Casino
Douglas Katelus - 2011, 8:30, 16mm, San Francisco
An ever evolving work surrounding the abandoned boardwalk Casino in Asbury Park, New Jersey. As much about the city and shore community as it is a about the building itself and my own upbringing in the Garden State.
Douglas Katelus is a filmmaker who works within personal cinema to focus on the underlying simplicities in life. While also being a musician dabbling in the experimental elements of tone and the Hammond Organ. He has directed numerous short films that have shown throughout the States and Europe while winning several awards. Douglas regularly programs film and video shows in San Francisco and across the country.
Questions & Answers
ATA: Casino is presented as a live performance. Is it the same presentation each time, or do elements change? Elegies to New Jersey. What can you say about New Jersey love?
DK: Casino evolved into a performance piece once I realized the prose wasn't really coming across through a recording. Doing it live seemed to connect with the audience more directly. It's always open to change and no two performances will be completely the same, I think it will be an ever evolving work. As for NJ love I really don't know as it's the only place I've come from. Doesn't everyone have an affliction for there particular home state or country? Maybe if us New Jersyites are a little more in love it may be due the the nature of the place. I mean it's hard to describe but if you don't love it your just bound to hate it. I do notice a lot of my film work has revolved around the Garden State for some reason but haven't been able to figure out exactly why.
ATA: Was the film put together after many different trips, or is it the product of one inspired trip?
DK: It was over the course of several trips spanning somewhere around 6 years, sometimes only shooting one shot or sometimes a whole roll.
ATA: I was curious about your relationship to Asbury Park, and if you're from that region in particular. I was also curious if you could speak to the specific love and loyalty many New Jersyites have for their state no matter where they live.
DK: I grew up in Kearny, New Jersey about a stones throw away from Newark. Spending my summers down the shore in a town about 2 miles from Asbury, I think living nearly 1/3rd of my NJ time in the Asbury Park area helped be grow an attachment to the place. Also North Jersey is overcrowded, over industrialized, over New Yorked, overtly racist and then you get down the shore and it's like a different world. This is the reason I'm so protective of Asbury, the last thing I want is for it to become what everything else already is. New Jersey love... think it's covered above, but congrats on using the term Jersyites.
Q&A by Liz Wing
