Eglė Budvytytė

Inspired by archaeologist Marija Gimbutas’ research into Neolithic animist societies, the film translates archaeological material into a poetic exploration of bodies, memory and landscapes. Shot on 16 mm film in museum interiors and along the cave-filled coastline of southern Italy near Grotta Scaloria – a prehistoric water-cult site where Gimbutas conducted excavations – the work unfolds through movement, song and ritual-like gestures. At the heart of this choreography is trembling, a movement both gentle and jarring, spiritual and visceral. Rather than representing animist societies, Budvytytė uses the tremor to reconnect the mind with the body, recalling the instinctive way mammals shake to restore balance after fear or stress. In this sense, trembling emerges as both a wound and a form of healing, inviting us to imagine renewed forms of kinship and connection with ourselves, each other and the world. Budvytytė’s practice often takes the form of installations in which film, choreography and exhibition space converge to create embodied, non-linear viewing experiences. Following its premiere in the Lithuanian Pavilion at the 61^st Venice Biennale, animism sings anarchy is presented at Kanal as an immersive three-channel film installation, part of the Cultural Programme of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2027. The exhibition inaugurates Film: Expanded, Kanal’s twice-yearly programme of film installations.