at Hammer to Nail with 'Convento' Review by Mike Tully
Jarred Alterman’s Convento is a multi-fold achievement. It’s an inspiring tribute to a well-adjusted family, it’s a reverent document of a very special place, and it’s perhaps most distinguishable as a stunning showcase for Christiaan Zwanikken’s artwork. As described in the film’s press notes, Christiaan is a “kinetic artist who reanimates skeletal parts and deceased wildlife with servomotors and robotics.” These creatures would be awesome (and by ‘awesome’ I mean the original definition of that term) in any environment, yet here, they become something altogether more indelible. They’re like wandering, leftover figures from some extinct futuristic planet. That said, it isn’t just the artwork itself that brings Convento to such rich life. In the way that Christiaan thrillingly fuses the natural world with mechanics in his work, director/cinematographer/editor Alterman delivers a similarly perfect marriage of form and content.
Just about anyone can become an accomplished technical filmmaker. Clearly, Alterman knows how to photograph and edit, and his collaboration with musician Lawrence Dolan cannot be understated—it’s an excellent sonic expression of the element of sci-fi naturalism that defines Christiaan’s work. But there is something deeper going on here. I have no idea how much time Alterman spent at Sao Francisco or how well he knew the Zwanikkens before pressing the record button, but with every static camera placement, every slow dolly, every edit, it feels as if he was connecting to his material on a more instinctive, spiritual level. Whatever energy is in the air or water that makes Sao Francisco such a special place, Alterman managed to bottle that into this film.
