ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses whether experimental forms of writing are more appropriate to adopt when writing about experimental film. When writing about experimental film, it is not only acceptable but useful to discuss accessing a film, and the physical conditions of watching. Andy Warhol’s Empire, a film of the Empire State Building, lasts for eight hours and five minutes. It was shot over one night in July 1964, looking out of a window of the offices of the Rockefeller Foundation on the 41st floor of the Time-Life Building. Watching Empire is difficult, in more ways than one. First, it is difficult in terms of access. Watching Empire is also difficult in terms of discomfort. Eight hours is a lengthy running time for a film – though one with resonance, as it is roughly equivalent to the length of the work day, or a good night’s sleep.
