John Lilly and the Earth Coincidence Control Office

As the American Empire drives itself off a cliff, it feels like a perfect time to look back at some of the true characters to contribute to this weird hegemonic century. One of these was John Lilly, a man of many minds, each one stacked on top of the next in an ongoing exploration of mammalian consciousness. Lilly began his career as a Cold War-era scientist researching dolphins. After a wild LSD trip, he started dosing the cetaceans themselves, who he came to see as alien life forms, then got deep into isolation chambers (hanging out with Alejandro Jodorowsky!) and ended up as a New Age guru who hypothesised a hierarchical cosmic system of control (E.C.C.O.) that directed human lives. Lilly was a showman, and his story is where science and science fiction merge. His life and work penetrated popular culture, adapted in THE DAY OF THE DOLPHIN (1973) (Lilly sued) and ALTERED STATES (1980) (he used it in his own publicity). Was Lilly a visionary or a crank? Employing a vast cornucopia of archival materials, including the beloved SEGA game Ecco the Dolphin, and a matter-of-fact narration by Chlöe Sevigny, it’s clear Michael Almereyda and Courtney Stephens lean towards the former. Lilly’s influence was indelible, and America today could use more like him. (Mark Peranson)

In the presence of Michael Almereyda.

Michael Almereyda (Selection): NADJA (1995), HAMLET (2000), WILLIAM EGGLESTON IN THE REAL WORLD (2005), PARADISE (2009), EXPERIMENTER (2014), MARJORIE PRIME (2017), ESCAPES (2017), TESLA (2020)

Courtney Stephens (Selection): THE AMERICAN SECTOR (2020, CO-DIRECTOR), TERRA FEMME (2021), INVENTION (2024)