What Goes Up

Robert Breer’s *What Goes Up...* continues his "kitchen sink" approach by incorporating a wide variety of elements. A central aspect of his work is a series of tensions. Rather than using animation to create seamless illusions, his films highlight cinema’s dual nature as both an illusion of movement and a sequence of still images. The overall effect of his work is ecstatic: by combining various rhythmic patterns, abstract and photographed shapes, and flatness mixed with depth illusions, Breer revitalizes ordinary vision. After watching one of his films, the world can appear more alive, filled with rhythms, colors, shapes, and textures. However, Breer’s films often also explore themes of failure—failed movements and failed aspirations. The title *What Goes Up...* references the idiom “What goes up must come down,” alluding to his childhood dreams of flying (represented here, as in many of his films, by airplanes) as well as to the limpness following male orgasm.