In his dynamic feature debut, aemi’s 2022 Artist-in-Focus Fern Silva takes viewers on a psychedelic tour of Hawaii

aemi and CIFF are proud to present the Irish premiere of Rock Bottom Riser by Fern Silva, aemi’s Artist-in-Focus at CIFF 2022. Experimental documentary Rock Bottom Riser takes viewers on a psychedelic tour of Hawaii, exploring the tension between scientific inquiry and Indigenous preservation. A dynamic feature debut that examines myriad encounters with an island world at sea, this essay film weaves a tapestry of post-colonialism and pop culture with cinematic brio and a wry wit.

Rock Bottom Riser is an essential document and an exhilarating tour-de-force, a palimpsest that traverses geology, ethnography and astronomy, described by The New York Times as “[A] psychedelic mixtape of a movie…”

Irish premiere followed by post-screening Q&A with the filmmaker Fern Silva

Film information
Fern Silva, Rock Bottom Riser, 2021, USA, 16mm transferred to digital, 70 mins

Fern Silva, Biography
Fern Silva is an artist who primarily works in 16mm. His films consider methods of narrative, ethnographic, and documentary filmmaking as the starting point for structural experimentation. He has created a body of film, video, and projection work that has been screened and performed at various festivals, galleries, museums, and cinematheques including the Toronto, Berlin, Locarno, Rotterdam, New York, London, and Hong Kong International Film Festivals