Cinema
Our intimate, 40-seat cinema is able to host a range of performances and events by contemporary artists working in film, video, sound, music, multimedia and performance. Along with screenings and performances, you will also find workshops, salons, artist talks and lectures. Our focus is primarily on experimental and artist-made.
Upcoming Programs & Events
Live from Shapeshifters: Scott Stark
Sunday, November 29, 2020
7pm PST
Live broadcast via our streaming channel
Scott Stark returns to Shapeshifters to perform DAMNATION (sound by John Wynne) -- new work made using sheets of ice and images from a 1960s television series to follow the tragic trajectory of the eternally damned. Viewers are invited to watch this by tuning in on November 29th at 7pm to watch the livestream.
Live from Shapeshifters: Dokuro
Sunday, December 6, 2020
7pm PST
Live broadcast via our streaming channel
Dokuro will perform In the Dust of the Stars, a sonic and visual meditation on the smallness of being human in the endless undulation of our universe. The video footage is meant to emulate conformal cyclic cosmology, a theory in which the universe iterates through infinite cycles, with the future time-like infinity of each previous iteration being identified with the Big Bang singularity of the next. This theory was popularized by Gilbert Penrose in his 2010 book Cycles of Time: An Extraordinary New View of the Universe. Our dust-like footprint in the universe falls parallel with how many people are feeling these days due to COVID-19 and all of the socio-economic challenges: we are tiny and much is out of our direct control. In our current lives it seems we take one step forward with a resulting two steps backward, an endless oscillation much like the movement of the universe. However, we also see this oscillation as something unifying and magical as we are all a part of the universe's massive rhythm. Dokuro is the artistic maelstrom formed by the duo of Agnes Szelag and The Norman Conquest. Their love for song-form and noise unveils itself during their intense live performances. As they delve into layers of sound they commit themselves to the compositional surprises each one presents, reacting, and in turn creating unexpected transitions that unfold into the next exploration. These intersections and song-like clusters, along with their abstract and textural videos, create a space for listeners to dream. Viewers are invited to watch this program by tuning in on December 6th at 7pm to watch the livestream.
Winter Solstice Pop-up
Sunday, December 20, 2020
12-5pm
We will be opening up the storefront for a one-day, pop-up event to mark the winter solstice and six months since our last, in-person event! Come by between 12-5pm to browse the ever-expanding inventory of eclectic, artist-made items in our shop. We have DVDs, CDs, LPs, books, journals, handmade cotton masks and more! Members are also invited to come by and pick up perks during this time (you will be receiving an email with more details about this soon). Masks are required for entry. Come by and say hi. It's been a while!
