Imagine a film with no dialogue, no characters and no conventional storyline, yet one that keeps you glued to the screen. Sounds impossible? Think again! With breathtaking images and a hypnotic soundtrack by Philip Glass, Koyaanisqatsi takes you on a fascinating visual journey that might just change the way you look at our world.
This one only deserves the big screen.
Genre: documentary, experimental, music
Language: no dialogue
Length: 1 hr. 26 mins. (1982)
From untouched natural landscapes to crowded cities, endless highways and massive factories, director Godfrey Reggio shows us a world of striking contrasts. Using spectacular time-lapse and slow-motion photography by Ron Fricke, everyday life becomes something extraordinary. And with Philip Glass's powerful, hypnotic music driving it all, this is a film you'll want to experience on the big screen.
Koyaanisqatsi takes its title from the Hopi language (native American, Southeast Arizona), in which it is commonly interpreted as “life out of balance”. Rather than explaining what to think, Reggio lets the images and music speak for themselves. More than forty years later, its vision of acceleration, mass production and technological dependence feels strikingly current.
Never seen a film quite like this? That's all the more reason to give it a try. You may leave inspired, unsettled or exhilarated, but you are unlikely to look at everyday life quite the same way again.
And yes, the Philip Glass soundtrack is worth checking out on its own.
Awards
The film was selected for preservation in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 2000. It also won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Music and received the Cinema Eye Honors Legacy Award in 2020.
Reviews
“If ever a film was destined for watching in a cinema, this is it.” The Guardian
“Powerful, nearly primordial emotions that are unencumbered by linearity.” Slant Magazine
“A visual meditation on how technology wreaks havoc on the natural world.” DocsOnline
Rotten Tomatoes: 91% critics / 91% audience – reviews
SG & ITEC registration for bachelor’s students
Please register for SG & ITEC by scanning your student ID card AFTER the film at the venue.
More information about SG & ITEC can be found here.
Ticket information
This film will be shown at Filmhuis De Zwarte Doos.
- Tickets must be purchased online in advance and can be bought by clicking the black “Order” button on this page.
- Cash or card payments are not accepted at the ticket counter.
For more information about tickets, refund policies, and other details, click here.
Please be on time
The screening of the film begin promptly at 19:30 (with a bare minimum of pre-film advertisements), and the cinema hall will open at 19:10. We kindly request that you arrive at the ticket counter at least 10 minutes before the start of the film to ensure a smooth and timely experience for all.
The Studium Generale film program is created in collaboration with the Student Film Committee and Natlab.