Fata Morgana

Fata Morgana is a film by Werner Herzog, shot in 1969, which captures mirages in the Sahara desert. Some narration recites Mayan creation myth (the Popol Vuh) by Lotte Eisner, text written by Herzog himself. The film was initially intended to be presented with a science fiction narrative, casting the images as landscapes from another planet. This concept was abandoned as soon as filming began, but was realized in Herzog's later films Lessons of Darkness and The Wild Blue Yonder. Much of the film's footage consists of long tracking shots filmed by cameraman Jörg Schmidt-Reitwein from the top of a VW bus with Herzog driving. The crew smoothed out the road themselves to prepare the shots. Herzog and the crew encountered many problems...