Eraserhead
DAVID LYNCH: ABSURD ENCOUNTERS, PART II
“In heaven, everything is fine.”
After spending his youth pursuing “the art life,” David Lynch turned to filmmaking with his experimental shorts THE ALPHABET and THE GRANDMOTHER. The latter earned him a scholarship to the American Film Institute — and set the stage for the strange, years-long journey that would lead to his debut feature: ERASERHEAD.
In this episode, we explore the long and difficult birth of Lynch’s nightmarish first film. Shot over the course of five years in a converted stables on the AFI campus, ERASERHEAD was almost abandoned more than once. But its uncompromising weirdness — and the haunting sound design Lynch meticulously crafted with Alan Splet — ultimately helped it find an audience on the midnight movie circuit, where it was championed by exhibitor Ben Barenholtz and embraced by counterculture cinephiles.
We’ll talk about Lynch’s early collaborators, the influence of Philadelphia’s urban decay, the mystery of the baby, and how ERASERHEAD became one of the most celebrated cult films of all time — paving the way for Lynch’s singular place in American cinema.
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Up Next: David Lynch: Episode 3: THE ELEPHANT MAN.
ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS:
Andy Lancaster | Benjamin Yates | curtcake5k | Jvance325 | MagicBloat | Nate Izod
CAST & CREW
Directed by: David Lynch
Written by: David Lynch
Produced by: David Lynch
Cast: Jack Nance | Charlotte Stewart | Allen Joseph | Jeanne Bates | Judith Roberts | Jack Fisk
Cinematography: Frederick Elmes | Herbert Cardwell
Edited by: David Lynch
Music by: David Lynch | Fats Waller | Peter Ivers
Release Date: March 19, 1977
Theme Song: "There's Still a Little Bit of Time, If We Hurry and I Mean Hurry" by Slasher Film Festival Strategy.
This episode was written, produced and edited by Gary Horne, Justin Bishop & Todd A. Davis.
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