Hyun Kang Kim: The Real in Film. The historical real, the optical real, and the material real

The Real of Reality | International Conference on Philosophy and
Film


Wed, 02.11.2016 – Sun, 06.11.2016
ZKM_Media Theater, ZKM_Lecture Hall, ZKM_Media Lounge, ZKM_Cube


My presentation is based on the proposition that every film,
whether documentary or feature film, is based on the mutual
relationship between the found and the invented, the material and
the fiction, the real and the symbolic. In addition, as opposed
to the closed form of the feature film, the open form of the
documentary film can make the interplay between the real and the
symbolic, the recorded material and the narrative, more visible.
Hence, the documentary film is not a reproduction of reality, but
a creative approach to the real, which is directly connected to
the everlasting search for the answer to the question: what is
the real?


What, then, is the real? The real is not the objective fact of
reality, but something that is always perceived by a distorted
view. Thus, in the real, the distorted subjective view is always
included. However, if one accepts that the documentary material
is always framed by an interpretation and subjective perspective,
this nevertheless means that the real is the construct of a
perspectivism, because there is the actual existence and effect
of the real. Nevertheless, this is always in a reciprocal
relationship between the observer and the observed.


What is the real in film? In film, at least three kinds of „the
real“ can be ascertained. They are the historical real, the
optical real, and the material real. My presentation deals with
these three kinds of the real based on the film theories of
Benjamin, Moholy-Nagy, and Vertov.


International Conference on Philosophy and Film
Photography and film in particular paved the way for complex
philosophical questions regarding the nature of reality and its
mechanical reproduction. What does film reproduce and how can we
grasp this element, which has the transactive ability to form
reality although originating in reality? This shaping takes palce
through a complex interaction of image, action and narration and
tends to permeate reality completely. It is an inconspicuous
process that already affects our everyday life profoundly and is
based on a revolution of the real. What does film show? Do we
have access to reality that is not based on images or narrations?
And what can film and its analysis contribute to philosophical
debates on the real?
These are questions we are asking to engage in a dialogue between
philosophy and film. For five days, one hundred and fifty
philosophers, media scholars and filmmakers will connect
philosophical theory with cinematic practice and open up new
ideas and concepts. To accompany the program, there will be film
screenings of documentaries of the invited filmmakers.
The participation at the conference is also possible without the
presentation of a paper.
The conference will be held in English.