Frank Arnold
The Unanswered Ives is the first film about Charles Ives (1874-1954), an American modernist composer, one of the first American composers of international renown. The 60-minute documentary sheds light on Ives' life and work in all its facets and inconsistencies. American singer and composer Frank Zappa included Charles Ives in a list of influences that he presented in the liner notes of his debut album Freak Out! (1966). Ives continues to influence contemporary composers, arrangers and musicians. Planet Arts Records released Mists: Charles Ives for Jazz Orchestra. Ives befriended and encouraged a young Elliott Carter. In addition, Phil Lesh, bassist of the Grateful Dead, has described Ives as one of his two musical heroes.
In lots of myth, a hero must undergo a "Nachtmeerfahrt" in which he encounter mysterious creatures and dangerous events. The psychologist, Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961), himself made such an expedition to survey the world of symbols and archetypes, asking about their relevance for our lives. How do "Nachtmeerfahrten" appear today? Are they dangerous in some ways and which potential do they have? What are our spirits ("anima") and shadows telling us thereby? Does the imagines of our subconsciousness contain spiritual messages? This is a filmic journey to the biography of C. G. Jung and to the mighty world of myths, dreams and symbols.
