Atman

The closing film of Honkasalo’s trilogy on Sacred and Evil – whose Sanskrit title means “soul” – is a reflection on its soul and its journey. The director follows a disabled man along the river Ganges for over 6,000 kilometers, all the way to the Himalayas. Jamana Lal and a small group of people embark on a pilgrimage to honor the memory of his deceased mother. At first, he travels carried by his brother, but eventually people give up on him, except for Santa, a widow and mother of three. Together with Jamana Lal, we are facing the divine, in this transcedental film that travels leisurely on, like the water on river Ganges.

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Direction: Pirjo Honkasalo

Script: Pirjo Honkasalo

Cinematography: Pirjo Honkasalo

Editing: Christine Hafner

Sound: Martti Turunen, Mart Kessel-Otsa

Music: Eero Ojanen

Production: Bayerischer Rundfunk, Suomen Elokuvasäätiö

Producers: Patrick Hö­rl, Walter Flemmer

Format: Digital File

Color: Color

Production Country: FInland

Production Year: 1996

Duration: 73'

Contact: The Finnish Film Foundation

Awards/Distinctions: Joris Ivens Award – IDFA 1996

Pirjo Honkasalo

Filmography

1978 The Sign of Danger (co-direction, short)
1980 Flame Tope (co-direction, fiction)
1985 Da Capo (co-direction, fiction)
1991 Mysterion
1993 Tanjuska and the Seven Devils
1996 Atman
2009 Ito: A Diary of an Urban Priest
2013 Concrete Night (fiction)