ARTIST STATEMENT

BIOGRAPHY

Born in 1975, in San Diego, California, Mika Johnson studied film and religion at Oberlin College, in Ohio. After graduating, in 2000, he made a documentary on Wing Young Huie, a photographer in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Two years later Mika moved to Tokyo where he studied photography and became a member of Videoart Center Tokyo, a group of video artists. There he directed "The Mountain of Signs", a 28 minute video about a young photographer who travels from Tokyo to a Buddhist shrine on Mount Koya. In 2004, Johnson moved to Prague to direct a short film titled "Yonder", which follows a man who is lost in his dreams. In February 2007, Mika moved to New York City, where he co-founded a production company called Arcanum Productions. At present he is raising funds for his first feature film titled "AMERIKA: a notebook in three parts." arcanumproductions.com

EDUCATION

REPRESENTATION

SOLO EXHIBITS

MOUNTAIN OF SIGNS, 2003. Video, 28 min. Japan.
Directed by Mika Johnson.

2003
Out Lounge, Tokyo.
Super Deluxe, Tokyo.

2007
Duke University, North Carolina.

YONDER, 2006. Video, 20 min. Czech Republic.
Written by Peter Hlinka, directed and photographed by Mika Johnson.

2007
Slamdance, Utah.
Victory Media Arts Festival, Texas.
Anthology Films, New York.
The European Media Arts Festival, Germany.

GROUP EXHIBITS

ARTICLES

Article from Beyond Race Magazine, Summer 2007

The Secret of Mika Johnson's Yonder.
by Honey S. Lapcharoen

Independent filmmaker Mika Johnson exudes a quiet confidence and great sense of optimism. In the world of Indie films, this attitude is a necessary prerequisite. The topic at hand revolves around his 20-minute short film entitled Yonder, which was recently featured at the Slamdance Film Festival in Utah. The 31-year-old American reveals to me what he discovered while living and filming on location in the Czech Republic. In Prague, Johnson discloses, "nothing fucking works."

Digitally filmed and photographed in black and white over eight months, amidst the stationary remnants of the former Communist city, Yonder follows one man's journey into the subconscious and the reconstitution of identity. Yonder's protagonist (played by Johnson's co-collaborator Peter Hlinka) desperately searches for an alternative to his automaton-like existence. Wandering between desolate cityscapes and the wooded outskirts of the Czech Republic, the character literally discovers and unearths his spiritual double. Inspired by Modernist, German Expressionist, and Surrealist imagery, the film juxtaposes fluid scenes of motion and emotion with pristine geometric compositions to create a complex study in the psychological and mythological. In many ways, Yonder is a visual homage to formalist aesthetics, but it is also a film made from a process of complete spontaneity.

The idea for Yonder began while Johnson and Hlinka studied at Oberlin College in Ohio. The two became friends, and over time realized that they shared similar interests in Shamanism, mythology, philosophy, and art. For Johnson, studying photography also became a passion: "I spent a lot of time in the library, reading and looking at photography books. That's where I found (Andre) Kertesz, Ansel Adams, and Edward Weston. I really liked Modernism that involved really strong black and white contrast, formalizing everything, whether it was a toilet or a mountain. And I once worked with a photographer who introduced me to other photographers. It was the first time I would sit down with somebody, looking at a single image for 30 minutes at a time. By talking about what I liked about my favorite photographs, I could then go out and take pictures and think about what was interesting in a shot."

Johnson and Hlinka started brainstorming ideas for their first joint-effort, and looked to Luis Bunuel and Salvador Dali's famous film Un Chien Andalou (1929) for inspiration. For days at a time, Johnson and Hlinka listed observations and described meaningful dreams to one another. They adopted a Surrealist perspective, and focused on the subconscious where, as Johnson reveals, "All the periphery information is communicating meaning. The periphery is just as important as what's happening in the center. (In the 1920's) I think there wasn't really a precedent yet on how to make films like dreams. So that's what we wanted to do."

Armed with only a consumer-grade video camera, a Macintosh laptop, and a couple thousand dollars, Johnson and Hlinka moved to the Czech Republic, where Hlinka lived as a student. Almost immediately upon arrival in Prague, and for the proceeding eight months, strange and mysterious events transpired, calling into question the fruitfulness of their endeavor. But Johnson envisioned making a film that would operate as a chronicle of the process of self-discovery and worked through his doubts: "I liked this idea of making a film, which is a performance or process. We wanted to go to the Czech Republic without a script because we thought that it's just going to be so much more exciting if we let things happen to us. We had the idea to go into the city each day and get lost on purpose, and not use a map. We were just going to walk around and see where we would end up. And then we would try to take some meaning out of that, because that to me is like a dream."

The two men spent time with some eccentric individuals, drifting and getting lost in the corridors of Prague, and were also introduced to some amazing locales, including castles in the Czech countryside. When their finances dwindled, Johnson relied on the help of people he met along the way. When he found a particular antique shop that he wanted to film in, he found himself in a strange working relationship with the shopkeeper. "We're not Hollywood professionals," Johnson told the owner. "We're just two guys with a camera. We can't afford to pay you, but this is something you could create as well." In exchange for using the shop during the day, Johnson and Hlinka agreed to visit the local pub and drink with the owner at night. On the last day of shooting, the owner suddenly refused to let Johnson finish the scene. When Johnson asked the owner why he couldn't finish the take, the owner simply replied, "You can't always get what you want."

"So then I had to take photographs I shot earlier and create out of what we had," Johnson divulges. "That's how we did everything. We just developed a relationship with people and they helped us. Or didn't. That becomes a problem with this kind of filmmaking. When you're relying on people's time, and you're not paying them, you have to be spontaneous with the whole process."

Although Yonder continues to be recognized by film festivals around the world, Johnson is already planning his next film entitled Amerika: a notebook in three parts. This time around, Johnson has a full script and plans to find a producer that will fund the project. "You now have the internet as a source of distribution," Johnson tells me. "So people can start making films for a hundred-thousand dollars and it could gross more money than what it took to make the film. It all comes down to a level of artistry and not budget."

He believes that winning festivals is crucial to gaining a broader audience and subsequent backing from film distributors. He feels a certain amount of pressure, but enjoys the challenge. "All the negativity I've experienced, I'll try to re-characterize and put into the next film. Whatever I make has to be great--something with real characters, living through real consequences that audiences can relate to. Directing is about surrounding yourself with the right people, and having confidence in yourself. And if you do it well, you can make a masterpiece."