Filmmaker Jonas Mekas On Poetry, Ordinary Moments, And Turning 90 For MOCAtv (VIDEO)

The Godfather Of The Avant-Garde Is Still Going Strong

"I live, therefore I make films. I make film, therefore I live. Life. Movement. I make home movies, therefore I live. I live, therefore I make home movies," a voice chants alongside an accordion as images of a stranger's wedding flash by in the video above. This sums up the ethos of 89-year old filmmaker Jonas Mekas, often referred to as the "godfather of the American avant-garde."

MOCAtv goes inside Mekas' studio for a personal interview with the legendary artist. For decades Mekas has filmed ordinary moments of his life every single day, capturing the fleeting poetry of New York life. He weaves his film archives into visual diaries and photographic works of art that capture the outsider spirit of Brooklyn.

The next month holds big things for the filmmaker, including exhibitions at Serpentine Gallery, BFI Southbank and the Centre Pompidou. And yet we imagine Mekas isn't too concerned with the coming months. "I’m not so much in the future as always in the present," he told Dazed Digital. "The future always takes care of itself. What I do now with my video camera, it can only record what is happening now. I am celebrating reality and the essence of the moment. And that’s the greatest challenge that I have."

Also, we highly recommend watching Mekas' commentary on Paris Hilton and change in the video below, which is far more touching than the title suggests.

Read critics comments on another great experimental filmmaker, Chris Marker, below:

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