TheCinema of Transgression is a term coined byNick Zedd in 1985 to describe aNew York City–basedunderground film movement, consisting of a loose-knit group of artists usingshock value andblack humor in their films.[1][2] Key players in this movement were Zedd,Kembra Pfahler,Tessa Hughes-Freeland,Casandra Stark,Beth B, Tommy Turner,Jon Moritsugu,Manuel DeLanda,David Wojnarowicz,Richard Kern, andLydia Lunch, who in the late 1970s and mid-1980s began to makevery low-budget films using cheap 8 mm cameras.
Zedd outlined hisphilosophy on the Cinema of Transgression inThe Cinema of Transgression Manifesto, published under the name Orion Jeriko in thezineThe Underground Film Bulletin (1984–90).[3]
Cinema of Transgression continues to heavily influence underground filmmakers. In 2000, theBritish Film Institute showed a retrospective of the movement's work introduced by those involved in the production of the original video films.[4]
