Synopsis

FilmFest Hamburg presents the science fiction classic Aelita (USSR, 1924) with a live-performed soundtrack by the Finnish rock band Cleaning Women at KNUST Hamburg.

Washing machine drums, plastic containers, and custom-built instruments meet futuristic silent cinema: On September 29, 2026, the Finnish rock band Cleaning Women will accompany the Soviet science fiction classic Aelita (Director: Yakov Protazanov) with an original live soundtrack at KNUST Hamburg. FilmFest Hamburg presents this film concert with the support of ARTE as part of this year's festival edition. 

For the live accompaniment, Risto Puurunen, Tero Vanttinen, and Timo Kinnunen of Cleaning Women will perform in front of the screen. Dressed in extravagant stage outfits reminiscent of 1920s German cabaret and Weimar Republic expressionist cinema, the three musicians create a pulsating soundtrack positioned somewhere between techno and avant-garde disco, blending industrial rock, European folk music, and modern dance rhythms. 

Their instrumentation is equally extraordinary: Alongside custom-built guitars, they use modified drying racks and washing machine drums fitted with packing tape. Using everyday objects, Cleaning Women produce a soundscape that musically translates the classic film into the present day. 

Moscow, 1921: Mysterious radio signals from space inspire a young engineer named Los (Nikolai Tsereteli) to dream of a journey to Mars. The boundaries between his everyday life in the young Soviet Union and the fantastic vision of a alien civilization on Mars increasingly blur. On the red planet rules Queen Aelita (Yuliya Solntseva), who is eagerly awaiting him. Their encounter sparks not only a great love, but also a revolution. 

With its geometric sets and avant-garde costumes, Aelita wrote film history. The Martian worlds designed by artist and set designer Alexandra Exter continue to shape the visual language of science fiction cinema to this day. The robot-like figures, monumental spaces, and constructivist shapes make the film a groundbreaking example of the Soviet film avant-garde. 

Vorstellungen

29.09.2026     20:30 Uhr

Knust

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