Pioneering multimedia artist and computer animator Lillian Schwartz created “Galaxies” during the early period of her 33-year tenure as artist-in-residence at renowned North American research facility Bell Labs. The piece draws on modeled simulations of galaxies from NASA’s Langley Research Center, which were rendered on a powerful mainframe computer and given to Schwartz to turn into a complete film. Schwartz, who had a background in Japanese calligraphy and painting and whose work often intersects art and technology, approached the material creatively, layering, distorting and colourising the images to breathe new life into the scientific data, with visually striking effect.

Ben Sassen

The RK12 galaxy is twenty-eight billion kilometres away from earth and contains a sandy desert planet inhabited by an extraterrestrial species. Without sunlight, these creatures live off the energy of movement itself. They produce time, love music and push their mortal gods back into space when they are tired of them. A fictitious reportage that showcases Piotr Kamler’s extraordinary skill. In addition to a feature-length sci-fi film, the Polish avant-garde film artist created a number of original and technically outstanding short films. “Green Planet” is a masterful stop motion animation in which Kamler brings delicate shapes made of fine sand to life. Carefully directed lighting, contrasts and focus create a fantastical world whose spatial depth is impressive. The music by Ivo Malec, a pioneer of electro-acoustic and New Music, reinforces the otherworldly atmosphere of the distant setting.

Franka Sachse

In fluid sequence, the birth of a world is depicted as a bioastronomical event. Nebulous, whirling gaseous spheres condense, becoming molten membranes, then a flashing planet. Descent into its erupting electronic forces, to the nucleus, finds the life-spark doubling and multiplying, ascending toward consciousness, into crystal symmetries. An awareness of the whole is focused into the beginning of superconsciousness. This film was preserved with the support of the National Film Preservation Foundation.

Pyramid Films