Video: A remake of a scene from the lost Futurist omnibus film “Vita Futurista” (1916)

“Why Cecco Beppe Does Not Die” directed by Ben Coonley

Otto vs. the Italian Futurists. A remake of a scene from the lost Futurist omnibus film “Vita Futurista” (1916).

Created for “Futurist Life Redux” (2009), a Performa Commission with SFMOMA and Portland Green Cultural Projects

Original Synopsis (1916): Death (Chiti) comes for Cecco Beppe wearing black clothing with a white skeleton painted on top of it, so that, against the black background, he appears to be a floating mass of bones. But Beppe has a very bad odor–Death cannot stand it and collapses, allowing his victim to live on. This section was never actually shown with the rest of “Vita Futurista,” because it was censored by the Italian Ministry of the Interior.

Otto the Cat: Otto the Cat
Director: Ben Coonley
Cecco Beppe: Etsa the Cat
Skeletwins: Benjamin & Oliver Giller
Original Music: JD Walsh
Special Assistant to Otto the Cat: Suzanne Fagel
Special Assistant to Etsa the Cat: Alina Simone
Special Assistants to the Skeletwins: Jeremy Giller and Julie Roth

Thank You: Ben Bloodwell, Paul Chan, Jennet Thomas, Paul Tarragó, Lana Wilson, Andrew Lampert

“Why Cecco Beppe Does Not Die”

Creative Commons License:

Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Unported

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *