Avant-garde filmmaker Stan Brakhage moved to New York in 1954, a stay which culminated in the seminal film Anticipation of the Night. Brakhage broke with the idea that film should record and tell a story acted out for the camera. Here, there is no on-screen protagonist; the protagonist is the director, the images on screen communicate his subjectivity. To do so, Brakhage developed an array of strategies and techniques, including fluid handheld camera movements, rapid editing, and the use of abstract imagery.