An Optical Poem (1938): reparto, argumento y streaming

Released in 1938, An Optical Poem is an animación and música film directed by Oskar Fischinger, running about 7 minutes.

What it’s about. A dance of shapes. A title card tells us this is an experiment in conveying the mental images of music in a visual form. Liszt's "Second Hungarian Rhapsody" is the music. The shapes, all two-dimensional, are circles primarily, with some squares and rectangles, and a few triangles. The shapes move rhythmically to the music: receding from view or moving across the screen. Red circles on a blue background; light blue squares; white rectangles. Then, a red background of many circles with a few in the foreground. Red gives way to blue then to white. Shapes reappear as Liszt's themes re-occur. Then, with a few staccato notes and images, it's over.

How it landed. With an audience score of 6.8/10, An Optical Poem has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch An Optical Poem page.

If you liked it. Fans of An Optical Poem tend to enjoy El viaje de Chihiro, Your Name., La tumba de las luciérnagas and Spider-Man: un nuevo universo.