The Italian filmmaking team of Angela Ricci Lucchi and Yervant Gianikian burst onto the film scene in 1986 with their landmark experimental work From the Pole to the Equator. This startling work placed them at the forefront of the documentary film movement and introduced what would become recurrent themes in their work: peace and war, imperialism, and the exploitation of the underprivileged. The pair’s signature style often involves the manipulation of rare footage through re-photographing, selectively hand-tinting, and altering film speed to produce a final work of a distinctly otherworldly quality. The stunning visuals Gianikian and Ricci Lucchi create—and often enhance with original music—unravel ideologies and conflicts in a given moment in history. This strategy reveals depths of meaning, symbols, and visual metaphors that might otherwise be lost to viewers. All films are directed by Ricci Lucchi and Gianikian and from Italy.
Organized by William Sloan, independent consultant, and Laurence Kardish, Senior Curator, Department of Film.