Chasse des Touches (1959) by Hy Hirsh

“Hy Hirsh’s (1911-1961) filmmaking grew out of the unique combination of his generous aesthetic bon vivant personality, his still photography which took him far and wide, and his extraordinary technical facility which allowed him to build his own optical printer, recording studio, etc. By the time he composed his first personal film, he had participated in making a dozen experimental films by other people... His Paris apartment neighbored such artists as Walerian Borowczyk, Tajiri Shinkichi, Baird Bryant and Johanna Demetrakis. When he died sudenly of a heart attack, police found hashish in his possession and commandeered his estate. When his belongings were finally released three years later, a number of his films were missing, or only preserved as single used projection copies. The presence of his films at the Creative Film Society in Los Angeles after 1965 proved a seminal influence on emerging filmmakers Pat O’Neill, William Moritz and Chick Strand. “ --Dr. William Mori