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Doors 3:30 p.m.; Event 4 p.m.
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THE EXPERIENCE

Celebrated director Godfrey Reggio’s (Koyaanisqatsi) experimental film is unlike any other from his already daring career: a bardic fairy tale about the end of the world and the beginning of a new one, tinged with apocalyptic comedy, rapturous cinematography, unforgettable vistas, and the innocence and hopes of a new generation. Featuring an electrifying score composed by Reggio’s longtime collaborator Philip Glass, with additional vocals from Sussan Deyhim. Prior to the film, we will present “Pastoral Music Reimagined,” an original electro acoustic music composition feeding into audio reactive visual synthesis from composer Michael Anderson (Friends After Good Sound), musicians Betty Booher (Bellows and Squawk), Keely McMurry (Vancouver Symphony Orchestra), and visual artist Matthew Rempes (Synth Library and CETI). 

Once Within A Time is part of our MARCH MADNESS: MUSIC MOVIES series—a wild, no-holds-barred showdown to crown the ultimate music movie. Vote on Instagram, watch the films at the theater, and follow the bracket as we tally up the points. Each category pits legendary performances, iconic documentaries, and music-filled classics against each other in a battle for screen supremacy.

In the category of ART POP ANARCHY, Once Within A Time faces off against Peaches Goes Bananas.

ON SCREEN: Once Within a Time

2023. Directed by Godfrey Reggio. Runtime: 54 minutes.

Celebrated director Godfrey Reggio returns after ten years with a new experimental film unlike any other from his already daring career: a bardic fairy tale about the end of the world and the beginning of a new one, tinged with apocalyptic comedy, rapturous cinematography, unforgettable vistas, and the innocence and hopes of a new generation. Once Within a Time is an anarchic comedy told without words, a sensory feast to be felt through art and music. This multidisciplinary work shows us life on Earth as humanity clashes with the five fundamental elements—earth, air, water, fire, and money— headed towards a critical moment of choice between annihilation and redemption. Featuring an electrifying score composed by Reggio’s longtime collaborator Philip Glass, with additional vocals from Sussan Deyhim and co-directed by veteran editor and filmmaker Jon Kane.

ON STAGE: Pastoral Music Reimagined

Michael Anderson (Composer and Musician) – Michael Anderson is a composer based in Portland Oregon. He is ever curious how something gross becomes delectable, how one situation lends itself into the creation of another, and how an ecosystem based in the familiar gets warped into the unknown. These types of psycho-emotional reactions to sound are what inspires him to make odd little jewels of electroacoustic creation. Michael studied with Renee Favand-See at Portland State University where he received his Bachelors of Music Composition. In early 2024 he created Friends After Good Sound, a new music collective focused on premiering new works by local composers, Michael serves as the ensemble’s Executive and Artistic Director.  

Betty Booher (Musician) – Betty Booher studies composition at Portland State University with Professor Renée Favand-See and jazz voice with Professor Sherry Alves. She sang with the PSU Briar Choir at Carnegie Hall this past June, under the direction of Professor Coty Raven Morris. In addition, she identifies as the ‘squawk’ half of the jazz duo Bellows & Squawk. Betty holds a BA in Music from Reed College, where she played oboe and English horn, and is an alumna of the Portland Youth Philharmonic. While she worked in the corporate arena, she continued to play in several Portland-area community orchestras. She studied with Karen Wagner, of the Oregon Symphony. Betty’s double reed quartet, the Emmett Variations, was selected as one of the International Double Reed Society’s ’50 for 50’ composition competition winners, and was featured at the 2024 IDRS conference in Flagstaff, Arizona. This past June, her piece “Creating Good Sounds” was premiered by the experimental chamber ensemble Friends After Good Sound, and her trio ” Memorial for the Victims of War” was premiered by Fear No Music in September. Returning to school had been a longtime goal. Betty is delighted to have the opportunity to tell stories through the medium of music.

Keely McMurry (Musician) – Keely McMurry has had a long career as a Pacific Northwest based Violist. Serving as a sectional Violist for the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and performing with regional ensembles such as the Coos Bay Music Festival Orchestra and Portland State University Opera her experience in orchestral environments is well trodden. Along with being a versed orchestral musician Keely is an advocate for new music in all its forms. 

Matthew Rempes (Visual Artist) – Matthew Rempes is a video artist based in Portland, Oregon. His work explores creating real-time abstracted forms with obsolete analog video hardware.