Feet Accompli

I just scored some cool 16mm film shorts at the Pratt Library Book Sale, including my find of the year, Fantasy of Feet, which was posted online to YouTube by educational film fanatics A/V Geeks. Apparently, somebody at Encyclopedia Brittanica had a major foot fetish.

FANTASY OF FEET
(Encyclopedia Brittanica, 1969, 7 minutes)


This is a wonderful montage of people and their feet coupled with fantasy pixillation effects and a Swinging '60s soundtrack courtesy of David Lindley & Kaleidoscope. (Multi-instrumentalist Lindley is best known for being Jackson Browne's longtime collaborator in the '70s and for fronting the band El Rayo-X). It was made by Frederic Goodich, the same director who did "Toes Tell" and "Whose Shoes?". According to the Academic Film Archive of North America's website, it won a Cine Gold Eagle award (awarded for excellence in documentary and other informational film and video production) in 1971. He was also the cinematographer on Board and Care (a live action short featuring mentally retarded performers) that won the 1980 Academy Award for Best Dramatic Short. Goodich currently teaches cinematography at the American Film Institute in L.A.

Anyway, I like the part where people are dancing on plexiglass so you get a grounds-eye view of people's feet - a technique made famous by American avant-garde filmmaker Dudley Murphy in his 1929 Black and Tan short featuring Duke Ellington's orchestra - a concept Japanese culinary hentai took to heart with their no-pan shabu-shabu steakhouses (where the floors are mirrored and the waitresses wear short skirts sans panties - remember, presentation in everything at fine dining etablishments!).(Not to mention Baltimore's own 2nd level-glass-floored "raw bar" in ye olde Hustler Club!). The film also features a great countdown leader (with 666 appearing for the number 6!).

TOES TELL
(Encyclopedia Brittanica, 1969)


This exercise in pure fetishism (slinkies on toes?) represents another collaboration between director Goodich and David Lindley. Encyclopedia Brittanica obviously had a few hippies on staff. Toetally dude!