Category Archive: Uncategorized

  1. SUZHOU RIVER AND THE UNVARNISHED REALISM OF SIXTH GENERATION CHINESE CINEMA

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    Written by Andrea Cardenas, AFS Creative Careers Intern

    This May, AFS Cinema presents Lou Ye’s newly restored SUZHOU RIVER, one of the defining films of the Sixth Generation film movement in China. In a post-Mao, rapidly evolving cultural landscape, the filmmakers of the Sixth Generation — Ye included — sought to create films that eschewed the typical aesthetic and themes found in the works of their predecessors.

    China saw dramatic sociopolitical transformations in the 20th Century, which are reflected in the diverse filmography of the country. Following Mao’s Cultural Revolution, which had little film production, the 1980s ushered in an innovative group of filmmakers known as the “Fifth Generation,” composed of such formidable directors as Chen Kaige (FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE), Tian Zhuangzhuang (THE HORSE THIEF), and Zhang Yimou (RAISE THE RED LANTERN). Their work was widely acclaimed and jettisoned China into the international cinematic conversation. The Fifth Generation films are known for their rich visual imagery, many focusing on the country’s past on a large scale with a strong emphasis on rural areas and tradition.

    FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE (1993)
    THE HORSE THIEF (1986)
    RAISE THE RED LANTERN (1991)

    The 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre would serve as the catalyst for a new, grittier group of filmmakers, “The Sixth Generation,” who were compelled to craft films focused on the present. Directors include Lou Ye (SATURDAY FICTION, SUMMER PALACE), Zhang Yuan (EAST PALACE, WEST PALACE), and Jia Zhangke (PICKPOCKET). Sixth Generation films were mostly independently funded due to the privatization of the movie industry and evaded Chinese censorship to deal with taboo topics ranging from homosexuality to urban crime and substance abuse. They focused on everyday people in urban areas, like, for example, SUZHOU RIVER, which is set amidst the working-class neighborhoods of post-industrial Shanghai. This feeling of realism was often exemplified by the use of non-professional actors, which resulted in an unintentional cinéma vérité-style of filmmaking.

    In further contrast, due to low budgets, most of these early works were shot and edited in vastly different ways from their predecessors. 16mm film or digital video hand-held cameras were utilized, and the resulting – often shaky – footage was then cut to look jagged and raw, taking on an unvarnished feel akin to the story material being presented.

    SUMMER PALACE (2006)
    EAST PALACE, WEST PALACE (1996)
    PICKPOCKET (1997)

    While it is true that many of the Sixth Generation filmmakers were radical in their approach and technique to film, the homogenous label went on to connote themes of political and social subversion with the filmmakers and their art becoming symbols of political defiance to Western audiences.  In an interview with Art Forum in 2000, Ye expressed wariness toward the Western attraction to the spectacle of Chinese censorship, feeling that critics sought specific government critiques rather than focusing on the filmic material at hand.

    It is hard to define this film movement as any one thing, but on top of their common themes and style of expression, Ye and other filmmakers of the Sixth Generation are united by their experimental, deeply felt reflections on an evolving society.

    Lou Ye’s SUZHOU RIVER screens at AFS Cinema on May 14–21. Check out the trailer below.

  2. Watch AFS’s Episode of “Art-House America” by the Criterion Channel

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    On May 1, we finally got to share our episode of Art-House America with the world, and before we geek out about how cool this thing is, a little background. 

    The Criterion Channel has been publishing the docushorts in this series for a while now, each one profiling a different independent cinema, some for their interesting histories and others because of their unexpected locations (like the Gold Town Nickelodeon in Juneau, AK). So when they reached out to us asking if we’d like to be included, we thought “Hey, we’d fit right in,” and responded with a resounding yes. Back to geeking out about our episode.

    To us, there are two aspects of this video that make it so special. First, it really dives into our origin story, going all the way back to before we were a nonprofit and Richard Linklater was still showing midnight movies at the Dobie Theater. Second, it shows off how unique the AFS community is. There are few places in the world where filmmakers and film lovers can come together and discuss a movie over a negroni, but our cinema lobby is one of them, and Art-House America celebrates that.

     

    Our collaboration with the Criterion Channel doesn’t end there, though. We also co-curated a collection of films with them to go along with our episode, so if you’re a subscriber to the channel, you can watch those here. 

    We’ve also dedicated some space in this article to contextualizing why each film in the series was chosen to represent AFS. (Slacker hopefully doesn’t need too much explanation, but Singapore Sling might if you’re not a regular of AFS Lates.) We’ve screened a lot of these titles too, so read to the end of this page for a playlist of “bonus features” AKA recorded intros and filmmaker Q&As from the films in this list. You can also keep track of the ones you’ve watched on Letterboxd by clicking here or on the image below.

     

    FILMS IN THE AFS COLLECTION ON THE CRITERION CHANNEL

     

    ATTENBERG (Tsangari, 2010)

    Athina Rachel Tsangari is the exact type of filmmaker we champion at AFS. While she’s originally from Greece, she’s based in Austin, she’s an AFS Grant-supported director, and she’s been a mentor in our Artist Intensive program.

    CHOCOLATE BABIES (Winter, 1996)

    Representing guest-programmer, filmmaker, and archivist Elizabeth Purchell’s series Queer Cinema: Lost & Found is CHOCOLATE BABIES, which she screened in 2022 followed by a virtual Q&A with director Steven Winter.

    COLD WATER (Assayas, 1994)

    A piece of AFS programming history, this early film by Olivier Assayas (IRMA VEP, PERSONAL SHOPPER) used to be hard to watch in the US due to usage rights around its soundtrack. However, with help from the Criterion Collection, the Austin Film Society was able to screen its US premiere/re-release in 2018 at SXSW.

    COMPUTER CHESS (Bujalski, 2013)

    This is an endearingly weird Austin movie three times over. First, because director Andrew Bujalski (FUNNY HA HA, SUPPORT THE GIRLS) now lives here, second, because he is an AFS-supported filmmaker, and third, scenes of COMPUTER CHESS were shot in the same neighborhood as our Cinema.

    GOOD MORNING (Ozu, 1959)

    Director Yasujirō Ozu is one of AFS founder Richard Linkater’s favorite filmmakers, and we’ve been showing this flatulent-forward classic since the beginning. Seriously, though, this is one of the best cinematic tributes to farting children.

    NO HOME MOVIE (Akerman, 2015)

    We hold the experimental and avant-garde close to our hearts, and this final film by Chantal Akerman is both of those things. That’s why we screened it in 2016 and her Sight and Sound poll-topping JEANNE DIELMAN, 23 QUAI DU COMMERCE, 1080 BRUXELLES earlier this year.

    SINGAPORE SLING (Nikolaidis, 1990)

    Those familiar with the AFS Lates series won’t be surprised to learn that we showed this Greek weird-wave film by Nikos Nikolaidis in 2021 (and his earlier film MORNING PATROL earlier this year). The subtitle is “The Man Who Loved a Corpse,” just so you know what you’re getting into.

    SLACKER (Linklater, 1991)

    How could we not include Richard Linklater’s first film, what might be the most “Austin” movie ever? Keep an eye out for a shot of “Texas Media Arts” (shown in our Art-House America episode), which was an early HQ for AFS.

    WORKING GIRLS (Borden, 1986)

    Lizzie Borden takes viewers into the world of a Manhattan brothel. It’s the kind of cinematic perspective we don’t see too often, which is why it’s exactly the kind of thing we try to share with our audiences. Plus, it won the Sundance Special Jury Prize. 

    Texas Shorts

    CARNE SECA (Diaz, 2015)

    Jazmin Diaz was still a senior in UT Austin’s RTF program when she premiered this AFS-supported short at SXSW in 2015.

    PIONEER (Lowery, 2011)

    Before David Lowery made THE GREEN KNIGHT and PETER PAN & WENDY, he received an AFS Grant, which he now helps support through the North Texas Pioneer Film Grant.

    THE RABBIT HUNT (Bresnan and Lucas, 2017)

    This AFS-supported piece by Ivete Lucas and Patrick Bresnan (PAHOKEE) won best short documentary at New York’s Cinema Eye Honors and top jury awards at SXSW and the San Francisco Film Festival. If you want to see more from them, their latest film together, NAKED GARDENS, is screening during AFS’s Doc Days 2023.

    RAT PACK RAT (Rohal, 2014)

    Another piece made by an AFS-supported filmmaker, Todd Rohal (THE GUATEMALAN HANDSHAKE). RAT PACK RAT screened at SXSW the year it came out and won the Jury Award at Sundance.

     

    BONUS FEATURES YOUTUBE PLAYLIST

  3. Sternberg and Dietrich, Exiles on Santa Monica Boulevard

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    Written by Lars Nilsen, AFS Lead Programmer

    Many film directors become closely identified with an actor — we might think of Scorsese and De Niro, or Hitchcock and James Stewart — these stars are their director’s avatars. Such connections just feel right and bring out the best in front of and behind the camera. It’s hard to imagine a more sublime partnership in this regard than the one shared by director Josef von Sternberg and star Marlene Dietrich.

    The exhilaration that Sternberg clearly felt for Dietrich as a photographic subject is apparent in every ornately cluttered, multi-dimensional, half-occluded, veiled, and key-lit closeup. And its absence is sometimes just as keenly felt in scenes with her male co-stars, who tend to be as stolid and bloodless as Dietrich is alive with pent-up passion.

    It may seem to us today, watching these shockingly modern conceptions of character cavort with (usually) cardboard leading men, that the electricity in this pairing must have been clearly apparent to all who saw it, but that is not at all true. When Sternberg — having been lent to UFA, Paramount’s partner studio in Germany, for a prestige film starring the eminent actor Emil Jannings — attempted to cast the then-unknown Dietrich, he was met with almost unanimous resistance. In order to prove his point, he had a screen test made. Dietrich had no fight in her; she was resigned to losing the role, so she barely put any effort into the test. But this test, which so outraged his producers and his star, made Sternberg even more resolute. You can see why in the footage from that day (click here or on the image below to watch).

    The film was made with Dietrich, Sternberg overruled all the objectors, and, after it was released to much acclaim, all was forgiven. Sternberg returned to Hollywood a conquering hero with Dietrich in tow. Many felt their relationship was troubling. Sternberg’s rash personal style and Dietrich’s imperfect command of the language caused them to be seen in a Svengali/Trilby light by many, but the alchemy of director and star, while not always box office candy, was to prove irresistible for lovers of sneakily poetic Hollywood cinema.

    When Sternberg photographed Dietrich, everything within the frame was a jewel setting for Dietrich’s arch and challenging luminosity. She smolders under acres of lace and pounds of feathers; her costumes sometimes required her to be driven to the set in the back of a truck to prevent any damage to the extravagant outfits. All of this is in the service of stories that are — if we’re being honest here — often less than compelling in and of themselves. In fact, it may be said that instead of the images serving the story, in these cases, the story serves the images — a conception that seems to us now very modern but at the time may have seemed merely bizarre. That is, if the audiences had not been sufficiently stunned by Dietrich’s closeups and fascinatingly insolent, frequently androgynous, manner. They were, and, by all evidence, they still are.

    This divine pairing lasted for only six films and was, in fact, broken up by the studio; Dietrich famously bemoaned while being lit on her first non-Sternberg set, “Jo, why have you forsaken me?” From this very late vantage point, the penultimate film in the series, THE SCARLET EMPRESS, may be the most representative. It is certainly the most perverse. It is like the final salvo of the pre-code impulse, hurled at the censors and the Babbitts who would have seen the Hollywood dream factory converted to an efficiently running assembly line producing mediocre films for a mediocre people.

    Andrew Sarris nails the appeal, and the historical importance, of THE SCARLET EMPRESS in his monograph for MOMA on Sternberg’s work:

    THE SCARLET EMPRESS is Sternberg’s most sumptuous exercise in style, a tapestry of tyranny so intricately woven and luminously lit that audiences and critics of the time were stupefied. It shatters the decorum which was spreading over the American cinema like a shroud. Its very outrageousness is an index of the repressive reasonableness of most movie-making of its time.

    From a contemporaneous vantage point, Bosley Crowther of The New York Times expressed similar sentiments in a less impressed light:

    Scorning to employ the humdrum laws of dramatic development, Sternberg has created a bizarre and fantastical historical carnival … A ponderous, strangely beautiful, lengthy, and frequently wearying production, his new work is strictly not a dramatic photoplay at all, but a succession of overelaborated scenes, dramatized emotional moods, and gaudily plotted visual excitements … The players … seem to lose their hold on humanity under Sternberg’s narcotic influence and become like people struggling helplessly in a dream.

    Hollywood is always dying and always being born. Today is no different than 1934 in that regard. Cinema’s revolutionary impulse is often clothed in feathers, androgyny, and frank horniness. Audiences are always stupefied, to use Sarris’ perfect adjective. In the Sternberg/Dietrich Hollywood pageants, we experience a perfect crystallization of what this meant in an earlier era.

    ESSENTIAL CINEMA: DIETRICH/STERNBERG IN HOLLYWOOD

    SHANGHAI EXPRESS (1932)
    May 9 & 13

    BLONDE VENUS (1932)
    May 16 & 20

    THE SCARLET EMPRESS (1934)
    May 23 & 29

    THE DEVIL IS A WOMAN (1935)
    May 30 and June 3

  4. THE ENDURING WORLD OF PARTY GIRL

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    Written by Joshua Bippert, AFS Creative Careers Intern

    Vivienne Westwood bustiers, house music, Natasha!

    This month, Austin Film Society is bringing the new 4K restoration of Daisy von Scherler Mayer’s 1995 cult classic, PARTY GIRL, to audiences. It’s a film that found its life (and survived on) the internet from its debut until now. Whether it’s because of its punchy dialogue, various musical earworms, or iconic costumes, PARTY GIRL has established itself as a staple of ’90s New York indie cinema.

    Costume Designer Michael Clancy knew who the titular party girl was. Mary (Parker Posey) is an amalgamation of the party girls Clancy — and screenwriters von Scherler Mayer and Harry Birckmayer — had encountered in real life, yet the character also feels utterly singular. Clancy’s costume design makes the character feel not only authentically ingratiated in the underground club scene but also timeless. Mary’s mix of stolen (at-times) designer pieces and thrifted vintage items shows the character emulating the high fashion magazines of the time in an attainable way. The party girl bounces from a Gautier sweater to a ratty sweatshirt worn as a bolero. Clancy creates looks that are marvelous spectacles but with pieces you could find at your local thrift store today.

    1. Party Girl Costume1. Party Girl Costume
    2. Party Girl Costume2. Party Girl Costume
    3. Party Girl Costume3. Party Girl Costume

    If Michael Clancy’s wardrobe creates the look of the party girl, then music supervisor Bill Coleman crafts the settings she inhabits. As an influential manager, producer, and DJ, Coleman blended various genres of dance music to match the emotional landscapes of the character. Coleman was working with performers who were actually part of the scene that PARTY GIRL inhabits; he had his finger on the pulse of New York’s club culture.

     

     

     

    In his interview with Fun City Editions, Coleman discussed needing to know where each and every song would be in the film so he could dial into the experience each character would be in the middle of — whether they were in a club or in their own apartment. The careful crafting of when each song is played is why the conclusion of the film with Ultra Naté’s “Party Girl (Turn Me Loose)” feels so rewarding. It is the thesis for knowing who you are and owning your party-girl identity.

    Check out a selection of music from and inspired by the 1995 cult film, PARTY GIRL.

    If there is any element that transcends the film’s ’90s milieu, it’s Parker Posey. “The Queen of the Indies” approaches Mary with such rigid effervescence it recalls the poise and wit of classic comedic actresses (think Carole Lombard or Barbara Stanwyck). But she is also the “it” girl of this New York club scene, her style loud, yet enviable. Parker Posey was actually involved in the clubs, the ballroom scene, the camaraderie of difference in ’90s New York. And PARTY GIRL has become synonymous with Posey. It’s a career-defining film that helped establish her persona and indie-queen legacy. Parker Posey was — and remains — a party girl.

    Now more vibrant and colorful than ever, PARTY GIRL hits the screen in 4K, May 4–7, at AFS Cinema.

  5. Video: Ethan Hawke On Paul Newman’s Trailblazing Westerns

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    Ethan Hawke came to visit AFS Cinema, and not just for a screening or two: the ever-busy actor/director/producer/writer presented five films over the course of a weekend (March 24–26) to sold-out crowds. The occasion was a programming series called Paul Newman’s West, which he co-curated with AFS Head of Film Holly Herrick with participation from Lead Film Programmer Lars Nilsen.

    What made the weekend particularly remarkable was that Ethan Hawke took to the AFS stage for two extended post-film discussions after screenings of Hombre and The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean, where he was joined by filmmaker Adam Piron (Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma and Mohawk), Director of the Sundance Institute’s Indigenous Program. The two discussed the trailblazing dimensions of Newman’s performances: the subversion of Western archetypes, the thoughtfulness toward Indigenous representation, and the unexpected way Newman rebelled against his own celebrity. 

    Click here to see a playlist of these fascinating dialogues in full on AFS’s Youtube channel.

    The connection between Ethan Hawke and Paul Newman will be clear to those who’ve watched Hawke’s HBO docuseries The Last Movie Stars, which explores the lives and legacies of Newman and his wife Joanne Woodward. Hawke’s admiration for Paul Newman, both as an actor and as a person, was on full display as he introduced the films at AFS. Also on display was the extensive amount of research Hawke did for his HBO series. In his introduction for The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean, Hawke brought a transcript of a wild John Huston interview about making the film, which he read to the audience in his best impression of the late director’s distinct grumble.

    Photo by Heather Leah Kennedy.
    Photo by Heather Leah Kennedy.
    Photo by Heather Leah Kennedy.
    Photo by Heather Leah Kennedy.

    In a weekend full of great films, thought-provoking discussions, and enthusiastic crowds, there was one special moment we’d like to share: in his final time on the AFS stage, Ethan Hawke expressed his gratitude for our community of film lovers:

    “I can’t help but wonder whether you know what a wonderful community you live in. I’m so jealous when I come down here and I see all these people who care about art and movies as an art form. The community itself, it’s so exciting to be a part of, and so I’m so grateful to you guys for making this happen.”

    Click here to view more photos from the screenings of Hombre and Hud on Saturday, March 25.

    Films Included in Paul Newman’s West

    • The Left Handed Gun (Arthur Penn)
    • Hombre (Martin Ritt)
    • Hud (Martin Ritt)
    • The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (John Huston)
    • Buffalo Bill and the Indians (Robert Altman)

  6. The AFS Guide to SXSW 2023

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    March in Austin means SXSW, and SXSW means figuring out one’s schedule to pack in as much cutting-edge programming as possible. At the Austin Film Society, we understand that it takes time to figure out what you’re going to (and how you’re getting there), so we want to make things as simple as we can for the people coming out to the events we’re helping throw.

    Read on for the AFS Guide to SXSW, an easy digest of everything we’re doing to participate in this year’s festival, including filmmaker events, panels, meetups, and instructions for attending the screenings we’re hosting as a satellite venue.

    AFS-Supported Filmmaker Events

    We’re proud to have supported many filmmakers over the years, and several of them are exhibiting their work at SXSW 2023.

    BREAKING SILENCE (pictured)
    March 10 | 5–6:50 PM | The Long Center
    March 14 | 11:30 AM–1:20 PM | The Long Center
    Amy Bench & Annie Silverstein (co-produced by Monique Walton)

    WÜM
    March 10 | 5–6:50 PM | The Long Center
    March 14 | 11:30 AM–1:20 PM | The Long Center
    Anna Margaret Hollyman

    WHEN YOU LEFT ME ON THAT BOULEVARD
    March 10 | 5–6:50 PM | The Long Center
    March 14 | 11:30 AM–1:20 PM | The Long Center
    Kayla Abuda Galang

    A GUIDE TO NOT DYING COMPLETELY ALONE
    March 12 | 5:15 PM–6:49 PM | Alamo Lamar
    March 16 | 11:45 AM–1:19 PM | Alamo Lamar
    Yen Tan

    AFS Panels + Meetups

    In addition to film screenings, AFS staff, board members, and filmmakers are involved in community-building meetups and panel discussions this year.

    Reimagining the Creative Workforce
    March 9 | 10–11 AM | Hilton Austin Downtown
    AFS Director of Community Education Rakeda Ervin and Program Manager of Community Education Jacob Ramon

    Building a Film Career in a Regional Film Industry
    March 10 | 2:30–3:30 PM | Austin Convention Center
    AFS Director of Community Education Rakeda Ervin and Austin Studios Director Martin Jones

    Featured Session: Julia Ducournau Winner of Palme d’Or at Cannes 2021
    Mar 10 | 2:30–3:30 PM | Austin Convention Center
    AFS Head of Film and Creative Media Holly Herrick

    Why Not Me? Mike Jackson on Diversity in Media
    March 12 | 11:30 AM–12:30 PM | Austin Convention Center
    AFS Board Member Mike Jackson

    Documentary Filmmaker Mentor
    March 12 |  2:30–3:45 PM | Austin Convention Center
    Filmmaker PJ Raval

    AFS Member ShortCase

    March 12 | 11:30 AM | AFS Cinema

    While this is not an official SXSW event, it’s still a great way to meet filmmakers and see their work. The AFS ShortCase is an annual program of short films produced by our valued Austin Film Society MAKE members, and this year’s 89-minute program will show eight films by 10 filmmakers who will participate in a post-screening Q&A. This event is free and open to the public.

    HERE TO MAKE FRIENDS
    Filmmaker: Meghan Ross

    IT’S IN THE VOICES
    Filmmaker: Field Humphrey

    GREEN WATER
    Filmmaker: Carlos Estrada

    STYROFOAM JONES
    Filmmakers: Adan & Saulo Arriaga

    NATURE’S BOUNTY
    Filmmaker: Chloe Linscomb

    HONEY & MILK
    Filmmaker: Dash Donato

    DOWN HOME
    Filmmakers: Liz Moskowitz & Riley Engemoen

    LOOKING BACK
    Filmmaker: Michael Charron

    SXSW Film Satelite Venue: AFS Cinema

    March 11-18 | Various Times | AFS Cinema

    AFS is also honored to host SXSW Film programming as a satellite venue this year. All screenings are General Admission, and seating is subject to capacity (and will occur on a priority basis approximately 30 minutes before the screening starts). Attendees are advised to arrive as early as 60 minutes prior to the screening.

    1. Primary Access: Film & Platinum Badges with SXXpress Passes
    2. Primary Access: Film & Platinum Badges
    3. Secondary Access: Film Wristbands, Music & Interactive Badges, Advance Single Tickets
    4. Day-of Single Tickets: sold 15 minutes before screenings, as capacity allows.

    CONFESSIONS OF A GOOD SAMARITAN
    March 11 | 11 AM

    REBELIÓN
    March 11 | 2:15 PM

    FANCY DANCE
    March 11 | 5:30 PM

    THE ARC OF OBLIVION
    March 11 | 8:30 PM

    PERIODICAL
    March 12 | 11 AM

    IS THERE ANYBODY OUT THERE?
    March 12 | 2:45 PM

    UPON ENTRY
    March 12 | 5:45 PM

    LOVE TO LOVE YOU, DONNA SUMMER
    March 12 | 8:30 PM

    PEAK SEASON
    March 13 | 5:15 PM

    LAST STOP LARRIMAH
    March 13 | 8:15 PM

    DEADLAND
    March 14 | 5 PM

    TALK TO ME
    March 14 | 8 PM

    A DISTURBANCE IN THE FORCE
    March 15 | 6 PM

    SATAN WANTS YOU
    March 15 | 9 PM

    JOIN OR DIE
    March 16 | 5:45 PM

    THE YOUNG WIFE
    March 16 | 9:00 PM

    FRYBREAD FACE AND ME
    March 17 | 6 PM

    WILD LIFE
    March 17 | 9 PM

    THE NEW AMERICANS: A GAMING REVOLUTION
    March 18 | 12 PM

    IT’S ONLY LIFE AFTER ALL
    March 18 | 3:15 PM

  7. Exploring the Madness of Art and Film in 1980s Japan

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    Fast approaching AFS Cinema is Hachimiri Madness, our programming series of 11 experimental Japanese features and shorts from the country’s “punk years.” Many of today’s biggest Japanese filmmakers burst out of this time period (roughly the 1980s, give or take a few years on each end) with ferocity and unfettered DIY sensibilities — directors like Shinya Tsukamoto (TETSUO: THE IRON MAN, TOKYO FIST), Gakuryū “Sogo” Ishii (BURST CITY), and Masashi Yamamoto (ROBINSON’S GARDEN).

    These auteurs were using hachimiri — cheap 8mm film — to create their art and the movement they created would later be called jishu eiga, translated as “autonomous” or “self-made” film. However, “self-made” in this case isn’t directly comparable to independently made films. To quote Midnight Eye writer Jasper Sharp, “‘independent’ has come to mean any film produced outside of the main studio system … In contrast, jishu eiga are funded and produced entirely outside of the industry.”

    To understand the filmmakers of this era, it’s important to know what else was going on in the country. And according to AFS Associate Programmer Jazmyne Moreno, the following video — HUNTING TIGERS (Steven Okazaki) — captures the anything-goes spirit of the time; a perfect primer to the upcoming series.

    Moreno says, “this video is an irreverent look at the Japanese art scene from Steven Okazaki (LIVING ON TOKYO TIME). Featuring such artists as pop singer Jun Togawa, performance artist Rosa Tsukinoyo, collage maker Genqui Numata (aka ‘The Bonsai Kid’), and dancer Saburô Teshigawara, this off-beat short sets out to prove or disprove writer Kenzaburō Ōe’s assertion that young artists of the time were simply ‘spoiled, un-original and too influenced by Western culture.’”

    Hachimiri Madness screens every Wednesday from 2/1–3/1 and brings with it 11 jishu eiga features and shorts. Check out the full schedule below, and prepare to embrace the madness.

    HACHIMIRI MADNESS: JAPANESE INDIES FROM THE PUNK YEARS

    HAPPINESS AVENUE and THE ADVENTURE OF DENCHU KOZO
    February 8 at 8:30 PM

    I AM SION SONO!! and A MAN’S FLOWER ROAD
    February 11 at 3:45 PM (*rescheduled from February 1)

    THE RAIN WOMEN and ISOLATION OF 1/880000
    Febraury 15 at 8:30 PM

    SAINT TERRORISM, UNK, and HIGH SCHOOL TERROR
    February 22 at 7:45 PM

    TOKYO CABBAGEMAN K and HANASARERU GANG
    March 1 at 8:30 PM

  8. Agnès Varda’s Impressions of America

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    This month on the AFS calendar is Documentary & Beyond: Agnès Varda, the latest in our Essential Cinema series. In it, we’re highlighting four non-narrative titles — including two shorts combined into a single screening — from the “Grandmother of the French New Wave.” While the series aims to showcase some of Varda’s documentary work (and the lines she blurs within this genre), there’s another through-line in the first three pieces.

    In 1967, Varda moved to Los Angeles with her then-husband Jacques Demy after, as J. Hoberman of the New York Times puts it, “[Demy] parlayed the international success of THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG into a Hollywood contract.” During those years in California, Varda made the biographical short UNCLE YANCO, the documentary short BLACK PANTHERS, and the feature LIONS LOVE (AND OTHER LIES).

    Aside from the subjects of each piece, Lead Programmer of AFS Cinema Lars Nilsen says that the films are also collectively about Varda’s impressions of America. As you prepare to see the U.S. through Varda’s eyes, we wanted to share some stills that we think help set the scene. As your prepare to see the U.S. through Varda’s eyes, we wanted to share some photos that we think help set the scene. We also encourage attendees of Documentary & Beyond: Agnès Varda to think about the contrast between this California triptych and the final film we’re playing in the series, THE GLEANERS AND I (2000), which was shot in various parts of her native France far away from the sun-drenched beaches of California.

     

     

     

    “Her observations in California are too esoteric to be at risk of cliché, thus producing a wholly unique and personal cinematic vision of some of the most photographed places in the United States.” — Nonfics, Landon Palmer

     

     

     

     

    “Varda is as fascinated by Los Angeles as her husband, as both of their L.A. features offer extended sequences of driving around with the camera pointed out the windshield.” — Pop Matters, Michael Barrett

     

     

     

    “When, a decade later, Varda moved from Paris to Los Angeles for the second time … she encountered not only the famous boardwalk and its roller skates, but also homelessness, crime, unemployment, and unwanted furniture left on sidewalks (20 years before she would make THE GLEANERS AND I, Varda gleaned from the streets of Venice Beach a couch and other objects to furnish the apartment she had rented).” — LA Review of Books, Jennifer Cazenave

    Documentary & Beyond: Agnès Varda

    THE BLACK PANTHERS/UNCLE YANCO

    • Jan. 17 at 7:30 PM
    • Jan. 21 at 5:30 PM

    LIONS LOVE (AND OTHER LIES)

    • Jan. 24 at 7:30 PM
    • Jan. 28 at 4:15 PM

    THE GLEANERS AND I

    • Jan. 31 at 7:30 PM
    • Feb. 4 at 4 PM
    Images 1, 4, 5, and 8 are from UNCLE YANCO.
    Images 2, 6, and 9 are from BLACK PANTHERS.
    Images 3, 7, and 10 are from LIONS LOVE (AND OTHER LIES).

  9. Celebrating a Successful First Year of Creative Careers

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    We at the Austin Film Society pride ourselves on the role we play in the world of Texas film. As a nonprofit, we operate programs that help filmmakers get the funds, equipment, and training they need; give them access to studio space; and provide them with a cinema to screen their finished projects. 

    Creative Careers, our unique workforce development initiative, acts as the starting point in this production ecosystem. It does this by giving opportunities to creatives in the competitive screen industry through immersive training, mentorship, and networking. The program launched in the fall of 2021, and we re-opened applications for the class of 2023 on January 3. 

    For more info on Creative Careers, click here or watch the video below.

    After our successful first year (and before we welcome brand-new cohorts), we threw a wrap-party-to-remember on December 14, 2022. We’re extremely proud of all the people we celebrated that evening and for those who participated in on-stage panel discussions (which included graduates, instructors, and Creative Careers leadership). 

    Read on for their stories, a recap of the event, and to see photos of these inspiring industry newcomers.

    Kicking Off the Festivities

    The event, which we called Opening Credits: An AFS Creative Careers Capstone Celebration, began in the Cinema lobby where guests were greeted by monitors displaying photos and quotes from program participants, many of whom were in attendance. After mingling over light bites and drinks, guests headed to their seats. AFS CEO Rebecca Campbell then took the stage to welcome everyone and discuss the vital role that AFS plays in the regional film ecosystem.

    Words of Wisdom from Instructors

    Then the Director of Community Education and leader of the program, Rakeda Ervin, took over as our master of ceremonies, inviting various contributors to join her for discussions about the roles they played in last year’s program. She began by underscoring how competitive film and TV jobs can be and how we’re able to give meaningful opportunities to those who may be underrepresented in the industry, all while building the confidence, resumes, and professional networks of those participating in Creative Careers. 

    Rebecca Campbell, Austin Film Society CEO
    Rakeda Ervin, Director of Community Education
    (Left to right) Rakeda Ervin, Jacob Ramon, Christian Nelson

    She then invited Christian Nelson and Jacob Ramón — both AFS staff members and instructors — to the stage. They spoke about how they wished they’d had access to these workforce pathways when they were starting out. They both talked about the deep connection they feel to the participants and how meaningful it is that they can give back to their creative community. Jacob was an AFS intern in 2018 and has seen the program blossom into what it is today.

    Recent Graduates Share Their Experiences

    (Left to right) Rakeda Ervin, Alekka Hernandez, Andrew Luna
    (Left to right) Rakeda Ervin, Alekka Hernandez, Andrew Luna, Jeremiah Sudarmanto, Aster Fohl
    (Left to right) Andrew Luna, Jeremiah Sudarmanto, Aster Fohl

    Rakeda also introduced four Creative Careers participants to speak about their respective training pathways. One graduate, Alekka Hernandez, said she began as a blank slate in her knowledge of film and media production but ended up with a ton of hands-on experience, especially through her internship at Austin Studios where she was able to try her hand at editing for the first time. Now, Alekka is a full-time Operations Coordinator for AFS. All four graduates spoke about their goals and what training through Creative Careers meant to them: how fast it started to impact their lives, how important immersive training was to their development, and how it unlocked many doors for them personally and professionally.

    Click here or on the image below to watch “Where Are They Now?” an AFS Creative Careers Capstone video.

    It was a wonderful evening that continued in the lobby after the presentations were over. We can’t stress enough how proud we are of the 31 participants who’ve taken part in our program so far. After only a year, it’s already clear how crucial Creative Careers is for Austin’s media landscape. If you’re interested in applying, visit the Creative Careers website here.

    Watch the above video (or click here) to see a highlight reel of projects completed for clients by Creative Careers participants during the program.

    All photos by Heather Leah Kennedy.

  10. THE 2022 AFS HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

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    The Holiday season is upon us, and at AFS, that means it’s a time of giving (and sharing great cinema). With Black Friday and Giving Tuesday freshly behind us and the December holidays ahead, we figured we’d make your job as a gift-giver easy with a handy guide, including a few items handpicked by our programmers. 

    AFS Gift Cards

    Fresh off the presses (or the online equivalent) are digital gift cards, good for movie tickets and equipment/production classes. They’re an easy way to support both the Cinema and Austin Public, and you can pre-schedule them in advance for a timely arrival to the recipient of your choice. If you’re really close to this person, they might even take you with them to their next movie or class …

    Click here to purchase an AFS gift card.

    Holiday Programming at the Cinema


    Maybe you’re not convinced your gift-card recipient is going to bring you to the movies with them (a bummer, but technically OK). The surefire way to get to the theater is to join us for our Home for the Holidays programming. We’ll be screening a little bit of everything: cinema classics, family-friendly films, and some art-house favorites as well. (Also, here’s your friendly reminder that all purchases made at the box office, concessions, and the bar go toward supporting our nonprofit mission.)

    Home for the Holidays

    Other December Highlights

    Recommendation from the Programmers:

    Subscribe to Decadent Editions 

    “For the best gift you can give yourself or the budding cinephile in your life, my money is on a Decadent Editions subscription. Each book takes a deep dive into a contemporary classic with a perspective that is by turns thrilling and insightful.” —Jazmyne Moreno

    Titles include Goodbye, Dragon Inn and Inland Empire, both books about films we’ve screened at AFS Cinema. Check out Decadent Editions titles and subscriptions here.

    Give, Join, or Renew a Membership

    For those that are unfamiliar, here’s how our memberships work: You choose a level and get discounts (or free tickets, in the case of our Signature Screenings) on movies and on classes at Austin Public. You also get to be a part of the Austin film community and attend sneak previews, member mixers, and other exciting events. During the Holiday season, we sweeten the deal by giving special gifts to those who give, join, or renew a membership. Anyone who does so between now and January 2, 2023, will get a punch card worth five concessions. As a bonus, those joining/renewing at the LOVE level or above will get an AFS beanie as well, which you can give to a fellow movie lover or keep for yourself; the choice is yours.

    Click here to give, join, or renew an AFS Membership.

    Recommendation from the Programmers:

    Philippa Snow’s New Book 

    For anyone looking for a “hard-hitting” gift, look no further than Philippa Snow’s Which As You Know Means Violence: On Self-Injury as Art and Entertainment, which dives into and addresses the thorny “role that violence plays in twenty-first-century art and culture” through the work of Buster Keaton, Harmony Korine, Marina Abramović, Jackass, various YouTube stunt performers, and more.

    Check out an excerpt from the book (courtesy of Tank Magazine) here.

    AFS Gifts and Merchandise

    For those wanting to do a bit of browsing, there are some excellent gifts for sale in the AFS Cinema lobby. We have a variety of AFS tees with various designs for every type of filmgoer. We also have baseball caps and beanies to match. We even have AFS-branded mugs and a selection of books for sale, perfect for getting cozy during the rare nights when the weather’s cold in Texas. We have everything you need except the wrapping paper, so stop by to check out our selection.

    Make a Donation

    The most direct way to support AFS is through donations, which can always be made on someone else’s behalf. The money we raise supports our various programs: travel and production grants for filmmakers; workshops and training; our unique workforce development program, Creative Careers; and more. Our mission is to support the next generation of filmmakers not just in Austin but in Texas and across the U.S., and it’s with your support that we’re able to accomplish that each year.

    Click here to give directly to AFS.

  11. The “Beautifully Sculpted and Quietly Shattering” AFTERSUN Opens November 4 at AFS Cinema

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    “Rumors of something remarkable have circled around AFTERSUN since its première … and guess what? The rumors are true.” —Anthony Lane,     The New Yorker

    It’s rare that a nearly unknown filmmaker lands so squarely in the middle of the zeitgeist as director Charlotte Wells has with her arthouse smash AFTERSUN. Until recently, she was best known for her short films (“Laps” took home the Special Jury Recognition at SXSW 2017), but with the strong critical and commercial success of AFTERSUN by A24, we expect she’ll be known for features soon as well. 

    This searingly emotional debut film, produced by MOONLIGHT director Barry Jenkins, begins at a fading vacation resort where 11-year-old Sophie (sensational newcomer Frankie Corio) treasures rare time together with her loving and idealistic father, Calum (Normal People star Paul Mescal). As a world of adolescence creeps into view beyond her eye, Calum struggles under the weight of life outside of fatherhood. Twenty years later, Sophie’s tender recollections of their last holiday become a powerful and heartrending portrait of their relationship as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the man she didn’t. 

    AFTERSUN opens at AFS Cinema on Friday, November 4.

    REVIEWS

    “It’s deeply felt, a warm embodiment of a liminal time in life when our conceptions of ourselves and our loved ones come pinging into focus while also, somehow, drifting into new confusion.” —Richard Lawson, Vanity Fair

    “It’s a memory piece and, as such, a rumination on the ways in which memories can be at once indelible and imprecise, how they can torment us and fail us and still be the most precious things — maybe even the only things — we have left.” —Justin Chang, LA Times

    “A film to be experienced — just go with it — the full impact of AFTERSUN comes as the credits start to roll, and the processing begins.” —G. Allen Johnson, The San Fransisco Chronicle

    “The performances here are quiet marvels … Mescal reveals without showing, communicating with us in a language that goes beyond words, or even a glance.” —Stephanie Zacharek, Time Magazine

    “It’s about wanting to reach across time, and to meet a loved one in an impossible space where, for once, you’re both on the same level, and you can finally understand them for who they are — or who they were.” —Alison Willmore, Vulture

     

  12. PERFECT BLUE celebrates its 25th anniversary, screening September 16-22

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    Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue premiered at the Fantasia International Film Festival in 1997, forever changing the landscape of animated film as well as influencing many filmmakers to this day. The film operates as a psychological thriller with key horror aspects, yet what stands out most from Perfect Blue is its themes regarding fame, identity, and obsession, which are still hauntingly relevant to this day.

     

    Besides being one of the few early animated films targeted exclusively for adults, Perfect Blue has also proven influential to a wide array of filmmakers, most notably Darren Aronofsky with his film Black Swan. Kon’s other films have also had clear influences on filmmakers like Christopher Nolan, who’s infamous hallway fight scene in Inception is strikingly similar to a scene in Kon’s Paprika. Perfect Blue’s unique approach to genre, presenting a high concept sci-fi with clear societal thematic undertones, has been replicated and built on ever since, including films like The Matrix (Perfect Blue was released overseas before The Matrix).

     

    Today, over 10 years after Satoshi Kon’s death, his influence can be seen in many films, both animated and not. Read more about Perfect Blue’s influence in this article here, and also make sure to check out this article here discussing the film’s 25 year anniversary.

     

    Don’t miss PERFECT BLUE (25TH ANNIVERSARY), playing Sep 16-22.

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