James Benning's guest appearances

James Benning

The Film Comment Podcast

Konch

Yvonne Rainer

Austin Collins

John Sayles

Tennessee Williams

Emily Dickinson

Ethan Hawke

Ursula K. Le Guin

Ida Lupino

Walt Whitman

Stephanie Smith

Tilda Swinton

Gerard Manley Hopkins

Robert Burns

Boots Riley

Greta Gerwig

OwlTail

Erika Balsom

In the introduction to her new book on James Benning’s 2004 film, Ten Skies, critic and scholar Erika Balsom writes: “there are films that present themselves as complex objects but which are in fact quite simple … And then there are films—rarer altogether—that appear simple but harbour tremendous complexity. Such is the deception, the allure, of Ten Skies—a film messier and more profuse than my immediate love for it had allowed.”Balsom joined me to talk about the book (out now from Fireflies Press) and the many-sided approach she took to writing about one of the most deceptively simple—and beautiful—films in Benning’s fantastically varied body of work. We also discussed where Ten Skies fits into his filmography, the ways in which Benning plays with his own identity, how ten static shots of clouds can be a powerful political statement, and much more.Balsom will introduce a screening of Ten Skies at Light Industry in Brooklyn on July 1.

In the introduction to her new book on James Benning’s 2004 film, Ten Skies, critic and scholar Erika Balsom writes: “there are films that present themselves as complex objects but which are in fact quite simple … And then there are films—rarer altogether—that appear simple but harbour tremendous complexity. Such is the deception, the allure, of Ten Skies—a film messier and more profuse than my immediate love for it had allowed.”<br><br>Balsom joined me to talk about the book (out now from Fireflies Press) and the many-sided approach she took to writing about one of the most deceptively simple—and beautiful—films in Benning’s fantastically varied body of work. We also discussed where Ten Skies fits into his filmography, the ways in which Benning plays with his own identity, how ten static shots of clouds can be a powerful political statement, and much more.<br><br>Balsom will introduce a screening of Ten Skies at Light Industry in Brooklyn on July 1.

James Benning’s Ten Skies with Erika Balsom

Travis Jeppesen

Emma Balkind

ROBERT SMITHSON

'Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson: after James Benning' by Travis Jeppesen read by Emma Balkind. 'Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson: after James Benning' appears in the collection '16 Sculptures' published by Publication Studio in 2014. More from Emma Balkind can be found at https://twitter.com/emmabalkind

'Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson: after James Benning' by Travis Jeppesen read by Emma Balkind. 'Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson: after James Benning' appears in the collection '16 Sculptures' published by Publication Studio in 2014. More from Emma Balkind can be found at <a href="https://twitter.com/emmabalkind" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/emmabalkind</a>

'Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson: after James Benning' by Travis Jeppesen read by Emma Balkind