A Venture into Vegan Filmmaking

synopsis

Gelatin, an animal product produced by the partial hydrolysis of collagen from the skin, bones, and tendons of cattle and pigs, is part of the light-sensitive emulsion layer of classic film stock. In 2019, Esther Urlus and Josephine Ahnelt began a series of experiments with the aim of replacing this component with a vegan alternative. The face that appears on 16mm material in both positive and negative versions is the first proof of this possibility.

“I create my own film material, literally, by mixing silver nitrate and bromide salt with gelatin and water to form a light-sensitive emulsion. I'm not looking for a naturalist, commercial like film material, outcome. I intend to create unique components that, by their singularity, generate a special and cinematic experience.” — Esther Urlus

biography

Josephine Ahnelt (born 1987) is a filmmaker living in Vienna. She shoots portraits of people and their living conditions on Super 8 and 16 mm film, while also developing vegan prototypes of film material. The film A Venture into Vegan Filmmaking (2019) was created in collaboration with artist Esther Urlus (born 1966), founder of WORM Filmwerkplaats in Rotterdam, a space dedicated to film as an artistic and expressive medium.

film details

director:

Josephine Ahnelt