Art of the Real starts Friday! Our new annual series seeks to redefine documentary by taking the most expansive possible view of nonfiction filmmaking. The innaugural edition includes features, shorts, premieres, rare retrospective screenings, filmmaker Q&As, and a focus on the influential Sensory Ethnography Lab presented in collaboration with the 2014 Whitney Biennial.
Why are the films in Art of the Real so special? Eric Hynes of The New York Times wrote of the older films: “…none belong to any standard documentary canon. They are like limited-edition LPs plucked from a record store bin, evidence of earlier cinematic uprisings but also perennially ripe for rediscovery.” The New Yorker‘s Richard Brody complemented this with his observation that the new discoveries “reveal a major trend in contemporary filmmaking around the world: blurring the boundaries of reporting and fiction, placing unforeseen and uncontrollable events in explicitly staged frameworks, or repurposing filmed fictions as historical documents.”
For a taste of what the series has to offer, check out our playlist of teasers for films in the series below, including Robert Greene’s Closing Night film Actress and Narimane Mari’s Bloody Beans. We’ll be releasing more throughout the week so check back here or, better yet, subscribe to our YouTube Channel!
