Empire (1964 film)

Empire, created by pioneering pop artist Andy Warhol, consists of a single stationary shot of the Empire State Building filmed from 8:06 p.m. to 2:42 a.m., July 25–26, 1964. The eight-hour, five-minute film lacks a traditional narrative or characters. The passage from daylight to darkness becomes the film's narrative, while the protagonist is the iconic New York City skyscraper. By projecting the film at sixteen frames per second instead of the twenty-four at which it was shot, Warhol makes the progression to darkness almost imperceptible, and a blinking light at the top of a neighboring building marks the passage of time. According to Warhol, the point of this film is to "see time go by."

Controversial since its release, Empire redefines concepts of perception, action and cinematic time. Perhaps Warhol's most famous and influential cinematic work, it continues to elicit critical analysis.

Empire was added to the National Film Registry in 2004.


 * Leave the Camera Running: for eight hours.
 * True Art Is Incomprehensible