Stupaform (2002)

Over nine years, filmed across Asia, *Stupaform* explores the many forms of the Buddhist stupa, or pagoda, bringing them together in a single moment to capture its core meaning. The film shifts between the stupa’s physical appearance and its spiritual significance, revealing its essential nature. The actual structures transform into electronic representations, showing the inner form of the stupa. A Nepalese bell sound accompanies this, representing a physical echo of an unheard vibration. As Ann-Sargent Wooster notes in program notes for the NAP Biennial, "McElwee gets to the heart of this kind of building, presenting us with a shimmering, dissolving structure that appears woven from golden threads into a flowing, timeless space. Image and sound become unified."