Between the Folds

Between the Folds
SF Doc Fest 2009
Roxie Theater
Sat, Oct 17 4:45 PM

I was surprised by the near-capacity audience that turned out for this film of happy nerds talking about paper folding. Between the Folds is an hour-long documentary by Vanessa Gould about the current explosion of origami as an art form & as a science. It is aimed at a general audience & is comprised of a series of short profiles of origami experts. It also provides tantalizing glimpses of advanced, mind-boggling models by the likes of Robert Lang & Brian Chan. In one stupefying segment, Chris Palmer folds a collapsible flower tower over the course of 3 hours. I found it frustrating not to learn more about how these models were created & why they are significant. I was glad, though, to see old film footage of Akira Yoshizawa, the modern father of origami, reinforcing a crease with a heavy mallet.

Filmmaker Ms. Gould & folders Michael LaFosse & Chris Palmer were on hand to answer questions. Afterward, outside the theater, Mr. LaFosse showed off some of his animal models, & Mr. Palmer recreated his demonstration of the collapsible flower tower as seen in the movie. The film will be repeated tomorrow night at the Roxie.