Impressions of a Burning Man
Went to see Confessions of a Burning Man at the most ironic of locations today: The Sony Metreon in San Francisco.
In a side theatre staffed by the actors and producers of the film, we sat in uncomfortable seats and enjoyed the perspective of several people who seemed vaguely familiar, filmed in 2001 - our last trip to Burning Man.
The entire experience - from the switched-on director who greeted me as I bought expensive tickets, to the informal seating, to the all-too-short film itself - reminded me of the Burning Man experience. The final touch was AFTER the screening.
After wandering through someone's BM-inspired art installation, writing in small books, and trying to find ourselves or familiar scenes in 360-degree panoramic photos, we encountered one of our protagonists, Rose, selling homemade baked goods. We got the good story of what's happened for them in the past two years (akin to our story), and talked again about Going this year.
Considering how difficult it is to boil down a weeklong experience of survival art community into less than 2 hours of cinema, participatory art, and personal connection, I found the whole thing quite satisfying and a little inspiring. If you can stomach the capitalism of the Metreon, I recommend bringing some folks who haven't been to the desert and writing me with their reaction!
September 14, 2003
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