Fantastic Fungi
Tuesday, September 17, 2019 @ 7PM
The State Theatre
Followed by Q&A with director Louie Schwartzberg and light refreshments
Louie Schwartzberg (2018, U.S., 79 min.)
What do you appreciate most about nature? Next time you stroll through a forest, look down at the earth for inspiration: there is fascinating complexity right underneath your feet! The fungi kingdom, 3.5 billion years old, is the unsung hero of the natural world and offers more than meets the eye. Below mushroom fruiting bodies exist a complex subterranean network of mycelium branching out in all directions miles below us. These magical organisms decompose organic matter, create rich soil, and connect other forms of life. At the same time, they may offer unique pharmacological benefits science only recently has started to consider. From impassioned enthusiasts to expert mycologists, psychologists to chefs, director Louie Schwartzberg finds people who will help you never look at humble mushrooms the same way again.
Schwartzberg is an award-winning cinematographer with a notable career in time-lapse, high-speed and macro cinematography. His breathtaking films engage with the intersections of humans, nature, and place, while exploring the mysteries and wisdom connecting them. As the kick-off film for our series on “Limits of the Imagination,” Fantastic Fungi’s beautiful imagery, vibrant color, and almost magical fantasy helped us to ask how the camera lens can help us understand natural systems in new ways–seeing the complexity and interconnections otherwise hidden from daily comprehension. Thanks to the over 400 of you who joined us to kick off our 2019-2020 series! (Filmmaker was in attendance.)
There’s a thread that runs from Louie’s earliest work – turning the miracle of nature’s growth into a colorful, undulating, mind-blowing dance, one frame at a time. This film illustrates that the kingdom of fungi has great potentials to not only feed us and stimulate our minds, but to heal us, and our planet in many hopeful directions.
