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SUPAKINO presents 'Enclosed Ecstasies': a double bill of erotic short film The Cloud Door and cult psychedelic feature film Wonderwall.
Wonderwall (Joe Massot, UK, 1968)
"Poor Oscar, he only wanted to watch her through the Wonderwall."
George Harrison's soundtrack for the psychedelic British film Wonderwall (1968) seems to be much more well known than the film itself. It was the first solo album by a Beatle and the first LP released by Apple Records. Quincy Jones told the director Joe Massot that it was the greatest soundtrack he had heard. The film has little dialogue and takes much inspiration from the silent film era but is set firmly in the world of swinging 60s London: 'dolly bird' models, caddish photographers, vivid costumes and colourful artwork (by Dutch design collective The Fool).
An eccentric professor (Jack MacGowran) prone to daydreaming becomes obsessed with peeping at the alluring world of the fashion model next door (Jane Birkin). The film unfolds like a series of dreams, each one accompanied by Harrison's beautiful musical vignettes featuring Aashish Khan, Mahapurush Misra, Vinayek Vora and other maestros of Indian Classical Music.
The Cloud Door (Mani Kaul, Germany/ India, 1994, in Hindi with English subtitles)
We are thankful to Ziegler Films for allowing this very rare screening of Indo-German short film The Cloud Door (1994). This later erotic short by Mani Kaul, the renowned master of Indian Parallel Cinema, draws on centuries-old literary love tales by Bhasa and Jayasi. The first screening in India in 1995 caused an uproar, with police being called to prevent rioting. The film then toured the great international film festivals but has rarely been seen since then on the big screen or included in retrospectives of Mani Kaul's films. Both films will be introduced by our curator Ranjit S. Ruprai.
BOMBAY MIX:
Indian cinema meets the rest of the world in a mix of movies that share themes, stories and genres. Part of an on-going programme of double bills that invite audiences to explore cinema and make new connections.
SUPAKINO:
Ranjit S. Ruprai is an independent programmer and supporter of indie cinemas, film festivals and film clubs in London. Since founding SUPAKINO, he has been presenting friendly film screenings around fun and unusual themes including Turbans Seen On Screen, Bombay Mix double-bills and Midnight Excess late-night shows. Ranjit also speaks at film conferences about repertory/archive film exhibition, guest lectures at the National Film & Television School, and was Chair of the historic Rio Cinema, Dalston. Learn more at: supakino.com