“Héritage de la chouette, L'”

THE OWLS LEGACY is an intellectually agile, engaging, and sometimes biting look at ancient Greece, its influences on Western cultureand how many eras have reinterpreted the Greek legacy to reflect their own needs. Each of the 13 episodes is centered on a potent Greek word: from democracy and philosophy to mythology and misogyny. Marker convenes and films symposiameals featuring wine and thoughtful conversationin locales including Paris, Tokyo, Tbilisi, Berkeley, and an olive grove on Athens outskirts. Footage from these banquets is interspersed with archival materials and interviews (often featuring a stylized or distorted owl image looming in the background). Markers diverse group of informants includes composers, politicians, classicists, historians, scientists, writers, filmmakers, and actors. Together their contributions form a compelling (and sometimes contradictory) cultural and historical exploration for each theme.