Robert Nelson Movies

  • 1970
    King David

    King David

    King David

    01970HD

    [1970/2003, color, 7.5 min] Experimental short film preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2007.

    King David
  • 1967
    1/2 Bright, 1/2 Open, 1/2 Withered, 1/2 Lumpy

    1/2 Bright, 1/2 Open, 1/2 Withered, 1/2 Lumpy

    1/2 Bright, 1/2 Open, 1/2 Withered, 1/2 Lumpy

    01967HD

    A film by Robert Nelson

    1/2 Bright, 1/2 Open, 1/2 Withered, 1/2 Lumpy
  • 1967
    Hot Leatherette

    Hot Leatherette

    Hot Leatherette

    01967HD

    A kinetic film sketch designed to involve the viewers muscles. The rocky seaside cliffs near Stinson Beach, California, hold the wrecked carcass of a...

    Hot Leatherette
  • 1967
    Soup or Spread

    Soup or Spread

    Soup or Spread

    01967HD

    A film by Robert Nelson

    Soup or Spread
  • 1965
    Oily Peloso the Pumph Man

    Oily Peloso the Pumph Man

    Oily Peloso the Pumph Man

    01965HD

    A film by Robert Nelson. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2011.

    Oily Peloso the Pumph Man
  • 1965
    T.P.I.

    T.P.I.

    T.P.I.

    01965HD

    A film by Robert Nelson

    T.P.I.
  • 1963
    Plastic Haircut

    Plastic Haircut

    Plastic Haircut

    01963HD

    "Dada-inspired performance in which absurd actions take place in an environment of strange symbols and graphic forms." -Mark Webber. Design by...

    Plastic Haircut
  • 1967
    Penny Bright & Jimmy Witherspoon

    Penny Bright & Jimmy Witherspoon

    Penny Bright & Jimmy Witherspoon

    01967HD

    Nelson sets minimal, repetitive imagery against a looping recording of his daughter Oona, which goes gradually from sweet to curious to mysterious to...

    Penny Bright & Jimmy Witherspoon
  • 1969
    Travelogue: Portraits – Images from a journey

    Travelogue: Portraits – Images from a journey

    Travelogue: Portraits – Images from a journey

    01969HD

    A black-and-white travel journal, in which the themes of memories and their relationship to the past suddenly catch up and rush away from us. The...

    Travelogue: Portraits – Images from a journey
  • 1965
    Confessions of a Black Mother Succuba

    Confessions of a Black Mother Succuba

    Confessions of a Black Mother Succuba

    01965HD

    Recurrent themes of violence, sex and TV commercials. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2004.

    Confessions of a Black Mother Succuba
  • 1998
    Hauling Toto Big

    Hauling Toto Big

    Hauling Toto Big

    01998HD

    Hauling Toto Big is a dense and ecstatic work of fragmented narratives, dream states, chaos and serenity… a culmination of Nelson’s...

    Hauling Toto Big
  • 1967
    The Awful Backlash

    The Awful Backlash

    The Awful Backlash

    01967HD

    “In their starkly minimal film, The Awful Backlash, directors Robert Nelson and William Allan, focus solely on a pair of hands as they begin to...

    The Awful Backlash
  • 1967
    The Off-Handed Jape... & How to Pull It Off

    The Off-Handed Jape... & How to Pull It Off

    The Off-Handed Jape... & How to Pull It Off

    41967HD

    The Off-Handed Jape is an afternoon’s lark made by Nelson and his artist friend William Wiley. The two men perform whimsical actions and poses...

    The Off-Handed Jape... & How to Pull It Off
  • 1967
    The Great Blondino

    The Great Blondino

    The Great Blondino

    4.11967HD

    Shooting in 1966 without script, story, or any narrative preconception, Nelson and Wiley created a masterwork of ‘60s independent cinema. The...

    The Great Blondino
  • 1965
    Oh Dem Watermelons

    Oh Dem Watermelons

    Oh Dem Watermelons

    5.91965HD

    Commissioned by the San Francisco Mime Troupe as a short to be screened during intermission for its rather infamous 1965 Minstrel Show (Civil Rights...

    Oh Dem Watermelons
  • 1976
    Suite California Stops & Passes Part 1: Tijuana to Hollywood via Death Valley

    Suite California Stops & Passes Part 1: Tijuana to Hollywood via Death Valley

    Suite California Stops & Passes Part 1: Tijuana to Hollywood via Death Valley

    01976HD

    The first part of what was intended to be a three-part experimental travelog for Nelson’s home state of California, this film covers the...

    Suite California Stops & Passes Part 1: Tijuana to Hollywood via Death Valley
  • 1974
    Deep Westurn

    Deep Westurn

    Deep Westurn

    01974HD

    A ‘film wake’. Though celebratory in mood, it has a mournful subtext… death and dying. We dedicated it to Dr. Sam West, departed...

    Deep Westurn
  • 1967
    Gourley in 67

    Gourley in 67

    Gourley in 67

    01967HD

    A film by Robert Nelson

    Gourley in 67
  • 1965
    T.P.II

    T.P.II

    T.P.II

    01965HD

    A film by Robert Nelson

    T.P.II
  • 1965
    Sixty Lazy Dogs

    Sixty Lazy Dogs

    Sixty Lazy Dogs

    01965HD

    A film by Robert Nelson

    Sixty Lazy Dogs