Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream People Call Human Life
Directed by Stephen Quay, Timothy Quay
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Jakob arrives at the Institute Benjamenta (run by brother and sister Johannes and Lisa Benjamenta) to learn to become a servant. With seven other men, he studies under Lisa: absurd lessons of movement, drawing circles, and servility. He asks for a better room. No other students arrive and none leave for employment. Johannes is unhappy, imperious, and detached from the school's operation. Lisa is beautiful, at first tightly controlled, then on the verge of breakdown. There's a whiff of incest. Jakob is drawn to Lisa, and perhaps she to him. As winter sets in, she becomes catatonic. Things get worse; Johannes notes that all this has happened since Jakob came. Is there any cause and effect?Read moreLess
Jakob arrives at the Institute Benjamenta (run by brother and sister Johannes and Lisa Benjamenta) to learn to become a servant. With seven other men, he studies under Lisa: absurd lessons of movement, drawing circles, and servility. He asks for a better room. No other students arrive and none leave for employment. Johannes is unhappy, imperious, and detached from the school's operation. Lisa is beautiful, at first tightly controlled, then on the verge of breakdown. There's a whiff of incest. Jakob is drawn to Lisa, and perhaps she to him. As winter sets in, she becomes catatonic. Things get worse; Johannes notes that all this has happened since Jakob came. Is there any cause and effect?
The story
Jakob arrives at the Institute Benjamenta (run by brother and sister Johannes and Lisa Benjamenta) to learn to become a servant. With seven other men, he studies under Lisa: absurd lessons of movement, drawing circles, and servility. He asks for a better room. No other students arrive and none leave for employment. Johannes is unhappy, imperious, and detached from the school's operation. Lisa is beautiful, at first tightly controlled, then on the verge of breakdown. There's a whiff of incest. Jakob is drawn to Lisa, and perhaps she to him. As winter sets in, she becomes catatonic. Things get worse; Johannes notes that all this has happened since Jakob came. Is there any cause and effect?
Watch trailerCast & crew
Alice KrigeLisa Benjamenta
Mark RylanceJakob
Gottfried JohnHerr Benjamenta
César SaratxuInigo
Uri RoodnerSchilinskiExplore the crew
- Director
- Stephen Quay
- Director
- Timothy Quay
- Original Music Composer
- Lech Jankowski
- Producer
- Karl Baumgartner
- Editor
- Larry Sider
- Producer
- Janine Marmot
- Producer
- Katsue Tomiyama
- Producer
- Keith Griffiths
- Writer
- Timothy Quay
- Writer
- Alan Passes
- Writer
- Stephen Quay
- Director of Photography
- Nicholas D. Knowland