Sun Ra: Do the Impossible

A kaleidoscopic journey into the life and legacy of Sun Ra, the cosmic jazz pioneer whose radical vision of music, myth, and Black liberation reshaped the universe of sound.

Poet, Egyptologist, cosmologist, historian, activist, musician, and jazz pioneer, Sun Ra was all of these. In this kaleidoscopic portrait of the visionary jazz musician known as Sun Ra, director Christine Turner takes us on a wild journey through the life of a complex man who was either born in Birmingham, Alabama or, as he famously claimed, was sent from Saturn. With his band, the Arkestra, he expanded the boundaries of free-form jazz and preached his radical philosophy of Afrofuturism —a blend of science fiction, mythology, philosophy, and Black liberation.

Turner’s vivid documentary masterfully weaves together recollections from the Arkestra’s devoted band members, while offering thoughtful insights from historians, scholars, and fellow musicians, and the musings of Sun Ra himself. Featuring unforgettable performance footage, Sun Ra: Do the Impossible is a mind-blowing portrait of a trailblazing artist.