CRITICAL
OVERVIEW:
Chris
Löfvén's career is, by any standards, incomplete. A precocious
talent, his career stalled when his ambitious Wizard of Oz-inspired
feature Oz - A Rock 'n' Roll Road Movie failed with the Australian public. Yet David Stratton labelled it "one
of the most inventive and enjoyable of Australian films - clever,
brash, noisy, gutsy and uninhibited". And William K. Halliwell declared "This is a light-hearted rip off of the Wizard of Oz story set to rock music. The film is rough and ready, but it is something just short of genius when you consider its originality, even though it's based on an old story. The comedy is quick and quite ahead of its time for mid-seventies Australia, which is probably why it failed here." The film developed a strong cult following overseas. See also the entry on Oz in the book Australian Film 1900-1977.
Earlier, Löfvén
had shown great imagination with his 16mm narrative shorts, John
Nicoll calling House with a Secret and Forgotten Loneliness
"completely modern in tone, effective and subtle ... [they
have] a gentle and playful mood". Löfvén
has also been interested in more classical avant-garde cinema,
as evidenced by his Part One and Part Two films,
and his recent work.
FILMOGRAPHY:
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Teenager
with a vision:
Chris Löfvén
in 1964. |
The Tunnel
(1963, 3 mins, color, 16mm)
House
with a Secret (1964, 6 mins, B&W, 16mm)
Forgotten
Loneliness (1965, 8 mins, B&W, 16mm)
Gift from
a Stranger (1965, 7 mins, B&W, 16mm)
The Warning
(1966, 7 mins, B&W, 16mm)
Helen
(1967, 2 mins, B&W, 16mm)
Part One
- 806 (1969-71, 70 mins, B&W, 16mm)
Part Two
- The Beginning (1971, 10 mins, color, 16mm)
Cruisin'
(London, 1973-74, 36 mins, color, 16mm)
Oz - A
Rock 'n' Roll Road Movie (1976, 90 mins, color, 35mm)
Stockley
See Mason 'Beg, Steal or Borrow' (1979, 50 mins, color, 16mm, music doco)
Recent experimental
works:
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Chris Löfvén with Arri 35
in 1966. |
Bass Up
(2001, 4 mins, color, video)
Window
(2002, 4 mins, color, video)
Noosa On Air (2009, 9mins, color, video)
Over the years, many commercials, corporate videos, and music clips done.
MUSIC CLIPS directed by Chris Löfvén
1967
THE VIBRANTS-
Something About You Baby
THE GROOP-
Sorry
1971
SPECTRUM- I'll
Be Gone
DADDY COOL-
Eagle Rock
1974
SWEET FEED-
Good Tune (UK)
1976
BILLY T- Gotta
Keep on Dancing
1977
MOTHER GOOSE-
Baked Beans
SPLIT ENZ- Bold
as Brass
OL' 55- Stay
CHEEK- So Much
in Love
1978
BIRTLES &
GOBLE- Lonely Lives
FINCH- Where
Were You
DRAGON-
Shooting Stars
SCANDAL- How
Long & She's a Lady
THE ANGELS-
Coming Down on Me
SKYHOOKS- Women
in Uniform
STYLUS- Work
Out Fine
LITTLE RIVER
BAND- Shut Down, Turn Off
THE SPORTS-
Boys! (What Did the Detective Say?)
THE FERRETS-
Are You Looking at Me?
RENEE GEYER-
Money
CAMBRIDGE &
THOMAS- You Take My Breath Away
JO JO ZEP &
THE FALCONS- Honey Dripper
LITTLE RIVER
BAND- Reminiscing
STARS- West is
The Way
TMG- Disturbing
the Peace & Heart of Stone
TEENAGE RADIO
STARS- Wanna Be Ya Baby
BOYS NEXT DOOR-
Boots
STYLUS- Look at
Me
DARRYL COTTON-
Don't Let it Get to You
IAN MASON-
Gotta Lotta Love
MONDO ROCK- The
Fugitive Kind
CHEETAH- Walking
in the Rain
1979
DARRYL COTTON-
I Don't Want to Lose You
EVOLUTION-
Lovers' Concerto
MIKE BRADY- How
Does It Feel
1980
THE SPORTS-
Strangers on a Train & Suddenly
JO JO ZEP &
THE FALCONS- All I Wanna Do
SPLIT ENZ - I
Got You
SPLIT ENZ- I
Hope I Never
JAMES FREUD
& THE RADIO STARS- Modern Girl
ALIENS- Follow
That Girl & It's Too Late Now
JEFF PHILLIPS-
LA Reggae
THE SPORTS-
Perhaps
SKYHOOKS- Keep
the Junk in America
MICK FLYNN- Two
Cans of Fosters
JOE DOLCE-
Shaddap You Face
1981 (with
collaborator Chris Worrall)
SPLIT ENZ-
History Never Repeats
SPLIT ENZ- I
Don't Wanna Dance
LIN VAN HEK-
Ain't Been Missing You
MONDO ROCK-
Summer of 81
JOE DOLCE- If
You Want to Be Happy
WENDY & THE
ROCKETTS- Reputation & Tonite
MIKE RUDD &
THE HEATERS- I'm an Animal
1982
ORPHANS- Hop
Skip Jump
SERIOUS YOUNG
INSECTS- Be Patient
JOE DOLCE-
Juicy Lucy
LIN VAN HEK-
Intimacy
THE ZOO- Keep
it Up
SPLIT ENZ-
Dirty Creature
SPLIT ENZ- Six
Months in a Leaky Boat
AUSTRALIAN CRAWL-
Shut Down
AUSTRALIAN
CRAWL- Daughters of the Northern Coast
THE LITTLE
HEROES- Young Heart
PETER CUPPLES-
All in a Day's Work & Happy Ending
SPLIT ENZ-
Never Ceases to Amaze Me
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Chris with partner and producer Lyne Helms
at premiere of Oz in 1976. |
1983
GLEN SHORROCK
& RENEE GEYER- Going Back
GLEN SHORROCK-
Angry Words
NOEL CROMBIE-
My Voice Keeps Changing on Me
SPLIT ENZ- Next
Exit
MARCHING GIRLS-
My Friends
WENDY & THE
ROCKETTS- Play the Game
WENDY & THE
ROCKETTS- Have You Been Telling Me Lies
KIDS IN THE
KITCHEN- Change in Mood
THE EXPRESSION-
Total Eclipse
1984
JOHN PAUL
YOUNG- War Games
JOHN PAUL
YOUNG- LA Sunset
SUNNY BOYS- No
Surprise
GUY DELANDRO-
Driving Me Wild
JANE CLIFTON-
My Machines
JIMMY BARNES-
Promise Me You'll Call
GOANNA- Common
Ground
1985
GOANNA-
Dangerous Dancing
KIDS IN THE
KITCHEN- Shine
1986
UNCANNY X-MEN-
I Am
1987
SHORT CIRCUIT-
Waiting For the Big One
1988
STEFAN DENNIS-
Don't It Make You Feel Good
1989
SHORT CIRCUIT-
Burning for You
1994
THE PRICKLES-
Just Because
1996
GULLIFER- Could
I Forget You
1998
BLACK SMITH
HOPKINS- Taking Care of Business
2011
THE CURVES- Bus Driver
SELECT
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
David Stratton,
The Last New Wave: The Australian Film Revival, Angus &
Robertson, Sydney, 1980.
Andrew Pike & Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900-1977, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1981.
William K. Halliwell, The Filmgoer's Guide to Australian Films, Angus & Robertson 1985.
John Nicoll,
"Lucky dip images on show", The Age, May 23,
1986.
Contact
Chris Löfvén
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