2006-01-23
Jed Smith – Notes for a Film
Week 2: Richard Fung
The work of Richard Fung is much more in line with the idea of a confessional than the work of Su Friedrich. In Su Friedrich’s films, our sense of her identity is obfuscated and mediated through stylistic and aesthetic aspects of her artwork, however in the work of Richard Fung, we are given what seems to be a very clear, open, and sincere sense of who he is. This difference is brought about largely by his intensely personal stylistic approach, accomplished by his use of text on screen, and confiding playfulness and apparent sincerity.
Though the technical and associated aesthetic qualities of his films vary widely, Fung’s style, especially in the more documentary pieces, remains saturated with similarity. Contrasting Friedrich’s method of intentionally hiding her presence in the film, Fung opts instead for an intensely personal nearly confessional style that allows the audience to easily identify with him.
As an audience member watching Fung’s videos, I often got the sense that he wasn’t hiding anything, that he was laying all of himself out, for better or worse. One example is Fung’s playful aside in My Mother’s Place about how he was once caught dressing up in womens clothing, and his mother nearly kicked him out onto the street. This aspect is evident in a more powerful way also in Sea in the Blood, in Fung’s choice to show even aspects of his personality which might be deemed less than admirable. For example his own selfishness is evidenced by his choice to remain in denial about his sister’s terminal condition, and remain traveling in India with his boyfriend. Fung could have constructed this in such a way as to glorify himself, but instead, in the same manner as a confessional, we see his flaws and identify more thoroughly with him as a person.
This confessional aspect is evident in both My Mother’s Place and Sea in the Blood in Fung’s use of text. He often employs a line of marquee text on top of whatever narration or interview is currently happening, which conveys a sometimes witty, and sometimes intensely personal side note related to what is currently being talked about. In the interview History, Memory, and the Politics of Programming: The Video Work of Richard Fung, he says of his use of text “Sometimes I deploy it against the grain of the image, in ways which disrupt the image. In Sea in the Blood I use text to say things I couldn’t for various reasons bring myself to say in voice-over.” While Su Friedrich employs a similar style of disjunctive text and image, Fung uses it rather for the purpose of intensely personal revelation (Beattie).
Another thing besides the alternate and somewhat opposing styles of conveying a sense of oneself through obfuscation or confession evident in the work of Fung and Friedrich is that of the effect of the medium on how an audience sees a work. Friedrich’s medium of film particularly suited her artistic and somewhat formalist autobiographical style. Fung’s medium of video is likewise particularly suited to his borderline documentary style of confessional, personal history, and childhood place (Lee 105).
Video has a historical association with the real in my mind, being so often used with documentary and video art; the aesthetic thus lends itself well to Fung’s genuine portrayal. In addition to the possibilities of usage of the style of confession in my future work, I will certainly bear in mind with great importance the effect of the aesthetic of a medium on a viewing audience.
Works Cited:
Sea in the Blood. Dir. Richard Fung. 2000. Video, Color, Sound.
My Mother’s Place. Dir. Richard Fung. 1990. Video, Color, Sound.
Beattie, Keith. “History, Memory, and the Politics of Programming: The Video Work of Richard
Fung.” 27 June 2003. URL:
Richard Fung: Fungus Confessional
2006-01-23
Jed Smith – Notes for a Film
Week 2: Richard Fung
The work of Richard Fung is much more in line with the idea of a confessional than the work of Su Friedrich. In Su Friedrich’s films, our sense of her identity is obfuscated and mediated through stylistic and aesthetic aspects of her artwork, however in the work of Richard Fung, we are given what seems to be a very clear, open, and sincere sense of who he is. This difference is brought about largely by his intensely personal stylistic approach, accomplished by his use of text on screen, and confiding playfulness and apparent sincerity.
Though the technical and associated aesthetic qualities of his films vary widely, Fung’s style, especially in the more documentary pieces, remains saturated with similarity. Contrasting Friedrich’s method of intentionally hiding her presence in the film, Fung opts instead for an intensely personal nearly confessional style that allows the audience to easily identify with him.
As an audience member watching Fung’s videos, I often got the sense that he wasn’t hiding anything, that he was laying all of himself out, for better or worse. One example is Fung’s playful aside in My Mother’s Place about how he was once caught dressing up in womens clothing, and his mother nearly kicked him out onto the street. This aspect is evident in a more powerful way also in Sea in the Blood, in Fung’s choice to show even aspects of his personality which might be deemed less than admirable. For example his own selfishness is evidenced by his choice to remain in denial about his sister’s terminal condition, and remain traveling in India with his boyfriend. Fung could have constructed this in such a way as to glorify himself, but instead, in the same manner as a confessional, we see his flaws and identify more thoroughly with him as a person.
This confessional aspect is evident in both My Mother’s Place and Sea in the Blood in Fung’s use of text. He often employs a line of marquee text on top of whatever narration or interview is currently happening, which conveys a sometimes witty, and sometimes intensely personal side note related to what is currently being talked about. In the interview History, Memory, and the Politics of Programming: The Video Work of Richard Fung, he says of his use of text “Sometimes I deploy it against the grain of the image, in ways which disrupt the image. In Sea in the Blood I use text to say things I couldn’t for various reasons bring myself to say in voice-over.” While Su Friedrich employs a similar style of disjunctive text and image, Fung uses it rather for the purpose of intensely personal revelation (Beattie).
Another thing besides the alternate and somewhat opposing styles of conveying a sense of oneself through obfuscation or confession evident in the work of Fung and Friedrich is that of the effect of the medium on how an audience sees a work. Friedrich’s medium of film particularly suited her artistic and somewhat formalist autobiographical style. Fung’s medium of video is likewise particularly suited to his borderline documentary style of confessional, personal history, and childhood place (Lee 105).
Video has a historical association with the real in my mind, being so often used with documentary and video art; the aesthetic thus lends itself well to Fung’s genuine portrayal. In addition to the possibilities of usage of the style of confession in my future work, I will certainly bear in mind with great importance the effect of the aesthetic of a medium on a viewing audience.
Works Cited:
Sea in the Blood. Dir. Richard Fung. 2000. Video, Color, Sound.
My Mother’s Place. Dir. Richard Fung. 1990. Video, Color, Sound.
Beattie, Keith. “History, Memory, and the Politics of Programming: The Video Work of Richard
Fung.” 27 June 2003. URL: