CRITICAL REVIEW
Kara Fistik Director: Nesli Erten Category: Animation Short Film
Nesli Erten’s “Kara Fistik” is not for the lazy viewer. The live-action/hand-drawn hybrid short, Erten’s MFA thesis project at the University of Southern California, employs a morphing sort of animation to connect each of its perplexing, commanding images. The lack of cutting in “Kara Fistik” (afforded by Erten’s flowing style), the lack of a clearly defined protagonist, and the lack of easy-to-digest visual content all encourage viewers to abandon conventional expectations for animation and to adopt a more inquisitive viewing attitude instead.
Inquisitive is good, because there’s a lot to unpack in “Fistik.” The more time you spend with the short, the richer it becomes. It seems that Erten would like the viewer to wade through the imagery alone, at least on the first viewing, because a quote which contextualizes all the images of the female body doesn’t appear until the end of the film. An explicit spoiler, then, would go against Erten’s intentions; so, I’ll settle to say it may be helpful to see “Kara Fistik” as a love letter to (and also made by) the freedom of female body parts.