Midi Onodera burst on the indie film scene in the early 1980s as a groundbreaking new talent. Her films were raw, powerful and audacious. Since those days, her work has won growing acclaim and has been featured in numerous international exhibitions and screenings and included in the collections of may art galleries, libraries, and universities.
 
The Complete Set includes Collected Works Vol. 1-3, 365: A Movie A Day, and alphagirls. Individual volumes are also available to purchase.
 
Volume One
This DVD presents a selection of Onodera’s early work (1981-1985) and includes her notorious film, “Ten Cents a Dance (Parallax)” which created a storm of controversy on the lesbian and gay film festival circuit. These eight short films tackle a range of challenging subjects, showcasing Onodera’s interest in storytelling and experimental technique, and providing insights into the artist’s early stylistic development.
 
The Bird That Chirped on Bathurst
Canada / 4min / 1981 / sound / b/w
 
Idiot's Delight
Canada / 4min / 1983 / sound / b&w
 
Home Was Never Like This
Canada / 8min / 1983 / sound / b&w
 
Ville - Quelle Ville?
Canada / 4min / 1984 / sound / colour
 
A Performance by Jack Smith
Canada / 5min / 1984 - 1992 / sound / colour
 
The Dead Zone
Canada / 3min / 1985 / sound / colour
 
Made in Japan
Canada / 3min / 1985 / sound / colour
 
Ten Cents a Dance (Parallax)
Canada / 28min / 1985 / sound / colour
 
With additional material:
Interview with “Tom Waugh: Ten Cents” (2007) 9:26
Interview with “Judith Mayne: Encounters” (2008) 7:58
Interview with “Midi Onodera: Early Transitions” (2008) 7:02
“Under Construction: Midi Onodera’s Early Films” by Kathleen Mullen (PDF essay)
 
Volume Two
This DVD collection features the mid-career film and television work of Midi Onodera. Focusing on selected works from 1988 to 1990, this volume includes Onodera’s experimental documentary, “The Displaced View.” Set against the background of suppressed Japanese-Canadian history, the film traces a personal search for identity and pride through the stories of three generations of women.
 
Then/Now
Canada / 30min / 1988 / sound / colour
 
The Displaced View
Canada / 52min / 1988 / sound / colour
 
General Idea – Artist’s Profile
Canada / 4min / 1989 / sound / colour
 
David Cronenberg – Artist’s Profile
Canada / 4min / 1990 / sound / colour
 
Heartbreak Hoteru
Canada / 30min / 1990 / sound / colour
 
With additional material:
Interview with Kass Banning: “Displaced Views” (2008) 10:15
Interview with Monika Kin Gagnon: “Experimental Innovations” 10:50
Interview with Midi Onodera: “Televisions” (2008) 6:47
"The Displaced View and the Limits of Knowledge” by Nadine Sivak (PDF essay)
 
Volume Three
This DVD collection contains selected work by Midi Onodera produced from 1995 to 2002, including her award-winning film “The Basement Girl,” and the feature “Skin Deep.” The short films in this DVD volume are adventurous explorations of multiple film and video formats – from 16 mm and super 8 film, to analogue and digital toy cameras (including the Lomographic Supersampler, a modified Nintendo Game Boy camera; and the Intel Mattel computer microscope). The films are sensitive poetic ruminations on loss: the ending of relationships, the failure of perception, and the outsiders aloneness. In contrast, the feature film “Skin Deep,” a riveting psychological drama about obsession, relationships and sexuality, leads us into worlds where people are never who they appear to be.
 
Skin Deep
Canada / 81min / 1995 / sound / colour
 
The Basement Girl
Canada / 12min / 2000 / sound / colour
 
Slightseer
Canada / 4min / 2001 / sound / colour
 
Nowbody Knows
Canada / 4min / 2002 / sound / colour
 
Includes additional material:
Interview with Judith Mayne: “The Basement Girl” (2008) 13:34
Interview with Midi Onodera: “Space Between Frames” (2008) 6:26
"More Than One: Onodera” by Heather Keung (PDF essay)
“Knowledge in the Body: Skin Deep” by Nadine Sivak (PDF essay)
 
365: A Movie A Day
In 2006 and 2007, Onodera created a short video every day for the year and posted them on the website. These daily movies are diminutive slices of life in short film, sometimes funny, sometimes unsettling, always thought provoking. Running between 30 and 60 seconds, they were shot with a variety of toy cameras and digital video formats and are designed for viewing on mobile devices. All of them are available on this DVD.
 
With additional material:
Interview with Kass Banning: “Screens and Frames” (2008) 5:15
Interview with Janine Marchessault: “Reflections on Micro Movies” (2008) 11:50
Interview with Midi Onodera: “A Movie a Day” (2008) 8:06
“Mini-Cinema: A Digital Diary for iPod” by Catherine Russell (PDF essay)
“A Movie a Day and other Film Calendars” by Michael Zryd (PDF essay)
 
alphagirls
alphagirls is a collection of cyberperformances by three internationally acclaimed Canadian performance artists: Kinga Araya, Louise Liliefeldt and Tanya Mars that explores non-linear, interactive narrative structure within the realm of recorded performance. The interactive DVD features three individual works that can be viewed through a multiplicity of avenues with the use of your DVD remote control. In collaboration with each artist, Onodera has directed and designed each performance’s interactive possibilities to allow the viewer full control over the flow of each piece. Navigate each performance through the instructions specified by each artist, or choose your own route to experience each of these three prolific works in new and exciting ways.
 
GROUNDED (III) a performance by Kinga Araya (15 min)
QUARTER AFTER a performance by Louise Liliefeldt (15 min)
MY DINNER WITH WOOFIE a performance by Tanya Mars (15 min)