Mirror Machine: Video and Identity

M. Wayne Cunningham is the director, Academic and Career Programs at the
College of the Rockies/East Kootenay Community College in British
Columbia.

Can video, like film, claim to be an art form? This is one of the
central questions tackled in these 13 essays by video artists and
critics. Organized into four major sections—Institutional Contexts;
Discursive Histories; Ontology and Community, and Communications—the
book offers a range of diverse views on the central theme of video as a
mirror machine, as well as an abundance of information on historical
trends, pioneering experiments, cultural contexts, and critical
commentaries. The early efforts of the National Film Board’s Challenge
for Change program are amply documented, as are Michael Goldberg and
Trish Hardman’s activities in Vancouver and the role of the Canada
Council. Other essays elaborate on the relationship between video and
other media (including film and television) and on the uses of video in
various ethnic and sociocultural contexts. The final essay examines
video as an expression of AIDS activism. All in all, a valuable
reference.