adam kossoff, 2014
role: cinematographer
Animal Architecture tells the story of Dudley Zoo and the restoration of its unique animal enclosures. Designed in 1937 by the modernist architect Bernard Lubetkin, the zoo is a World Heritage site. Filmed on a wind-up 16mm Bolex Camera, capturing the everyday, poetic atmosphere of the zoo, Animal Architecture emulates the black and white documentary style of the 1950's 'Free Cinema' movement (e.g. the films of Lindsay Anderson and Karel Reisz). Filmed during the restoration of the entrance and the bear ravine, the film shows how modernist design gave as much importance to the architecture of the enclosures as it did to the welfare of the animals. The film explores the relationship between humans and animals and emphasises the zoo's atmosphere and its importance as a leisure and cultural attraction for local people.