Attempts to converse with other species, such as dolphins, whales or even extraterrestrials, the use of isolation tanks, and a recommendation “to get terror-stricken” – those are just some of the elements teased in a trailer for John Lilly and the Earth Coincidence Control Office, a film written and directed by Michael Almereyda and Courtney Stephens and narrated by Chloë Sevigny that will world premiere at the upcoming International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR).
Showcasing archival material, the essayistic movie explores the life and ideas of utopian neuroscientist John C. Lilly, who developed the isolation tank, or sensory deprivation tank, and whose unorthodox work and experiments on human and animal consciousness were as ambitious as they were controversial.
Putting a new spotlight on an era in U.S. counterculture, it shows how Lilly predicted that humans would be able to find ways to communicate with other species, particularly marine animals, but potentially also extraterrestrial life. Speaking of alien concepts: he also became known for his LSD experiments on dolphins and his own drug- and isolation tank-fueled experiments. And Lilly ended up speaking about the existence of a cosmic entity that he dubbed the Earth Coincidence Control Office (E.C.C.O.).
His work inspired such movies as The Day of the Dolphin (1973) and Altered States (1980), as well as the videogame series Ecco the Dolphin.
Stephens and Almereyda “recognize their subject as a person who, with considerable fluidity, traded scientific investigation for adventures in mysticism, fantasy, and showmanship” and “offer a sensitive interpretation of his far-reaching concepts for contemporary times,” notes an IFFR synopsis of the film.
The 54th edition of IFFR runs Jan. 30-Feb. 9.
The trailer for John Lilly and the Earth Coincidence Control Office provides a first glimpse at a world that will seem exciting to some, strange or weird to others but fascinating to many. Watch the exclusive trailer below.
English (US) ·