Renga

1989 9 min

“Renga is a linked-verse form of Japanese poetry that, though still practiced today, reached its peak between the 13th and 16th centuries. It is characterized by being a group composition, typically in the presence of judges and an audience, with poets rapidly contributing stanzas such that each new stanza addresses only the previous stanza; there is no overarching plot development, and the overall structure is a chain, not a conventional, linear narrative… In 1989, I had the great privilege to be involved in a film renga that was produced in the graduate film seminar led by Nathaniel Dorsky at the San Francisco Art Institute.” —Eric Theise

director Erik Anderson, Laura Poitras, Kim Tempest, Paul Baker, Kurt Easterwood, Nathaniel Dorsky, Dena Penniston, Bud Lassiter, Geoffrey Luck, Eric Theise, Alan Mukamal, John McGeehan