
Re-recording Mixer: Matt Gangi
Sound: Matthew Anderson, Greg Fonda, Christopher Richmond, Santi Vernetti, Freesound.org licensed under Creative Commons: CC BY 1.0 (creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/), Nature audio provided by Quiet Planet
Special Thanks: Thomas Bailey, Lucia Fabio, Becket Flannery, FotoKem, Sally Koblinsky, Young Joon Kwak, Tala Madani, Dwayne Moser, Robert Mueller, Nate Page, A.L. Steiner, Debra Simon, Jan Tumlir, Santi Vernetti, Jennifer West, Alexandra Wetzel, Charlie White
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