Jean-Jacques Martinod and Bretta C. Walker: Into The Ether

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Jean-Jacques Martinod and Bretta C. Walker, “Datura’s Aubade,” 2012

17:21 minutes, colour and b&w, English and Spanish, Distributed by: Vtape (courtesy of the Gallery)

To enter into the ether is to enter into the unknown. In this program, viewers enter into forests, lakes, uranium mines, the New Mexican desert, and the ether of filmmakers Jean Jacques Martinod and Bretta C. Walker.

For Martinod and Walker, the paranormal, UFOs, uranium, and power of the natural elements all share the quality of supernaturality. In Before the Deluge (2019), Martinod dives into the depths of the abandoned mines of Uranium City in northern Saskatchewan and into the archives. Taking a “fly on the wall” approach, he unearths the otherworldly substance that is uranium, as well as the devastating effects of resource extraction and its exploitation of the land. In Datura’s Aubade (2021), Bretta C. Walker and Martinod use experimental methods to present a retelling of two subjects’ encounters with paranormal beings in the New Mexican desert. In both works, Martinod invites viewers to consider the consciousness and intelligence of nature, unexplained phenomena, and the position of humanity within the natural world.