Editing Dog Star Man (section)

== Structure ==
Ever since he formed the idea of the project, Brakhage had already had a prelude and four parts in mind.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Metaphors on Vision|last=Brakhage|first=Stan|publisher=Anthology Film Archives|year=1963|isbn=978-0317559569|location=New York, New York|pages=22}}</ref> ''Dog Star Man,'' like Brakhage's other works, is characterized and known for their abstract imagery and techniques such as scratching and punching holes into the film. While the work is considered difficult and unorthodox by many,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.filmreference.com/Films-De-Dr/Dog-Star-Man.html|title=Dog Star Man - Film (Movie) Plot and Review|last=C. Wees|first=William|website=Film Reference|publisher=Advameg, Inc.|access-date=13 December 2016}}</ref> there is a general structure to the narrative of the film cycle that comprises the prelude and four parts. 
[[File:A mushroom-like explosion erupts over a star.jpg|thumb|The star, possibly the 'star' in ''Dog Star Man.'' One of the most prominent images in the film, it is seen at various times throughout the film, including ''Prelude'' and ''Part I.'']]

=== Prelude ===
The opening of ''Dog Star Man'' is entitled ''Prelude'' and runs at around 26 minutes, making it one of the longer parts of the film cycle. Brakhage described the ''Prelude'' as a "created dream" for the film as opposed to [[Surrealism]] in which the work itself is inspired by the dream of the artist.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Metaphors on Vision|last=Brakhage|first=Stan|publisher=Anthology film Archives|year=1963|isbn=978-0317559569|location=New York, New York|pages=22|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> In it, the ''Prelude'' contains many of the images that recur throughout the rest of the film series, creating a visual [[leitmotif]] of the many symbols and concepts of the series of films. There are also many instances to what Brakhage calls "close-eyed vision".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Metaphors on Vision|last=Brakhage|first=Stan|publisher=Anthology Film Archives|year=1963|isbn=978-0317559569|location=New York, New York|pages=23}}</ref> Broadly, the ''Prelude'' exemplifies, among other things, the creation of the universe.

=== Part I ===
The longest of the film cycle, running at about 30 minutes, ''Part I'' comprises most of the narrative of the film cycle in which the woodsman struggles with his journey up the mountain along with his dog.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fredcamper.com/Film/Brakhage7.html|title=The Art of Vision, a film by Stan Brakhage|last=Camper|first=Fred|date=May 1966|website=www.fredcamper.com|publisher=Film Culture|others=Originally written in May 1966 for a showing in the MIT Film Society in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Camper's essay was first published in Jonas Mekas' "Film Culture", Issue no. 46, in Autumn 1967.|access-date=January 17, 2017}}</ref> Unlike the ''Prelude,'' where there are many instances of superimposed images that are more abstract to the eye, ''Part I'' is more impressionistic. Major parts of the film are in slow-motion; others, in time-lapse photography, speeding up motion. One of the most important images in ''Part I'' is the mountain that Brakhage attempts to climb.

=== Part II ===
In contrast to the lengthy running times of the earlier films, ''Part II'' begins a series of shorter segments that run from around 5–7 minutes. Its central focus is on the birth of a child which was filmed on [[Black and white|black and white film stock]] as a part of Brakhage's home movies that he shot during the time; stylistically, the filming of childbirth in an almost documentary-like way is quite similar to ''[[Window Water Baby Moving]]''. Two layers of imagery are imposed over one another, suggesting that the woodsman's life is passing right before his eyes.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://internationalcinemareview.blogspot.com/2015/10/stan-brakhage-dog-star-man.html|title=A Voyage Into Nature|last=Messerli|first=Douglas|date=October 15, 2015|website=World Cinema Review|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171226204142/http://internationalcinemareview.blogspot.com/2015/10/stan-brakhage-dog-star-man.html|archive-date=December 26, 2017|access-date=December 26, 2017}}</ref>