Insomnies

Insomnies (Samy Szlingerbaum, 1979) - © CINEMATEK

Insomnies

Belgian filmmaker Samy Szlingerbaum directed the short film Le 15/8 in 1973 together with Chantal Akerman. He then made two short films of his own, including this nocturnal Insomnies, which rhythmically and associatively depicts the neon lights of the Belgian capital—like a dream. A mostly formal experiment of barely nine minutes.  

A few years later, Szlingerbaum would make his only feature film, Brussels Transit, in which he tells the story of his parents who moved to Brussels and built a life there after World War II. Szlingerbaum died at the young age of 36.

The short film precedes Chantal Akerman’s Toute une nuit.

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