Five short films featuring the poetry and prose of the Beat writers; William Burroughs, Brion Gyson and Ian Somerville. Filmed in New York City, Paris and Tangiers, the films do not use narrative but rather incorporate avant-garde and experimental film techniques. Burroughs’ poetry, and his commitment to homo-eroticism and heroin use, feature prominently in the films. “William buys a parrot”, “The cut-ups” and “Bill and Tony” last a few minutes whilst “Towers open fire” and “Ghosts at no. 9 (Paris)” are longer films. The last film is an hour excerpt of a longer five hour epic.
Content notification
Our collection comprises over 40,000 moving image works, acquired and catalogued between the 1940s and early 2000s. As a result, some items may reflect outdated, offensive and possibly harmful views and opinions. ACMI is working to identify and redress such usages.
Learn more about our collection and our collection policy here. If you come across harmful content on our website that you would like to report, let us know.
How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
302379
Language
English
Subject categories
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Beat generation
Economics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion & Sociology → Beat generation
Experimental → Experimental films - United States
Literature → American literature
Literature → Burroughs, William S., 1914-
Literature → Somerville, Ian F. (Ian Ferguson)
Music & Performing Arts → Beat generation
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
VHS; Access Print (Section 1)