Jonas Mekas

Known For: Directing
Born: December 24, 1922
Place of Birth: Semeniškiai, Lithuania
Died: January 23, 2019

Jonas Mekas

Jonas Mekas (24-12-1922 - 23-1-2019) was born in the farming village of Semeniškiai, Lithuania. In 1944, he and his brother Adolfas were taken by the Nazis to a forced labor camp in Elmshorn, Germany. After the War he studied philosophy at the University of Mainz. At the end of 1949 the UN Refugee Organization brought both brothers to New York City, where they settled down in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Two months after his arrival in New York he borrowed money to buy his first Bolex camera and began to record brief moments of his life. He soon got deeply involved in the American Avant-Garde film movement. In 1954, together with his brother, he started Film Culture magazine, which soon became the most important film publication in the US. In 1958 he began his legendary Movie Journal column in the Village Voice. In 1962 he founded the Film-Makers' Cooperative, and in 1964 the Film-Makers' Ci…

Filmography

A Mixtape for Stom

2025

Nam June Paik: Moon Is the Oldest TV

2023 · Self (archive footage)

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

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

2022

Jonas Mekas Anthology

2022 · Jonas Mekas

Fragments of Paradise

2022 · Self (archive footage)

Film: The Living Record of Our Memory

2022 · Self

Vertigo

2022

Notes for a Déjà vu

2022

Back from New York

2021 · Himself

The Velvet Underground

2021 · Self

9/11: Life Under Attack

2021 · Self

The Invisible Father

2021 · Self (archive footage)

Tapes

2020 · , Director

Tiny Tim: King for a Day

2020 · Himself

Elegy for J.M.

2019

Sebastian and Jonas Leaving the Party

2019

Requiem

2019 · Director

Cinema and Sanctuary

2019 · Self

Self Discovery for Social Survival

2019 · Narrator (voice), Writer

Gena Rowlands: A Life on Film

2019 · Self

Makeshift (for Mekas)

2019

Last Interview Film of Jonas Mekas/version 1

Last Interview Film of Jonas Mekas/version 1

2019 · Self

Keep singing: a tribute to Jonas Mekas

2019

3 Friends Singing (...in the Desert)

3 Friends Singing (...in the Desert)

2019

Jonas Towards Broadway

Jonas Towards Broadway

2019

Beyond the Bolex

2018 · Self

Barbara Rubin and the Exploding NY Underground

2018

George: The Story of George Maciunas and Fluxus

2018 · Self

Nitsch

2018

From the Notebooks of a Cinema Maniac

From the Notebooks of a Cinema Maniac

2017 · Director

I Don't Know Which Tree It Comes From that Fragrance

2017 · Self, Director

From the diaries of a cinema maniac

2017 · Director

Crickets

2017 · Director

On the Holy Spirit

2016 · , Director

EXPRMNTL

2016 · himself

I Had Nowhere to Go

2016 · Himself

Reminiscences of Jonas Mekas

2016 · Self

Yoko Ono Lennon's Courage Awards 2016: Laurie Anderson, Mohammad el Gharani, Eileen Boxer, RoseLee Goldberg, LoftOpera

2016 · Director

Últimas correspondencias

2016 · Self, Director

Filmstudio, mon amour

2015 · Sé stesso

A Day in the Life of Andy Warhol

2015 · Self

Behind the Artist: Andy Warhol, an American Prophet

2015

A Report from Venice

2015 · , Director

Scenes from the Life of Raimund Abraham

2015 · Director

All About Bolex

2015 · , Director, Camera Operator

My Bolexes

2015 · Director, Cinematography

My Birthday

2014 · , Director

Destruction of the Berlin Wall

2014 · Director

River of Fundament

2014 · Wake Guest

Halloween 1990

2014 · Director

A Cardinal

2014 · Director

Flowers

2014 · Director

My Conversations on Film

2013 · Himself

Jonas in the Jungle

Jonas in the Jungle

2013 · Self

What Is Cinema?

2013 · Self

I Leave Chelsea Hotel

2013 · Director

The Sixties Quartet

2013 · Director

Out-Takes from the Life of a Happy Man

2012 · Jonas Mekas, Director

Happy Easter Ride

Happy Easter Ride

2012 · Director

20 Little Films

2012 · Director

Maya Deren, Take Zero

Maya Deren, Take Zero

2012 · Himself

Reminiscences from Germany

2012 · Self, Director

Mt. Ventoux

2011 · Director

My Paris Movie

2011 · Director

Sleepless Nights Stories

2011 · Director

My Mars Bar Movie

2011 · himself, Director

3.11 A Sense of Home Films

2011 · Himself (voice) (segment "Mt. Ventoux"), Director

Free Radicals: A History of Experimental Film

2011 · Himself

Cinematic Correspondences: Jonas Mekas - J.L. Guerin

2011 · Himself, Director

Guest

2011 · Self

Re: Maciunas and Fluxus

2011 · , Director

Cyclopean 3D: Life with a Beautiful Woman

2011

First Class Flight

First Class Flight

2011 · Director

Keep Singing

2011 · Director

Portrait Serie - Jonas Mekas

Portrait Serie - Jonas Mekas

2010 · himself

Orchard Street

2010 · Director

New York Conversations

2010

42 One Dream Rush

2010 · Director

Lavender

2010 · Self, Director of Photography

WTC Haikus

2010 · Director, Editor, Director of Photography, Producer

Visionaries

2010 · Himself

Jonas Mekas in Kodachrome Days

2009 · Himself

It Came from Kuchar

2009 · Self (archive footage)

Lithuania and the Collapse of the USSR

Lithuania and the Collapse of the USSR

2009 · Director

The Signing

2009

The Perfect Team: The Making of 'On the Bowery'

The Perfect Team: The Making of 'On the Bowery'

2009 · Self

Doc

2008 · Himself

Question a Day

2008

Andy Warhol's Factory People... Inside the Sixties Silver Factory

2008

Notes on an American Film Director at Work

2008 · Self, Director, Director of Photography

365 Day Project

2007 · Self, Director

Sunday December 30, 2007

2007 · Self, Director

Friday May 4, 2007: John Zorn – Cobra Part Two

2007 · Director

Monday April 16, 2007

2007 · Director

Jack Smith and the Destruction of Atlantis

2007 · Self

Friday March 16, 2007

2007 · Director

Tuesday Jan. 9, 2007

2007 · Self, Director

Saturday Jan. 6

Saturday Jan. 6

2007 · Cinematography, Director

Thursday Jan. 4, 2007: Pedro (São Paulo) or The Right Way To Make Capirinha

2007 · Director

Monday Jan. 1, 2007

2007 · Director

The Song of Central Park

2006 · Himself (voice), Director

Moires with Prof. Oster and Salvador Dalí

2006 · Director

Jonas' Independence Speech at the Anniversary of the Filmmaker's Cooperative

Jonas' Independence Speech at the Anniversary of the Filmmaker's Cooperative

2006 · , Director

Graffiti Museum Bronx, NYC

Graffiti Museum Bronx, NYC

2006 · , Director

End of the Millennium Espresso

End of the Millennium Espresso

2006 · , Director

Imperfect Film

2006 · , Director

Taping for As I was Moving Ahead…

Taping for As I was Moving Ahead…

2006 · , Director

Kreutzer Sonata

Kreutzer Sonata

2006 · , Director

A Visit to Stan Brakhage

2006 · Director

Velvet Underground's First Public Appearance

2006 · Director

To Barbara Rubin with Love

2006 · Director

A Visit to Stan Brakhage

A Visit to Stan Brakhage

2006 · Director

Dedication to Matsuo Basho

Dedication to Matsuo Basho

2006 · Director

A Visit to Timothy Leary

A Visit to Timothy Leary

2006 · Director

John & Yoko Bed-In

John & Yoko Bed-In

2006 · Director

Bibi Hansen

2006 · Director

Carl Dreyer

2006 · Director

Poets at the Living Theater

2006 · Director

Andy at Work

2006 · Director

Warhol and Maciunas

2006 · Director

Robert Frank Films

2006 · Director

Cinémathèque Française

2006 · Director

Brakhage Crosses Central Park

2006 · Cinematography, Writer, Director, Editor

Monks of Cinema

2006 · Director

To John With Love

2006 · Director

John & Yoko Bed-In

2006 · Director

The Monks of Cinema

The Monks of Cinema

2006 · Director

A Visit to Timothy Leary

A Visit to Timothy Leary

2006 · Director

I Am Searching for Nothing

I Am Searching for Nothing

2006 · Director

Fluxus on the Hudson

Fluxus on the Hudson

2006 · Director

Elia Kazan

2006 · Director

Phil Glass Plays for Ralph Steiner's Mechanical Principles

Phil Glass Plays for Ralph Steiner's Mechanical Principles

2006 · Director

Jackie & Lee Fragments of an Unfinished Biography

Jackie & Lee Fragments of an Unfinished Biography

2006 · Director

Allen Ginsberg Sings Blues

Allen Ginsberg Sings Blues

2006 · Director

Anger Me

2006 · Himself

The Destruction Quartet

2006 · Director

Notes on Marie Menken

Notes on Marie Menken

2006 · Self

Who Gets to Call It Art?

2006 · Self

Meet The Kuchar Brothers

2006

Nam June Paik: Lessons from the Video Master

Nam June Paik: Lessons from the Video Master

2006 · Self

Scenes from the Life of Hermann Nitsch

Scenes from the Life of Hermann Nitsch

2005 · Director, Editor

The Definition of Insanity

2005

Vies et morts d'Andy Warhol

2005

Excavating Taylor Mead

2005 · Self

Notes on Utopia

2005 · Director

Kulturplatz

2004 · Self

A Letter from Greenpoint

A Letter from Greenpoint

2004 · Mekas, Director, Writer, Creator

Not in Our Name

Not in Our Name

2003 · himself

A Visit To Hans Richter

A Visit To Hans Richter

2003 · Editor, Director

Axiom of Choice

2003 · Self

Williamsburg, Brooklyn

2003 · Director

Mysteries

2002 · Director

Jonas Keeps Shooting Around

2002 · Himself

In the Mirror of Maya Deren

2002 · Himself

Notes in Lifestyle Margins

2002

Three Friends

2002 · Director

Ein Märchen aus alten Zeiten

2001 · Director

A Letter to Penny Arcade

2001 · , Director

Diary Entry: Father and Daughter

Diary Entry: Father and Daughter

2001 · Director

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

2000 · Narrator (voice), Director, Writer, Cinematography, Editor

Requiem for a Manual Typewriter

Requiem for a Manual Typewriter

2000 · Himself, Director

Silence, Please

2000 · Director, Cinematography

Autobiography of a Man Who Carried his Memory in his Eyes

2000 · Director

Mozart & Elvis

2000 · Director

A Few Notes on Andy's Factory

1999 · Director

This Side of Paradise: Fragments of An Unfinished Biography

1999 · Director, Editor, Producer, Writer

Letter to John from Jonas

Letter to John from Jonas

1999 · , Director

Laboratorium Anthology

Laboratorium Anthology

1999 · Himself, Director

Patti Smith at Anthology Film Archives Febr. 19, 1998

1998 · Director

Jonas Mekas in Paris 10/97

1998

Song of Avignon

1998 · Self, Director, Writer

My Country is Cinema

My Country is Cinema

1998 · Self

Nam June Paik's Piano Piece

1997 · Director

Letters from Nowhere

1997 · Writer, Director, Editor

Happy Birthday to John

1997 · Director

Birth of a Nation

1997 · Director, Writer, Editor, Cinematography

Scenes from Allen's Last Three Days on Earth as a Spirit

1997 · Self, Director, Editor, Cinematography

A Poet from the Lower East Side

1997 · Self

Jonas Mekas, Friday 13th October

1996 · Himself

Song of The Salamander

Song of The Salamander

1996 · Director

Michael Snow Up Close

1996 · Himself

Cinema Is Not 100 Years Old

1996 · Himself, Director

Celebrate Cinema 101

1996 · Director

On My Way to Fujiyama I met..

1995 · Director of Photography

Nico Icon

1995 · Self

Imperfect Three-Image Films

1995 · Director

Memories of Frankenstein

1995 · Director

Jonas in the Desert

1994 · Self

Jonas Mekas in Budapest

1993 · Himself

The Misfits - 30 Years of Fluxus

The Misfits - 30 Years of Fluxus

1993 · Self

Peter Kubelka at the Library of Congress

Peter Kubelka at the Library of Congress

1993 · Director

Zefiro Torna or Scenes from the Life of George Maciunas (Fluxus)

Zefiro Torna or Scenes from the Life of George Maciunas (Fluxus)

1992 · , Director

The Education of Sebastian or Egypt Regained

1992 · Director

Award

1992 · Himself

Just Visiting This Planet

Just Visiting This Planet

1991

Carl G. Jung by Jerome Hill or Lapis Philosophorum

1991 · Director, Editor

Quartet Number One

1991 · , Director

Interview and Reading: Jonas Mekas

Interview and Reading: Jonas Mekas

1991 · Himself

A Walk

1990 · Director, Camera Operator

Superstar: The Life and Times of Andy Warhol

1990 · Self

Scenes from the Life of Andy Warhol: Friendships & Intersections

1990 · Director, Cinematography, Editor

Step Across the Border

1990 · Butterfly Wing

Mob of Angels: Baptism

Mob of Angels: Baptism

1990 · Director

Belladonna

1989

Warhol's Cinema 1963-1968: Mirror for the Sixties

1989 · Self

Invocation: Maya Deren

1986 · Himself

He Stands in a Desert Counting the Seconds of His Life

1986 · Self (archive footage), Director, Cinematography, Editor, Writer

Fire in the East: A Portrait of Robert Frank

1986 · Self

Home Movies 1971-81

1985

Persistence of Vision

1984 · Self

Cup/Saucer/Two Dancers/Radio

Cup/Saucer/Two Dancers/Radio

1983 · Director

Street Songs

1983 · Director

Erick Hawkins: Excerpts from "Here and Now with Watchers"

Erick Hawkins: Excerpts from "Here and Now with Watchers"

1983 · Director

Strong Medicine

1981

The Queen of Sheba Meets the Atom Man

1981

Travel Songs

1981 · Director

The Song of Stockholm

1981 · Director

No. 18: Mahagonny

No. 18: Mahagonny

1980 · Self

Self-Portrait

1980 · Himself, Director

J. Mekas

1980 · Self

Robert Haller's Wedding

1980 · Director

ORG

1979 · Self (archive footage)

Paradise Not Yet Lost

Paradise Not Yet Lost

1979 · Himself, Director

Cinématon

1978 · N°1590

Four Shadows

1978

Notes for Jerome

1978 · Self, Director, Cinematography

In Between

1978 · Director

Lost, Lost, Lost

1976 · Self, Director, Writer, Cinematography, Editor

Postcard from America

1975

‘Rameau’s Nephew’ by Diderot (Thanx to Dennis Young) by Wilma Schoen

1974

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

1973

Imagine

1972 · Self

Going Home

1972 · Himself

Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania

1972 · Self, Director, Cinematography, Writer, Editor

Elvis Live at Madison Square Garden

Elvis Live at Madison Square Garden

1972 · Director, Camera Operator, Writer

Ricky Leacock Visit, April 15, 1971

Ricky Leacock Visit, April 15, 1971

1971 · Self

Journey to Lithuania

1971 · Himself

The Song of Moscow

1971 · Director

Occhio privato sul nuovo mondo

1970

Filmmakers

1969 · Himself

Time & Fortune Vietnam Newsreel

1969 · Director, Cinematography

Diaries, Notes, and Sketches

1968 · Self, self, Director, Editor, Writer, Cinematography

A Matter of Baobab

1968

Jonas

1968 · Himself

Underground New York

1968 · Self

The Song of Avila

1967 · Narrator, Director

The Italian Notebook

The Italian Notebook

1967 · Director

The Song of Italy

1967 · Director

The Song of Assisi

1967 · Director

Notes on the Circus

1967 · Director, Cinematography, Editor

Poem Posters

1967 · Self

Hare Krishna

1967 · Director

For Life, Against the War

1967 · Director

Screen Test [ST211]: Jonas Mekas

1966 · himself

Report from Millbrook

1966 · Director

European Diaries

1966 · Sound Designer

Galaxie

1966 · Self

The Velvet Underground: Psychiatrist's Convention, NYC, 1966

1966 · Camera Operator

The Love Merchant

The Love Merchant

1966 · Lounge Patron

Shooting Guns

1966

Cassis

1966 · Director of Photography, Editor

Andy Warhol Screen Tests

1965 · Self

Dirt

1965

Jonas in the Brig

1965 · Himself

Film Magazine of the Arts

1965 · Director, Cinematography, Editor

Empire

1965 · Self (uncredited), Cinematography

Award Presentation to Andy Warhol

Award Presentation to Andy Warhol

1964 · Self, Director, Editor, Director of Photography

The Brig

1964 · Director, Cinematography, Director of Photography

Salvador Dalí at Work

1964 · Self, Director, Writer, Cinematography

Hallelujah the Hills

1963 · Assistant Director

Diane the Zebra Woman

Diane the Zebra Woman

1962

Senseless

1962 · Writer

The Sin of Jesus

The Sin of Jesus

1961

Guns of the Trees

1961 · Director, Writer, Editor, Cinematography

The Lamb

— · Self

Viva Jonas!

— · Himself

Cinématon n°1590 : Jonas Mekas

Cinématon n°1590 : Jonas Mekas

—

When

— · Director

Marcel Hanoun wedding

Marcel Hanoun wedding

— · Director

Jonas Mekas · Virelixia