Marking Up The Dream

Shari Robertson and Michael Camerini's fascinatinating documentary series How Democracy Works Now continues today. In a recent editorial on this “political epic,” the New York Times said: “Americans who find politics and political reporting glib, unsatisfying and depressing now have an antidote for all time.”

First up is Sam in the Snow, in which the story of Ted Kennedy’s fight for immigration reform takes a turn for the complicated when the Department of Homeland Security is founded. A different part of the process is studied in The Kids Across the HillKennedy finds himself looking for a Republican to co-sponsor the bill, and things don’t go exactly as planned. In Marking up the Dream, pro-immigration activists claim a victory when The Dream Act is passed, allowing undocumented students the opportunity to go to college. But anti-immigration members of the Congress threaten the bill, and it might not survive the vetting process.

Ain’t the AFL for Nothin'  continues the tense bi-partisan negotiating process between parties. Tonight’s last screening of the series is Brothers and Rivals, focusing on two Congressmen struggling through elections and pushing a bill through. If they succeed, it will be the first bi-partisan comprehensive immigration reform bill from both houses to go to Congress. Filmmakers Michael Camerini and Shari Robertson will be in person at the screenings of Ain’t the AFL for Nothing and Brothers and Rivals. $7 rush tickets are available for all screenings.

If you prefer dance to politics, check out Nancy Buirski's Afternoon of a Faun: Tanaquil le Clercq. The film is a radiant motion portrait of the wife and muse of George Ballanchine, who inspired the world of dance through her years of work before being tragically stricken with polio. Buirski will be here in person to discuss her breathtaking film that left audiences awestruck at earier screenings. 

For Ever Mozart

More beauty is on display in today’s offerings in our Jean-Luc Godard retrospective. First up is Weekend, which marked Godard’s departure from commercial film. It starts as a savage critique of French bourgeois/consumer culture and ends in a state of pastoral calm. This unforgiving, incendiary and wildly inventive film comes to new life tonight on the big screen in 35mm.  Following that is For Ever Mozart, the story of an acting troupe getting kidnapped and then tortured in Bosnia (rush tickets available). For something a little bit lighter (but not much) there’s Luchino Visconti’s classic film Sandra (rush tickets available). Filled with shady family secrets, incestuous sibling bonds, and descents into madness, how could it not be a fun watch?

If you’re interested in what goes on behind the scenes in all of these wonderful movies—and of course you are—there is a fantastic opportunity available for you! NYFF51 Live: David V. Picker presents a special conversation with the legendary Hollywood producer who launched careers from Woody Allen to Steve Martin. Moderator Peter Saraf’s producing credits are just as impressive, including the likes of Little Miss Sunshine and Everything Is Illuminated. This event is free on a first come first serve basis, so get here early!

Omar

Tonight is your last chance to check out our amazing shorts programs. Tonight’s Shorts Program 4 includes three short works from NYFF alums: Miguel Gomes (Tabu), João Pedro Rodrigues (To Die Like a Man), and Lav Diaz (Norte, The End of History). For another deal you can look to tonight’s Alice Tully Hall screening of Omar, which has special $15 tickets available! Director Hany Abu-Assad will be here in person to discuss his tense, gripping thriller about betrayal, suspected and real, in the Occupied Territories.

Tickets to Blue is the Warmest Color and Inside Llewyn Davis are currently standby only, but people are having great luck with our standby lines this year, so give it a shot!

Today's Schedule
12:00pm Sam in the Snow (How Democracy Works Now, FBT) RUSH AVAILABLE
1:00pm Afternoon of a Faun: Tanaquil le Clercq (Motion Portraits, HGT) STANDBY ONLY
2:15pm The Kids Across the Hill (How Democracy Works Now, FBT) RUSH AVAILABLE
3:30pm Weekend (Jean-Luc Godard, HGT)
4:30pm Marking Up the Dream (How Democracy Works Now, FBT) RUSH AVAILABLE
6:00pm Omar (Official Selection, ATH) RUSH AVAILABLE
6:00pm Sandra (Revivals, WRT) RUSH AVAILABLE
6:00pm For Ever Mozart (Jean-Luc Godard, HGT) RUSH AVAILABLE
6:15pm Ain't the AFL for Nothin' (How Democracy Works Now, FBT) RUSH AVAILABLE
8:00pm Shorts Program 4 (Shorts, HGT)
8:30pm Blue Is The Warmest Color (Official Selection, ATH) STANDBY ONLY
8:30pm Brothers and Rivals (How Democracy Works Now, FBT) RUSH AVAILABLE
9:00pm Inside Llewyn Davis (Official Selection, WRT) STANDBY ONLY