News! by Darcy Prendergast

Melbourne-based artist Darcy Prendergast, explains that his latest film, News!, was “inspired by my constant hatred for news and current affair programs on TV. It’s essentially a film about nothing, as I find myself less intelligent, with no new knowledge acquired at the end of the viewing.”

Darcy’s multi-frame approach is an effective way of illustrating the cacophonous assault on viewers, and the short is a funny and clever statement about TV news, which is apparently just as vacuous and pathetic in Australia as it is in the US. True story: A CNN producer who was trying to get me to appear on the network once told me point-blank that they’re in the business of entertaining viewers, not informing them. That’s unfortunate because they’re not very good at entertainment either.