Spectacular Optical Media

@spectacularoptical

Canadian small press publisher of film + pop culture books, developer/producer/distributor of independent film. Owned by @kierlajanisse.bsky.social www.spectacularoptical.com

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Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· 14d

THIS SATURDAY in TORONTO! Sat. Aug 1, 3:00pm at Revue Cinema - Robert Downey Sr.'s 1969 advertising satire PUTNEY SWOPE - Toronto launch for our book TRUTH & SOUL: A ROBERT DOWNEY SR. READER Editors @kierlajanisse.bsky.social & Clint Enns in person w/ contributors @stephenbroomer.bsky.social & more

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· 15d

A YEAR IN A FIELD uses the lens of one standing stone to open into a conversation that spans from a single insect on a leaf all the way through what we know about our solar system and the very engines that run our planet. The film is available on Blu-ray now.

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· 20d

FRIDAY at @lalumierecollective in MTL! Robert Downey Sr's CHAFED ELBOWS introduced by Clint Enns and @kierlajanisse.bsky.social editors of the new book TRUTH & SOUL: A ROBERT DOWNEY SR. READER - Books available at the screening for $30 CAD (cash/card) Info: lalumierecollective.org/2026/robert-...

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· 24d

MONTREAL! This week we'll be at la metropolitaine (Weds) w/ HUGO POOL, La Lumiere Collective (Fri) w/ CHAFED ELBOWS, Cinema au Cinoche (next Sunday) w/ AMERICA! Some rarities to celebrate our book TRUTH & SOUL: A ROBERT DOWNEY SR. READER (also available at spectacularoptical.com)

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· 28d

Despite their historical importance many of the thousands of megaliths scattered across the UK are inaccessible to the public, something organizations like @stoneclub.bsky.social are working to change. For more on the pictured standing stone see A YEAR IN A FIELD, available on Blu-ray now.

A standing stone in a green and yellow field at dawn.

A wideshot of the Merry Maidens stone circle on a foggy day.

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· 29d

MONTREAL! Three nights of Robert Downey Sr. coming your way this month with TRUTH & SOUL: A ROBERT DOWNEY SR. READER co-editors @kierlajanisse.bsky.social and Clint Enns in person to intro each screening w/ books on hand - see details on our website spectacularoptical.com

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jul 5

Three excerpts from poems which evoke ancient standing stones and stone circles, including one written in a Wiltshire dialect! These poems are a part of a history of megalithic structures in art which director Christopher Morris continues in his film A YEAR IN A FIELD. Available on Blu-ray now.

Scarce images of life, one here, one there,
Lay vast and edgeways; like a dismal cirque
Of Druid stones, upon a forlorn moor,
When the chill rain begins at shut of eve,
In dull November, and their chancel vault,
The Heaven itself, is blinded throughout night.
Each one kept shroud, nor to his neighbour gave
Or word, or look, or action of despair.
"Hyperion" - John Keats
Book 2 lines 33-40

Now I can see certain simplicities
In the darkening rust and tarnish of the time,
And say over the certain simplicities,
The running water and the standing stone,
The yellow haze of the willow and the black
Smoke of the elm, the silver, silent light
Where suddenly, readying toward nightfall,
The sumac's candelabrum darkly flames.
And I speak to you now with the land's voice,
It is the cold, wild land that says to you
A knowledge glimmers in the sleep of things:
The old hills hunch before the north wind blows.
"A Spell Before Winter" - Howard Nemerov
Lines 8-19

An zom da think it wur tha sae
Wur our leetle lan da bide,
An that thase Stounes wur drifted up
Ta where they be we ocean's tide.

An zom da zay thay wur put up
Like martar, ael za slack an soft,
An ardened wie tha han a time,
An winds, an starms, an girt hard vrost.

But I da think as Uncle zed-
They mist av com wie thick woold fellar,
Vor, zomehow, I da zeem ta think
I yeard un under one o'm bellar.
"Gipsyun at Stounehenge" - Edward Slow
Lines 85-96

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jun 29

Director Christopher Morris interviewed by Will Sheff for the US premiere of A YEAR IN A FIELD as included in the limited edition Blu-ray extras. Available now at spectacularoptical.com (Canada) and severinfilms.com (US).

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jun 26

Director Christopher Morris and producer Denzil Monk discuss their film A YEAR IN A FIELD as part of the limited edition Blu-ray extras. Available now at spectacularoptical.com (Canada) and severinfilms.com (US).

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jun 24

Happy Birthday Robert Downey, Sr.! One of the most hilarious and confounding directors of the American underground, born on this day in 1936. Read more about him in our book TRUTH & SOUL: A ROBERT DOWNEY SR. READER, available at spectacularoptical.com

collage of three pics of Robert Downey Sr. One of him staring confrontationally into the camera as he leans against a brick wall in New York city, with a fire escape visible behind his head; one standing in the center of several people who are conferring amongst themselves (cast members of his movie POUND, including his then wife Elsie Downey and Downey regular Stan Gottlieb), with Downey again looking straight into the camera with one hand holding various documents and the other propped against his chin; and last a pic of him wearing a hat and gesticulating, on set directing.

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jun 21

June 21st is the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the longest day of the year. The day also serves as the midpoint for the journey of A YEAR IN A FIELD which spans from winter solstice to winter solstice. The film is available now on Blu-ray and digital.

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jun 17

Just arrived to our shipper @screamandwrithe.bsky.social in Montreal! First-ever blu rays of A YEAR IN A FIELD. Canadian orders made direct from the Spectacular Optical website spectacularoptical.com start shipping today, all other orders ship via @severinfilms.bsky.social

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jun 14

A YEAR IN A FIELD showcases a year's worth of skies and seasons around Boscawen Ros, the ancient standing stone at its centre. This stunning, meditative film is available to order on Blu-ray now through severinfilms.com in the US and spectacularoptical.com in Canada.

The A Year in a Field box-set with the text "A Year in a Field Now on Blu-ray" overtop a collage of landscapes from the film.

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Jun 3

Title treatment by Andy Votel for Devon Deimler's chapter on GREASER'S PALACE in TRUTH & SOUL: A ROBERT DOWNEY SR. READER. See the film tomorrow night (Weds June 3) at @viffest.bsky.social in Vancouver, w/ an intro by the book's co-editor @kierlajanisse.bsky.social Tix at viff.org/whats-on/gre...

psychedelic title treatment reading: "Come the Acid Western: Robert Downey in the Far out Frontier"

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 29

Whether ancient Druids used these stone monuments in their practice is debated, but stone circles and standing stones have remained a part of the spirituality of Neo-Druidry since its revival in the 18th century. See two of Cornwall's stone monuments in A YEAR IN A FIELD, blu ray pre-orders open now

One stone from the Merry Maidens Stone Circle

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 27

DON JUAN OF THE LAWN: Obsession and Estrangement in AMANITA PESTILENS - the latest in @stephenbroomer.bsky.social 's video essay series NORTHERN LIGHT focused on Canadian cinema classics, hits and misfits. See it June 1st at spectacularoptical.com

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 26

Robert Downey, Sr.'s GREASER'S PALACE screens at @viffest.bsky.social in Vancouver Weds June 3rd with an introduction by co-editor @kierlajanisse.bsky.social who will be on hand with books for sale! Tix and details at: viff.org/whats-on/gre...

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 22

According to a 2025 study by the University of Portsmouth, rural areas in the UK are disproportionately affected by litter pollution. These clips show some of a year’s litter in a field in West Cornwall as depicted in the documentary A YEAR IN A FIELD. Blu ray pre-orders are open. Streaming now.

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 18

Le Guin’s words are taken from the foreword to her poetry collection LATE IN THE DAY, they also serve as the opening words to Christopher Morris’ A YEAR IN A FIELD. Using the landscapes of West Cornwall the meditative film explores our relationship with the natural world. Blu ray pre-orders open now

we need to relearn our being in it. - Ursula K. Le Guin

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 14

Come hang out with an ancient standing stone in A YEAR IN A FIELD - now on TVOD in the US and available for pre-order on collectible blu ray in US from severinfilms.com (with exclusive perks) or in Canada (blu ray only) from spectacularoptical.com

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 8

Congratulations to BOSENA bosena.co.uk , the producers of A YEAR IN A FIELD, on their certification as a B Corporation (TM) which means that they have joined the growing hive of businesses who are leading a global movement for an inclusive, equitable and regenerative economy. Read more at bcorp.com

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 7

You can pre-order the blu ray from severinfilms.com or (in Canada) from spectacularoptical.com. Get the limited edition 'Monoliths' bundle (w/ limited edition coaster set) or the 'Scorched Earth' bundle where it's paired with @severinfilms.bsky.social new 4K restorations of THE WAR GAME + THREADS.

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 7

The cover itself is divided into twelve smaller sections, subtly referencing the twelve months over which the film unfolds. It’s a quiet detail, but one that nods to the passage of time: individual vignettes coming together to form a complete year in the field."

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 7

You move from expansive, lingering shots of the field and sky to ultra close-ups that reveal texture, flora, fauna and the quieter life within the field. That sense of switching perspective became the foundation for the cover design. [cont'd]

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 7

Some details from our blu ray wrap for Christopher Morris' A YEAR IN A FIELD, designed by Steven Key/Of Stick & Bone, who said: "Rewatching the film, I was particularly struck by the way it shifts between macro and micro viewpoints. [cont'd]

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 5

Standing stones have lived in British art from Derek Jarman’s Avebury Series of paintings and film A JOURNEY TO AVEBURY, to Ben Nicholson’s relief “February 1956 (menhir).” A YEAR IN A FIELD continues this rich history, and creates a beautiful meditation on nature and our place in it. Now streaming.

A painting of several stones and pillars on a beige background

Several frames of stones and trees from A Journey to Avebury

A tall rectangular relief made up of several interior rectangles in shades of beige.

Several frames of a standing stone, the sky, and plants from A Year in a Field

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· May 1

NEW ep of @stephenbroomer.bsky.social's NORTHERN LIGHT video essay series on Canadian classics, hits & misfits: THE NAKED FLAME (aka DEADLINE FOR MURDER, 1964), canuxploitation set in the fictional Alberta mining town of Little Creek. See it at spectacularoptical.com

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Apr 29

FURNACES OF FREEDOM: ECSTASY AND ASSIMILATION IN THE NAKED FLAME - a new video essay by @stephenbroomer.bsky.social as part of our NORTHERN LIGHT series focused on Canadian classics, hits & misfits. See it May 1 at spectacularoptical.com

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Apr 27

And here's a shot of the JESSICA house taken from Downey's 1975 film MOMENT TO MOMENT. Read all about Downey's work and the various characters who populate it in our book TRUTH & SOUL: A ROBERT DOWNEY SR. READER, available here: spectacularoptical.com/product/trut...

Spectacular Optical Media@spectacularoptical· Apr 27

There are a few connections between Costello and the world of Robert Downey Sr., the subject of our book TRUTH & SOUL - she had a small role in Downey's POUND as "Honky Killer's wife" and she was long married to Allan Arbus, from Robert Downey Sr.'s GREASER'S PALACE and PUTNEY SWOPE