Cave of Forgotten Dreams

Werner Herzog presents a 3D documentary whose subject is the prehistoric Chauvet Cave in Ardèche in southern France, where 32,000-years-old wall paintings were preserved—the oldest paintings known to man. The works were preserved in excellent condition thanks to an earthquake that sealed off the cave from air and light until its discovery in 1994. To this day, only a handful of scientists are permitted entry. Herzog received unprecedented permission to enter with a film crew, and the result is breathtaking. Besides the paintings of horses and deer we see an impressive array of stalagmites and stalactites and receive explanations from archeologists and geologists as well as the characteristic Herzogian insights. It had to happen one day. 3D technology would no longer be the sole property of the Hollywood mega-production, but would become accessible to films with normal budgets and artistic aspirations. The glasses allow us to experience, along with Herzog, the wonderful and rare sights, the “forgotten dreams” that were frozen in the belly of the earth for millennia. 

3D screening