BAMcinématek announces special events, shorts, and full schedule for the sixth annual BAMcinemaFest, Jun 18—29
World premiere restoration of Manfred Kirchheimer’s legendary graffiti documentary Stations of the Elevated featuring a live performance by the Mingus Dynasty
Yum, Yum, Yum! 3 Movies by Les Blank—free outdoor screening in Brooklyn Bridge Park
The Wall Street Journal is the title sponsor of BAMcinemaFest, BAMcinématek, and BAM Rose Cinemas.
Brooklyn, NY/May 12, 2014—BAMcinématek announces the full schedule for the sixth annual BAMcinemaFest (Jun 18—29) including special events, guests, and shorts.
On Friday, June 27 BAMcinemaFest presents the world premiere of a new restoration of Manfred Kirchheimer’s legendary graffiti documentary Stations of the Elevated on the Steinberg Screen at the BAM Harvey Theater. One of the earliest film documentations of graffiti, Kirchheimer’s richly chromatic tone poem—originally shot on 16mm color reversal film and now remastered in high definition—sets images of graffiti-covered trains, rail yards, and billboards from the Bronx to Manhattan and Brooklyn, to a soundtrack that interweaves ambient city noises with the gutbucket gospel sounds of jazz titan Charles Mingus. The event begins with a live performance by the legendary Mingus Dynasty, the original ensemble formed by Sue Mingus after Charles’ death in 1979 to interpret her husband’s more than 300 compositions and continue his legacy. The Dynasty will perform selections from the film score as a prelude to Kirchheimer’s jazz-inflected documentary.
Regarded by cinephiles and hip-hop heads as a cult masterpiece since its premiere at the 1981 New York Film Festival, Stations of the Elevated is a celebration of a quintessentially urban art form at a time when it was largely dismissed as vandalism. With lyrical shots of tagged trains, desolate rail yards, and other details of the urban landscape, it remains a priceless portrait of a bygone era of New York City culture. “Exquisite... Stations unspools for long, glorious stretches without dialogue, following the rails alongside its stars—colorfully tagged subway trains—as they glide through both urban terrain and lush countryside” (Ernest Hardy, LA Weekly). Stations of the Elevated is an Artists Public Domain/Cinema Conservancy release.
BAMcinemaFest moves outdoors on Thursday, June 19 with Yum, Yum, Yum! 3 Movies by Les Blank, a free screening at Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Ethnographer of offbeat and unknown Americana, documentarian Les Blank passed away last April at age 77. In over 40 docu-essays he explored food, music, American micro-cultures, and a wide range of other subjects. BAMcinemaFest pays tribute to his legacy with this outdoor screening featuring Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers (1980), Blank’s delightful ode to everyone’s favorite stinking rose; The Blues Accordin’ to Lightnin’ Hopkins (1970), a portrait of the legendary Texas bluesman; and Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe (1980), which depicts the very act its title describes. The event will also feature food vendors curated by Smorgasburg starting at 7pm and live music beginning at 8pm,
and will be followed by a Les Blank retrospective at BAMcinématek later this year. Yum, Yum, Yum! Three Movies by Les Blank is co-presented by Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy and screens courtesy of Janus Films.
BAMcinemaFest also announces six short films paired with main slate features, including five New York premieres and one world premiere. Janicza Bravo’s Pauline Alone makes its world premiere at the festival, and stars Gaby Hoffman (Crystal Fairy, BAMcinemaFest 2013) as a woman trying to connect with people she’s never met (including Parks and Recreation’s Megan Mullally). Screening in their New York premieres are Scott Cummings’ Buffalo Juggalos, an experimental portrait of Juggalos causing mayhem in Buffalo, New York; Whiffed Out, BAMcinemaFest 2013 alum Jason Giampietro’s (The Sun Thief) narrative short about an abandoned bicycle that ruins a New Yorker’s summer; Jennifer Reeder’s A Million Miles Away, in which a teacher and her students simultaneously come of age, fueled by enigmatic text messages and a choral rendition of a heavy metal anthem; We Had the Experience But Missed the Meaning, Migrating Forms alum and acclaimed 16mm filmmaker Laida Lertxundi’s meditative road trip through Southern California and out to sea, guided by the spirit of Adolfo Bioy Casares’ short story “Men Are All the Same”; and Here Come the Girls, a character study of a struggling musician by multi-hyphenate artist Young Jean Lee, called “one of the best experimental playwrights in America” (Time Out New York).
This edition’s main slate showcases a total of 27 features, with 24 New York premieres, one US premiere, and one world premiere; the full lineup and schedule are below.
For press information, please contact Lisa Thomas at 718.724.8023 / [email protected] Hannah Thomas at 718.724.8002 / [email protected]
BAMcinemaFest Schedule
HT = Steinberg Screen at the BAM Harvey Theater BRC = BAM Rose Cinemas BKBP = Brooklyn Bridge Park
Wed, Jun 18 7:30pm: Opening Night—Boyhood (HT)
Thu, Jun 19 7pm: Appropriate Behavior + Pauline Alone (BRC) 7pm: Free Outdoor Screening—Yum, Yum, Yum! 3 Movies by Les Blank (BKBP) Food vendors curated by Smorgasburg start at 7pm, live music starts at 8pm, and screening begins at dusk.
Fri, Jun 20 6:45pm: Wild Canaries (BRC) 9:45pm: Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (BRC)
Sat, Jun 21 1:30pm: Ellie Lumme + A Million Miles Away (BRC) 3:45pm: Concerning Violence (BRC) 6:30pm: The Heart Machine (BRC) 9:30pm: For the Plasma (BRC)
Sun, Jun 22 2:30pm: Approaching the Elephant (BRC) 5:30pm: The Mend (BRC) 8:30pm: Memphis (BRC)
Mon, Jun 23 7pm: Evolution of a Criminal (BRC) 7:30pm: Spotlight—They Came Together (HT) 9:30pm: Thou Wast Mild and Lovely + Here Come the Girls (BRC)
Tue, Jun 24 7pm: Happy Valley (BRC) 9:30pm: I Origins (BRC)
Wed, Jun 25 7pm: The Notorious Mr. Bout (BRC) 7:30pm: Centerpiece—Snowpiercer (HT) 9:30pm: L for Leisure + We Had the Experience But Missed the Meaning (BRC)
Thu, Jun 26 7pm: Something, Anything (BRC) 9:30pm: Other Months + Buffalo Juggalos (BRC)
Fri, Jun 27 7pm: Happy Christmas (BRC) 8pm: Special Event—Stations of the Elevated (HT) 9:30pm: The Foxy Merkins + Whiffed Out (BRC)
Sat, Jun 28 3:30pm: Life After Death (BRC) 6:30pm: Low Down (BRC) 9:30pm: 10,000KM (BRC)
Sun, Jun 29 5pm: Closing Night—Do the Right Thing (HT) Co-presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Detailed film descriptions for BAMcinemaFest Most screenings followed by Q&As.
Main Slate
Opening Night Boyhood (2014) 163min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Richard Linklater. With Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Lorelei Linklater. One of the most acclaimed and groundbreaking films of the year, Richard Linklater’s Berlin Film Festival Silver Bear-winning drama patiently bears witness to the joy and pain of growing up, the turbulence of domestic life, and the shifting tides of pop culture. Shot over the course of 12 years, this sprawling portrait of American family life follows its young hero (Coltrane) as he makes his way from childhood to his early college years. As time drifts by, he learns to navigate his relationships with his divorced parents (Hawke and Arquette), tests the waters with various forms of rebellion, and discovers a passion for photography. Both ambitious and disarmingly unassuming, Linklater’s coming-of-age epic examines the fabric of daily life with the same candor and nuance that have long distinguished his remarkable career. An IFC Films release. Wed, Jun 18 at 7:30pm (HT) Richard Linklater and cast in person
Closing Night 25th Anniversary of Do the Right Thing Co-presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Directed by Spike Lee. (1989) 120min With Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee. BAMcinemaFest and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences celebrate the 25th anniversary of Spike Lee’s Oscar-nominated Do the Right Thing, in which the streets of Bed-Stuy boil and tensions run high on Brooklyn’s hottest day of the year. Loaded with an amazing supporting cast (including Samuel L. Jackson, John Turturro, and Rosie Perez) and music by Public Enemy, Do the Right Thing swings effortlessly from satire to social commentary. Upon its release, Roger Ebert praised the groundbreaking film as coming “closer to reflecting the current state of race relations in America than any other movie of our time,” and 25 years later it remains an important cultural touchstone for a very different Brooklyn. Sun, Jun 29 at 5pm (HT) Q&A with Spike Lee and more to be announced.
Centerpiece Snowpiercer (2014) 124min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Bong Joon Ho. With Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell. In his first English-language film, Korean genre maverick Bong (The Host) mounts a visually breathtaking dystopia in which all the survivors of Earth’s new Ice Age are packed aboard a perpetual-motion locomotive. Equal parts allegory and thriller, this ambitious adaptation of the popular French graphic novel follows a railway Spartacus (Chris Evans) and his band of ragtag revolutionaries as they break out of the cramped caboose to liberate the train from its decadent ruling class, led by an evil prime minister played by an uproarious (and barely recognizable) Swinton. A Radius-TWC release. Wed, Jun 25 at 7:30pm (HT) Q&A with Bong Joon Ho
Spotlight They Came Together (2014) 83min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by David Wain. With Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Ed Helms. More than a decade after the release of cult summer camp spoof Wet Hot American Summer, Wain and co-writer Michael Showalter reteam to lampoon the rom-com with this sidesplitting send-up. The concept is familiar: Molly (Poehler) runs a small Upper West Side sweets store; Joel (Rudd) works for the big candy conglomerate that’s opening across the street. After a bookstore meetcute sparked by a shared, uncanny love of fiction, their initial rivalry leads to improbable romance and Wain and Showalter’s absurdist hijinks gleefully rip to shreds every cliché in the book. A Lionsgate release. Mon, Jun 23 at 7:30pm (HT) Q&A with David Wain, Paul Rudd, and Amy Poehler
10,000KM (2013) 99min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Carlos Marques-Marcet. With Natalia Tena, David Verdaguer. In this groundbreaking and moving look at 21st-century relationships, long-term couple Alexandra and Sergi live together in Barcelona, where they’re planning to start a family. But when she accepts a yearlong residency in LA, the pair decides to stay together despite the long distance. Using video chat to stay in touch—and attempt some awkward cybersex—they soon discover the limits of their digital connection, confronting a distance even the Internet can’t diminish. Winner of the Special Jury Award at SXSW for Best Acting, and opening with a virtuoso 20-minute long take that registers the painful push and pull between romantic commitment and individual desires, 10,000KM is a candid exploration of love in the age of the pixel. Sat, Jun 28 at 9:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Carlos Marques-Marcet
Approaching the Elephant (2014) 89min NY Premiere—Documentary Directed by Amanda Rose Wilder. Without imposing traditional authority or structure, New Jersey’s Teddy McArdle Free School allows children to set their own rules and choose whether or not to attend classes. The teachers struggle to create a learning environment that instills the values of democracy and critical thinking, but an ongoing clash between two students tests the limits of the system. Evoking both the immersive style of Frederick Wiseman and such fictional dystopias as Lord of the Flies, Wilder crafts an inspired portrait of unfettered childhood within a radical model of education.
Sun, Jun 22 at 2:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Amanda Rose Wilder and more to be announced
Appropriate Behavior (2014) 86min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Desiree Akhavan. With Desiree Akhavan, Rebecca Henderson, Scott Adsit. Writer-director-star Akhavan helms this deadpan comedy about a bisexual Iranian-American woman adrift after a break-up. Finding new digs in Bushwick and a daycare job at a kindergarten film school, 20- something Shirin oscillates from conservative family gatherings (where she remains closeted) to hip Brooklyn parties and cold sexual encounters—punctuated with flashbacks to simpler times with her ex. Drawing comparisons to Annie Hall and Girls, this debut feature introduces a sharp new voice in independent cinema. Screens with Janicza Bravo’s Pauline Alone. Thu, Jun 19 at 7pm (BRC) Q&A with Desiree Akhavan
Concerning Violence (2014) 85min NY Premiere—Documentary Directed by Göran Hugo Olsson. Narrated by Lauryn Hill. Set to the voice of Lauryn Hill reading Frantz Fanon’s anti-colonialist call to arms, The Wretched of the Earth, this mesmerizing assemblage of rarely seen archival footage brings to light nine of the most pivotal episodes in the history of African revolution. Documenting decades of uprisings, from the Angolan War of Independence to the Mozambique Liberation Front and beyond, director Göran Hugo Olsson’s (The Black Power Mixtape 1967—1975) propulsive and endlessly provocative docu-essay interrogates the role of violent revolt in the dismantling of colonial power and offers an impassioned tribute to the sacrifices made in the pursuit of liberation. A Kino Lorber release. Sat, Jun 21 at 3:45pm (BRC)
Ellie Lumme (2014) 42min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Ignatiy Vishnevetsky. With Stephen Cone, Allison Torem, Mallory Nees. Film critic Ignatiy Vishnevetsky makes the leap to filmmaking with his debut narrative work, a self- described “ghost story without a ghost.” When 22-year-old Ellie meets a slightly older, seemingly infatuated stranger, he soon becomes a constant—and unwelcome—presence in her life. As their relationship grows increasingly disturbed, this meticulously shot, subtly supernatural tale blossoms into a haunting psychological riddle. Screens with Jennifer Reeder’s A Million Miles Away. Sat, Jun 21 at 1:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Ignatiy Vishnevetsky
Evolution of a Criminal (2014) 83min NY Premiere—Documentary Directed by Darius Clark Monroe. With Darius Clark Monroe, Dante E. Clark, Rosalyn Coleman, Ellie Foumbi. Filmmaker Darius Clark Monroe revisits his journey from honors student to convicted bank robber at the age of 16. Contemplating the ramifications of his crime, Monroe gathers interviews with relatives, accomplices, and victims, who react to his efforts to make amends in unpredictable ways. His unflinching and cathartic confrontation with his past examines how the effects of one bad decision reverberate throughout a community. Mon, Jun 23 at 7pm (BRC) Q&A with Darius Clark Monroe
For the Plasma (2014) 94min World Premiere—Narrative Directed by Bingham Bryant & Kyle Molzan. With Anabelle LeMieux, Rosalie Lowe. In a remote house in Maine, two old friends analyze CCTV footage of the surrounding forest to predict shifts in global financial markets. From this cryptic premise grows a lo-fi mind-bender of intimate scale and startling relevance that flirts with sci-fi and horror conventions even as it subverts them. To the strains of an electronic score, For the Plasma juxtaposes pastoral imagery with surveillance technology, every shade and shadow captured in gorgeous 16mm. Sat, Jun 21 at 9:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Bingham Bryant and Kyle Molzan
The Foxy Merkins (2013) 81min NY Premiere—Narrative
Directed by Madeleine Olnek. With Lisa Haas, Jackie Monahan, Alex Karpovsky, Susan Ziegler, Sally Sockwell, Deb Margolin. Fresh off the bus in New York City, Margaret embarks on a career as a lesbian prostitute, servicing upper-class Manhattanites under the tutelage of Jo, a straight and streetwise grifter with a knack for picking up women. Olnek’s raucous buddy comedy and Independent Spirit Award nominee (co-written with the two stars, Lisa Haas and Jackie Monahan) is an all-female riff on My Own Private Idaho by way of Midnight Cowboy, filled with eccentric characters and clever cameos, including Girls’ Alex Karpovsky as a shady merkin salesman. Screens with Jason Giampietro’s Whiffed Out. Fri, Jun 27 at 9:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Madeleine Olnek
Happy Christmas (2014) 78min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Joe Swanberg. With Anna Kendrick, Melanie Lynskey, Lena Dunham,Joe Swanberg. Post-break-up and without a plan, Jenny (Anna Kendrick) moves in with her brother (Swanberg) and his wife (Melanie Lynskey) for the holidays, but her arrival triggers a whirlwind of drunken hijinks and irresponsible behavior that upsets the family’s balance. The ever-prolific Swanberg follows his indie hit Drinking Buddies (BAMcinemaFest 2013) with this charmingly relaxed comedy shot in 16mm, featuring Lena Dunham as Jenny’s outspoken high school friend and a scene-stealing performance by the director’s two-year-old son. A Magnolia Pictures release. Fri, Jun 27 at 7pm (BRC) Q&A with Joe Swanberg
Happy Valley (2013) 98min NY Premiere—Documentary Directed by Amir Bar-Lev. In the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal, many Penn State fans reacted with outrage—not over Sandusky’s actions, but to the dismissal of Joe Paterno, the popular head coach who shielded him from prosecution. Interviewing key parties, including Paterno’s family and one of Sandusky’s victims, director Bar-Lev (The Tillman Story) wades fearlessly into the controversy, probing the “football first” culture to better understand whether Paterno, the university, and the community turned a blind eye to the unspeakable. Tue, Jun 24 at 7pm (BRC) Q&A with Amir Bar-Lev
The Heart Machine (2014) 83min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Zachary Wigon. With John Gallagher Jr., Kate Lyn Sheil, Louisa Krause. Cody (John Gallagher Jr.) carries on a virtual relationship with Virginia (BAMcinemaFest regular Kate Lyn Sheil), who’s in Berlin studying abroad for six months—or so she says. As Cody becomes convinced that Virginia is, in fact, in New York, he develops an increasingly unhealthy fixation with tracking her down. Part love story, part moody paranoid thriller in the vein of The Conversation, The Heart Machine is a tense, trenchant tale of obsession and alienation for the digital age. Sat, Jun 21 at 6:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Zachary Wigon
I Origins (2014) 113min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Mike Cahill. With Michael Pitt, Brit Marling, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey. Director Cahill’s luminous, Brooklyn-set follow-up to his acclaimed Another Earth (BAMcinemaFest 2011) further plumbs the romantic and metaphysical dimensions of science. A molecular biologist (Michael Pitt) studying the evolution of the eyes finds his romance with an enigmatic young woman inextricably linked to a potentially earth-shaking scientific breakthrough. Intelligent and provocative, I Origins is a lush sophomore effort from one of independent filmmaking’s most intriguing voices. A Fox Searchlight release. Tue, Jun 24 at 9:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Mike Cahill
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (2014) 105min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by David Zellner. With Rinko Kikuchi. In this absurdist adventure tale based on an urban legend, a Tokyo office assistant (Oscar nominee Rinko Kikuchi) becomes irrationally fixated on a scene in the Coen Brothers’ Fargo in which a briefcase full of
money is hidden beneath a blanket of snow. With stolen atlas in hand, she ditches her overbearing mother and dead-end job, taking off for the Midwest plains in search of the buried treasure. Indie veterans David and Nathan Zellner journey to the edges of film-fueled obsession in this beguilingly off-kilter character study infused with deadpan humor and rapturous widescreen imagery. Fri, Jun 20 at 9:45pm (BRC) Q&A with David Zellner, writer/producer Nathan Zellner, and producer Chris Ohlson
L for Leisure (2014) 74min US Premiere—Narrative Directed by Lev Kalman & Whitney Horn. With Marianna McClellan, Kyle Williams, Bro Estes. It’s Baywatch meets Rohmer in this gauzy, sun-kissed paean to vacation. Shot on glorious 16mm, L for Leisure follows a group of quasi-intellectual grad students circa 1993 as they jet off to various international destinations (Baja, France, Iceland, and beyond) in search of adventure. This deliciously retro first feature from directing duo Kalman and Horn boasts impromptu Greco-Roman wrestling, a boogie-boarding dog, and extended discussions about everything from alternative universes to Michael Jordan—all set to a blissed-out synth-pop soundtrack. Screens with Laida Lertxundi’s We Had the Experience But Missed the Meaning. Wed, Jun 25 at 9:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Lev Kalman and Whitney Horn
Life After Death (2014) 75min NY Premiere—Documentary Directed by Joe Callander. Having grown up in the shadow of war and genocide, charismatic but directionless Rwandan orphan Kwasa finds the guidance—and financial aid—he seemingly needs from a charity-minded Christian couple from the US. This multi-layered documentary begins with a wry examination of evangelical zeal, but slowly reveals that Kwasa’s benefactors are turning a blind eye to his puckish scheming and unrepentant carousing. Laced with comic touches, Life After Death is a clear-eyed portrait of both Rwandan youth struggling to rise above their country’s troubled history and the well-intentioned outsiders eager to help. Sat, Jun 28 at 3:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Joe Callander
Low Down (2014) 114min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Jeff Preiss. With John Hawkes, Elle Fanning, Glenn Close, Peter Dinklage, Lena Heady. Based on Amy Albany’s (Elle Fanning) memoir of her turbulent adolescence with her father, legendary jazz pianist Joe Albany (John Hawkes), this richly evocative drama charts the pianist’s crippling struggles with heroin addiction as seen through Amy’s eyes. Graced with tour de force performances by a star- studded cast including Glenn Close, Peter Dinklage, and Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) and a marvelous, moody soundtrack featuring Coleman Hawkins, Thelonious Monk, and Albany himself, this moving elegy to a bygone era by the multi-talented Preiss (cinematographer for the revered Chet Baker documentary Let’s Get Lost) poetically captures the seedy romance of the 1970s LA jazz scene. An Oscilloscope Laboratories release. Sat, Jun 28 at 6:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Jeff Preiss
Memphis (2014) 79min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Tim Sutton. With Willis Earl Beal, Constance Brantley, Larry Dodson. In a raw, seemingly autobiographical star turn, underground blues singer-poet Willis Earl Beal plays a musician who claims to have mystical powers but can’t seem to finish his next album. Trying the patience of his girlfriend and his producer, he drifts from Baptist church to bar to recording studio in a struggle to regain his creative spark. BAMcinemaFest 2012 alum Tim Sutton (Pavilion) treads the line between documentary and fiction in this sumptuously photographed, daringly abstract portrait of an iconic city, which features a haunting original soundtrack and supporting performances from legendary Stax musicians Larry Dodson and John Gary Williams. A Kino Lorber release. Sun, Jun 22 at 8:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Tim Sutton
The Mend (2014) 110min NY Premiere—Narrative
Directed by John Magary. With Josh Lucas, Stephen Plunkett, Mickey Sumner. Mat, a reckless drifter pushing 40, shows up unexpectedly at his gainfully employed brother Alan’s Harlem apartment and never leaves, turning his seemingly stable sibling’s life upside down. In this deliriously unhinged, unpredictable debut feature, Magary steers this dark comic tale of brotherly love and hate into increasingly freewheeling, nihilistic territory, the sense of disorientation heightened by a modern classical score. Sun, Jun 22 at 5:30pm (BRC) Q&A with John Magary
The Notorious Mr. Bout (2014) 90min NY Premiere—Documentary With Viktor Bout, Albert Dayan, Wim Brown, Louis Milione. Known as the “Merchant of Death,” Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout achieved international notoriety following his 2008 arrest for supplying weapons to terrorists. This riveting, often black-comic documentary shows two Viktor Bouts: the amiable, upbeat family man who viewed himself as an entrepreneur and the ruthless criminal mastermind who abetted murderers. Bolstered by Bout’s own firsthand accounts and remarkable home video footage of his globe-trotting exploits, The Notorious Mr. Bout masterfully reveals both the man and the myth. Wed, Jun 25 at 7pm (BRC) Q&A with Tony Gerber and Maxim Pozdorovkin
Other Months (2014) 69min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Nick Singer. With Christopher Bonewitz, Britannie Bond, Emma Morrison-Cohen. After returning home from college, Nash (Bonewitz) dabbles in plumbing and maintains vague aspirations of becoming a writer, reveling in the cheap thrills of sex, alcohol, and the dance floor to wade through his post-grad listlessness. Divided into three chapters (February, July, and November) and partly based on Singer’s acclaimed short, Other Months traces the descent of its enigmatic protagonist in a rush of moody, surreal imagery, exhilaratingly shot by talented young DP Justin Zweifach. Screens with Scott Cummings’ Buffalo Juggalos. Thu, Jun 26 at 9:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Nick Singer, Chris Bonewitz, and producer Emily Pontecorvo
Something, Anything (2014) 88min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Paul Harrill. With Ashley Shelton, Bryce Johnson, Linds Edwards. In the wake of a life-altering tragedy, Southern newlywed Peggy confronts a profound spiritual crisis and sets out on a quest to discover a higher purpose. Without knowing what she seeks, Peggy jeopardizes her marriage, career, and friendships to find fulfillment. Harrill’s impressive debut feature is a meditative and quietly transfixing study of a woman attempting to put her life back together. Thu, Jun 26 at 7pm (BRC) Q&A with Paul Harrill and Ashley Shelton
Thou Wast Mild and Lovely (2014) 78min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Josephine Decker. With Joe Swanberg, Sophie Traub, Robert Longstreet. Psychosexual tensions boil over in this hair-raising erotic drama, set on an idyllic farm in the Kentucky countryside. When hired hand Akin (DIY staple Joe Swanberg) arrives to help out for the summer, he becomes increasingly entangled with the mysterious and emotionally manipulative relationship between farmer (Robert Longstreet) and daughter. Using time-lapse photography and shifting points of view, Decker imbues the bucolic scenery with a mounting sense of dread that evokes John Steinbeck and David Lynch. Screens with Young Jean Lee’s Here Come the Girls. Mon, Jun 23 at 9:30pm (BRC) Q&A with Josephine Decker
Wild Canaries (2014) 98min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Lawrence Michael Levine. With Sophia Takal, Lawrence Michael Levine, Alia Shawkat, Jason Ritter, Kevin Corrigan. Brooklyn DIY meets classic screwball mystery in this witty whodunit. Husband and wife team Levine (Gabi on the Roof in July) and Takal (Green, BAMcinemaFest 2011) star as a perpetually bickering couple who
suspect something’s amiss when their elderly neighbor suddenly drops dead. Channeling The Thin Man’s Nick and Nora, Levine and Takal recruit their roommate (Arrested Development’s Alia Shawkat) to join the case, and the investigation that ensues takes them on a whirlwind tour of Kings County that yields both breezy comic delights and some sinister discoveries. Fri, Jun 20 at 6:45pm (BRC) Q&A with Lawrence Michael Levine and Sophia Takal
Special Events
Special Screening with Live Performance by the Mingus Dynasty Stations of the Elevated (1981) 46min World Premiere of a new restoration Directed by Manfred Kirchheimer. An Artists Public Domain/Cinema Conservancy release. Fri, Jun 27 at 8pm (HT)
Outdoor Screening Yum, Yum, Yum! 3 Movies by Les Blank Courtesy of Janus Films. Co-presented by The Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy. Pier House Brooklyn Bridge Park is the sponsor of the BAMcinemaFest outdoor screening. Thu, Jun 19 at 9pm (BKBP)
Shorts
Buffalo Juggalos (2014) 30min NY Premiere—Documentary Dir. Scott Cummings. An exquisitely conceived portrait of Juggalos in Buffalo, New York, doing what they do best: causing mayhem. Screens with Other Months. Thu, Jun 26 at 9:30pm
Here Come the Girls (2013) 20min NY Premiere—Narrative Dir. Young Jean Lee. Lauded multi-hyphenate artist Young Jean Lee plays a bullying documentarian who prods an unemployed musician into exposing the darkest regions of his private life. Screens with Thou Wast Mild and Lovely. Mon, Jun 23 at 9:30pm
A Million Miles Away (2014) 27min NY Premiere—Narrative Dir. Jennifer Reeder. A teacher and her students experience a simultaneous coming of age, fueled by enigmatic text messages and a choral rendition of a heavy metal anthem. Screens with Ellie Lumme. Sat, Jun 21 at 1:30pm
Pauline Alone (2014) 13min World Premiere—Narrative Dir. Janicza Bravo. An eccentric woman (Gaby Hoffmann) tries to connect with people she’s never met. Screens with Appropriate Behavior. Thu, Jun 19 at 7pm
We Had the Experience But Missed the Meaning (2014) 8min NY Premiere—Narrative Dir. Laida Lertxundi. Acclaimed 16mm filmmaker Laida Lertxundi takes a road trip through the Southern California and out to sea, guided by the spirit of Adolfo Bioy Casares’ short story Men Are All the Same. Screens with L for Leisure. Wed, Jun 25 at 9:30pm
Whiffed Out (2014) 12min NY Premiere—Narrative Dir. Jason Giampietro.
An abandoned bicycle in a narrow hallway ruins an anxious New Yorker’s summer until it’s stolen by a shifty friend with dreams of becoming a pizza delivery man. Screens with The Foxy Merkins. Fri, Jun 27 at 9:30pm
About BAMcinématek The four-screen BAM Rose Cinemas (BRC) opened in 1998 to offer Brooklyn audiences alternative and independent films that might not play in the borough otherwise, making BAM the only performing arts center in the country with two mainstage theaters and a multiplex cinema. In July 1999, beginning with a series celebrating the work of Spike Lee, BAMcinématek was born as Brooklyn’s only daily, year-round repertory film program. BAMcinématek presents new and rarely seen contemporary films, classics, work by local artists, and festivals of films from around the world, often with special appearances by directors, actors, and other guests. BAMcinématek has not only presented major retrospectives by major filmmakers such as Michelangelo Antonioni, Manoel de Oliveira, Shohei Imamura, Vincente Minnelli (winning a National Film Critics’ Circle Award prize for the retrospective), Kaneto Shindo, Luchino Visconti, and William Friedkin, but it has also introduced New York audiences to contemporary artists such as Pedro Costa and Apichatpong Weerasethakul. In addition, BAMcinématek programmed the first US retrospectives of directors Arnaud Desplechin, Nicolas Winding Refn, Hong Sang-soo, and, most recently, Andrzej Zulawski. From 2006 to 2008, BAMcinématek partnered with the Sundance Institute and in June 2009 launched BAMcinemaFest, a 16-day festival of new independent films and repertory favorites with 15 NY feature film premieres; the sixth annual BAMcinemaFest runs from June 18—29, 2014.
Credits
The Wall Street Journal is the title sponsor of BAMcinemaFest, BAM Rose Cinemas, and BAMcinématek.
Steinberg Screen at the BAM Harvey Theater is made possible by The Joseph S. and Diane H. Steinberg Charitable Trust.
Delta is the official airline of BAMcinemaFest.
Pepsi is the official beverage of BAM.
Brooklyn Brewery is the preferred beer of BAMcinemaFest.
BAM Rose Cinemas are named in recognition of a major gift in honor of Jonathan F.P. and Diana Calthorpe Rose. BAM Rose Cinemas would also like to acknowledge the generous support of The Peter Jay Sharp Foundation, The Estate of Richard B. Fisher, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, Brooklyn Delegation of the New York City Council, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts, Bloomberg, and Time Warner Inc. Additional support for BAMcinématek is provided by the Coolidge Corner Theatre Foundation, The Grodzins Fund, The Liman Foundation, Summit Rock Advisors, and the Frederick Loewe Foundation.
BAMcinemaFest is programmed by Nellie Killian, David Reilly, and Ryan Werner with assistance from Gabriele Caroti.
Special thanks to all participating filmmakers and their creative teams.
Additional thanks to Jonathan Sehring, Shani Ankori, Mark Boxer & Lauren Schwartz/IFC Films; Spike Lee; Patrick Harrison & Bettina Fisher/Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; Jason Lampkin & Eden Marie Picazo/40 Acres and A Mule Filmworks; John Sloss, Dana O’Keefe, Linzee Troubh & Kate Hurwitz/Cinetic Media; Adam Kersh & Rob Scheer/Brigade Marketing; Brian Belovarac & Laura Coxson/Janus Films; Alison Hughes/Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy; Glen Sanders/Fresh Air Flicks; Eric Demby/Brooklyn Flea; Josh Braun/Submarine Entertainment; Gary Palmucci & Jonathan Hertzberg/Kino Lorber; Diana Loomis, Russell Nelson & Sarah Peters/Fox Searchlight Pictures; Sara Sampson; Brianna Grinbaum & Chela L. Johnson/Lionsgate; Rene Ridinger/MPRM Communications; Jason Ishikawa/The Film Sales Company; Jake Perlin, Kate West & Andrew Adair/Artists Public Domain/Cinema Conservancy; Tom Quinn, Jason Janego, Liza Burnett Fefferman & Caroline McKenzie/Radius-TWC; Eamonn Bowles, Neal Block, Matt Cowal, Arianne Rocchi, John von Thaden, Dana Vladimir & Danielle McCarthy/Magnolia Pictures; Molly Thompson & Eu-Hua Chua/A+E Studios; Sue Mingus & Sarah M. Williams/Jazz Workshop, Inc; David Laub, Dan Berger, Charlie Olsky/Oscilloscope Laboratories.
General Information
BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, BAM Rose Cinemas, and BAMcafé are located in the Peter Jay Sharp building at 30 Lafayette Avenue (between St Felix Street and Ashland Place) in the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn. BAM
Harvey Theater is located two blocks from the main building at 651 Fulton Street (between Ashland and Rockwell Places). Both locations house Greenlight Bookstore at BAM kiosks. BAM Fisher, located at 321 Ashland Place, is the newest addition to the BAM campus and houses the Judith and Alan Fishman Space and Rita K. Hillman Studio. BAM Rose Cinemas is Brooklyn’s only movie house dedicated to first-run independent and foreign film and repertory programming. BAMcafé, operated by Great Performances, offers a bar menu and dinner entrées prior to BAM Howard Gilman Opera House evening performances. BAMcafé also features an eclectic mix of spoken word and live music for BAMcafé Live on Friday and Saturday nights with a bar menu available starting at 6pm.
Subway: 2, 3, 4, 5, Q, B to Atlantic Avenue – Barclays Center (2, 3, 4, 5 to Nevins St for Harvey Theater) D, N, R to Pacific Street; G to Fulton Street; C to Lafayette Avenue Train: Long Island Railroad to Atlantic Terminal – Barclays Center Bus: B25, B26, B41, B45, B52, B63, B67 all stop within three blocks of BAM Car: Commercial parking lots are located adjacent to BAM
For ticket information, call BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100, or visit BAM.org.