Aphotic Zone

Emilija Škarnulytė

A cinematic journey across space and time

Aphotic Zone peers back from the future through dark oceans to witness the threats of climate crisis and economic extractivism, the idealistic prospects of science, and the catastrophic consequences of human greed. Luminous sea jellies beam over choirs of fish as we travel 4 km deep past the Pacific seamounts off Costa Rica to reach the pitch black ‘aphotic’ zone of the sea. There, the Duga radar (a Soviet-era missile defence system near Chernobyl) is an undersea ruin far beneath the waves. Mixed by Oscar-winning sound engineers Jaime Baksht and Michelle Couttolenc, the film’s soundtrack is drawn from a field recording made in Mexico City’s Zócalo on the 500th anniversary of Spain’s conquest of Tenochtitlan.

Running Time: 16 minutes 23 seconds

Emilija Škarnulytė

Aphotic Zone

Emilija Škarnulytė

Aphotic Zone

Emilija Škarnulytė

Aphotic Zone

Emilija Škarnulytė

Aphotic Zone

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Emilija Škarnulytė

Born in Vilnius, Lithuania, Emilija Škarnulytė is an artist and filmmaker. Working between documentary and the imaginary, she makes films and immersive installations exploring deep time and invisible structures, from the cosmic and geologic to the ecological and political. Winner of the 2019 Future Generation Art Prize, she represented Lithuania at the XXII Triennale di Milano. Her films are in the IFA, Kadist Foundation and Centre Pompidou collections, and have been screened at the Serpentine Gallery, London; The Museum of Modern Art, New York, and numerous film festivals.

Living Canvas

Living Canvas is a cultural initiative by IPUT which establishes new ways of exhibiting artworks in large scale outdoor installations in Dublin’s city centre.

Living Canvas