AQUARELA takes audiences on a deeply cinematic journey through the transformative beauty and raw power of water. Captured at a rare 96 frames-per-second, the film is a visceral wake-up call that humans are no match for the sheer force and capricious will of Earth’s most precious element. From the precarious frozen waters of Russia’s Lake Baikal to Miami in the throes of Hurricane Irma to Venezuela’s mighty Angel Falls, water is AQUARELA’s main character, with director Victor Kossakovsky capturing her many personalities in startling cinematic clarity.
The film will be shown in theaters at 48 frames-per-second, double the typical 24 frames-per-second, as projectors with the ability to project at 96-frames-per-second are extremely rare today, but when the time comes that the capacity is there, AQUARELA will be one of the first films to be shown at that speed.
On top of the frame-rate, the film just is stunning on its own. The imagery is striking, and yes, scary. Tidal waves, hurricanes, cracking ice, and every other form of terrifying water events are captured in stunning detail. This is definitely not your typical horror film, but much like the greats of that genre, you’ll probably never look at life the same way. It’s not helping that rock band Apocalyptica did the score, either, adding more sinister layers to the film.
Sure, the rainbow at the end is beautiful and shows that on top of the death and destruction, water can be gorgeous. But sorry, you scared me straight. No more water for me.
“Aquarela” has been making the rounds at the major film festivals since last fall and will arrive in theaters later this year.