Jay Rosenblatt

Upon my first viewings, I felt an immediate affinity to Jay Rosenblatt’s work. Perhaps it is because his films are similar to films I’ve created in the past, and perhaps it is because The Smell of Burning Ants and The D Train both approach topics that are frequently on my mind. Throughout The Smell of Burning Ants, there exists a sense of dread, a fear or apprehension of that which one is only barely able understand. The D Train, too, utilizes a similar approach. Rosenblatt never explicitly names the constructs and dilemmas he is confronting, and yet in a state of both knowing and unknowing I receive his message. His films do follow narratives, and they do feature easily recognizable images and scenarios, and are in that way considered “watchable”, but there traits are hide deeper and harder to swallow ideas.

In relation to my project, Rosenblatt’s films regularly tackle issues of identity, much as I hope my film will. It is in this broad thematic connection that I see my inspiration coming from.
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I want my film to be a journey like how The D Train is a journey and a revelation like how The Smell of Burning Ants is a revelation. The D Train’s inexhaustible march towards an ultimately predetermined ending has in part shaped how I’ve conceptualized my film, and I want my finale to have the cold tranquility of the old man alone on the bench, swept away.