Carnival King of Europe Collection

Alternative title

Carnival, King of Europe

Synopsis

Every winter ancient rituals are performed throughout Europe to secure prosperity and good harvests. These rituals are at the heart of what is known today as the Carnival celebrations. Led by anthropologist Giovanni Kezich, Carnival King of Europe is a research project dedicated to the discovery and visual documentation of the similarities and connections between Carnivals across Europe. One result of this project is this collection of 38 short films presented by the Royal Anthropological Institute over 8 DVDs.
DVD 1 CARNIVAL KING OF EUROPE. RELEASE 2.0: an ethnographic kaleidoscopic featuring over 50 different masquerades from some 13 European countries. 38 minutes.
DVD 2 CHRISTMAS AND THEREABOUTS IN THE ALPS: at the very heart of the winter rituals, Christmas time in the Alps harbours a host of traditional masquerades, from the Day of St. Nicholas to the Epiphany. 4 shorts, 62 minutes.
DVD 3 THE BELL RINGERS OF EUROPE: the clanging of conspicuous, monumental cowbells is the most distinctive opening sound of a number of European winter masquerades. 4 shorts, 43 minutes.
DVD 4 SPEEDING THE PLOUGH: an old plough is the protagonist of the ancient masquerade in a number of European settings, where some explicit reference to ancient agrarian rituals is brought into play. 6 shorts, 86 minutes.
DVD 5 PARADING THE VILLAGE: on Carnival days, the village is brought back to life thanks to the rejuvenating, well wishing presence of ritual masks. 7 shorts, 84 minutes.
DVD 6 RITUAL ARMADAS: often the masquerade is represented by an imaginary, colourful, rumbustious army, with a distinct martial allure of its own. 6 shorts, 99 minutes.
DVD 7 THE PASTORAL LEGACY: the living icons of an idealized pastoral past can often be detected behind the masquerade, revealed by the abundance of fleece in the costumes and the tinkling of bells. 5 shorts, 67 minutes.
DVD 8 STRAW MEN AND HUMAN SACRIFICE: the climax of the masquerade, which marks a turning point in social time, is the staging of a human sacrifice by the burning of a ritual dummy. 5 shorts, 82 minutes.

Each DVD costs £50.00 + VAT and P&P.
The entire series is £200 + VAT and P&P.

Country

Italy

Year of release

2017

Year of production

2011

Subjects

Anthropology

Keywords

European culture; festivals; Carnivals; folklore

Credits

Director

Giovanni Kezich; Michele Trentini

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 0 PAL

Price

£200.00

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

562 minutes

Year

2017

Production Company

Name

Museo degli Usi e Costumi della Gente Trentina

Distributor

Name

Royal Anthropological Institute

Contact

Susanne Hammacher (Film Officer)

Email

film@therai.org.uk

Web

https://www.therai.org.uk/film/film-sales External site opens in new window

Phone

020 7387 0455

Fax

020 7388 8817

Address

50 Fitzroy Street
London
W1T 5BT

Notes

The Institute sells more than 250 anthropology and ethnology titles on video and DVD, including some produced by students and staff of the Granada Centre for Visual Anthropology. There is also a large library of internationally produced film and video productions from which items may be borrowed within the UK.