Koyaanisqatsi in 35mm
Koyaanisqatsi in 35mm
Shot between 1975 and 1982, this visually poetic documentary showcases the beauty of nature while examining modern urban life. The juxtaposition of images demonstrates the effects of industrialization on the environment and humanity’s drift from nature. Composer Philip Glass aptly balances invoking a feeling of doom with a simultaneous sense of wonder and fascination in one of his earliest feature film scores. Borrowed from the Hopi language, Koyaanisqatsi translates to “chaotic life” or “life out of balance,” and appears in connection with a Hopi prophecy that warns of future catastrophe if we only take from nature’s resources instead of protecting them.
DIRECTED BY: Godfrey Reggio. WRITTEN BY: Ron Fricke, Godfrey Reggio, Michael Hoenig, Alton Walpole. 1982. 86 min. USA. Color. English. Not rated. 35mm.
Academy Museum film programming generously funded by the Richard Roth Foundation.
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