sdlarcgirl
SD video 3:12 min
2009
In sdlarcgirl, (2009) artist Miljohn Ruperto edited a youtube video of a freestyle performance by Trinere. The piece, titled after the user’s screen name, is a meticulously inconspicuous edit of the original youtube footage. The artist muted the video and emptied it from the stage lighting and other accessories, leaving only the figure of the singer performing. Trinere, glowing under the spot lights, turns into a candle flame flickering against a black backdrop moving in sporadic and unpredictable movements. The movements are however not the movements of the performer on the stage, but the movements of the videographer, holding the camera, dancing. The video is of a camera dancing to the beats of the performance, free from the demands of the subject, propelled not by the logics of the event that its documenting, but rather by the movements of its operator. The dancer and the camera become a single entity, driven by the music. The visual subject/objects relations are inverted in the work, instead of Trinere being the subject of the camera’s operation, it is the camera that is the subject of the event. Here a new space is being formed and defined, one that is not defined by location, but by the movements. The camera creates a new architecture of the event and defines the special relationships according to its movements, separate from the direction of the lens. – Sohrab Mohebbi

The Clearing; or Recollections of a Trip to West Virginia, 13 Years Later, Perhaps 16
2 Channel Digital Video Installation 8:55 min
2007
Ben Busse and Sean Griffin are two friends who reminisce about a strange paranormal occurrence that they both experienced years ago. Though the narratives mirror each other, certain elements are remembered differently.

Driving South at Sunset. The Camera Faces East
HD Video 15:20 min
2007
A woman drives south on Interstate Highway 5 towards San Diego, California. The camera faces east, blocking the sunset. The woman fixes her attention directly ahead while a pop tune weaves in and out of her thoughts.

The Elusive Nardong Putik
Digital Video
2000
The Elusive Nardong Putik is based upon the myth surrounding Leonardo Manecio (1927–1971), also known as “Nardong Putik” or “Nardo of the Mud”. Manecio was a very famous bandit who lived in the province of Cavite, Philippines (about an hour southwest of the capital Manila).
Manecio was deeply involved in the violent warring political factions of mid-century provincial politics. He was wanted for numerous crimes including murder, kidnapping, and robbery, yet he always seemed to elude the Philippine Constabulary and the National Police. People soon began to attribute supernatural powers to his amazing escapes culminating in rumors of Manecio’s invincibility when his bare feet touches mud or earth – hence the name “putik”. Manecio was finally killed in a shootout with the National Police, his death inciting more rumors and superstition. In the video, the camera follows a re-enactment of Manecio snaking his way through the grassy farmlands of Cavite. An audio of a fictional interview between Manecio and an official plays as the footage loops. Both the parts (the interviewer and the unwilling interviewee, Manecio) are recited by the same voice.