Minimalist Glitch Video Is a Masterpiece of Suspense There’s power in suspense, and Italian director Georgia Tribuiani knows this to be true. In her project Things must separate in order to appear, Georgia uses suspense to create a clever and thrilling video. VHS aesthetics meet stripped down visuals and glitch in a striking assemblage of clips. Georgia creates action from an array of objects – a black electric fan blows a clear plastic bag wrapped around a white chair, a boulder swings around a table sculpture. Currently based in LA, Georgia developed her unique artistic style over years of working in advertising and fashion with clients including Vogue. Her clean aesthetics and use of symmetry ensure that her work is immediately eye catching – if a bit unsettling. We had a chat with Georgia about her process and philosophy. THE PLUS: You tease your audience on multiple occasions. Why, and do you enjoy this? Georgia Tribuiani: I believe that teasing in a playful way is a trigger thoughts, feelings, emotions, and ideas. I enjoy knowing that my audience is always surprised by what comes next in my work. TP: Tell us more about the message you wanted to convey with this work. GT: Deconstruction is a way of understanding the secret mechanisms of things – objects, relationships, and ideas. I want my audience to think in different ways about the reality that surrounds them. TP: There is a repeating pattern of suspense and relief in the film. Was potentially making your audience feel uneasy one of the film’s purposes? GT: Yes, images and ideas should be unsettling, that’s why they make us think and feel. In the film we are always on the verge of seeing something falling apart or going wrong, we have to surrender control in order to enjoy the moment in its pure beauty. TP: What do you find interesting about the experience of not knowing what happens next? GT: The blank space, what is not in the film. How viewers fill that gap. No matter what, it will always keep you guessing about what could happen next. TP: What feelings do you have when you watch the film? GT: Personally I always feel different every time I see it. TP: You play with people’s urge for order and symmetry, for example with the crooked painting. What were your intentions behind this? GT: That’s an overture to the subject of the film. It’s my personal OCD. I love symmetry and order and I understand it’s a way of controlling space and ideas. I think a lot of people can empathise with that. TP: Why do you think people are fascinated about things breaking or being destroyed? GT: Maybe it’s just a spontaneous reaction to the allure of the cause and effect relationship. TP: The colours you use are mainly black, grey and white. How did this choice enhance the project and its message? GT: I choose a minimalist colour palette to keep the focus of the film on the action/reaction. TP: What can we look forward to seeing from you in the future? GT: I just fished a fashion film for Hermès based on an endless forward movement towards a vanishing horizon, inspired by the theme of the Hermès FW18 collection called The Endless Road. I’m always looking for inventive and imaginative projects that show a subject matter in a new light.
