Welcome to the Saragossa Manuscript Virtual Class.

Whatever happens in these pages should help you survive the contact with a cult movie, a favorite of many great men, including Jerry Garcia, Martin Scorcese, and your instructor in the RUSS412/SLAV 412/HUMA 383 course at Rice University.

You can read the basic information about Wojciech Has's movie here, including excerpts from a series of previously unpublished interviews with the makers of the movie. A plot summary is also available (illustrated with a couple of short video clips and a presentation of the subplot structure). The film's symbols are briefly discussed; some facts about the film's original source, Jan Potocki's novel, The Saragossa Manuscript, can also be found at this site, together with the strange biography of that strange man. The Makers section presents the crew and the cast of this production. A seperate page discusses the production's original set design.

The makers of this significant movie are heavily indebted to the creator of its original soundtrack music, Poland's most eminent contemporary composer, Krzysztof Penderecki.