Shamans of the Blind Country by Michael Oppitz

After each three-month stay in the Himalayas with the Magar, the team would wait in Kathmandu for the 16mm footage, which had been sent to New York for development. From 35 hours of raw material, the nearly four-hour film was later edited.

Oppitz describes this work with the footage as "ethnography in the darkroom," with the film initially serving as a research aid. But the term "aid" seems like an understatement when considering the film itself. Not only its subject matter, but also its precision, its sense of rhythm, and its careful use of language soon established it as a classic of visual anthropology. "Shamans in the Blind Land" (Nepal/West Germany/USA 1980) screened in the Forum section of the Berlinale in 1981 and again in 2014 as a restored digital version.



Program Schedule

• 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM Part One of the Film
  
• 1:30 PM – 2:00 PM Intermission
  
• 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM Part Two of the Film
  
• 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM Michael Oppitz in conversation with film curator Dr. Regine Knapp
  

Note: The film has a total running time of 223 minutes. The film will be shown in its original language, Kham, with German subtitles.


The film is presented in cooperation with "Arsenal on Location." Arsenal on Location is funded by the Capital Cultural Fund.


Admission: 5 Euros