"BARAKA"



Dear Growers,

We do suggest you watch this documentary. Here's the trailer and a short synopsis of it:

"Baraka, the Sufi term for “blessing”, is a nonverbal film with dramatic images of nature, religious ritual, oppressive city life, and war. The film, in the words of director Ron Fricke, is a journey of rediscovery and reconnecting. The dominant message is a mystical one: God is nature, big cities are unnatural, and we connect with nature through organic religious rituals. The movie was filmed during a 13 month period in 24 countries at over 150 locations. It was shot on 70 millimeter film which gives it especially high resolution (the normal film size for a feature-length movie is 35 millimeter). Baraka follows in the tradition of the groundbreaking nonverbal film Koyaanisqatsi (1983), directed Godfrey Reggio, of which Fricke was the cinematographer. Wearing the director’s hat this time, Fricke set out to make “The ultimate nonverbal film in the ultimate format,” as Baraka’s producer Mark Magidson puts it. While the film contains no narration or dialogue, it nonetheless contains a clear three-act story. Act 1 depicts scenes of natural wonder and religious rituals that blend together. In Act 2 the movie shifts direction as a Brazilian rainforest tree is chainsawed to the ground. An enormous strip mine scars the landscape. Cities progressively increase in size and take on a mechanical breathing sound. The result is overpopulation, mass production, factory farms, poverty, prostitution, war, and ultimately genocide. Act 3 is one of redemption. Civilizations ultimately collapse under their own weight, and people are purified by returning to nature and religious ritual."
A gallery of images from Baraka is at this website:
http://www.spiritofbaraka.com/baraka.aspx

Hope you enjoy it and hope it helps inspire new ideas and perspectives in your mind!!