New perception of Architecture. MINUTES. short film series by KAAN Architecten

Description of project by KAAN Architecten

On 17 May 2021, Rotterdam-based architecture practice KAAN Architecten will introduce MINUTES, their original short film series, by launching a dedicated web platform for the project containing their first short film release.

First floated as a concept in 2017, MINUTES is now a fully-fledged cinematic oeuvre consisting of 12 short films, each less than 10 minutes, directed by international filmmakers such as the Argentine-Dutch director and audiovisual artist Jaime Levinas, American filmmaking collective Spirit of Space, South African prize-winning documentarist, camerawoman, and editor Benitha Vlok, and the widely acclaimed Spanish director Joana Colomar, portraying a selection of projects designed by KAAN Architecten.

A crowning achievement of the four-year-long research and creative collaboration is the launch of the eponymous web platform MINUTES, where all 12 movies will be periodically released throughout the year, freely accessible worldwide. The platform also contains information about the films, directors, architectural projects, and upcoming events.

To mark the launch, the movie 'Forensic' by Dutch director Chris de Krijger is available for viewing as the first one in the series. Set in the Netherlands Forensic Institute in The Hague, 'Forensic' links the architecture to the painstakingly meticulous research being performed within the Institute's walls. The story takes the viewer on a journey to different sections of the investigating departments housed in the building. Based on a small piece of evidence, research is developed by different specialists and employing different scenarios. The camera zooms in and out, examining the building like an invisible spectator who has free access to these high-security spaces. The viewer travels through scientific laboratories, bringing together different puzzle elements and gradually reconstructing its architecture and locations.

Following releases include ‘Crafted’ by Benitha Vlok and ‘Utopia’ by Joana Colomar in June and July 2021, respectively.

MINUTES has already received audience acclaim during exclusive previews organized with Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam and the BARQ International Architecture Film Festival in Barcelona earlier this year. Brendan Cormier, the Senior Curator of Exhibitions at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, who served as the host of the Rotterdam event titled "12 Ways to Film a Building", describes the project as follows: 

"In an unprecedented effort to transcend traditional methods of architectural representation, KAAN Architecten has given filmmakers total creative freedom in the realization of films that profile the studio's works. The initiative was deliberately intended to be exploratory, as a probe for discovering what kind of stories, effects and impressions could be expressed through film; beyond a time-limit, no other constraints were put on the filmmaker.

The result is a rich tapestry of interpretations, with each filmmaker taking a different approach. What distinguishes MINUTES from previous architectural films is a move beyond aesthetic contemplation and instead towards a layered approach that combines narrative, reference and symbolism. The buildings here are less the main subject of the film, and more of a collaborative cast member, opening up new possibilities for portraying how architecture interacts with the world." 
 

KAAN Architecten is a Rotterdam, São Paulo and Paris based architectural firm merging expertise in the fields of architecture, urbanism and research on the built environment. The studio believes in cross-pollination between disciplines as an essential tool for fostering a critical debate. Their projects transcend the traditional notions of scale and typology, ranging from infrastructure and urban development to cultural and institutional buildings.

The architecture studio recently completed the Courthouse of Amsterdam, The Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp and the Chambre de Métiers et de l’Artisanat in Lille.

Releases calendar

FORENSIC by Chris de Krijger (NL) – May 2021
The Netherlands Forensic Institute, The Hague / Feb ‘18 / 5’19 

CRAFTED by Benitha Vlok (SA) – June 2021
The Netherlands Embassy, Maputo / Sept ‘19 / 3’33

UTOPIA by Joana Colomar (ES) – July 2021
Utopia – Library and Academy for Performing Arts, Aalst / Sept ‘19 / 5’03

TO BECOME ONE by Romain Loiseau & Tristan Soreau (FR) – August 2021
Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d’Orsay, Orsay / Oct ‘19 / 2’54

RULING by Dorian de Rijk (NL/US) – September 2021
Supreme Court of the Netherlands, The Hague / Sept ‘18 / 3’51

DYNAMO by Katja Verheul (NL) – October 2021
Cube – Education and Self Study Center, Tilburg / Mar ’20 / 4’31

TERRITORY OF THE BEINGS by Mirte van Duppen (NL) – November 2021
Brabantse Delta Water Authority, Breda / Jan ‘19 / 8’26

THE LETTER H by Giulio Squillacciotti (IT) – December 2021
Castle Beeckendael, ‘s Hertogenbosch / Sept ’19 / 8’57

AWAIT by From Form (NL) – January 2022
Crematorium Heimolen, St. Niklaas / Sept ’18 / 5’57

FLOATING STILLNESS by Miguel C. Tavares (PT) – February 2022
Chambre de Métiers et de l’Artisanat Hauts-De-France, Lille / Mar ’21 / 5’48

STATIC by Spirit of Space (US) – March 2022
Crematorium Siesegem, Aalst / Dec ’19 / 7’07

NOTES ON AN IMMORTAL BEING by Jaime Levinas (ARG/NL) – April 2022
Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp / TBA / TBA