Ku! Dystopian Night — Event Playbook
An immersive, absurdist cinema event inspired by Kin-Dza-Dza!, designed to be scalable and self-run across multiple cities. Hosts can create a playful, lo-fi dystopian experience without needing a production crew.
Description
Eternal Family Presents Ku! Dystopian Night, a special event screening of Kin-dza-dza! happening in multiple cities.
We invite you to join us for a special edition of Family Night with an immersive screening of the Soviet-era absurdist dystopian sci-fi film Kin-Dza-Dza! (1986, 2hr 12min). Two Russians push the wrong button on a strange device and end up on the telepathic planet Pluke with its strange societal norms. Directed by Georgiy Daneliya.
The screening will include a brief introduction, a hierarchical role-playing exercise, a commodity trading game with absurd laws and language, and exploring themes of dehumanization and social control.
Please wear your most traditional garb to the screening event. Simple tones, no logos. Upon arrival you will be assigned a role as Patsak (peasant) or Chatlanian (elite) with rules on how to play. Chatlanians will be given a matchstick to hand out to Patsaks in exchange for a compliment or perks. Matchsticks received will be counted at the end and prizes will be awarded. Bonus: bring your own desert junk decor for us to display.
With any luck there will also be an informal afterparty in the general vicinity of the event.
Purchase tickets below.
Setup Guide
1) Dystopian Environment
- Printable signs
- Adhesive tape
- Looped propaganda video
- Desert playlist (Spotify link)
- Dry lighting request
2) Obedience Center
- One table
- 2 volunteers or staff to greet and assign roles
- Volunteer info sheet
- Green and orange buttons plus info cards OR colour stickers for name tags
- Markers to write names
- Match sticks
3) Match Economy
- Intro script document
- Simple rules document
- Prizes:
- Eternal Family shirt
- Eternal Family sticker
- Eternal Family poster
- Kin-Dza-Dza! Blu-ray
- Eternal Family 1-year free
- Free movie tickets (donated by theatre)
- Note: the prizes will also double as merch display
Schedule
Doors - 7pm
Intro - 7:15pm
Film - 7:30pm
Prizes - 9:45pm
Afterparty - 10pm
Roles at Entry
1. Randomly assign guests as:
- Patsak (must bow and say “ku”)
- Chatlanian (receive perks)
2. Provide name tags stickers labeled accordingly.
3. Give each Chatalanian 1 matchstick token.
Pre-Show Activities
Guests write “Letters to Planet Pluk”
Patsaks perform “ku” bows before entering theatre
Play propaganda video loop
Play desert playlist
Host MC Script
“Citizens of Planet Pluk, welcome. Please know your place. If you are a Patsak, you must ‘ku’ immediately to any Chatlanian you see. Chatlanians, your matchsticks are your power—guard them well. This film is not a warning. It is your reality now.”
Match Economy (Simple Rules)
Chatlanians may offer or sell matches to Patsaks in exchange for:
- Compliments
- Songs
- Interpretive dance
- Philosophical questions
At the end, anyone with 3+ matches wins a weird prize (shirt, sticker, etc)
Post-Screening Ideas
- Award Patsak prizes for matchsticks
- Open mic for “Pluk Letters”
- Share photos with #KUNight or submit census
Packages
1) Stuff to Mail
Custom matchbooks
Name tags (sticker or pins)
Posters / flyers
Mini propaganda zine (with page for letter to planet ku)
Printed signs
- “Obedience Center”
- “Merch List”
- “Obey Ku”
- “No Ku, No Service”
2) Digital Toolkit
Event Playbook
- Venue setup
- Decor ideas
- Greeting guests
- Assigning roles
- Rules of game
- Intro script
- Pre/post playlist
Screen Assets
- Animated intro loop
- “Obey Ku” interesting
- Kin-dza-dza!
Marketing Kit
- Poster + social templates
- Suggested copy, press release, hashtags
Partners
Theatres / Film Collectives
Launch cities:
- NYC: Spectacle
- LA: Brain Dead
- Chicago
- Toronto
- Montreal
- SF
Smaller cities: focus on DIY spaces
- Austin
- Vancouver
- Portland
- Seattle
- Atlanta
Open Call for Hosts via Eternal Family, Forming, etc
Online Layer
#kunight Hashtag + IG Highlights
- Photos from crows
- Favourite zine entries
Planet Pluk Consensus
- Attendees input their names, role, city for a giant public map
Digital shire of Ku
- Upload images or letter collected from events
- Short video compilation
- Interactive map
Alan Resnick |
Comedy
| Alvaro Chavez |
| Creator |
| Comedy |