Samsara (2011 film)

Samsara
Directed by Ron Fricke
Produced by Mark Magidson
Written by Ron Fricke
Mark Magidson
Music by Michael Stearns
Lisa Gerrard
Marcello de Francisci
Cinematography Ron Fricke
Editing by Ron Fricke
Mark Magidson
Studio Magidson Films
Release date(s) September 11, 2011 (2011-09-11)
Running time 99 minutes
Country United States

Samsara is a non-narrative film created by filmmakers Ron Fricke and Mark Magidson. It is described as a sequel or continuation of the highly acclaimed 1992 film Baraka, which was also directed by Ron Fricke and produced by Mark Magidson. The word Saṃsāra is a Sanskrit word that means world or "cyclic existence", but is used often to describe worldly activities, and in the words of Fricke, the film "will delve deeper into my favorite theme: humanity's relationship to the eternal."[1] As with Baraka, this new film was shot in Todd-AO 5 perf 65 mm film using the Super Panavision 70 system for most of the film[2][3], and will use music to help propel the film forward.[4]

Samsara premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2011[5] shown in 4K resolution digital projection. No 70mm prints have been planned.[6]

Contents

Content summary

The director proposed an outline for the two-hour film:[1]

  1. Prologue: Creation.
    Moving from a view which encompasses an atom, the views will expand in scale, until a sand painting is shown. Using the painting as a kind of portal, the viewer will be introduced to four ancestor spirit guides.
  2. Act 1: Spirit taking form.
    This section will focus on an amorphous spirit, seeking expression. At the end of the segment, that spirit will come into form as a newborn baby.
  3. Act 2: Matter, one turn of the wheel.
    This section expands on the single birth of Act I, and explores the global cycle of birth to death, represented by the ancestor spirits of the prologue.
  4. Act 3: Samsara, the wheel of life.
    The focus of this section is the journey of the spirit after death, and the impermanence of the material world. Abandon, decay, and death will be the primary themes.
  5. Epilogue: Rebirth.
    The view will go back through the sand painting of the prologue, which will be reassembled, and the portal will be sealed.

Music

The film's music was composed by Michael Stearns, Lisa Gerrard, and Marcello De Francisci.

References

  1. ^ a b "Samsara: a film by Ron Fricke, the sequel to Baraka". Retrieved 2007-02-17.
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ [2]
  4. ^ Magidson, M (2008-04-26). "Samsara - in Panavision System 65". in70mm.com. http://www.in70mm.com/news/2008/samsara/. Retrieved 2011-02-22. 
  5. ^ "2011 Films: Samsara". Toronto International Film Festival. August 2011. http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/tiff/2011/samsara. Retrieved 2011-08-18. 
  6. ^ [3]

External links