The Girl Chewing Gum
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| The Girl Chewing Gum | |
|---|---|
.png) Frame from the film | |
| Directed by | John Smith |
Release date |
|
Running time | 12 minutes |
| Country | UK |
| Language | English |
The Girl Chewing Gum is a 1976 British avant-garde short film directed by John Smith.[1][2][3]
The film, made as the ideological opposition to mainstream cinema,[4][5] was inspired by a scene in François Truffaut's 1973 film Day for Night in which the director gives instructions to the actors, and even tells a dog to urinate on a lamppost.[6][7]
Summary
At Stamford Road in Dalston Junction of east London, the camera follows pedestrians, cars and birds while a narrator, who appears to be the (fictional) director behind the camera, seems to direct their actions.[8][9][10][11]
Legacy
The film is widely acknowledged as one of the most important avant-garde films of the 20th century.[12]
The Girl Chewing Gum was preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2019.[13]
Similar works
- 1973: The aforementioned Academy Award-winning Day for Night by François Truffaut
- 2011: The 2 min 28 sec Swedish short film Fågel däruppe by Mårten Nilsson