Followed by a post-screening discussion with Sebastian Mekas and a wine and light bites reception for all GUNS OF THE TREES ticket holders, hosted by the Consulate General of Lithuania in Chicago and the Lithuania Culture Institute.
“What Jonas Mekas has made in this film, perhaps without fully intending to, is a documentary of a style of life.” - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Friday, December 2 at 6pm | GUNS OF THE TREES, Mekas’s first feature film, is a tone poem that captures the existentialism of the early ‘60s through the story of Barbara, a woman who is desperately trying to find value in her life, but is weighed down by depression. The film’s title comes from a poem by Stuart Perkoff, who writes that young people, oppressed by reality, feel that even the trees seem like guns threatening their lives. An assemblage of scenes connect the past and the present, as a group of friends try to understand how they could have helped their friend. Mekas described GUNS OF THE TREES as dealing “with the thoughts, feelings, and anguished strivings of my generation.” Followed by a post-screening discussion with Sebastian Mekas and a wine and light bites reception for all GUNS OF THE TREES ticket holders, hosted by the Consulate General of Lithuania in Chicago and the Lithuania Culture Institute.
Jonas Mekas 100!: This December, we're celebrating the life and work of Jonas Mekas (1922 - 2019), one of the most influential voices in cinema, and considered by many to be the "godfather of avant-garde cinema." Though his oeuvre spanned seven decades and includes dozens of titles, the eight programs in our Mekas 100 presentation exemplify the heart of what Mekas distinctively captures so often: daily life. View full program here.
This series is made possible by, and presented with generous support from, the Consulate General of Lithuania in Chicago and the Lithuanian Culture Institute.
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