Series: New Television
Program: New Television
Episode: 413
Date: 1988-01-01
Subject: Documentary films; Animation; Indians of North America; Rites and ceremonies
People: Masayesva, Victor, Jr.
Copyright Holder: IS Productions

Clip Description
In this work by Victor Masayesva, Jr., the tradition of clown figures in Native American ritual ceremonies is examined. Part collage-style work, part animation, and part documentary, "Ritual Clowns" opens and closes with a view of an ocean horizon. Images of animals and natural settings appear, and animated figures dart across the screen as narration and subtitles tell a sun myth. Following this, a narrator speaks about Native American beliefs on the interrelatedness of natural forces, and the evolution of a ritual song and ceremony incorporating clowns. At one point, images and sounds of violence and warfare overpower the speaker. A riot squad is shown, beating a crowd. This segues into a section of the work in which contemporary and archival film and photographs of native peoples' ritual ceremonies are accompanied by voiceovers that present the observations of anthropologists studying rituals, who reductively describe the ceremonies as ridiculous, immoral, and dirty. Footage of clowns in other contexts, including rodeo clowns and Chaplin footage, is incorporated. The narrator suggests that clowns exist partly to admonish and reflect back on people. They are associated with the concept of judgment day. Music is by the Harvest Festival Singers and was recorded at Bear Tracks Studio in New York City.

Program Description
This episode of "New Television" features "Ritual Clowns" by Victor Masayesva, Jr., and "Southern Cross" Stephan Koster.

"Ritual Clowns," by Victor Masayesva, Jr., is a work about the tradition of clowns in Native American ritual ceremonies. Copyright: IS Productions.

"Southern Cross"
is a subtle commentary on man's interference on the Galapagos Islands, told from the point-of-view of a middle-aged Dutch visitor to the islands. Copyright: ZDF.

Series Description
The New Television Workshop originated at WGBH, a public broadcasting station in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1974 to support the creation and development of experimental video art. This experimental programming included dance, drama, music, performance and visual arts on video and film. As early as 1968, WGBH was committed to the development of video art through residency programs, with artists such as Nam June Paik, and the "Rockefeller Artists-in-Television" project. Many of these early works (pre-1974) were broadcast both locally and nationally.

As an umbrella for arts related programming, the Workshop included "Artist's Showcase, " "Frames of Reference, " "Dance for Camera, " "Poetry Breaks," and "New Television," as well as acquired arts programming. Individual works were created for "Visions," a series produced by WNET (New York), and "Alive From Off Center," a series produced by KTCA (St. Paul - Minneapolis). The Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund was co-founded by the Workshop and Boston's Institute for Contemporary Art (ICA) in the 1980's, to commission works by video artists. In 1993 the Workshop ceased production at WGBH.

See also: http://main.wgbh.org/wgbh/NTW/FA/TITLES/Ritual107.HTML