NYFF AT 51 REVIEW: "TIM'S VERMEER"
THE 51ST NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL, RUNNING FROM SEPTEMBER 27TH - OCTOBER 13TH, IS BEING COVERED THIS YEAR BY OUR CONTRIBUTORS MATEO MORENO, LIZ WHITTEMORE, AND CODY LANG
I like to think of myself as a go-getter. I like to discover new things; how to make injera bread, how long it takes to drive across the country in a hybrid, or how to tie my shoes without the laces landing vertically (we’ve all been doing it wrong for ages). Tim Jenison is on a whole different plain of learning. In TIM'S VERMEER, a new documentary, by the world renowned magic duo we know as Penn and Teller, we are introduced to Tim Jenison. He is kind of a savant when it comes to know how. Tim is an inventor. He has an innate sense of how things work, and if he doesn’t, well he is bound and determined to find out. One thing that seemed to baffle him is how realistic the paintings of 17th century artist Johannes Vermeer appear. How did he master to art of painting light? Why did his work look so much sharper than his peers? Tim had to know. He had read Professor Philip Steadman’s book Vermeer’s Camera. In it, Steadman presents a theory that Vermeer used a camera obscura to project the images onto a wall and trace them. While doing experiments of his own, Tim determines that the camera obscura on its own would not answer to the richness of color in Vermeer’s paintings. Armed with two mirrors and a camera obscura, he is plans to put himself in the Dutch painter’s shoes by building a replica of the studio in the previous 6 paintings. Only working as Vermeer would have, creating his own oil paint, crafting the windows and furniture, hand making the lense, Tim sets out to make his own version of The Music Lesson. With 9 cameras watching his every stroke, he created one of the most realistically stunning paintings that would rival Vermeer any day… in 130 days. Best part of the whole experiment, Tim Jenison was not an artist. Using science and technology, Tim becomes one.
Jenison is Producer Penn Jillette’s old friend. When he heard about Tim’s interest in this idea, he convinced the inventor to film his journey. Teller is the Director of this piece. Somehow, with the aid of their other producer, Farley Ziegler, and editor, Patrick Sheffield, watched and cut together some 2400 hrs of footage into 80 very precise and engaging minutes of magic. Tim Jenison is someone we should all aspire to be like. His thirst for knowledge permeates the entire project. Tim’s Vermeer makes me want to be a better person. Because, if the Queen of England granted you a private 30 minute viewing of the original Music Lesson in Buckingham Palace, I would say you’re pretty awesome, too.
VERDICT: Must See
Directed by: Teller Produced by: Penn Jillette and Farley Ziegler Featuring: Tim Jenison, Penn Jillette, Martin Mull, Professor Philip Steadman, David Hockney and Dr. Colin Blakemore Run Time: 80 mins
BOTTOM LINE: This is a charming film that takes the art world and flips it on its head. It is fascinating to watch this enormous task in “real time”.