Water Motor, Trisha Brown

Babette Mangolte

(b. 1941 Montmorot, France; lives New York City)

Water Motor, 1978

16mm black-and-white film, 7:55 minutes

In 1978, Babette Mangolte made a film of famed choreographer Trisha Brown dancing a hyperkinetic solo called Water Motor. The first portion was filmed in "real time," at 24 frames per second, and the second at half-speed, or 48 frames per second. In the second take, Brown's movements appear elongated in time, the slowed frame rate making visible what was previously inaccessible to the naked eye. As Mangolte describes, "the movement takes on a luscious quality that informs the viewer of what was missed before." Filmmaker Yvonne Rainer called Water Motor "One of the best dance films ever made.