This special edition of Scattered Sessions delves into the topics of extended cinema and real time composition, with audience Q&A.

Hosted by musician and composer, Oisín Quigley, Scattered Sessions, seeks to bring musicology to the public sphere through events that blend intimate musical performances with conversations featuring leading artists.

Episode 3 of Scattered Sessions features the latest live show by experimental filmmaker, Michael Higgins and composer, Oli Ryan, 'UP CLOSE REMOTE CONTROL'.

On Culture Night, join us for a live recording of the full performance and an audience Q&A discussing the blurred lines between cinema and musical performance.

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UP CLOSE REMOTE CONTROL

An expanded cinema performance by Michael Higgins & Oli Ryan.

This live work explores cinema as a network of machines, materials, sounds and images. Analogue projectors, film, contact microphones, acoustic exciters and other devices are brought together through improvisation, allowing the cinematic apparatus to become something physical, unpredictable and alive.

Returning to the expanded cinema practices developed through Open Night Cinema, Higgins and Ryan create a space where image and sound are generated, interrupted and transformed in real time — a cinema that sees, responds and performs.

Michael Higgins is an Irish underground filmmaker. His work often blurs the lines between documentary and fiction, aiming to disrupt everyday perceptions and offer alternative ways of seeing and experiencing reality.

One of his notable works, "At One Fell Swoop" (2015), was shot using a 50-year-old wind-up camera on expired 16mm black-and-white film, which he hand-processed. This film takes viewers on a journey presenting a stone carver's introspective odyssey in rural Ireland. In 2013, Higgins released "Smolt," a film that immerses audiences in inner-city Dublin through the eyes of two 12-year-old boys. Conceived in the style of a bootleg VHS, the film blends experimental techniques with narrative elements, offering a unique perspective on urban youth culture.

Higgins's contributions to experimental cinema have been recognised within Ireland and internationally. His work continues to inspire discussions about the nature of reality and the possibilities of film as an artistic medium.

Oli Ryan is an artist, composer and performer based in Dublin. His sculptural work includes objects and instruments that respond to situations and context, as well as inviting viewer participation using metal, wood, glass, electronics and mixed media outcomes. He has written music for film, theatre and circus, often creating unique sound processes to do so, and has worked with video and performance in experimental music and expanded cinema contexts in Ireland and abroad, both within and outside the gallery environment. Much of his work reflects on the irreverence and absurdity of life through humour and/or grim existentialism. Recent work includes the score for aerialist spectacle Anchorpoint, which was presented as part of the Kilkenny Arts Festival.

This is a free event but donations are appreciated. Booking required.

Description supplied by the event organiser.