K

Ken Jacobs

Directing

Born May 25, 1933 · Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York, USA

279 films as director · Active 1955–2026

A pioneer of the American film avant-garde of the 1960s and '70s, Ken Jacobs is a central figure in post-war experimental cinema. From his first films of the late 1950s to his recent experiments with…

Known for

Art-House America: Austin Film Society

Art-House America: Austin Film Society

2023

As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty

As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty

2000

Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My Muse

Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My Muse

2025

Jonas in the Desert

Jonas in the Desert

1994

365 Day Project

365 Day Project

2007

Diaries, Notes, and Sketches

Diaries, Notes, and Sketches

1968

He Stands in a Desert Counting the Seconds of His Life

He Stands in a Desert Counting the Seconds of His Life

1986

What Is Cinema?

What Is Cinema?

2013

Directed(279)

BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 41

2026BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 41

BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 42

2026BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 42

BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 43

2026BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 43

Downtown Loft with Skylights

2026Downtown Loft with Skylights

2026A Date with Shirley

Book of Eternalisms 39

2025Book of Eternalisms 39

BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 40

2025BOOK OF ETERNALISMS 40

2024Tourists of the Familiar 70

Spasm

Up the Illusion

2023Up the Illusion

Whims of Twenty Twenty-Three

2023Whims of Twenty Twenty-Three

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

2023Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Tourists of the Familiar 1

2023Tourists of the Familiar 1

Tourists of the Familiar 5

2023Tourists of the Familiar 5

Tourists of the Familiar 10

2023Tourists of the Familiar 10

Tourists of the Familiar 15

2023Tourists of the Familiar 15

Tourists of the Familiar 20

2023Tourists of the Familiar 20

Book of Eternalisms 1-6

2023Book of Eternalisms 1-6

Other Urban Lives

2023Other Urban Lives

From Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight

2023From Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight

Writhing City

2023Writhing City

2023For James Otis

2023Manhattan is an Island

2023Hobgoblin Ball

Book of Eternalisms 7

2023Book of Eternalisms 7

Book of Eternalisms 8

2023Book of Eternalisms 8

Sergei Eisenstein Embossed

2022Sergei Eisenstein Embossed

Buster Keaton Embossed

2022Buster Keaton Embossed

One Dozen Roses

2022One Dozen Roses

America Lets Her Hair Down 1905

2022America Lets Her Hair Down 1905

Real Action Figures

2022Real Action Figures

When Timofeev Moves Everything Moves

2022When Timofeev Moves Everything Moves

2022Eat the Rich: Aligning Perspectives and Other Challenges to Viewers

Double Wow

Abstract Eternalism

2021Abstract Eternalism

Cartoonish 1-10

2021Cartoonish 1-10

A Small Misunderstanding

2021A Small Misunderstanding

Adventures of Cookie Truck

2021Adventures of Cookie Truck

Hoffman Student

2021Hoffman Student

Eternal Beach

2021Eternal Beach

XCXHXEXRXRXIXEXSX

2021XCXHXEXRXRXIXEXSX

Aspiring To Music

2021Aspiring To Music

2021In Front of Anthology

Rubble

Rain Clouds

2020Rain Clouds★ 6.0

RECIPROCAL

PAINTED POSTER

2020PAINTED POSTER

DR. TOOTHY

Red Green

2020Red Green★ 2.0

Ken and Flo

2020Ken and Flo

Barber

Foliage in Moving Car Window

2020Foliage in Moving Car Window

Facade with Face

2020Facade with Face

Doyer Street

2020Doyer Street

DeKooning Passed

2020DeKooning Passed

Sleeping American

2020Sleeping American

Roots of Manhattan

2020Roots of Manhattan

Reading Society

2020Reading Society

Lazy City

Waiting Room Window

2020Waiting Room Window

Natural Collage

2020Natural Collage

Bison

Working Girls (short)

2020Working Girls (short)

Friendly Building

2020Friendly Building

Broadway Buildings II

2020Broadway Buildings II

Bargains

City Foliage

2020City Foliage

Broadway Buildings III

2020Broadway Buildings III

Chinese New Years II

2020Chinese New Years II

Chinese New Years

2020Chinese New Years

Brick Building with Red and Green Windows

2020Brick Building with Red and Green Windows

Fire Escape

2020Fire Escape

Broadway Building

2020Broadway Building

Duck

Street Commerce

2020Street Commerce

Resting Merchant

2020Resting Merchant

Neon Sign

Flowers and Bike

2020Flowers and Bike

Street Commerce II

2020Street Commerce II

Halley’s Comet

2020Halley’s Comet

Water Balloon

2020Water Balloon

Spaceworks

Period Piece

2020Period Piece

Another Day in Days of Yore

2020Another Day in Days of Yore

Garage Wall

2020Garage Wall

Whirlpool

Hubble II

Transparent Apartments

2020Transparent Apartments

Spiky

Storefront

Municipal Building Passage

2020Municipal Building Passage

Clouds and Trees

2020Clouds and Trees

Movie That Invites Pausing

2020Movie That Invites Pausing

Cartoon

Chaos Is Order Misunderstood

2019Chaos Is Order Misunderstood

Nervous Magic Lantern: 3D for One or Two Naked Eyes

2019Nervous Magic Lantern: 3D for One or Two Naked Eyes

Dimsum and Dragons

2019Dimsum and Dragons

Details of Pollock's White Light

2019Details of Pollock's White Light

Joan Mitchell: Departures

2019Joan Mitchell: Departures

Once Upon a Planet

2019Once Upon a Planet

Above the Rain

2019Above the Rain

The Sky Socialist: The Environs

2019The Sky Socialist: The Environs

THE WHOLE SHEBANG

2019THE WHOLE SHEBANG

Things to Come

2019Things to Come

Sebastian and Jonas Leaving the Party

2019Sebastian and Jonas Leaving the Party

Failure

CRUSH

Figures I - V

2019Figures I - V

PAPPY SEES 3D, TOO

2019PAPPY SEES 3D, TOO

MOVING ROAD

2019MOVING ROAD

ABSTRACT

The Moments: Evening Boat Ride

2018The Moments: Evening Boat Ride

Tree Stump

2017Windbreaker★ 8.0

Ulysses in the Subway

2017Ulysses in the Subway

A Spin Through Night City

2017A Spin Through Night City

Shelley Duvall is Olive Oyl

2017Shelley Duvall is Olive Oyl

2017Get Up and Go

2017Along the Elevated

Swee’pea’s Favorite Eternalisms

2017Swee’pea’s Favorite Eternalisms

2017Capitalism Defeats Life on Earth, Cab in Rain

2017Beautiful Dreamer

Reichstag 9/11

2016Reichstag 9/11

Mosco Street 3: Attack of The Perfect Camera (Fuji W3)

2016Mosco Street 3: Attack of The Perfect Camera (Fuji W3)

Mosco Street 2

2016Mosco Street 2

Hydroelectric Dam

2016Hydroelectric Dam

2016I'm Telling You

2016Molten Landscape

Ken Jacobs / diNMachine @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

2016Ken Jacobs / diNMachine @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

Ken Jacobs / JG Thirlwell @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

2016Ken Jacobs / JG Thirlwell @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

Ken Jacobs / Ghosts Of The Holy Ghost Spermic Brotherhood @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

2016Ken Jacobs / Ghosts Of The Holy Ghost Spermic Brotherhood @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

Ken Jacobs / Victoria Keddie @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

2016Ken Jacobs / Victoria Keddie @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

Ken Jacobs / Tom Chiu of Flux Quartet @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

2016Ken Jacobs / Tom Chiu of Flux Quartet @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

Ken Jacobs / Robert Poss @The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

2016Ken Jacobs / Robert Poss @The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

Ken Jacobs / Rick Reed & Tara Bhattacharya @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

2016Ken Jacobs / Rick Reed & Tara Bhattacharya @ The Nervous Magic Lantern Festival

Snow in Headlights II

2016Snow in Headlights II

Central Park

2016Central Park

BMT Canal Street

2016BMT Canal Street

Chrysalis

2015Cyclops Observes the Celestial Bodies

Afternoon Tide

2015Afternoon Tide

Empty Seats

2015Empty Seats

Batchellor’s Dog and Beach

2015Batchellor’s Dog and Beach

The Lackadaisical Speed of Light

2015The Lackadaisical Speed of Light

2015Aimless Sightseeing, Seoul

2015Zazie Learns About Money

Granular

Canopy

2014Canopy★ 5.0

2014The Guests★ 6.0

2014Popeye Sees 3-D

2014Pygmalion Cubed

2014Celestial Bodies

2013A Primer in Sky Socialism

Joys of Waiting for the Broadway Bus #2

2013Joys of Waiting for the Broadway Bus #2

2013Joys of Waiting for the Broadway Bus #4

2013Joys of Waiting for the Broadway Bus #3

Joys of Waiting for the Broadway Bus #1

2013Joys of Waiting for the Broadway Bus #1

Blankets for Indians

2012Blankets for Indians

20 Little Films

201220 Little Films★ 6.0

Street Vendor

2012Street Vendor

Seeking the Monkey King

2011Seeking the Monkey King★ 4.8

DAY AND NIGHT

2011DAY AND NIGHT

2011America at War, The Home Front: Film Opening

Another Occupation

2011Another Occupation

The Pushcarts Leave Eternity Street

2011The Pushcarts Leave Eternity Street

The Green Wave

2011The Green Wave

Cyclopean 3D: Life with a Beautiful Woman

2011Cyclopean 3D: Life with a Beautiful Woman

The Roses

2011Revolving Door

60 Seconds of Solitude in Year Zero

201160 Seconds of Solitude in Year Zero★ 4.2

Turbulent Waters

2011Turbulent Waters★ 2.0

OCCUPY WALL STREET, THE 99% JOIN IN

2011OCCUPY WALL STREET, THE 99% JOIN IN

A Loft

2010A Loft★ 10.0

2010Sensoriums at Sea: Toothy Two

2010Fair And White: Parts I, II, III and Extra

2010Sensoriums at Sea: Dr. Toothy's New Entranceway

The Near-Collision

2010The Near-Collision

The Day Was a Scorcher

2009The Day Was a Scorcher

The Signing

2009The Signing

2009Berkeley To San Francisco

"Slow is Beauty"-Rodin

2009"Slow is Beauty"-Rodin

What Happened on 23rd Street in 1901

2009What Happened on 23rd Street in 1901

Jonas Mekas in Kodachrome Days

2009Jonas Mekas in Kodachrome Days★ 6.5

Brain Operations

2009Brain Operations

Excerpt From THE SKY SOCIALIST Stratified

2009Excerpt From THE SKY SOCIALIST Stratified

Bob Fleischner Dying

2009Bob Fleischner Dying

Brook

2009Ronald Gonzales, Sculptor

2009Hot Dogs At The Met

Gravity Is Tops

2009Gravity Is Tops

Walkway

Return to the Scene of the Crime

2008Return to the Scene of the Crime

Anaglyph Tom (Tom with Puffy Cheeks)

2008Anaglyph Tom (Tom with Puffy Cheeks)★ 5.5

The Scenic Route

2008The Scenic Route

2008The Discovery★ 6.5

2008Alone at Last

2008Elbow Dance

Amorous Interludes: His Favorite Wife Improved (or The Virtue Of Bad Reception)

2008Amorous Interludes: His Favorite Wife Improved (or The Virtue Of Bad Reception)

Razzle Dazzle: The Lost World

2007Razzle Dazzle: The Lost World★ 5.3

New York Ghetto Fishmarket 1903

2007New York Ghetto Fishmarket 1903★ 6.0

Capitalism: Child Labor

2007Capitalism: Child Labor★ 6.0

Capitalism: Slavery

2007Capitalism: Slavery★ 4.9

Gift of Fire: Nineteen (Obscure) Frames That Changed The World

2007Gift of Fire: Nineteen (Obscure) Frames That Changed The World

Nymph

Hanky Panky January 1902

2007Hanky Panky January 1902

We Are Charming

2007We Are Charming

2007Titles★ 1.0

2007Popeye Sees 3-D, TOO

2007Mosco Street Rapture

Nervous Lantern at Kill Your Timid Notion Festival

2007Nervous Lantern at Kill Your Timid Notion Festival

2006The Surging Sea of Humanity

Two Wrenching Departures

2006Two Wrenching Departures★ 5.0

Pushcarts of Eternity Street

2006Pushcarts of Eternity Street

Celestial Subway Lines/Salvaging Noise

2005Celestial Subway Lines/Salvaging Noise★ 5.9

Let There Be Whistle Blowers

2005Let There Be Whistle Blowers

Krypton Is Doomed

2005Krypton Is Doomed

Spiral Nebula

2005Spiral Nebula

Ontic Antics Starring Laurel and Hardy: Bye Molly

2005Ontic Antics Starring Laurel and Hardy: Bye Molly

Le Prince: Leeds Bridge 1888

2005Le Prince: Leeds Bridge 1888

Insistent Clamor

2005Insistent Clamor

Star Spangled to Death

2004Star Spangled to Death★ 7.7

2004Mountaineer Spinning★ 6.0

The Whirled

2003The Whirled

Keeping an Eye on Stan

2003Keeping an Eye on Stan

A Tom Tom Chaser

2002A Tom Tom Chaser

Circling Zero: Part One, We See Absence

2002Circling Zero: Part One, We See Absence★ 9.0

The Sky Socialist: Flight

2002The Sky Socialist: Flight

Flo Rounds a Corner

1999Flo Rounds a Corner★ 5.0

New York Street Trolleys 1900

1999New York Street Trolleys 1900

The Georgetown Loop

1996The Georgetown Loop★ 7.3

Disorient Express

1996Disorient Express

Looting For Rodney

1995Looting For Rodney

1995Make Light On Film

Bitemporal Vision: The Sea

1994Bitemporal Vision: The Sea

Opening the Nineteenth Century: 1896

1991Opening the Nineteenth Century: 1896★ 7.0

Keaton's Cops

1991Keaton's Cops★ 7.0

Chronometer

1990Chronometer★ 6.0

1986The Alps and The Jews

Perfect Film

1985Perfect Film★ 6.0

The Doctor's Dream

1977The Doctor's Dream

Book of Splendors, Part Two, Book of Levers: Action at a Distance

1977Book of Splendors, Part Two, Book of Levers: Action at a Distance

Spaghetti Aza

1976Spaghetti Aza

Urban Peasants

1975Urban Peasants

Jerry Takes A Back Seat, Then Passes Out Of The Picture

1975Jerry Takes A Back Seat, Then Passes Out Of The Picture

1973Changing Azazel★ 8.5

Binghamton, My India

1970Binghamton, My India

Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son

1969Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son★ 6.2

1969Nissan Ariana Window

Globe

1969Globe★ 6.0

Soft Rain

Airshaft

For Life, Against the War

1967For Life, Against the War★ 6.0

The Sky Socialist

1966The Sky Socialist

Lisa and Joey in Connecticut

1965Lisa and Joey in Connecticut

1965Naomi Is A Dream of Loveliness

Window

1964Window★ 5.0

Artie and Marty Rosenblatt’s Baby Pictures

1964Artie and Marty Rosenblatt’s Baby Pictures

The Winter Footage

1964The Winter Footage

1964We Stole Away

1st Window

Blonde Cobra

1963Blonde Cobra★ 3.0

Little Stabs at Happiness

1963Little Stabs at Happiness★ 5.8

TV Plug

Baud'larian Capers

1962Baud'larian Capers

The Death of P'town

1961The Death of P'town★ 10.0

Saturday Afternoon Blood Sacrifice

1956Saturday Afternoon Blood Sacrifice

Little Cobra Dance

1956Little Cobra Dance

Orchard Street

1955Orchard Street★ 6.8

Sky Dive

Depth for One Eye or Two

—Depth for One Eye or Two

Spotted Fever

—Spotted Fever

Acting(38)

2025Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My MuseSelf

2023Ken Jacobs - from Orchard Street to the Museum of Modern ArtSelf

2023Art-House America: Austin Film SocietySelf

2023Up the Illusion

2022Please Leave a Message: Anthology Film Archives Voicemails Through the Ages

2022Fragments of ParadiseSelf

2016Reminiscences of Jonas Mekas

2013What Is Cinema?Self

2013The Eternal Courtship

2012Emma's DilemmaHimself

2011Sleepless Nights StoriesSelf

2011Free Radicals: A History of Experimental FilmHimself

2011Cinematic Correspondences: Jonas Mekas - J.L. GuerinHimself

2011Cyclopean 3D: Life with a Beautiful Woman

2010Santos Dumont: Pré-Cineasta?Himself

2010LavenderSelf

2008Momma's ManDad

2007365 Day ProjectSelf

2007Jack Smith and the Destruction of AtlantisSelf

2004Star Spangled to DeathOscar Friendly / Ringmaster / Janitor

2003Nervous Ken

2002Shorts From the UndergroundSelf

2001Flo and Ken Jacobs

2000As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of BeautySelf

1999Laboratorium Anthology

1997Birth of a NationSelf

1994Jonas in the DesertSelf

1991Quartet Number One

1986He Stands in a Desert Counting the Seconds of His LifeSelf (archive footage)

1985Home Movies 1971-81

1976Lost, Lost, LostSelf

1973Notes on the Buffalo Conference: “Autobiography in American Independent Cinema”

1968Huge PupilsHimself

1968Diaries, Notes, and SketchesSelf

1963Blonde Cobra

1963Scotch Tape

Ken Jacobs — Watchpile | Watchpile