As part of the Qatar Germany 2017 Year of Culture, the German classic silent film ‘Metropolis’ will be screened tomorrow at 7.30pm at Katara Opera House.
In partnership with Qatar Museums, the German Embassy and the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region, Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra and the Doha Film Institute (DFI) will present the screening of the science fiction masterpiece by director Fritz Lang released in 1927.
The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra will be accompanying the film with the original scores composed by Gottfried Huppertz. The film concert will be part of a larger screening series by DFI called ‘A Symphony of Films’.
‘Metropolis’ has been known as the pioneering work in the science-fiction genre and belongs to the first feature length movies. The story takes place in the future, in the city of Metropolis, which is divided into two parts, the rich and powerful in the Upper Town and the slave-like workers who run their machinery in the Lower Town. Dr. Gabriele Landwehr, General Manager of the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region said, “The 1927 classic fiction ‘Metropolis’ is a silent film that speaks a thousand words.” With Gottfried Huppertz´original score music played by Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, DFI is presenting an outstanding film and music experience to the Doha public.
The music plays an important part in the movie. The original score has been neglected over a long period of time and parts of it were considered lost. The film was not able to recover its production costs of 5 million Reichsmark at its release and had to face several cuts. Only after a lucky find in 2008 in Buenos Aires it was possible to restore the entire film. After the restoration, it was shown in its original form of two hours and 25 minutes, with the original score by Huppertz. The screening of ‘Metropolis serves as the conclusion of ‘A Symphony of Films’ series. Tickets for the film concert can be purchased via the website of Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra: http://qatarphilharmonicorchestra.org Qatar Germany 2017 Year of Culture is a year-long program designed to deepen understanding between nations through the mutual exchange of arts, culture, heritage and sport, developed by Qatar Museums in partnership with the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region, the German Embassy in Doha and the Embassy of Qatar in Germany.
