Directed by Walerian Borowczyk • 1963 • France

One of Borowczyk’s most well-known shorts, Renaissance deploys reverse stop-motion animation to picture the world caught in a cycle of destruction and reanimation. In the aftermath of an explosion, the remnants of a handful of objects (a trumpet, a doll, a stuffed owl) slowly reconstitute themselves – only to be blown apart once again. Borowczyk dedicates the film to Hy Hirsh, the American photographer and experimental filmmaker who died prematurely in 1961.

RENAISSANCE
Written and directed by Walerian Borowczyk
Cinematography by Guy Durban
Music by Avenir de Monfred