the rings

the illusion of flying frees the spirit of the urban youth in this dreary setting where the air is filled with the pollution and noise of the passing cars. the filmmaker brings us into the experience of struggle which intensify the experience for the athlete. The waxing and waning of the intensity of the effort is perfectly matched with the intensity of the accompanying piano. worth every minute.



OK enough of that! this is very moving to me because my son made it and his best friend is the star! It is set in Riverside Park in New York City right next to the hi-way. The first time i saw this playground it did not have the rings, but only basket ball courts. I was driving by on the hi-way on a hot muggy august day stuck in bumper to bumper traffic. I saw the young men playing ball in this horrible whether is what seemed like such a horrible spot and was taken by how much fun they were having. Years later i lived near there and went to Riverside park almost every day. While living in the city it seemed a beautiful refuge. the trees provided shade and oxygen and a sense of connection with the world. Only at the end of my stay in this city did i again see it as the depressing place that it is. But it provides a space for dreams to form. this is how i see this video.
Unlike the guys playing basketball way back in the 70s, both the filmmaker and the actor have seem the world and know on some level that this is not nature or flying! they pursue the flight nonetheless! There minds fill with visions of a better world and they capture that in this video. The grace of the athletes movements and the proximity of the highly personal gaze of the camera bring us into this experience as one that while surrounded by darker forces is in fact filled with the pleasure of life.