silent film by Abram Room | SU 1930 | Russian Title: Привидение, которое не возвращается

Based on the novel “And Yet No Homecoming” by Henri Barbusse, Abram Room’s The Ghost That Never Returned follows the fate of José Real (Boris Ferdinandow), a South American petroleum worker sentenced to life in prison for attempting to organize a union of oil field workers. Trapped in the panoptic prison, his only escape from the harsh reality of his daily life and isolation are illusions and dreams.

But ten years later, every prisoner is being granted one day of freedom, although none of them has ever returned alive. An agent escorts the prisoners on their furlough, under orders to kill them during a staged attempt to escape. Aware of the danger, Real agrees to take his day of freedom—a final chance to see his beloved wife.

With a recording of Sylvia Bruckner (piano) from the REAKTOR cinema on 1 December 2018. During the screening at the REAKTOR cinema, Jazz pianist Sylvia Bruckner employed a range of styles from free jazz to new music and experimental rock in a musical dialogue with the film. In cooperation with Bösendorfer.