The film is “Union,” “An experiment in backward moment suspension” by Sam Molleur, from the This is What We Imagine art and video collective.
Molleur goes into more detail at his blog:
Made this LITTLE SHORT with my dear friend Joseph Yaeger (who lent his words and likeness for this project), the increasingly sunburned walking prophet you can see in this video.
An experiment in “backward moment suspension” that I’ve been dreaming about exploring for quite some time now. It starts with having an entire, linear narrative being played out in a repeating, suspended moment. In this instance, it’s a poem read aloud by Joe. I wanted to make it more dynamic by not just replaying that tiny moment over and over, but actually create a contrasting, reverse effect. Where the linear narrative moves forward along with Joe’s movement, yet his displacement keeps moving him backwards. The effect can be a bit mesmerizing at times, especially if executed just right. I look forward to embarking on another attempt in the future to perfect this and apply it to a much, much longer and more dynamic endeavor.
It’s difficult to wrap your head around at first – but you can check out more of the logistics of how it works HERE. For those who like the mysterious nature of things, sorry. Instead of keeping the process secret, I’d rather share it.
They shot one syllable a time, three times each. Wow.