The Juniper Tree

In a special film concert, Japanese composer and pianist Midori Hirano presents a new live soundtrack for this atmospherically dense black-and-white film.

Using electronic textures, piano compositions, and finely tuned soundscapes, Hirano develops a contemporary musical perspective on Keene’s poetic visual language. The result is a sensitive dialogue between film and music that brings this long-forgotten arthouse classic back to life.

*The Juniper Tree* was filmed in Iceland and blends elements of mythology and witchcraft with the female experience. The austere, powerfully staged film addresses misogyny and patriarchal violence while simultaneously painting a multifaceted portrait of female solidarity. For the American filmmaker, professor, and Fulbright scholar Nietzchka Keene, the film marked her artistic breakthrough. However, her untimely death prevented her work from gaining wider recognition.

The film concert celebrates its German premiere and takes place immediately prior to the release of Midori Hirano’s soundtrack on VIERNULVIER Records. An introduction will be provided by Wouter Vanhaelemeesch, initiator of the Videodroom series and music programmer at the VIERNULVIER Arts Center in Ghent.