Focii

A woman dances and mimes, her stark white image moves across a red floor, reflected in a fractured wall of mirrors. As she performs, her mirror image gradually assumes an autonomous identity so that what was a central relationship of self to self has become one self to other. Focii not only explores the construction of self, and the dynamics of self and other, but also the interaction between the viewer’s body and the body onscreen, raising questions on the nature of identification in cinema.

Founded in 1966, the London Film-Makers’ Co-operative started life at Better Books, a counter-culture bookshop on Charing Cross Road, where a group led by poet Bob Cobbing and filmmakers Stephen Dwoskin and Jeff Keen met to screen films. Initially inspired by the activities of the New American Cinema Group in New York, the London Co-op grew into a pioneering organisation that incorporated a film workshop, cinema space and distribution office. During its four-decade history, the Co-op played a crucial role in establishing film as an art form in the UK and participated in a vibrant international film scene. This BFI Player collection brings together new scans of films distributed by and/or produced at the London Co-op.