Film for thinking, film for feeling

Aeon’s Head of Video on curating a programme of ideas ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ [View in browser]( [Donate now]( [10 YEARS aeon]( Film for thinking, film for feeling: curating a programme of ideas I joined Aeon eight years ago as the ‘video curation assistant’. It was a curious title and, to be honest, one that I didn’t fully understand. Fresh off a seasonal gig at the Sundance Film Festival, I had some vague sense of what it meant to assemble a film programme, but little appreciation for the difference between lucid, intentional curation with a mission in mind and, say, screening and picking favourites. In the months and years that followed, I learned of the many ways that the language of film could convey ideas in a magazine that places them at its centre – and, in so doing, widen a viewer’s perspective and deepen their understanding of the world. In a media and arts landscape that so often pushes us around with algorithms and clickbait, Aeon magazine stands out. It’s been an absolute joy to be able to create musical scores for some of the early masterpieces of experimental cinema. Will Pearson, composer, United States Take, for instance, the [first film]( we ever featured, in 2013, which follows a fisherman in northern Greenland trying to make sense of the dwindling ice sheets around him. As sunlight begins to shine over the melting Arctic landscape for the first time in months, global warming – a topic so often conveyed through statistical modelling – gains the accessibility and powerful immediacy that only film can offer. Return of the Sun is about a man in the context of his culture amid a changing world, yes, but it’s also a meditation on how those most vulnerable to the climate crisis are often those least responsible for it. It’s beautiful and transporting. And it runs just a few ticks over three minutes. That is, of course, just one of the many ways in which thoughtful audiovisual storytelling can broaden outlooks and illuminate issues. Nine years later, our programme has included a [classic film]( that puts the size of the Universe in perspective; a [dance piece]( set to the comedian Stephen Fry’s hilarious diatribe on his loathing of dance; and a profile of [labourers]( in India who recycle the clothes Westerners cast away – among some 1,500 more Aeon Videos. I’ve come to think of our approach as ‘focused eclecticism’. An Aeon Video can be a [performance]( a work of [cinema]( or an [animation]( but there’s always a connective tissue in their capacity to change how a viewer sees the world – even if in small, subtle ways. #[I’d like to donate]( And we continue to grow. Over the years, we’ve also produced 38 [original videos]( collaborating with world-class thinkers and filmmakers to help fill what we see as a void in stylish, ideas-centric videos. (Where else on the web could you find, for instance, a [dazzling animation]( on the feud between Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung?) With the launch of Psyche in 2020 came the [Psyche Film programme]( which places emotion, immersion and artistic expression, rather than ideas, at the forefront. And, of course, it’s all assembled in an ongoing dialogue with our audience, whose feedback, in its many forms, is vital to our curation and creation process. As a filmmaker, I couldn’t be without Aeon’s thoughtfully curated documentary film section, which never fails to surprise, delight and challenge. It’s a treasure trove of short film gems exploring what it means to be human. Eleanor Mortimer, filmmaker, United Kingdom We’ve come a long way since the sun peeked over the Arctic horizon in 2013. In an increasingly noisy internet video landscape, we’ve put years of careful, algorithm-free thought into what we think will be worth your time. It’s a privilege to do this with thoughtful and curious viewers like you in mind – rather than clicks and quotas and advertisers. It’s a dialogue that I hope will continue for years to come. Your support makes a difference #[I’d like to donate]( P.S. To celebrate Aeon’s 10th birthday, our audio partner [Curio]( is giving away five annual subscriptions. Curio handpicks content from leading publications and turns them into beautifully narrated audio you can listen to at any time, anywhere. To be in the running, donate to [Aeon]( by Sunday 11 December. Because we don’t accept on-site advertising, all of our funding comes from donations. It’s the support we get from readers like you that will help keep us going for the next 10 years. Good luck! Adam D’Arpino Head of Video You have received this email because you signed up to the Aeon+Psyche Newsletter list. © Aeon Media Group Ltd 2022. Level 5, 100 Flinders Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000 Australia. [PRIVACY POLICY]( | [ADD US TO YOUR ADDRESS BOOK]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE]( | [CONTACT US](