SATURDAY, JUNE 8 - 10 PM
THURSDAY, JUNE 20 - 10 PM
MONDAY, JUNE 24 - 7:30 PM
SUNDAY, JUNE 30 - 7:30 PM with filmmaker Q&A (This event is $10.)

We are living in unprecedented times. Looking through your phone or even at your own neighborhood, you find yourself faced with images of post-viral fatigue, crumbling towns, and society pushed to the edge of sanity. War, Famine, Death, and Destruction. The weight is almost unbearable. How can we still create in a time like this?

DREAMS IN DECAY attempts to answer. This June at Spectacle, we will be shining a light on creators far and wide who have turned an eye to their surroundings and have chosen to see magic in the darkness – while using a wide range of techniques including animation, pyrotechnics, AI, and good old-fashioned trespassing. Spectacle is happy to share with you two films from these proud artists who have found a way to dream in the decay.

SYNUMERU
(СИНУМЕРУ)
Dirs. Anna Zatsarinna, Maksym Zatsarinniy. 2023.
Ukraine. 26 min.
In English and Ukrainian with English Subtitles.

“In this episode, the Hermit meets an explosion, and the story spins completely out of control.”

Part one of an ongoing series, SYUNMERU seeks to record and understand the unique and transformative experience of those caught in the Russo-Ukrainian War through the lens of Magic Realism. Tools include inventive costumes, evocative handheld cinematography, and beautiful ritual.

Perhaps better known as Max Svitlo and Salt Salome, husband and wife duo Maksym Zatsarinniy and Kazakh-born Anna Zatsarinna have been loving, living, divining, costuming, performing, and sculpting together in Ukraine since 2022.

EMPATH
Dirs. Rebecca Shenfeld, Ian Cone, Rafael Villanueva. 2024.
United States. 55 min.
In English.

“A woodland girl encounters a mysterious woman entwined with an octopus, embarking on an otherworldly odyssey through a tunnel into a realm inhabited by bizarre entities.”

An absurdly funny and feral piece of Post-Youtube anarchy set in a rich and filthy fantasy world that at first glance appears to be nothing more than a dead strip of housing development. EMPATH is focused on fostering a sense of joy and purpose for a community who may lack some of both – while addressing love, dating, authority, childhood, and loneliness. Featuring a killer noise soundtrack with FIRE-TOOLZ, HAUS ARAFNA and more.

Created by Adult Swim seasoned filmmakers, performers, artists, and friends Rebecca Shenfeld, Ian Cone, and Rafael Villanueva throughout COVID and beyond. Please join us Sunday, June 30th at 7:30 PM for a Q&A with the filmmakers!

!!!STROBE WARNING!!!