James Benning: California Trilogy (2023)

Produced at the junction of two millennia, the California Trilogy is James Benning's three-part topographical study of America's «Golden State». Looking to the past while investigating the present, the mathematician-turned-filmmaker condenses three distinct Californian landscapes into a total of 105 shots, each exactly 2½ minutes long. Formal restraint and compositional precision combine with ambient sound and an unheard social commentary to create a hypnotic journey across the 31st US State; from the Great Central Valley (El Valley Centro) through greater Los Angeles (Los) to the Californian wilderness (Sogobi). This 2-disc set presents the complete California Trilogy for the first time ever on DVD. El Valley Centro, USA 1999, directed by James Benning (87') Los, USA 2000, directed by James Benning (87') Sogobi, USA 2001, directed by James Benning (87') 16 page bilingual booklet