Michael Somervell Pope is an award-winning American underground filmmaker and multi-media artist best known as the auteur of the feature film and event Neovoxer. Neovoxer is an experimental, non-dialogue feature film and an event that includes a live performance of its musical score and sound effects, site-specific installation and tableau vivant. Pope was writer, director, editor as well as, actor, designer, and one of the composers of the project. With this, he spearheaded the volunteer efforts of over 200 artists and artisans in what he describes as a "Collective creative action". Neovoxer was the first film by an American director to screen at the P1: International Biennial in the Czech Republic, and earned him a Tanne Award for Outstanding Achievement, which recognizes artists with outstanding achievements in their field. Pope shot, cut and directed the music videos for long-time collaborators The Dresden Dolls, as well as directing their first live concert/documentary DVD "" and numerous multi-media events under the Dresden Dolls banner. Pope also directed the music video series “Who Killed Amanda Palmer: A Surrealist Mini Mystery” in conjunction with the album and book release of the same name. Pope has received artist's residencies from E|Merge Interdisciplinary A.I.R., the Mobius Artists Group for Experimental Work in All Media, and the Experimental Television Center,. His video art has shown at 31 Grand Gallery curated by artist Barnaby Whitfield, as well as numerous site-specific installations in collaboration with The Nu Dance Theater. In 2009, Pope was commissioned by the Boston Pops to create a new film piece for their New Year's Eve show by Amanda Palmer. The film The Old & The New starred Jeremy Geidt and his wife. In 2008, Pope traveled to Tehran as part of cross-cultural artist project "Send My Love To Iran" founded by BriAnna Olson He has made commercial music videos for Ben Folds, Gene Dante & The Future Starlets and many other bands. His music videos are in international rotation including MTV, LOGO and RAGE and have seen premieres on People, Spin, Jezebel and Pitchfork websites. In 2016, Pope began a new independent movie/transmedia project, SYNEMATIKA, by creating a "3-dimensional script" as a site-specific installation in a 2400-square foot industrial space in Kingston, NY. The creation of the script was done as a 30-day lockdown endurance art piece, after which it was opened to the public for viewing and photographed to become a graphic "shooting bible" for the eventual movie.
Biography
Born and raised in New York City, Pope is a self-taught filmmaker. He claims an eclectic collection of life experiences that fuel his creative work: a childhood of dyslexia and truancy and a widely varied career track as bike messenger, house painter and phone sex operator have proven to be the training ground for his film making. He made his first films on Super8 when he was 7 years old.
