Acera, or the Witches' Dance
Directed by Jean Painlevé, Geneviève Hamon1972 13m[Documentary](/on-demand/category/documentary), [Short](/on-demand/category/short)
6.55.9
In mud flats along the coast of Brittany we watch acera, small ball-shaped mollusks that are about two inches in diameter. They rest in mud; then, in water, they dance, their skirt-like hood spreading like a dervish's cassock. They spin and spin. The film adds musical accompaniment. We watch them mate and secrete eggs: acera are both male and female, and can form chains with other acera in which they simultaneously mate as a male and as a female. The eggs hatch, and the cycle begins again.
