New Zealander Rachel Shearer might best be known for her music-making under the name Lovely Midget, a project showcasing her ability to conjure transcendent auras of shimmering ambience. Now venturing into other media, she has focused on her interest in the relationship between audio and the projected image.
This correlation is effortlessly captured in Fakerie, Shearer’s first long-form film release. The elements employed here are disarmingly simple, but highly effective. Seven bright bulbs of light emit from a dark canvas, like the pulsing of an unstable constellation in a clear night sky, which then interact with the ebb and flow of electroacoustic improvisations constructed by Shearer and Sean O’Reilly. Sound and visual components seem to respond to one another, forming a reciprocal relationship that riffs on the themes of transience, birth and disintegration.
If Fakerie has a central message it may concern the temporary nature of existence, with the corollary that, during our time on this planet, we have the chance to shine so very, very brightly. Its 22- minute duration may not seem nearly long enough for its spell to take effect, but Fakerie is specially formatted to play in a constant loop, allowing full and total immersion in its ghostly patina.
