Ï€ (PI)

A brilliant yet nervous man, Max Cohen (Sean Gullette) is on the verge of the most important discovery of his life - a 216-digit number which would solve the mysteries of life. As Max verges on a solution, chaos swallows the world around him and he is plagued by crippling headaches and hallucinations. He is pursued by an aggressive Wall Street firm and a Kabbalah sect intent on unlocking the secrets behind ancient texts. Max's race to crack the code tests the boundaries of wisdom, technology and power.

From the opening sequence, Pi operates like a cosmic thread - unravelling layers of questions which exponentially provoke further puzzles and mysteries. Aronofsky has balanced the possibilities of such an ambitious and clever script which never fails to both entertain and challenge. Seeking to combine the most progressive concepts of science fiction storytelling with the ageless moral undertones found in Faustian legends and Greek mythology, Pi is seamless in its execution, enormous in scope and positively unforgettable.

"Darren Aronofsky taps into pre-millenium paranoia with his bold directorial debut - winner of the Sundance Directors' Award. Combining dense black and white cinematography, a mesmerising soundtrack and hallucinatory imagery, it is a visceral experience that will entice audiences into its drug-like spell." - Screen International

Darren Aronofsky is a guest of the Festival.

Darren Aronofsky, 28, was born in Brooklyn, and studied filmmaking at Harvard University. His senior thesis film, Supermarket Sweep, won international awards and recognition and was a 1991 Student Academy Award National Finalist. In 1994 he received an MFA in Directing from the American Film Institute. π (Pi) is Aronofsky's debut feature as a director.