Minima || Repertoire

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Robert Wiene, Germany 1919, 72 mins) ... Background and clips

The classic German expressionist film. Wiene’s use of distorted sets, sinister shadows and unnerving characters created a paranoid, unreal world at a time of despair and soul-searching throughout Europe.

Aelita: Queen of Mars (Yakov Protazanov, Soviet Union 1924, 100 mins)

Made in the early years of the Soviet Union, this film is part political melodrama, part space romp. The crystalline Martian film sets are timeless and they set the template of a vision of the future - for decades to come. Minima’s soundtrack was commissioned by Alastair Cameron at Bristol’s Arnolfini gallery in 2009.

Nosferatu (F.W. Murnau, Germany 1922, 90 mins)

Based on the Dracula story, this is a true spine-tingler with many now-iconic scenes of the blood-sucking count. Darkly humorous and tender too - this is a story of yearning and the search for fulfilment.

The Seashell and the Clergyman (Germaine Dulac, France 1928, 40 mins) ... Background and clips

The rarely seen French cult film. A dream-world of forbidden passion - stunning imagery; a beautifully structured and immaculately edited film.

Symphonie diagonale (Viking Eggeling, Germany 1924, 7 mins)

The definitive early short film animation. Eggeling was seeking to create a new kind of cinema, a "musical-cubistic style of film, completely divorced from the naturalistic style." This gem is usually part of our Seashell and the Clergyman programme and features a mechanical-yet-lyrical score of cross-tempos and rhythms.

The Lodger (Alfred Hitchcock, UK 1927, 101 mins)

A silent sexual psychodrama set in a foggy, gloomy London terrorised by a serial killer. A sense of menace pervades the story and the visual inventiveness makes the film a real treat. We premiered this score as an improvisation to a full house at the Prince Charles cinema in December 2009. The score has since developed strictly through performance alone.

Piccadilly (E.A. Dupont, UK 1929, 109 mins)

Murder, sexual tension and race issues are all to be found in this film, with Anna May Wong playing a Chinese scullery maid in a West-End club given the chance to dance. A last-minute commission, this improvised soundtrack previewed at the Curzon Soho in December 2008.

Early shorts

Minima have a large collection of silent short films: from early children’s animation to wildlife and public information films, from surrealism and the avant-garde to the downright bizarre, we can provide a programme to suit any occasion.