Release Date: April  18, 2017

2017 Spring Film Season at National Gallery of Art Features Romanian New Wave, the Film Art of Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet, International Animation Plus Premieres, Talks, and Special Appearances

Film still from The Miracle of Tekir (Ruxandra Zenide, 2016, subtitles, 90 minutes), to be shown at the National Gallery of Art on Saturday, May 27, at 4:00 p.m., as part of the film series Reinventing Realism—New Cinema from Romania. Image courtesy of Elefant Film.

Washington, DC—The 2017 spring screenings at the National Gallery of Art highlight art and animation by artists from Romania, Spain, Poland, New Zealand, France, and other countries. Programs include a retrospective of independent animation studios in Spain, a series of works from the famed Hubley Studio (named for John Hubley, who started his career painting backgrounds and layouts for Walt Disney Studios in 1935), a weekend with art and film historians Marcin Giżycki and Agnieszka Taborska featuring selections from the celebrated Anìmator International Animated Film Festival in Poznań, Poland, and the ciné-concert Contemporary Experiments in Animation, devoted to new abstract animation inspired by distinguished New Zealand–born experimenter Len Lye (1901–1980), who is known for his short abstract films and kinetic sculptures, premieres, talks, and special appearances.

From Doodles to Pixels: A Century of Spanish Animation, screening April 1 through April 22, highlights the unconventional craft and legacy of animation art in Spain from 1908 through today. Animator: International Animation Festival, screening April 16 through 23, showcases the largest animation festival in central Europe, held annually in Poznań, one of the oldest cities of Poland and home to a famed animation studio. From the beginning, Animator focused on the relationship between music and animation art. Evening screenings are offered.

The series A Universe Inside Out: Hubley Animation Studio, showing April 29 and 30, represents more than 50 decades of independent animation by two generations of the Hubley family, starting with a selection of shorts by the creative team of John and Faith Hubley. Both collaborated with jazz songstress Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones, and other musicians. Daughter Emily Hubley will be in person to introduce the films.

Reinventing Realism—New Cinema from Romania spotlights the Romanian New Wave—one of the leading artistic movements in contemporary world cinema—led by directors Cristian Mungiu, Cristi Puiu, Corneliu Porumboiu, Radu Muntean, and a school of younger filmmakers who continue to garner acclaim at international events. The group has constructed a discourse about societal and civil issues hovering over Europe. In conjunction with the Embassy of Romania and the Romanian National Film Center, of the 13 films in the series, the Gallery will present a series of eight films that exemplify this singular body of work; five films will be presented at the AFI Silver Theatre.

In A Pictorial Dream—Directed by Straub and Huillet, eight titles by renowned French auteurs who collaborated over five decades to produce on film some of the finest studies of ancient and contemporary forms of imperialism, militarism, and resistance are featured at the Gallery, May 13 through June 5. The series New Waves: Transatlantic Bonds between Film and Art in the 1960s rounds out the season with groundbreaking, now classic, works from that turbulent decade. John Tyson, Andrew W. Mellon Curatorial Fellow, NGA, will draw parallels between cinema and contemporary art in a brief talk before each screening.

Special appearances will be made by Carolina López on April 8; Marcin Giżycki and Agnieszka Taborska on April 22 and 23; Emily Hubley on April 29 and 30; pianist Andrew Simpson on May 6; Corneliu Porumboiu on May 20; Christopher Upham and Nina Gilden Seavey on May 29; Barton Byg on June 17; and John Tyson on June 18, 24, and 25.

The National Gallery of Art film program provides many opportunities throughout the year to view classic and contemporary cinema from around the world. Through screenings, scholarly notes, filmmaker discussions, and introductions by critics and academics, the program encourages viewers to learn more about the history of cinema and the role of media in society. Innovative retrospectives, restored works of historical value, silent films with live musical accompaniment, new documentaries, and experimental media by noted video artists are offered on weekends during the entire year.

Unless otherwise noted, films are screened in the East Building's air-conditioned, state-of-the-art, 500-seat auditorium with stadium-style seating. The East Building is located at Fourth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. Works are presented in original formats. Seating is on a first-come, first-seated basis. Doors open 30 minutes before each screening; programs are subject to change. For more information, visit nga.gov/film or call (202) 842-6799.

SCHEDULE OF FILMS

From Doodles to Pixels: A Century of Spanish Animation
April 1–22

From Doodles to Pixels showcases the unconventional craft and legacy of animation art in Spain from 1908 to the present day. Each program in the series juxtaposes different techniques and eras, shifting political concerns, and continuing dialogues with other art forms.

With thanks to Contemporary Culture Centre of Barcelona (CCCB), Acción Cultural Española, curator Carolina López, the Embassy of Spain (where additional events take place April 18 and 20), and SPAIN arts & culture. Films are 35mm transferred to high-definition digital.

Doodles
April 1 at 2:00

Modern Times
April 1 at 3:30

Destino Hollywood (Introduced by Carolina López)
April 8 at 2:00

The Artist's Trace
April 8 at 4:00

Next Generation
April 22 at 12:30

Special Events: Spring 2017

Ascent
April 9 at 4:00

Homo Sapiens
April 16 at 2:00

Ciné-concert: Contemporary Experiments in Animation
May 6 at 2:00

Angel Wagenstein—Art Is a Weapon
May 20 at 12:00

Sunset Song
May 28 at 2:00

Return to DakTo (Christopher Upham in person)
May 29 at 2:00

Parables of War preceded by Monument (Nina Gilden Seavey in person)
May 29 at 4:00

Anìmator: International Animation Festival
April 16–23

Animator, the largest animation festival in central Europe, is held annually in Poznań, one of the oldest cities of Poland and home to a famed animation studio. From the beginning, Anìmator focused on the relationship between music and animation art. Along with competitions, retrospectives, and an academic conference, the festival is energized with evening screenings set to live music. Internationally known artists and scholars who have visited recently are Czech filmmaker Michaela Pavlátová; British author and curator Jayne Pilling; Giannalberto Bendazzi, author of Animation: A World History; and artists Raoul Servais, Michel Ocelot, and the Quay Brothers.

Special thanks to the staff of Anìmator and to the festival's artistic director, Marcin Giżycki.

Nuts!
April 16 at 4:30

Shorts Program I (Marcin Giżycki and Agnieszka Taborska in person)
April 22 at 2:00

Shorts Program II (Marcin Giżycki and Agnieszka Taborska in person)
April 22 at 4:00

The Magic Mountain (Marcin Giżycki and Agnieszka Taborska in person)
April 23 at 4:00
East Building Auditorium

A Universe Inside Out: Hubley Animation Studio
April 29–30

The creative team of John Hubley (1914–1977; he worked at Walt Disney Studio for more than 30 years) and Faith Hubley (1924–2001) produced hand-drawn animations that were as broad-ranging as they were innovative. The Hubleys embraced music, sound, and improvised dialogue, sometimes even building films around rollicking recordings of their young children in discussion with each other. The Hubley Studio, led by daughter Emily Hubley—a well-known animator in her own right—continues to preserve and make available these gems in both 35mm and 16mm format.

With thanks to the Museum of Modern Art, the Academy Film Archive, and Emily Hubley for her participation in the program.

Faith and John: Shorts from the Hubley Studio (Emily Hubley in person)
April 29 at 2:00

Faith Hubley: Legends and Other Personal Stories (Emily Hubley in person)
April 29 at 3:30

Continuity: Works by Emily (Emily Hubley in person)
April 30 at 4:00

Reinventing Realism—New Cinema from Romania
May 13–June 3

Since the late 1990s, a group of intellectually adventurous filmmakers has galvanized Romania's post- communist production with a steady stream of nuanced screenplays and realistic films that tackle moral issues and ethical ambiguities. At the same time these filmmakers, sometimes working collaboratively, have constructed a discourse about societal and civil issues hovering over Europe. Directors involved in the movement include Cristian Mungiu, Cristi Puiu, Corneliu Porumboiu, Radu Muntean, and Cătălin Mitulescu, as well as a group of younger artists who continue to garner acclaim at international events.

In conjunction with the Embassy of Romania and the Romanian National Film Center, the National Gallery of Art presents a series of eight films that exemplify this singular body of work. Other films in the series are presented at the AFI Silver Theatre.

The Fixer (Fixeur) (Washington Premiere)
May 13 at 3:00

Sieranevada
May 14 at 4:00

The Treasure (Corneliu Porumboiu in person)
May 20 at 2:00

Illegitimate
May 20 at 4:00

Back Home
May 27 at 2:00

The Miracle of Tekir
May 27 at 4:00

Beyond the Hills
May 28 at 4:30

Police, Adjective
June 4 at 12:30

A Pictorial Dream—Directed by Straub and Huillet
June 3–25

The partnership of Danièle Huillet (1936–2006) and Jean-Marie Straub (b. 1933) endured for a lifetime. Though Straub continues to make films, his meticulous work still references his late partner. Working together, their experimental, even radical, transpositions of challenging operas, paintings, and classical texts and music to the screen are unique, demonstrating an artistic alliance devoted to subverting all formulaic conventions.

With thanks to Thomas Beard, Joshua Siegel, Barbara Ulrich, Kathy Geritz, and Sally Shafto.

Not Reconciled preceded by Machorka-Muff
June 3 at 2:00

Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach
June 3 at 4:00

A Visit to the Louvre followed by Cézanne: Conversation with Joachim Gasquet
June 10 at 2:00

Sicilia!
June 10 at 4:00

Moses and Aaron
June 11 at 4:00

Antigone (Introduced by Barton Byg)
June 17 at 2:30

These Encounters of Theirs followed by Le Genou d'Artémide and The Inconsolable One
June 18 at 4:30

Workers, Peasants
June 24 at 3:30

Class Relations
June 25 at 4:00

New Waves: Transatlantic Bonds between Film and Art in the 1960s
June 18–25

New Waves highlights visual and theoretical intersections between North American art and European cinema during the 1960s, forms of creative expression that hailed from the same cultural field. Drawing parallels between cinema and contemporary art, John Tyson, Andrew W. Mellon Curatorial Fellow at the National Gallery of Art, will give a brief talk exploring common aesthetics and political strategies before each screening.

Red Desert (Introduced by John Tyson)
June 18 at 1:00

Pierrot le Fou (Introduced by John Tyson)
June 24 at 12:00

Loin du Viêt-Nam (Introduced by John Tyson)
June 25 at 1:00